Power House Emerges
Champions of Kingdom
Heritage Inter House
Sports competition
Power House on Friday February 14 emerged as the Over-all champions of the 2014 Inter-House Sports Competitions of the Kingdom Heritage Model School, after amasing 8 gold, 7 silver and 4 bronze modals.
Addressing the crowd during the closing ceremony of the annual event which took place at the school playing field inside Winners Chapel ring road along Port Harcourt road, Owerri, the resident pastor glorified Gods name for a successful event admonishing parents to always engage their wards in positive activities such as sports adding that sports is a channel through which youths develop their mental and physical capacity.
In her own speech, the head teacher of the school Mrs Maureen Opara said that when children are given the right direction on time they will be useful with it.
She however, pointed out that child learning does not only stop in the classroom,but also in skill and talent enhancement stating that the school provides for its students a safe and conducive learning environment.
Responding on behalf of the parents, the chairman of the occasion, Eng Okezie Danic commended the efforts of the school management for their progressive programs but regretted that sports in Nigeria has been over neglected that its values and gains is totally lost.
He therefore urged government and well meaning individuals to emulate Kingdom Heritage by providing more opportunities as millionaires have been raised through sports.
At the end of the events, Glory House came second behind Power House with 8 gold, 2 silver and 6 bronze while Blessing House got 6 gold, 9 silver and 10 bronze to finish 3rd as Honour House took the 4th position with 3 gold, 7 silver and 5 bronze.
Highlights of the event was the 100 meter race for the parents as well as march past, breaking of ballooms, children race, filling of basket and dressing competitions among many others.
Stationery Stores Rekindle Shooting Stars Rivalry
With the return of the Flaming Flamingoes to the nations National league football comes the rekindling of great football rivalries in the land that could usher in a boom for young fans
On Thursday evening at the Onikan Stadium, Stationery Stores will host rivals Shooting Stars in their third game of the new Nigeria National League (NNL) season.
More than two decades after these two traditional Nigerian club sides met in a competitive top tier game, the renewal of their longstanding rivalry is expected to spark life into the moribund local football scene in Lagos.
Though both clubs have suffered varying degrees of hard times with the Flaming Flamingoes only just returning to competitive football since the late 90s and the Oluyole Warriors having fallen from the heights they reached in the latter part of the last century and dropping into the second division this game is expected to be as competitive as when they were both in the top division.
Stores go into the encounter with two points earned from two matches; a pair of 1-1 draws against Abia Comets at Onikan and Gateway United in Abeokuta.
The Oluyole Warriors look more confident going into the encounter after winning their last game 2-1 against COD United in Ibadan and would hope to do well against their old rivals.
Far from the intense rivalry of yore, Thursday’s game will be seen as the beginning of a new era for the Super Stores who have spent the better part of the last 20 years in intra-family court squabbles over ownership rights of the club founded by Israel Adebajo in 1958.
Stores won the Nigeria Premier League title in 1992 and won the Federation Cup (when it was known as Challenge Cup) four times. They also reached the semi final of the Caf Champions Cup in 1993 and finished as runners up in the 1981 African Cup Winners’ Cup.
A former hunting ground for key talent that represented the country’s teams to international competitions, the Stores story had taken on the garb of a myth that would never be reawakened.
While old supporters talk of a time when the club was a giant in the land, younger people are looking to new football cultures across the seas. The task of the club now, among many others, is to try and garner support from among the large chunk of young football fans who would rather watch the English and Spanish leagues on TV than visit the stadium to see a local game.
Adebayo Olowo-Ake, convener of the influential Facebook group ‘Governor BR Fashola Revive Stationery Stores FC’, says that they are developing activities that will help win over younger Lagosians who are important to the club’s future growth.
“We are quite encouraged by the fact that at least half of the members of the social media platforms that we used to clamour for the return of Stores over the past six years are those who never physically saw Stationery Stores play a match,” Olowo-Ake informed reporters.
“That shows the magnetism that the Stores brand has.
“Once our supporters are back in full force, the club would have attained its cutting edge as the most vibrantly supported team in Nigeria and this should contribute to the competitiveness of Stationery Stores,” he said.
In the course of the season they will face other old rivals like Bendel Insurance and UNICEM Rovers (former Calabar Rovers), clubs that have seen their fortunes dip in recent years.
Thursday’s game against Shooting Stars would test the waters for Stationery Stores on how strong the brand remains and how much work there needs to be done.
After the travails of the night comes sweet daylight, the Flaming Flamingoes have endured a prolonged spell on the sidelines, one hopes that lessons learnt will help shape a positive future for the darling club of Lagos.
Heineken to Unveil UEFA Champions League Trophy in Nigeria
As the UEFA Champions League 2013/2014 season hits the knockout phase, the stage is now set for Heineken®, the World’s leading international premium lager beer to give Nigerian football fans the opportunity to feel and experience the UEFA Champions League Trophy.
The trophy – which will be in Nigeria from March 13, 2014 with the brand ambassador Ruud Gullit, an ex-international and football star and coach, will remain in Nigeria till March 16, 2014.
The UEFA Champions League Trophy Tour has been presented for eight consecutive years by Heineken® international, a UEFA Champions League partner.
In 2014, Heineken® will give football fans in Nigeria, Argentina and Vietnam the chance to see and get up close to the prestigious trophy. Like Heineken®, the trophy is a true global icon. It represents the excellence of the UEFA Champions League worldwide and the ultimate achievement in European club football.
In order to make the event memorable, various events and activities have been lined up by the brand to give consumers, trade partners as well as the media first hand contact with the trophy which is making its tour of Nigeria for the second time after it did so in 2009.
In a statement, Walter Drenth, Marketing Director Nigerian Breweries Plc, said “the Champions league trophy tour is an activity unique to Heineken®. No other brand is capable of holding the trophy tour outside of Europe.”
He promised football fans that the brand – in consonance with its tagline of “Opening Your World”- would provide an experience that only Heineken® can deliver its consumers.
On August 31, 2013, Heineken® announced the extension of its sponsorship with the UEFA Champions League. The new agreement means that the brand will continue as an official partner of the world’s most prestigious club football competition up to and including the 2017 / 2018 season
Kingdom Heritage Inter-House Sports
Power House: Gold-8, Silver-7, Bronze-4
Glory House: Gold-8, Silver-2, Bronze-6
Blessing House: Gold-6, Silver-9, Bronze-10
Honour House: Gold-3, Silver-7, Bronze-5
OBULIMBA UNITY CUP (Round of 12)
28/2/14
Irete — Ndegwu @ PTS
Umuanunu — Eziobodo @ Umuguma
Umudibia — Emeabiam @ Orogwe
1/3/14
Ohii — Obinze @ PTS
Orogwe — Umualum @ Umuguma
Ofurola — Amakohia-Ubi @ Orogwe
EUROPA LEAGUE (KNOCK-OUTS)
27/2/14
Rubin Kazan — Real Betis
Basel — Maccabi Tel Aviv
Frankfurt — Fc Porto
Razgard — Lazio
Napoli — Swansea City
Salsburg — Ajax
Sevilla — Maribor
Shakter — V Plzen
Benfica — PAOK
Tottenham — Dnipro
Trabzonspor — Juventus
Valencia — Dynamo Kiev
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RESULTS
25/2/14
Zenith 2 4 B/Dotmund
Olympiacos 2 0 Man United
26/2/14
Galatasaray — Chelsea
Schalke O4 — R/Madrid
NFF set date for Players Agents exams
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has fixed a date for this year’s Fifa Players’ Agents Examination. Pursuant to a directive from Fifa as contained in a circular signed by its Deputy General Secretary dated, Markus Kattner, on January 31, 2014. The Nigeria Football Federation has fixed April 3 as the date for the Players Agents Examination. For the exams, Fifa will send a total of 15 questions that relate to the international regulations to the National Associations, while the National Association (in this case, NFF), will be required to set five questions on national subjects, and such questions shall be set as multiple choice test. “In order to avoid potential irregularities, the examination will be scheduled for one day only,” the circular from Fifa read. “Fifa has the sole authority to set questions relating to international subjects. All associations are therefore strictly forbidden from setting their own questions relating to international subjects. In the event of any violation in this regard, Fifa will not recognise the examination results from the association(s) concerned, therefore rendering invalid all players’ agents licenses that are awarded as a result of the respective examinations.” The examination will however be the last of its kind as the current licensing system will be abandoned as from this year summer. “We kindly remind you that, following the endorsement by the Fifa Congress on 31 May, 2013 in Mauritius of the new approach on Players’ Agents Regulations, the current licensing system will be abandoned as from summer 2014,” the circular further stated. NFF’s Chief Legal Officer, Barrister Okey Obi said on Tuesday that the Federation has always abided by the conditions and regulations set by Fifa for the Players’ Agents examinations, and this year will not be an exception. “We are comfortable with all the regulations and have never had any problem with any of the conditions. We are prepared as ever to conduct a hitch-free and credible examination on Thursday, April 3, 2014, starting from 10am.”
