Enugu State Governor , Barr. Peter Mbah has approved the hosting of the Nigeria National League Super 8 playoff in Enugu.
This is even as the Governor has assured to provide all logistics needed to ensure a successful competition.
George Aluo, Chairman of the Nigeria National League disclosed this on Monday, while speaking with journalists on preparations for the sporting event.
“We wrote His Excellency, Governor Peter Mbah to host the Super Eight. And I want to announced here that His Excellency has graciously approved that Enugu should hosts the super eight”, Aluo said.
“And I’m happy because we’re coming to the home of football. I mean, when you talk about football in Nigeria, you talk of traditional places, like Enugu, Ibadan and Kano, you talk about the home of the flying antelopes, the home of the Oluwole Warriors, and the home of Kano Pillars.”
He thanked the governor for all the resources the state has committed to hosting the game adding that the appointment of Barr. Llyold Ekweremadu as Commissioner for Sports was one of the best decisions of the governor as he sees as fit to redeem the image of Enugu in national sports festivals.
“I want to say a big thank you to His Excellency, the executive governor of Enugu state. He has been wonderful. I mean, this is a man that gave approval to our request, even one month ahead of the competition. That is amazing. And all the things that he promised us, he has put them in place. So we’re going to be very comfortable here in Enugu. And then I want to commend the young man that is driving Enugu Sports, the Commissioner for sports”.
“Lloyd Ekweremadu, very proactive. The meetings I’ve had with him , I find him an amazing young man who understands the pyrotechnics of football and sports. And I think with him, the sky will be the limit for sports in Enugu state, because he’s somebody that has a clear vision for sports in Enugu state. I want to believe His Excellency has made a very right choice in picking that young man as commissioner for sports in this state .
And the era when Enugu struggled at the sports festival, I’m going to see a change with what I’ve seen of Lyold, as a Sports Commissioner”.
He said the competition which will run from the 23rd, to the 30th of May will have its first match on the 24th, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium.
“There will be on the whole 13 Matches, with A and B. And we’re happy that the final will be happening at the same time when His Excellency , Governor Peter Mbah will be celebrating his one year anniversary”.
Speaking on what will be the prize for the overall winner, the NNL Chairman said, “When this present board came on, we felt that for us to take NNL to the next level, there will equally be prize money attached to winning it.
Before now, it has not happened. Last year, Heartland won it. They only went home with a trophy in Asaba. But we worked very hard, we got sponsorship from an insurance company to sponsor the prize money. And the winners of this year will get N5 million. Outside the trophy, we equally got a sponsor that is going to give prizes to the best goalkeeper, the most valuable player and the highest scorer”.
According to Aluo, to qualify for the Super 8, a team must come first or second in the four conferences adding that four teams from conference A and B have already secured their place in Super 8.
“We have four conferences in the NNL, Conferences A, B, C, and D. The teams that come first and second automatically qualify for the Super Eight. So the Super Eight is for first second in all the conferences and as we speak now two conferences have ended. That is conference A and B”.
“And the qualifiers for the Super Eight from those two conferences have already emerged. Sporting supreme came first, and Sokoto United came second conference A.
Then in conference B, Elkanemi warriors came first and Nasarawa United came second”.
“So these four teams are confirmed for Super Eight. Then in the next two weeks, also, three weeks, the other conferences will end, then we will now know the teams that will now make up the eight teams. But, like I said four are already through , four others will be through. If you look at the table, you will know the teams that are likely going to qualify. It is going to be a photofinish in conferences C and D. The race there is very tight, just like the race where you have Elkanemi warriors, Nasarawa United and Wikki. it was a tight one, at the end of the day Elkanemi and Nasarawa got the ticket. And Wikki gave it a good fight. I wish them luck. Maybe next season. But the point is that we created a level playing field for all the teams in all the conferences. So the era when in NNL people say is a cash and carry ladies club, the era when it was win at all cost at home is gone, you can go and check the statistics, you will see that we have a very high statistics of teams winning on the road. That shows you that officiating has improved and everything about the league has taken a different shape and dimension”.
“I want to commend the president of Nigeria Football Federation, Ibrahim Musa Gusau for all the support he gave to make this happen. And I’m happy that the present Board of NNL is taking the league to become the most important league, which it is actually is, because it’s a bridge from the amateur and the top one which is NPFL. So if that bridge is not solid, our domestic league willnot get it right. So the NNL is very solid, we have not got to where we want to take to. But this is our very first season as a board. And I think we have made a lot of progress. And for the first time we are following calendar. The regular season will end in another two weeks, and we already have a venue for our Super Eight. So that shows you how proactive we are” .
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