Sports
NATIONWIDE League One (NLO) clubside Ingas Football Club of Enugu on Wednesday defeated Star Plus FC of Ngwo 2-1 in a 2023 Federation Cup fixture in Enugu State.
In the quarter-final match played at the Rangers International FC training pitch, Ohalewe Junior put Ingas in front in the 25th minute.
Uche Promise drew Star Plus level after the interval, but Okorie Jude made it 2-1 to ensure Ingas FC moved to the next stage.
Star Plus earned a penalty kick which could have drawn them level to take the match beyond full time, but the goalkeeper stopped it from going in.
Speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) after the match, Kingsley Obiekwu, coach of Ingas FC, said the game was a good and entertaining one for both sides’ supporters.
“The game was a tight one, and Star Plus showed us that there are no underdogs in the country’s oldest football competition.
“It would have gone either way from the display we saw this afternoon, because the two teams really went out for it. But we thank God we won at last.
“Though, this is our first match, our opponents have played many matches in the competition and that put them in shape.
“Our next opponents are Giant Brillars FC, a Nigeria National League (NNL) team, and it comes up on Thursday,” he said.
The coach of the NLO team said the match was going to be a tough one, because it was a game between two brothers who knew themselves well.
On his part, Anistar Izuikem, the coach of Star Plus FC, said his players did thier best during the game, especially after the interval when they scored their equaliser.
Izuikem however attributed his team’s ouster to the careless goal his team conceded before the interval after missing glorious goalscoring chances.
“We gave our best and lost gallantly to a good team and we are going back to the drawing board to come out stronger in the forthcoming Enugu State League,” he said.(NAN)
A.
Tags: Anistar Izuikem Giant Brillars FC Kingsley Obiekwu Nationwide League One Ohalewe Junior Okorie Jude
