The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Uyi Akpata

  • SV Awards:  Akpata to  bag Sports Personality of the Year 

    SV Awards:  Akpata to  bag Sports Personality of the Year 

    The President of Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF), Dr.  Uyi Akpata, has  been picked as  the Sports Personality of the Year  ahead of the Sportsville Special Recognition Awards for 2025. 

    Aside Akpata, over 15 top sports personalities and corporate organisations have been pencilled down for the various award categories as  the awards ceremony comes up on Friday, March 21st at the Prestigious Eko Club, Surulere Lagos.

    Meanwhile,  organisers of the annual Sportsville Special Recognition Awards, have announced  Arise TV Anchor, Oseni Rufai, as the Chairman of the Day for this year’s ceremony.

    The appointment of Rufai was made public via a release signed by  Frank Ilaboya , the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Sportsville Communication  Services, the organisers of the yearly award.

    Read Also: U19 Cricket World Cup: Akpata harps on solid prep for Junior Female Yellow Green

    He said: “We’re extremely delighted to announce Oseni Rufai as the Chairman of this year’s edition of Sportsville Special Recognition Awards. We want to use this opportunity to express our thanks and appreciation to him for accepting to chair this year’s ceremony.

    “Rufai  has been a keen follower and supporter of the award ceremony since inception five years ago and agreeing to be part of this year’s edition is no doubt a huge plus to the integrity of the event which is fast becoming Nigeria’s most reliable and prestigious award ceremony,”  Ilaboya further stated.

    Reacting to the appointment, Rufai described the recognition as a big honour.

    “This appointment and recognition is a big honour to me. Honestly it came as a huge surprise but knowing the calibre of Frank Ilaboya and his team, I cannot but to accept it,” he said.

  • Female Yellow Greens: NCF assures on youth dev’t after U-19 World Cup feat 

    Female Yellow Greens: NCF assures on youth dev’t after U-19 World Cup feat 

    President of the Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF), Uyi Akpata, has reaffirmed the federation’s commitment to youth development  as he praised  the Junior Female Yellow Greens following their superb performance at the  at the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup in Malaysia.    

    Praising  the team for their outstanding performance for securing a historic third-place finish in the Super Six Group 2  which has earned them an automatic qualification for  the 2027 U-19 Women’s World Cup  to be hosted in Bangladesh and Nepal, Akpata  speaking  at  Friday’s rousing welcome of the  girls, said their success was a testament to the rapid growth of women’s cricket in Nigeria. He assured continued investment in grassroots development to build on this achievement. 

    “We are incredibly proud of these girls. They have not only put Nigeria on the global map but have also shown that with the right support and commitment, we can compete at the highest level. This is just the beginning,” Akpata stated. 

    Akpata further  noted that the federation is keen on developing more talents and has put structures in place to ensure sustained growth in women’s cricket.

    “We have a developmental plan where most of these girls started school through secondary school competitions, then the National Youth Games, then the PwC Under-17 Championships, so, at the end of the day, it’s been strategic in terms of where we position them to be. Seven of them had actually played for the mainstream female national team, that’s because we just decided from the beginning to identify talents and continue to groom them. The fact that we have high-performance facilities in place, Abuja, Lagos, and Benin, means that we continue to have that pipeline of talent. It’s not by coincidence that nine of these girls are going to still participate in the next tournament.”

    Read Also: NFF, NPFL salute Olarinoye as he clocks 70

    Team captain Lucky Peity, who played a pivotal role in Nigeria’s campaign, expressed gratitude for the overwhelming support from Nigerians.

    “It was an incredible experience for us. We worked hard, stayed focused, and gave our best, we hoped for more and know we could achieve more, but some circumstances, like the rain and other factors affected is, but we are happy to return home to this kind of reception is truly heart-warming,” she said.

    The team’s coach, Sarah Bhakita, highlighted the players’ dedication and the strategic planning that went into their preparation.

     “These girls have shown great promise, and their achievement should serve as motivation for more young girls to take up cricket. We will continue to build on this momentum,” she disclosed. 

  • U-19 Women’s World Cup: Akpata tips Nigeria for ‘cricket exploits’ in Malaysia  

    U-19 Women’s World Cup: Akpata tips Nigeria for ‘cricket exploits’ in Malaysia  

    President of the Nigeria Cricket Federation, Uyi Akpata, believes Nigeria’s  participation at the 2025 ICC U-19 Women’s T20 World Cup in Malaysia will surpass expectations, as a result of the investment of the board in recent years.

    Nigeria is among the 16 countries vying for honours at the on-going  second edition of the tournament which got underway in Malaysia on Saturday and through February 2.

    The Junior Female Yellow Greens are flying the country’s flag in Group C alongside Samoa, New Zealand and South Africa.

    Led by the former NCF National U-17 Championships prodigy, Lucky Piety, the Nigerian 15-player team is made up of other players who were discovered in different age-grade competitions while seven of them have already featured for the women’s senior national team, winning a historic bronze medal at the 2023 African Games in Ghana.

     “We are here (in Malaysia)  to announce ourselves to the world and make Nigeria proud,” Akpata told NCF Media. “Our participation is on the back six to seven years of hard work and deep grassroots developmental work. Some of the efforts even earned us global awards.”

    Read Also: NFF holds match commissioners’ seminar in Kaduna

    To reach the tournament, Nigeria pipped test nation, Zimbabwe to Africa’s sole ticket during the qualifying series in Rwanda last September.

    Building up to the tournament, Nigeria, despite being one of the four debutants put the world on notice with impressive displays in their test games, almost beating World No. 8 Pakistan before recording a seven-wicket win over the 14th -ranked Scotland.

    These eye-catching performances have drawn attention to the Junior Female Yellow Greens and Akpata believes there is more to come from them at the World Cup.

     “The girls know what is expected and the support from everyone back home will see us go far. I am confident in our abilities.”

    Nigeria’s first game against fellow debutants Samoa was abandoned as a result of a wet outfield at the Borneo Cricket Ground in Sarawak, forcing a share of the points.

    The team  had its second game against New Zealand in the early hours of today ( Monday at 3:30 am Nigerian time), with the hope of marking a memorable debut at the World Cup.

    The top three teams from the four groups will proceed into the Super 6 stage where they will be drawn into two groups of six team and the top two from each group will play the semi-finals.

    The Junior Female Yellow Greens outing in Malaysia is marking Nigeria’s second ever World Cup appearance, with the men’s U-19 team also reaching the global stage in 2019.

  • U19 Cricket World Cup: Akpata harps on solid prep for Junior Female Yellow Green

    U19 Cricket World Cup: Akpata harps on solid prep for Junior Female Yellow Green

    The president of the Nigerian Cricket Federation President, Uyi Akpata, has challenge  all and sundry to prepare very well for the upcoming U19 Women’s World Cup in Malaysia. 

    The Nigerian side secured their passage to the competition after topping their group at the expense of Zimbabwe. Akpata commended the Junior Female Yellow Green for their splendid performance during his chat with Middle Stump. 

    Read Also: Nigerian fans berate NFF over Eagles’ coaching  job

    “First, I must thank the players for their boldness and dedication to this project,” Akpata said. “The board members too have been very supportive, and I will not forget the coaches and the technical team behind them.

     “The World Cup is a bigger task; we need more resources and a robust plan to run a successful campaign. All hands must be on deck, and it starts now.”