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Tag: Spires 5-Aside tourney

  • Showdown expected as Spires 5-Aside Tourney hits semis tomorrow

    Showdown expected as Spires 5-Aside Tourney hits semis tomorrow

    The last four teams in the second season of the Spires 5-Aside Naija Street Soccer Tournament in Lagos have emerged .

    In the pulsating quarter-final fixtures, last season’s champions White Tigers defeated  All Saints FC 3-2, Papa SA edged Blood and Sand football club 7-6 on penalty shootout after regulation time ended with one goal on either side. Chekas United secured a 2-1 victory against Wasola FC, while Greater Tomorrow advance with a 3-1 victory via penalty shootout after regulation time ended with two goals apiece in their fixture against New Generation Football Club. 

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    All is now set for the semi-final showdown tomorrow , November 12th , at the Stables Sports Centre, Bode Thomas Surulere.

    Greater Tomorrow FC will lock-horns against the defending champions White Tigers, while Chekas Utd will hope to secure a place in the grand-finale when they file out against Papa SA football club.

    The initiator of the tournament Dr.  Bankole Alibay said they have intensified their readiness ahead of the grand-finale on Saturday, the 15th of November.

    ” The final will be one of the best blend of Football, Music, and the street culture even seen in Nigeria, we already have these things sorted out and you have to be at the venue this Saturday to see things for yourself,” he said.

    Sixteen qualified teams across the five divisions in Lagos took part in the second edition of the Spires 5-Aside Naija Street Soccer Tournament.

  • Spires 5-Aside Tourney: Opara, Udeze to offer quarter-finalists’ tips

    Spires 5-Aside Tourney: Opara, Udeze to offer quarter-finalists’ tips

    Former Nigeria internationals Godwin Opara and Ifeanyi Udeze will mentor the quarter-finalists of the ongoing Spires 5-Aside Naija Street Soccer Tournament.

    The former Super Eagles players will be at the Stables Sports Centre in Surulere between November  8th  and 9th  for a mentorship session with the players before their respective matches.

    Okpara, who played as a defender, was part of the Super Eagles squad to the 1998 FIFA World Cup, 2000 Africa Cup of Nations as well as the 2000 Summer Olympics  Sydney Australia.

    Udeze, who played as a left-back, made 35 appearances for the national team from 2000-2005. Udeze featured for Nigeria  at the 2002 African Cup of Nations as well as the edition in 2004. He was also part of the Super Eagles squad to the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Korea & Japan.

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    The former Eagles stars will engage the players on football lessons and the lifestyle and character expected of an up-and-coming footballer.

    The last eight (8) teams in this year’s championship will square up this weekend for a place in the semi-finals.

    On Saturday, New Generation FC will lock-horns against Greater Tomorrow FA, and Chekas United will file out against Wasola football club. In the games on Sunday, defending champions White Tigers FC will lock-horns against All Saints football club, while Papa SA will play face-off against Blood and Sand FC.

    The 2025 Spires 5-Aside Naija Street Soccer Tournament, which got underway  on Sunday, October 26th , will come to a close with a grand finale on Saturday, November 15th .

  • Spires 5-Aside Tourney off to blistering start in Lagos

    Spires 5-Aside Tourney off to blistering start in Lagos

    The highly anticipated second season of the Spires 5-Aside Naija Street Soccer Tournament gets on the way with plenty of excitement on Sunday.

    This year’s event commenced with a celebrity match, which saw some of Nigeria’s finest skits makers and social media influencers take to pitch to show their football skills. At the end of hostilities, it was Team Pooja who came out tops with a 2-1 victory against Team IBK  at the Stables Sports Centre in Surulere.

    The opening matchday further produced plenty of fireworks as New Generation FC and All Saints FC produced an eight- goal thriller, which ended  four  goals apiece . The second fixture, however, produced a winner as Peckins FA secured a 3-1 win against Olaodus FC in yet another pulsating encounter.

    For the initiator of the tournament, Dr. Bankole Alibay, this year’s event has recorded a great start, and they hope to build on the success going forward.

    ” We are happy there’s a great buzz around the tournament at this time and everyone is talking about it, the sixteen teams are hungry to finish tops in their respective and even go all the way to win the tournament, this is the feeling around this year’s championship and we believe the fans will enjoy it every step of the way,” Alibay said.

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    The Environmental Social and Governance expert further revealed plans ahead of a tech week and other seminars for the players.

    He offered: ” This year’s event is special i must tell you, as we speak all is in place for a tech week to run side by side with the tournament, the players will learn modern skills like artificial intelligence, machine learning, graphics designs as well as computer installation”. This knowledge will make them competitive beyond the football space.”

    The 2025 Spires 5-Aside Naija Street Soccer Tournament, which got on the way on Sunday, October 26th, will come to a close on  Saturday, 15th  November.

  • Over 21 years ruled out of Spires 5-Aside tourney 

    Over 21 years ruled out of Spires 5-Aside tourney 

    Following a successful debut last year, organisers of the Spires 5-Aside Naija Street Soccer Tournament has announced key changes in the forthcoming  2025 edition of the tournament.

    This was made known at a Stakeholders Conference organized to Kick-start activities ahead of the second season of the grassroots football development initiative.

    The conference held at the CIBN Building in Victoria Island Lagos, had in attendance coaches, referees, representatives from the respective Divisional Football Association in Lagos, members of the Lagos State Football association, as well members of the media led by the guild of sports editors.

    Also present at the event is the President of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) Prof. Pius Olanrewaju, the Registrar Mr. Akin Morakinyo, and the Chairman Kainosedge Consulting Limited, Mr. Laoye Jayeola.

    The convener of the event and initiator of the Spires 5-Aside Naija Street Soccer Tourney Dr. Bankole Allibay, gave an overview of the maiden edition of the tournament held in 2024 which he described as highly successful, as he further gave a projection for the 2025 edition. 

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    Allibay, in his presentation said forty (40) teams from the five divisions in Lagos will compete in the divisional stages of the second season, with eight (8) teams expected to register from each division. Three (3) teams from the respective divisions will advance to the state tournament, and Knockout rounds leading up to group play and the grand finale. The five diversions are Epe, Lagos Island, Ikorodu, Badagry, and Ikeja.

    According to Bankole, players above the age of (21) are no longer eligible to register for the new season. He said that only players between the ages of 16-21 will now be allowed to participate in the tournament with a targeted approach of developing young talents.

    ” The world is now interested in younger footballers, hence we have decided that the focus should be on developing the younger talents, “ he said.

     “We have seen clubs even outside the country who have shown interest in some of the younger players from the last edition, so, we hope to leverage on this by creating a channel of development for the young stars.”

    As part of the changes in the  2025 edition, the tournament will offer a higher prize money for the winning teams, recognizing both individual and team achievements on the field.  Also, there will be an increase in participation fees given to teams who are selected for this year’s tournaments. There will also be a window for talents scouting  with focus on connections to football academies and clubs.

    The kick-off date for the new season as well as the prize money and other incentives will be announced in the month of March. 

    Wite Tigers FC  defeated All Saints football club to emerged champions of the maiden edition of the Spires 5-Aside Naija Street Soccer Tournament in December 2024. The coach Emannuel Olum, tutored side secured the coveted trophy and a prize money of N5 million.