The Nation Newspaper

Tag: play

  • Child’s play

    Child’s play

    With the long vacation for schools fast approaching, the National Troupe is preparing to host the fourth edition of its annual Children Creative Station Workshop (CCSW). The workshop is conceived as a long vacation theatre workshop for children between the ages of five and seventeen and it is primarily aimed at exposing participants to general theatre practice and appreciation of the creative arts.

    The 2014 edition according to the coordinator of the project and director in charge of Drama of the National Troupe, Ms Josephine Igberaese, would begin as from the first week of August 2014 and will run for a period of one month. She also disclosed that at the end of the creative workshop exercise, the participants would be expected to put up a performance that will detail all they have learnt during the one-month training period. ‘What we are doing is in line with one of our objectives which is to encourage the development of children’s theatre. But beyond that we have used the project successfully over the last three years to groom future theatre practitioners who may want to take up a career in the theatre and allied genre like taking part in Nigeria’s Nollywood’’.

    Explaining further that one of the other objectives behind the exercise is to engage the children creatively during the long holidays

  • Oshaniwa: I want to play in England

    Oshaniwa: I want to play in England

    Nigeria World Cup defender Juwon Oshaniwa has told AfricanFootball.com his dream is to play in the English Premier League.

    Oshaniwa, who rose to the occasion at Brazil 2014, said he was delighted with his performance at the World Cup, where he played against “exceptional” Lionel Messi. Excerpt:

    How would you describe the performance of Nigeria in Brazil?

    It was not a bad one, though we desired for something great at the World Cup, but we found ourselves not going beyond second round. It was a good outing, all the same.

    As an individual, how was your own performance?

    It was a great performance for me. The experience for me was a sign of better days ahead in the Eagles.

    Which game will you pick as your toughest?

    That is the game against Iran. It was my first game at the World Cup and a lot was expected from me and I did not disappoint.

    Who was the toughest player you faced in Brazil?

    That was (Mathieu) Vabuena from France, he was trickish but I showed my stuff.

    Who was the softest?

    Who is the player you dream of playing against?

    That has happened already, that is Lionel Messi. He is a great player, exceptional, a magician.

    You are currently with FC Ashdod in Israel, but are you going to move?

    Football is all about movement, I will keep doing my best to keep growing and see what happens.

    Where are you hoping to play this summer?

    I have not decided that, and I still have a contact with Ashdod.

    Where is your dream league?

    That is the English Premier League. It is my desire to play there soon because it is the best league in the world presently.

    There is  unrest in Israel, could that impact on your future at Ashdod?

    Honestly, it is an area that should give one some concern. Good atmosphere has a lot to do in football, but God will surely direct me. Ashdod still have right over me because I still have a valid contract with them.

    Where are the offers for you coming from now?

    Lots of places like Belgium, Turkey, Qatar, Ukraine, but I told them to speak with Ashdod.

    The AFCON 2015 qualifiers will start for the Eagles in September, will the Eagles be ready?

    Yes, we will be ready. Leagues would be on by then and every player will be active and fit. I am looking forward to us qualifying and going ahead to successfully defend our trophy in Morocco.

  • Child’s play

    Child’s play

    With the long vacation for schools fast approaching, the National Troupe is preparing to host the fourth edition of its annual Children Creative Station Workshop (CCSW). The workshop is conceived as a long vacation theatre workshop for children between the ages of five and seventeen and it is primarily aimed at exposing participants to general theatre practice and appreciation of the creative arts.

    The 2014 edition according to the coordinator of the project and director in charge of Drama of the National Troupe, Ms Josephine Igberaese, would begin as from the first week of August 2014 and will run for a period of one month. She also disclosed that at the end of the creative workshop exercise, the participants would be expected to put up a performance that will detail all they have learnt during the one-month training period. ‘What we are doing is in line with one of our objectives which is to encourage the development of children’s theatre. But beyond that we have used the project successfully over the last three years to groom future theatre practitioners who may want to take up a career in the theatre and allied genre like taking part in Nigeria’s Nollywood’’.

    Explaining further that one of the other objectives behind the exercise is to engage the children creatively during the long holidays,

  • All work and no play…

    Pharmacy students of the University of Benin (UNIBEN) suspended academics to participate in the Dean’s Cup, a sporting event organised by the Director of Sport of the Pharmaceutical Association of Nigeria Students (PANS). EZEKIEL EFEOBHOKHAN (300-Level Pharmacy) reports.

    In a few weeks, they will be writing exam but students of the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Benin (UNIBEN) are not bothered. They suspended academic activities to participate in the faculty’s annual sport fiesta.

    The event featured variety of sports, ranging from football to sprint relay and long distance races that stretched to 1,500 metres both in male and female categories. The five-day event was held in the university’s Sport Complex.

    In his short message to kick off the event, the Deputy Dean, Students’ Affairs, Dr Tony Waka, urged the participants to promote the spirit of sportsmanship in all the sporting activities, saying: “Sports are for fun and for exercise; as pharmacy students, you all know the benefits of exercising the body. This and many more reasons made the faculty board to be in support of this event.”

    The first four days saw various classes to battle one another to qualify from the group stage. Students of 300-Level and 600-Level qualified, having beaten their 400-Level and 500-Level counterparts in the male category. In female category, 300-Level and 200-Level qualified for the final round.

    Emmanuel Osakpolor and Kelvin Enoghase, both of the 400-Level class, won the 100 and 400 metres relay while Jude Usman, a 300-Level student, won 1500 meter race in the male category.

    Rita Ihaza clinched prizes for the 100 and 400 meters race in the female category.

    There were tension and apprehension on the pitch at the grand finale of the soccer contest, where 300-Level and 200-Level female students battled for the trophy. The match was fun as the students displayed their soccer skills to entertain the boys.

    However, a shot by Faith Okhemsimi assisted by the captain Faith Ogbena gave the 300-Level class a lead over their junior colleagues in 39 minute of the game. The match ended 1-0 in the favour of the 300-Level class.

    Faith Okhemesimi was adjudged Best Female Player of the contest.

    The grand finale of the male contest between 600-Level and 300-Level classes started at 4:15pm. Fourteen minutes into the match, a controversy broke out when the referee ruled out a goal scored by the 600-Level class. The 300-Level players, led by Benjamin Idiakhoa, defended its side until 64th minute when Festus Esiegbe of the contending team broke the defence and scored a goal.

    One of the players, Marvellous Eromosele, was taken out of the field, having sustained an injury on the mouth, which had its tooth removed. The injured player was given a first-aid treatment by a paramedical team led by Ogah Ibadin, a student. Afterwards, Marvellous was referred to the UNIBEN Teaching Hospital (UBTH) for treatment.

    Another controversy broke out when Prince Okooboh, a 300-Level class player, was knocked down in the goal area. The referee, who initially decided a penalty kick, ruled offside after he consulted one of the officials. This caused a stir as fans went wild, disrupting the game for a moment. They situation was later brought under control but match ended 1-0 in favour of the 600-Level class.

    Coach of the 300-Level class, Ifeanyi Ajudeonu, was not happy about the outcome of the game. He praised his players for putting up a good performance. He said: “The referee’s decision was against my team as we had opportunity to score goal but we were denied. Too two of our key players were taken out because of injury.”

    The 600-Level captain, Meshach Chu, said the game was tough for his side but thanked God for the win. “This is the third time we are winning the Dean’s cup but this particular one is dedicated to Hulera Momoh, our colleague that died last year.”

    The Director of Sport, Chinedu Dimnoyeka, said he was happy about the success of the fiesta.

    Some of the players, who put up brilliant performance, were honoured. The Highest Goal Scorer went to Uyi Igbinadolor, a 600-Level student, while Best Midfielder went to Christian Ezeokoye, a 400-Level student.

    Others are Osmond Ezeagu (Best Defender), Lawrence Ameh (Best Keeper) and Best Player of the tournament, Festus Esiegbe, a 600-Leevel student. The 500-Level class won the Best Behaved Team.

    Dr Waka congratulated the students and told them to go read for their examination.

  • Kano Pillars play Bayelsa Utd Wednesday

    Kano Pillars play Bayelsa Utd Wednesday

    Kano Pillars will face Bayelsa United in a rescheduled Glo Premier League game on Wednesday at the Kano Pillars stadium on Wednesday.

    The match was postponed by the League Management Company (LMC) due to the Bayelsa United involvement in the continental assignment.

    All Week 19 league games involving Kano Pillars vs Dolphins and El-Kanemi Warriors versus Rangers matches over the weekend were postponed to next Saturday due to the death of Emir of Kano, Ado Bayero last Friday.

    The Pyramid City side resumed training yesterday after two days mourning.

    SportingLife reports that Bayelsa United will travel to Kano today ahead of Wednesday’s clash.

    Baylesa United will also host Giwa FC in Benin on Sunday in another outstanding league game.

  • Leon Balogun ready to play for Nigeria

    Leon Balogun ready to play for Nigeria

    Kfortuna Dusseldorf of Germany defender Leon Balogun has exclusively revealed to supersport.com his deep desire is to play for Nigeria.

    ” I will walk to Spain, then swim across the ocean, catch a canoe just to honour the call. It will be the pinnacle of my career to represent the country of my father’s birth, especially because my father was always proud to be a Nigerian” Balogun told supersport.com.

    Balogun was in the Dusseldorf side that were relegated from the Bundesliga last season where he started half of the matches.”

    “It was not a good feeling but Bundesliga 2 is as strong as many first divisions in other European countries and currently we are improving and hopefully should be able to bounce back.”

    Back to his international ambitions. Asked on what he makes of those who say that he is hoping reap where he had not sown with regards to a World Cup place.

    “Nobody called me. Nobody came to watch me play during the qualifiers. If they had, I repeat I would have jumped at it and would have contributed my quota to the course”

    One of the most fascinating things about Balogun is his fluency in English considering that he has never visited nor lives in an English living country.

    “I taught myself mostly because I have always liked to speak the language. I listened to music, I watched films and TV programmes and then added to the classes in school.”

    The former Weder Bremen defender believes that central defence is his best position. “I have been playing most of my matches now as a right back for Dusseldorf but central defence is where I have originally always liked. However, maybe because of my speed, especially on my offensive and my crossing have made my coach prefer playing me at right back”

    Balogun is a rare breed of footballers in his humility and even the car he drives “My parents taught me to be content with what I have and where I am. They grounded me properly so that material things are not so important” He does not have arrogance about him and explains why he never got capped by German youth teams “maybe I was not good enough at the time. I will never say that when I was growing up through the ranks that my game would have stood out enough then. I am not hung up on that at all.”

    Many would have expected him to have moved away from Dusseldorf after the relegation. He sees it a bit different.

    “I play more now at this club. More than I did at Bremen so I will rather be playing football regularly at my age instead of sitting on the bench at a big club side.”

    Final word to Keshi? “I will make the life of every forward that comes up against me miserable throughout the match. I will guarantee 100% commitment to the cause and I am a firm believer in team work. Offensively and physically I am powerful enough. I have the speed for the position. I will be honoured to be given just a trial.”

  • EAGLES’ POOR PLAY: My boys were anxious to score — Keshi

    EAGLES’ POOR PLAY: My boys were anxious to score — Keshi

    Super Eagles handler Stephen Keshi has given reasons for his players’ scrappy performance in last Saturday’s World Cup play-off game against Ethiopia.

    “Not that my boys didn’t play, they were just anxious to score. We wanted to show that we were African champions by playing our own kind of football but the Walya Antelopes came with a plan, that’s to sit in their own half, and they were smart about it. Soon after we got our first goal, they came out and that profited us as we then got the second goal,” the Big Boss stated.

    “The first thing was to make sure we qualified,” Keshi said.

    “In today’s (Saturday’s) game I don’t mind that we played badly as long as we qualified. We have other games where we can play beautiful football. There was a lot of anxiety around the players, because it was the last game and they wanted to qualify.

    “I had to calm them down and make sure their state of mind was intact, but I knew it was going to be a little difficult for them to focus. I remember the same thing happened to us in Algeria in 1993 with players not being able to eat because they were anxious. But we had to try to make sure we got them to calm down a bit.”

    “Tactically, we are there. After the first goal we told them to take it easy, slow down and allow them (the Ethiopians) to come out. But their coach was smart; they refused to come out. But whatever came out today, as long as we qualified, and our flag is flying in Brazil, I will take it.”

    The likes of Emmanuel Emenike, Brown Ideye and Ahmed Musa were unable to add their names to the scoresheet as they failed to convert their chances in the game.

     

  • All work and no play…

    All work and no play…

    Many of the students were still thinking of resting after writing their first semester examination. But that was not to be as the school announced the beginning of the second semester immediately.

    The action caught students of Federal Polytechnic in Oko (OKO POLY), Anambra State, unaware.

    The students, who are yet to recover from the stress of the just-concluded examination, are surprised that there is no holiday for them. Although no reason was given by the management for the immediate start of another semester, it may not be unconnected with the disruption of the academic calendar during the 87-day strike by the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic (ASUP). The strike was suspended a few weeks ago.

    The management’s action did not go down well with some students, who wondered why they were not given a break to relieve the first semester stress.

    When CAMPUSLIFE visited the campus last week, activities have picked as students were seen rushing to copy the new timetable; final year students were making efforts to complete their projects.

    Despite some students complaints, lectures have begun on the three campuses of the polytechnic.

    For Chidinma Nwafor, ND II Mass Communication, the first semester was challenging. “The three months of industrial action embarked on by ASUP disrupted our academic calendar. When the strike was suspended, we could not complete some of our practical works before the exams. But I believe with this resumption of the second semester without giving a break will enable us restructure our academic calendar affected by the strike.”

    Chidinma, who said she was not caught unaware by the resumption, urged the Federal Government to seek permanent solution to ASUP strike by meeting up the demands of the lecturers.

    Another student, Uchenna Ejeri, described the resumption as earthquake, saying the semester would be a hectic for the students.

    Unoma Onwudinujo, ND II Public Administration, saw the semester as opportunity for management and students to overcome the distractions precipitated by the industrial action. “The major challenge is how to overcome the distraction of the previous semester and how to prevent its re-occurrence,” she said.

  • Writers play for big bucks

    For budding creative writers in Africa, it is time to showcase their talents for the big bucks. Etisalat Nigeria has established a £15,000 literary cash prize with other mouthwatering offers for them. The prize is coming on the heels of others encouraging writers and boosting creative writing on the continent.

    The first edition of the Etisalat Prize for Literature was unveiled in Lagos and the entries for Fiction Novel category opened last Wednesday. It was graced by men and women of letters within Nigeria and Africa.

    According to Etisalat’s Chief Executive Officer Mr Steven Evans, the pan-African prize in literature, which will honour excellence in writing and writers of published fiction novels, is in line with its vision of promoting passions, nurturing talent and providing a platform for communicating ideas.

    After promoting the entertainment industry for a long while, stretching its tentacles into the promotion of creative writing is long overdue, many have said. And in choosing to chart this course, the telecommunication giant has added its pen in the ink of time. For time immemorial, literature has being a major agent of change and revolution. And this is one of the reasons Etisalat is establishing the prize.

    Evans said: “We believe literature has the potential to effect change and serve as a catalyst for promoting a cultural revolution. We are pleased to have initiated this important project that celebrates literary excellence and creativity in Nigeria and across Africa. And the prize, which is the first ever pan-African prize applauding first time writers of published fiction novels, aimed at recognising and celebrating writers and other members of the literary community across Africa.”

    Literature, according to him, is one field that has been relegated to the background, adding that this has made African fiction writers to look to international awards for recognition. Hence, he added that the prize would serve as a viable platform for the discovery of new creative talent from the continent and promote the growing publishing industry in Africa.

    “It is our objective to encourage creative writing throughout the continent. Etisalat operates in 15 countries around the Middle East, Africa and Asia, and 10 of those countries are in Africa. The prize is our way of sharing in the passions and aspirations of young and upcoming writers and breathing new life to the literary society,” he said.

    What would its establishment spell for literature? Former Minister of State for Education Dr Jerry Agada said: “The move shows that literature is becoming more popular and acceptable nationally and internationally; and this will encourage more practitioners to develop the art more to be able to win the prize.”

    Founder Ebedi Writers’ Residency and former Association of Nigerian Writers (ANA), Dr Wale Okediran, said the gesture is commendable, noting:”It is good news for literature. It is another addition to other efforts at moving literature forward in our great country.”

    Culture activist Ben Tomoloju said the organisers should make “quality” their a watchword. “It is a splendid move by the telecommunication company – The more; the merrier. But the emphasis should be more on quality than quantity,” he said.

    The prize shall be awarded in two categories. The first is for full-length debut novel of a minimum of 30,000 words published in English in the last three years which has as cash prize of £15,000, along with Samsung Galaxy Note or ipad, Etisalat-sponsored book tour (book reading/signing) in three major cities; scholarship/fellowship at University of East Anglia (the pre-eminent school for creative writing) and Etisalat-engraved Montblanc Pen. Its panel of four judges is chaired by Pumla Gqola, associate professor in the Department of African Literature at the University of the Witwatersrand (South Africa). Other are Zaks Mda, Prof of Creative Writing at the University of Ohio and winner of the Commonwealth Prize, Billy Kahora Managing Editor of Kwani Trust, of the literary Journal Kwani and Sarah Ladipo Manyika, writer and academic. They will select the longlist and, then, a shortlist of three novels and the winner who will be announced in February next year. The second category is for the best flash fiction (Short Stories) of less than 300 words (also in English) to be launched towards the end of the year and driven entirely via social media with £1,000 cash prize among other gifts.

     

    along with other freebies, such as Samsung Galaxy Note or iPad and published e-book promoted online and via SMS.

     

  • F/Eagles play six-goal thriller ahead Tunisia test

    F/Eagles play six-goal thriller ahead Tunisia test

    Flying Eagles possibles defeated the probables 4-2 in a keenly contested test game preparatory to a warm-up clash against Tunisia U20s.

    The match was played at the Esperance training complex in Tunis on Wednesday morning.

    Line-ups

    The possibles paraded the likes of Shehu Abdullahi, Kingsley Madu, Alhaji Gero, Moses Orkuma and skipper Abduljaleel Ajagun, who netted a hat-trick all from the penalty spot.

    The possibles’ other scorer was Umar Aminu.

    The probables goals came from Bright Osagie and Yahaya Adamu with both goalkeepers Emmanuel Daniel and Jonah Usman saving penalties.

    The Nigeria U20 will play their first warm-up game against their Tunisia counterparts on Thursday afternoon, also at the Esperance training complex.

    Interestingly, in January the Tunisia U20s hosted the Egypt U20s in two test games.

    The first game ended in a 1-1 draw, while the visiting Egyptians won the second game 2-1.

    The Flying Eagles defeated Egypt 3-1 and then drew 0-0 with the same team last week. Both Nigeria and Egypt will feature at the 2013 African Youth Championship, which kicks off March 16.