The Nation Newspaper

Category: Sports

  • Shittu to get Beevers boost

    Super Eagles defender Danny Shittu is expected to get a defensive boost as his Championship side Millwall is set to sign new defender Mark Beevers.

    Millwall say it will sign on-loan Sheffield Wednesday defender Mark Beevers for an undisclosed fee on 1 January, 2013.

    The 23-year-old joined the Lions in October on a 28-day emergency loan deal, which was then extended until January, and has gone on to play 11 games for the Championship side.

    Beevers, who has agreed a three-year deal, began his career at Wednesday and made 186 appearances for the side.

    “I’m delighted to be joining Millwall in January,” he said.

    “Things have gone very well for me here during my loan spell here. The lads have made me very welcome, as have the fans and I’m looking forward to the next three years.”

  • Ideye, Haruna begin vacation

    Nigeria internationals at Dynamo Kiev – Taye Taiwo, Yussuf Ayila, Brown Ideye and Lukman Haruna – have proceeded on vacation, which will last until January 10, football.ua citing the official website of the Ukrainian vice – champions is reporting.

    Dynamo’s first collection in preparation for the second part of the season will take place from 14 to 26 January in Marbella (Spain). The team will play 3 – 4 test matches against unnamed opponents.

    Then, the “white-blue” return to Kiev, but not for long. From January 30 to 11 (or 12) of February, there are plans to hold another gathering in Marbella. Dynamo will traditionally take part in the Marbella Cup tournament . Last season, Dynamo Kiev came second.

    The first game of the knock out round of the Europa League holds on February 14 in Kiev, the reverse fixture takes place a week later.

    Schedule for the team in the second half of February will be known later.

  • Hull City may risk Aluko

    Hull manager Steve Bruce will make a late decision on whether to include Sone Aluko in his squad for the game at Watford.

    The winger is still struggling with the knee problem that kept him out of last week’s win at Nottingham Forest. He returned to training this week, but is now hoping he does not suffer a reaction and could undergo a late fitness test.

    Bruce has no new injury or suspension problems, but long-term casualties Jack Hobbs and Tom Cairney (both knee) are not expected to be included.

    Defender Hobbs has not featured for the Tigers this season, while midfielder Cairney has been sidelined since August and although they are both close to returning they missed game time when a reserve-team fixture was called off this week.

    Ruled out:

    Striker Matty Fryatt (Achilles) and defender Joe Dudgeon (knee) remain long-term absentees, but defenders Abdoulaye Faye and Liam

    Rosenior and German striker Nick Proschwitz are all pushing for recalls as the Tigers look to secure back-to-back away wins.

  • We’ll abide by NFF’s decision — NPL clubs

    Nigerian Premier League (NPL) club chairmen have agreed to abide by the latest decision of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), asking the NPL management to go ahead with the 2012 congress, and also fix a new date for the congress.

    The NFF, after a meeting held Friday in Abuja, ordered the Chief Baribote-led NPL board to convene a proper congress in line with the status of the League.

    Chairman of the six-man constituted committee, Mike Idoko said the club chairmen will not go against the NFF order. “We will abide by NFF decision.

    “We will go for the congress,” Idoko told futaa.com

    It would be recalled that the NPL clubs chairmen held a meeting in Abuja on Tuesday, and sensationally dissolved the Board of the NPL led by Rumson Baribote.

  • Odibe returns to Arsenal Kiev

    Arsenal Kiev have recalled one-cap Nigeria international Michael Odibe from his loan spell with Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk, informs the official website of the Europa League campaigners.

    Odibe had repeatedly stated that he wanted to remain with Dnipro, but the capital team are in urgent need of his services. On the 16-team Premier League table, they have the 12th worst defense after conceding 26 goals in 18 matches.

    Dnipro have gone on vacation and will return to training on January 8th. The club previously announced that one of the priorities in the winter transfer market was to sign a central defender.

    In nine matches in the Ukrainian Premier League for Dnipro, Odibe was on target once, against Karpaty in October.

  • NHF identifies 60 talented players

    The Nigeria Handball Federation (NHF) said on Friday that it had identified 60 talented male and female players at the ongoing 18th National Sports Festival in Lagos who could fit into the national team.

    Moses Balogun, President, Handball Referees Association, disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) at the Handball Courts of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), venue of the event.

    Balogun said that the identified players were more than what were discovered at the 17th edition of the festival in Port Harcourt in 2011.

    “We are able to identify more talents here in Lagos than last year in Port Harcourt due to the high standards displayed here. From the statistics available and from the selections that have been conducted so far, we have already discovered about 30 male and 30 female players with high potential. `These talents are physically fit, with a very high prospect,” Balogun said.

    The president, who is also a member of the NHF technical committee, noted that Nigeria’s glory in handball would be restored if the identified talents were properly harnessed. He said that the federation would organise a two-week training camp for the identified players through the National Sports Commission (NSC), during the next long vacation.

    Meanwhile, Team Lagos has defeated Team Borno, 26-22, to clinch the men’s gold medal of the event, while Team Rivers defeated Lagos, 29-25, to win the female gold medal.

    Mohammed Ali, Chief Coach, Borno State Handball Association, attributed the state’s loss at the final to the crowd which, according to him, was overtly in support of the host team.

    “My team played a better game than Lagos but because we were playing against the hosts at the final, everybody was in support of Team Lagos and we lost,“ he said. Ali, however, said that Team Borno would prepare early for the next edition of the festival in Calabar in 2014.

    Ondo male and female teams won the event’s bronze medals. The male team defeated Team Sokoto, 30-23, while the female team defeated Team Plateau, 20-15.

    Tomiwa Olalude, Assistant Head Coach of Team Ondo, attributed the inability of the state’s male and female teams to clinch the gold medals to injuries sustained by the players.

    “We were determined from the beginning to deliver the gold medals to our state, but we were checkmated by the injuries sustained by our players. The bronze medal is certainly not bad too,“ he said.

    NAN reports that Team Borno also lost at the final of the 17th edition of the tournament in Port-Harcourt in 2011 to the then hosts, Team Rivers.

  • 6,000 viewers watch Eko 2012 online —LOC

    No fewer than 6,000 viewers from 45 countries are watching the ongoing 18th National Sports Festival (NSF) online, a consultant with the Local Organising Committee (LOC), has said.

    Mr Bayo Okunowo, the Product Manager, Crown Interactive Ltd, said on Friday in Lagos that the UK and the U.S. recorded the highest number of viewers outside Nigeria. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Crown interactive is a service aggregation company that is in partnership with the LOC of “Eko 2012’’ sports fiesta to stream live actions of the games. The games were being streamed on Vodstreet web-portal, a multi-screen internet television platform which widens consumer reach and increases access to a worldwide audience.

    “As at December. 6, 881 Nigerian viewers have watched the games; UK has 147 while U.S. has 99 viewers. Countries where viewers have watched the games are Turkey, Austria, India, Italy, India, Italy, Spain, France, Canada, Ghana, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Ireland and host of others. We are pleased to inform you that no fewer than 6,000 viewers from 45 countries have watched the Eko 2012 games so far,’’ he said.

    Meanwhile, the full marathon race for the festival would commence on Saturday from Funsho Williams Avenue at 7. am.

    The race would course through the Eko Bridge, Apongbon, Marwa Ring Road (CMS) and some notable landmark areas before terminating at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere.

  • Ondo coach attributes gains in swimming to regular training

    Regina Enofe, Head Coach, Ondo State Swimming Association on Friday attributed her swimmers successes at the ongoing 18th National Sports Festival in Lagos to proper use of the Olympic-size swimming pool in Akure.

    Enofe told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the state swimmers had tremendously improved their performance since they started using the facility. She expressed the belief that her swimmers would soon begin to represent Nigeria in international tournaments.

    Enofe said the swimmers had so far won five gold, two silver and four bronze medals at the Games, tagged “Eko 2012’’. It will be recalled that they won one gold, nine silver and 15 bronze in swimming at the 17th edition of the festival in Port Harcourt in 2011. She said they were hopeful of winning more medals before the event ends today.

    “We have the facility and our swimmers train regularly. If the facility is there and they decide not to train regularly, the results will not be this good. Their performance here is much better than what we had in Port Harcourt. Many of them are attending the festival for the first time and I hope that they will keep improving, with time,” she said.

    Akina Kpiliboh, one of the swimmers who won three gold medals in the women’s event, attributed her success to adequate training from her coach. She dedicated the medals to her family whom, she said, had supported her training.

    NAN reports that Ondo State has so far won 12 gold, 6 silver and 18 bronze, making a total of 36 medals, as at Thursday. Ondo State is at the sixth position on the medals table.

    The 14-day fiesta tagged “Eko 2012,’’ which opened on Nov. 27, is scheduled to round-off on Dec. 9.

  • NFF rejects Baribote’s sack

    NFF rejects Baribote’s sack

     

    The Nigeria Football Federation has rejected the decision of club bosses to sack the Victor Baribote-led Nigeria Premier League board, MTNFootball.com reports.

    The NFF said the decision to dissolve the NPL board did not comply with the statutes of the NPL.

    Baribote has maintained he was not aware of the decision to sack him and that the club chairmen did not adhere to the statutes of the NPL before taking the decision.

    In a communiqué issued after an emergency NFF executive committee meeting in Abuja on Friday, the body ordered the NPL to stage their congress on December 11 in Abuja.

    The NFF therefore appointed three of their executives, Emeka Inyama, Sulaiman Yahaya Kwande and Shehu Adamu, to attend Tuesday’s congress as observers.

    On Wednesday, the chairmen of at least 16 clubs passed a vote of no confidence on Baribote and his executives.

    They sacked the board and in their place appointed a six-man interim committee led by Mike Idoko.

     

  • EMENIKE TO UEFA: Ref Felix Brych was biased

    EMENIKE TO UEFA: Ref Felix Brych was biased

    Super Eagles and Spartak Moscow forward, Emmanuel Emenike is unhappy over Spartak Moscow’s 1 – 2 loss to Celtic in the UEFA Champions League tie on Wednesday.

    Emenike told Chempionat.com that the final score line was not a true reflection of the game.

    ”It’s a shame to lose such matches. We fought from the first second to the final whistle, trying to show our best qualities. We were better than Celtic in many areas, but in the end did not achieve the result. ”

    Speaking further, the Nigeria international suggested that the match official from Germany was biased in his decision to award a penalty to the Scottish side.

    “Before the game we were told that it would be something special. And reality has confirmed these words. Fans supported Celtic powerfully. But also, Spartak fans supported us fantastically. They were perfectly audible even through the continuous noise of the Scots. What a huge thank you.

    ”The referee influenced the outcome of the match. Celtic did not create scoring chances. I want to mention that we played against a very well-prepared team. For the Scots, was an important tournament result, and they fought hard. I hope you will soon see the old Emenike, who will score a lot of goals,” he added, but was quick to hail the manner Celtic fans conducted themselves during the encounter.