The Chairperson of the Nigeria Women Football League, Aisha Falode, has expressed her delight on the equitable spread of club representations as the 2018/2019 Nigeria Women Premier League Super 4 begins.
She noted in Lagos on Monday that, the 2018/2019 Super 4 will be very exciting and full of action as the competition has equitable share of the clubs from two football playing zones of the country.
She said: “It’s the first time, we are having two teams each from the Northern part of the country and two from the Niger Delta, coming together to battle for the Premier League title in the Super 4 Challenge.”
Speaking on the events of the 2019 NWPL Super 4, at the Soccer Temple, Agege Stadium, Falode noted that: “This time around we have added some innovations that would make the Super 4 interesting to all Nigerian women’s soccer fans.
“I want to assure Nigerians that they would see improved standard of play in all the matches that would be played at the Agege Stadium.
“If you are in Lagos on November 1 and 3, the place to be is the Soccer Temple, Agege Stadium to watch enterprising display of football skills by women footballers at the highest level.”
Meanwhile, the coaches of two of the four team that will be participating in the NWPL Super 4, the handlers of Bayelsa, Moses Aduku and manager of Confluence Queens, Whyte Ogbonda, are advocating bravery, risk as Super 4 begins
Bayelsa Queens head coach Moses Aduku has told his players he wants to see ‘more bravery’ in them as they vie to retain the title they won last year in Lagos.
The former Flying Eagles midfielder noted that the squad seems determined to repeat what they achieved last year, defeating Nasarawa Amazons in the final of the Super 4.
Aduku told thenwfl.com: ” We have had a lot of training sessions towards the super 4 and the squad is confident as ever,”
” We would be playing against the best sides in the league and it means we have to be at our best. We need to be confident in ourselves and show what we can do on the pitch.
“My players need to be more brave and show the character of a true champion that they are. I am optimistic we will retain the title. He said
Aduku also spoke about the team missing their captain Joy Bokiri, who left the team to Turkey during the season: ” She will be missed, as she was an integral part of the team before she left for Europe.
” I have no doubt that the team will do better even without her. We played about four games without her and won three. She is indeed a valuable player anyone would want in their team. We are looking forward to winning and retaining what is ours”. He said.
In a related development, Confluence Queens manager, Whyte Ogbonda, thinks his players need to take more risks on the pitch if they are to achieve their main aim of winning the Nigeria Women Premier League Super 4.
The former Rivers Angels Manager told National Daily that his team is fully prepared for the challenge ahead of them and are hoping to do something unusual by winning the trophy that has eluded the club since its creation.
“Its always a privilege playing in the Super 4, its special and something every manager wants. We have a great team here and want to go further by doing something special.
“We have to take the games as they come, win our first game, get to the final and do all we can on the pitch to lift the trophy,” He added
“We have the best players at the Super 4 and everyone of them wants to become champions. The Super 4 is a competition that will be watched by many people, its a competition everyone looks forward to.
“I look forward to a special competition, one we can remember for a long while. We will give in our best and expect a positive result,” he said.
The 2018/2019 edition of the Nigeria Women Premier League (NWPL) Super 4 competition will officially flag off in Lagos at the Soccer Temple, Agege Stadium, on Tuesday, October 29, 2019 with the official arrival of all the participating teams: Rivers Angels, Bayelsa Queens, Adamawa Queens and Confluence Queens.
The Super 4 will be a battle among the top teams in the regular season of the Nigeria Women Premier League to determine the winner for the season.
The draw for the NWPL Super 4 will hold on Thursday at the Indoor Sports Hall of the Agege Stadium, Lagos, while football actions will commence on Friday among the four gladiators and third place and final matches hold on Sunday at the ‘Soccer Temple’ Agege Stadium in Lagos, leaving out Saturday as the rest day.