Age-old syndrome ruining the league

Alaba Balogun of 3Sc charges at Peter Bako of zamfara united in a premiership match played on Sunday 13th November 201 at Kano pillar stadium Kano. Photo by 4to-sports

By Ifeanyi Ibeh


November 28, 2010 12:53AM


The 2010/2011 Nigerian Premier League season has been on for close to a month now and a couple of impressive performances have been recorded by clubs as they attempt to justify the ‘huge' resources expended on them by their sponsors.

But it appears the pressure to achieve success is gradually beginning to lead to the re-emergence of a disease that is as old as organized league football in Nigeria - the win-at-all-costs syndrome.

After the opening weekend of the new season, the Nigerian league and its organizers, the Nigeria Premier League (NPL) justifiably received applause for the series of impressive results recorded by clubs, mostly those playing away from home.

Kano Pillars set the ball rolling with a 1-1 draw against Kaduna United in the opening game of the season on November 6 before Dolphins travelled to Jos the following day, to post a 1-0 win over Plateau United. Newly promoted JUTH also achieved a respectable 1-1 draw against Sharks in Port Harcourt courtesy of a goal in added time by their Ghanaian import James Amankwei, while Zamfara United played out a goalless draw away to Bukola Babes.

Even Lobi Stars received commendation from Enugu Rangers' coach Alphonsus Dike after leaving Enugu, and with their heads up high, on the back of a 3-2 loss to the Flying Antelopes. The following weekend was even better for the away sides as six of the ten scheduled games ended in score draws most notably the encounter in Kano between Zamfara United and visiting Shooting Stars that saw the home side grabbing a very late equalizer through an own goal by the Ibadan side's Festus Iyonu.

Even more remarkable about the second round of matches was the fact that all the other drawn games ended 1-1 with the visitors coming from behind to draw level against their hosts, while the latest goal recorded on the score sheet, besides the Zamfara equalizer, was the 82nd minute goal by Omoh Ojabu which decided the outcome of the game in Port Harcourt between Dolphins and Rangers.

Then came last weekend's third round of matches and a whole lot that everyone was beginning to forget suddenly returned to the consciousness of followers of the Nigerian league.

Although Sunshine Stars recorded an away win - a 1-0 victory over Plateau United- while Heartland and JUTH recorded draws away from home, the weekend was blighted by the lone goal victory of Kwara United over Kano Pillars with the home side's winning goal arriving in the 95th minute courtesy of a penalty conversion by Isiaka Olawale. This was after the visitor's had seen their goalkeeper Theophilus Afelokhai sent off by the referee.

"It's so sad to lose a game in such manner; it wasn't fair on my players," recalled Salisu Yusuf, the Kano Pillars coach. "We had done everything we could and deserved to come out with a draw from that game but the referee felt otherwise and I wouldn't completely blame him for doing that; it happens all the time in our league." According to Mr Yusuf, a former Nigerian international, the match which was played at the Offa Township Stadium did not have enough security personnel on ground.

Inadequate security

"I don't think the security provided by the home team was enough to guarantee the safety of the officials and that is something the NPL should look at in order to forestall a recurrence this season," Yusuf added.

Under the rules and regulations of the ongoing Premier League season, it is the joint responsibility of the state FA and the Premier League club under its jurisdiction to provide security at match venues.

Article 3.4 (1) of the rules and regulations, which is specific about security at match venues on match days highlights that ‘a minimum of 50 law enforcement agents are required before the start of a game. However, the Match Commissioner shall commence matches if satisfied with the security available on ground.' It also stated in Article 3.4 (2) that ‘security personnel shall be detailed to match officials and the away team.' "Those are the rules," Emeka Nwani, the head of media of the NPL told NEXT. "The state FAs and the clubs under their jurisdiction must provide security at match venues.

"The NPL cannot take any decision on the Kwara United/Kano Pillars game until we get the official reports from both the match commissioner and the referee. But if the referee was intimidated or harassed in that game the match commissioner has the power to call off the game.

"And if this is indicated in his report three points and three goals will be deducted from the guilty club," added Nwani with reference to Article 3.7(2 and 3) of the rules and regulations.

Article 3.7 (1) states that: ‘where the match officials are harassed or intimidated,

Match Commissioners are empowered to call off or discontinue with the meetings and or the matches' while Article 3.7(3) states that: ‘upon receipt of the Match Commissioner's report, 3 points 3 goals shall be deducted from the already accrued points of the offending team, and the opponent shall be credited with 3 points and 3 goals.' "But referees are also humans, they make mistakes but it is not peculiar to Nigeria as it also happens in Europe," added Nwani referring to the last Wednesday's UEFA Champions League match between Braga and Arsenal; a match that was overseen with the experimental two additional penalty area referee's assistants.

"The referee ought to have awarded a penalty to Arsenal but he felt the player had dived and instead issued him a yellow card. That decision turned out to be crucial as Braga went on to score two goals and win the game.

Sanitizing the league

He then added that "The NPL will not sanitize the league in one year. In fact, we may need as much as five or six years to bring the league to a standard everyone will be proud to be associated with, but it is a gradual process and we're very much on track." The NPL sure appears to be on track with their efforts at sanitizing the league judging by the actions already taken by them in recent weeks.

Firstly, they fined Niger Tornadoes the sum of one million naira after their first and second choice goalkeepers appeared in unauthorized team jerseys in their game against Heartland.

The NPL also fined Rangers the sum of five hundred thousand naira after the name on the back of the jersey of one of its players in their 1-0 loss to Dolphins was discovered to have been done with the aid of a coloured pen.

"The rules are clear," continued Nwani "Rangers were fined just for simply using a coloured marker to indicate the name of a player on his jersey. The same thing happened to Niger Tornadoes.

"So if at the end of the day any team is discovered to have threatened the safety of match officials or visiting teams by not providing adequate security during matches then such a team will be sanctioned accordingly." The maximum penalty in this case, if it is proven that match

officials were harassed by club supporters or officials, even before, during or after pre-match meetings, is a fine of five million naira which according to Article 3.7(1), must be paid before the club's next home match.

Controversial Garden City derby

Undoubtedly, the biggest news from last weekend's matches was the controversial lone goal defeat inflicted on Dolphins by fierce Port Harcourt rivals Sharks.

The game was the most eagerly anticipated match of last weekend's games and was beamed live across Africa by SuperSport. Both sides actually tried to make a contest of it in the first half but it was a different kettle of fish in the second half as players of Dolphins literally went to sleep right after Sharks shot into the lead in the 64th minute through veteran forward Victor Ezeji.

Afterwards, Dolphins appeared content to leave the score line as it was as they made no effort to threaten their opponents thus fuelling rumours that the game's outcome might actually have been predetermined especially as both sides are jointly owned by the Rivers state government.

Both sides however vehemently denied the allegations while the NPL, through its chairman Davidson Owumi, stated that the league body will wait to receive the official report of the game before deciding on the next step adding that if the official report indicates that there was any sign of foul play, the NPL "will not hesitate to take action." Any action taken in this regard by the NPL will be in line with Article 4.5 which ensures that any club or clubs found guilty will be fined the sum of 20 million naira and expelled from the league.

In addition, the result of the match shall be cancelled and any individual found guilty of involvement in the act shall be banned from league related activities for a minimum period of five years.

There is however no provision in the NPL's rules and regulations guarding against the single ownership of clubs in the same competition by a single entity, which is a violation of Article 9 of the FIFA Club Licensing Regulations which prohibit a single natural or legal entity from direct or indirect ownership of multiple clubs, in the same competition.

Siasia promises a new dawn for the Eagles

By Ifeanyi Ibeh

November 19, 2010 06:42PM

Samson Siasia, the new coach of the Super Eagles, has promised to gradually enforce changes in the national team saying that it won’t be business as usual by the time he resumes as the new Super Eagles coach.

Siasia will resume officially as the team’s head coach on December 1, but his emergence as the new helmsman had long been foreseen and most believed it was only a matter of time before the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) listen to the clamour from the streets that he be handed the Super Eagles job.

He was denied the position back in 2008 when the NFF opted to name Shaibu Amodu as the successor to Berti Vogts.

Now that Siasia has finally gotten the job he has described as his “dream job”, he knows he has to do all within his power to ensure that he does not end up disappointing those who have stood by him all these years.

“Nigerians have never hidden their love for me,” he told NEXT. “Right from my playing days to this day they have made it obvious that I am part of one very big football family and I will do everything I can to make sure that I do not disappoint them.”

Nigerians have been apparently disenchanted with the performance of the Super Eagles over the past couple of years, a time that has also seen the side struggle to attain the lofty heights of a past golden generation.

Nigerian players were a force to be reckoned with globally and the onus falls on Siasia, himself a member of the greatest Super Eagles side ever (the 1994 squad), to rebuild the Super Eagles and transform them into a side capable of resuming a position of world beaters.

There have also been calls from football fans for sweeping changes within the Super Eagles set-up especially as most of the current national team regulars have been deemed ‘too old’ to contribute meaningfully to the team’s long term goals.

Siasia insists he is in tune with “the yearnings of the people” but says changes will not be swift, but gradual.

“I have my plans for the team and there will definitely be changes but I will try to carry everybody along,” he said.

“The World Cup is four years away and four years is a very long time in the life of a footballer.

“If you add four years to the present age of some of the players they may no longer be at their best by 2014, so younger players will have to be introduced into the team, but only gradually.

“That is the only way it can be done in order not to create a vacuum in the team. So the moment I see someone who can fit into the team; who has something to offer the team, we will find a way to integrate that player into the team,” added Siasia, who also laid emphasis on discipline and work ethic as yardsticks for anyone aspiring to be in the new Super Eagles.

Discipline in the team

Indiscipline in the national team has for long been an issue as players have often been accused of not showing enough commitment and the proper level of professionalism when representing their country.

There had been instances in the past when players had been accused outside the field of play of engaging in activities detrimental to the team’s cause and unbecoming of individuals on national team assignment.

It is probably for reasons such as these that it had been suggested that national team players could be made to sign a Code of Conduct by the NFF in a bid to curb the players’ excesses.

“Discipline is synonymous with success. A disciplined side has a much better chance of attaining success than an undisciplined one,” said Siasia. “I would rather have a bunch of disciplined and dedicated players than a bunch of unruly players even if they are the best players on the planet.”

It is a view that is shared by Siasia’s former Super Eagles team mate, Emeka Ezeugo, who believes tough times lie ahead for any Super Eagles player not ready to change his ways for the better.

“I feel sorry for any player who isn’t ready to change his ways because this guy (Siasia) will not tolerate nonsense from anyone,” Ezeugo told NEXT.

“He has a fantastic rapport with his players and is a very friendly guy but he also knows when and where to draw the line, and any player who messes up after this line has been drawn will have himself to blame,” added Ezeugo, who was until recently was Siasia’s coaching assistant at Nigerian Premier League side Heartland FC, Owerri.

Siasia, Heartland and Kalika

Siasia’s continuous involvement with the Owerri-based club, even after securing the Super Eagles job, has been a topic for debate amongst footfall fans lately. But he said the matter will be resolved before he resumes with the NFF on December 1.

“My contract with the NFF hasn’t commenced yet but everything will be resolved before December,” said Siasia who refused to divulge further details.

Another issue is Siasia’s selection of Surinamese coach, Simon Kalika as his coaching assistant. This decision hasn’t gone down well with some individuals who would have preferred a Nigerian in that position.

One of such individuals is former international Peterside Idah who on Thursday on live television spoke against Siasia’s intention to have Kalika tag along as his assistant.

Although Idah was quick to point out that he held no ill feelings towards Kalika, he is of the opinion that a local coach will be better suited for the position; a view that got the backing of former Bafana Bafana of South Africa skipper Lucas Radebe.

Siasia and Kalika have been working together since 2005 when Siasia led the Flying Eagles to a second-place finish at the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in the Netherlands, right up to the football event of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China where the Nigerian team returned with a silver medal, and even at last year’s FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Egypt.

And he has no qualms at having his trusted right-hand man by his side yet again.

“We have known each other for quite some time now and have come to appreciate one another,” he said. “We don’t always agree on everything but he is someone I respect; he also respects me, and we work very well together.

“I understand what he (Idah) was trying to say but the truth is I prefer working with someone I know very well than with someone new.”

Nduka Ugbade, a former Super Eagles colleague of Siasia’s, and also a coach, is totally in support of Siasia’s decision to recruit Kalika.

“If I were in Siasia’s shoes I would do the same,” he told NEXT. “The position of an assistant coach is very vital to the success of a team. If you don’t have an assistant you can confide in, an assistant that you trust, then it will be almost impossible for the coach to succeed.

“So, I am totally in support of his decision to bring in Kalika and I believe the NFF have done well to support his decision. I am sure they will not regret it.”

World Cup target

Kalika himself hasn’t been quiet as he was quoted in the media as saying that Siasia has set a semi-final target for the Super Eagles at the 2014 World Cup.

Nigeria’s best at the World Cup were back-to-back second round appearances in 1994 and 1998 but Kalika expressed confidence that the semi-final target was achievable and that it only required “good planning”.

Siasia agrees that with the right level of planning and organisation, the Super Eagles can qualify for the World Cup and go further than they had ever done at the tournament but insists everything has to be taken one step at a time.

“I don’t know about a semi-final target but it will be a great achievement for an African team,” he said. “It won’t be easy but if we plan properly we can go very far.

“With good planning, the right players and the right attitude, we can achieve anything but everything has to be taken one step at a time,” added Siasia whose top priority remains securing a ticket to the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations to be co-hosted by Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

2012 before 2014

The Super Eagles are currently second behind Guinea in their qualifying group but will need to win the group ahead of the Syli Stars if they want to qualify automatically for the Nations Cup.

This has placed a lot of pressure on Siasia as the NFF, through Chris Green, it’s technical committee head, said that Siasia has been given a mandate not only to qualify the team for the Nations Cup, but to reach the semi-final otherwise the last two years of his four-year deal will not be activated by the NFF.

In response, Siasia said he is up to the task and will do all he can to get the Super Eagles’ Cup of Nations qualification back on track, and thereafter focus on the tournament itself.

“It looks difficult at the moment because of the loss to Guinea but we still have four matches to go,” he said. “After that we can now look at what we need to do at the tournament and plan towards it.

No instant success

Siasia is however quick to warn that success won’t come in an instant. The new coach said taking the Super Eagles back to the level they occupied back in the mid-90s culminating in the 1994 conquest of the Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia will be gradual.

“It’s not going to be immediate as it will take some time to rebuild and get an ideal team that Nigerians will be happy to associate with, but we will get there.

“There may be some unfavourable results here and there but that is something we have to be prepared for, after all Rome wasn’t built in a day.”

In the eyes of the average football follower in Nigeria, good results will not matter if the Super Eagles don’t play an attractive brand of football to go along with the results. So what does Siasia intend to do about this?

“My football philosophy is attack oriented. I prefer attractive, free-flowing football but I also love to win. Having said that, I don’t think Nigerians will be pleased if we played attractive football only to end up losing games.

“Winning is the most important thing in football. I would prefer my team to play badly and win rather than to please the fans and end up losing, but I know that over the next couple of years we will have a team that Nigerians will love to be associated with.”

NFF to hold elections in defiance of court order

Ifeanyi Ibeh


August 26, 2010

The Nigeria Football Federation is determined to hold its elections today, despite orders from a High Court in Lagos that the polls be postponed.

The elections had earlier been scheduled to take place last Saturday but it was rescheduled for today by the congress of the NFF. Tuesday’s court decision which arose from a complaint filed by a former footballer, Harrison Jalla, on behalf of the National Association of Nigerian Footballers (NANF), a body that was not accorded recognition by the NFF which favoured the Association of Professional Footballers of Nigeria (APFON). The injunction was the latest twist in the ongoing confusion in Nigerian football.

Tuesday also saw a group of placard carrying former footballers led by former Nigeria captain Segun Odegbami, who is aspiring to become the next president of the NFF. the group stormed Abuja clamouring for the postponement of the board elections.

But despite these developments, as well as the court order calling for the postponement of the polls, the NFF insists the elections will take place as scheduled.

“I have read somewhere in the papers about a court order but as far as I know there has not been any change regarding the elections,” media officer of the NFF, Robinson Okosun told NEXTSports before adding: “They will go on as scheduled.”

Singing FIFA’s tune

The NFF’s decision is in sync with that of football’s world governing body FIFA, and its African affiliate CAF, which has all along insisted that elections must go on as scheduled. But former Nigeria international Taju Disu, was among a group of former internationals at a press conference in Abuja who yesterday lent their voice to the clamour for fresh postponement of the elections, saying the NFF was walking on dangerous grounds.

“It is obvious to all of us that these elections should not take place if we want to get things right in our football,” said Disu. “We have been getting it all wrong for a long time and now is the time for us to do the right thing.

“What some individuals are trying to perpetrate is a scheme that will usher in the same set of individuals who have been ruining our football and they are trying to use the threat of a FIFA ban to shut us all up.

“But we know the entire process is flawed and if it goes on it will only result into more confusion,” added Disu who then called for all the ex-internationals vying for positions into the NFF board to pull out of Thursday’s polls.

That call appears to have been accepted by Odegbami who informed NEXTSports that he won’t be contesting in the polls if it goes ahead as planned.

“I won’t contest if it goes ahead,” he told NEXTSports on the line from Abuja. “The entire process is flawed and I will not be a part of it if it goes ahead.” Another former international, Mutiu Adepoju, who is also vying for a position in the NFF board however declined to comment.