Rangers International took
no chances in their final charge for the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) title as they went rampant against visiting El-Kanemi Warriors of Maiduguri by hitting them 4-0 on
the last match day of the season played at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu,
now nicknamed 'The Cathedral,' on Sunday evening.
They had
come into the game with one grip on the trophy, being on top of the log with 60
points while their closest rivals, Rivers United was on 57 points but
permutations were on that should anything go wrong for Rangers and should
Rivers United defeat Akwa United in Uyo, it would be down to checking goals
difference, a situation that Rangers did not want to be.
Moreso, the
El-Kanemi players had sent a threat, as voiced by their top scorer, Ibrahim
Mustapha that they were in Enugu for a revenge, recalling that two seasons ago,
they were at the point of victory but it was Rangers that denied them the
needed points on the final day.
Given these
El-Kanemi pre-match comments, Rangers went for the sledge hammer which they
unleashed furiously on El-Kanemi with Chisom Egbuchulam open scoring in the 3rd minute from a well executed spot kick.
Osas Okoro double the lead before the half time while Egbuchulam called again
in the middle of the second half following an exhibition of beautiful
combination with Obinna Nwobodo and Okoro.
Egbuchulam
returned to the box to get his hat-trick after substitute, Ifeanyi Egwim was
brought down in the box by El-Kanemi goalkeeper Kazeem Yekeen who was
immediately red carded.
The evening
in Enugu would represent the most momentous football carnival in the history of
Nigerian football with a multitude of joyous fans on hand to celebrate the
return of Rangers to glory after 32 years. The atmosphere was indescribable
with non-stop replays of Mexican waves and rendition of the club's anthem,
'Holy! Holy! Holy! Enugu Rangers, another champion.'
Egwim's
injury however produced a bit of an anti-climax to the celebrations when the
ambulance arrived to take him away and news filtered out that the damage to his
leg was serious.
Enugu State
Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, we gathered, has ordered that he should be
immediately flown abroad for specialist treatment.
Overwhelmed
with joy for bringing Rangers back to reckoning, Coach Imama Amapakabo said he
was optimistic from the beginning of the season that Rangers will finish with
the title and they worked hard for it.
On his
future with the club, he said: "It all depends on what the management
wants."
No comments:
Post a Comment