By Harry Awurumibe, Editor, Abuja Bureau
For the second consecutive year, Nigeria’s senior women’s football team, the Super Falcons have scooped the Women’s National Team of the Year at the 2024 CAF Awards just as Chiamaka Nnadozie retained the CAF Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year Award at the night of glitz inside the Palais des Congrès in Marrakech, Morocco on Monday.
Also, no fewer than four Super Falcons players namely defenders Michelle Alozie and Mavis Osinachi Ohale and midfielder Rasheedat Ajibade as well as the former CAF Women’s Player of the Year Asisat Lamina
Oshoala made the CAF Best 11 Women for 2024.
This number is a far cry to only two members of the men’s senior national team, the Super Eagles and last year’s CAF Men’s Player of the Year winner Victor Osimhen and new King Ademola Lookman who made the African Best 11 2024 players’ roster.
Despite the loss of the biggest prize to Zambia’s Barbara Banda who was deservedly named the 2024 CAF Women’s Player of the Year, five Nigerian women’s players were recognised at the event with Paris FC safe-hands Nnadozie narrowly missing the 2024 CAF Women’s Player of the Year Award.
The dominant presence of Nigerian women’s players and the Super Falcons are clear testament of the West African country’s continuous investment in the game in the past three decades courtesy of pioneer promoters of the game including the former First Lady of Nigeria, late Mrs. Maryam Babangida; elder stateswoman Princess Hannah Bola Ngozi Jegede; Elder Bola Elderson Kuejunbola; Chief Christopher Abisuga; Prince Larry Ezeh and Harry Awurumibe.
This fact was highlighted by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau who had the honour to receive the Women’s National Team of the Year Award on behalf of Super Falcons of Nigeria in Marrakech on Monday night.
The NFF boss who picked up the award attributed the team’s successes to “the consistent and excellent efforts being put to develop women’s football in Nigeria”.
Gusau could not be faulted on this point because women’s football has taken firm roots in Nigeria dating back to 1980s when some visionary pioneers of women’s football mentioned above with some sports journalists like Harry Awurumibe, Sammie Etuks, Sunny Ebhojaiye, and late Henrietta Ukaigwe, Dapo Sotiminu supported these compatriots who founded women’s football clubs across Nigeria and played inter-state competitions under the auspices of Youth Sports Federation of Nigeria (YSFON) to popularise the game.
But, it was in the late 1990s that women’s football became more organised in the country even without then Nigeria Football Association (NFA) not given a recognition seal to the game even as Nigeria Female Football Proprietors Association (NIFFPA) was formed by Abisuga, Jegede, Ezeh, Kuejunbola and Pa Joseph Othowowa who was the Secretary.
After the official recognition of women’s football by the nation’s football governing body in 1991, the country has been better for it as Super Falcons and Nigerian players have dominated Africa.
A closer look at the performance of Nigeria in the African women’s football stage showed that Nigeria has been African champions 11 times while Nigerian players have won the highest number of times in the individual awards of CAF Women’s Player of the Year.
In this category Nigeria’s
Asisat Oshoala has won the top prize six times and compatriots Perpetua Nkwocha and Cynthia Uwak winning four and two times respectively with Mercy Akide taking it once.
Also, Nigeria has the rare record of having her players winning CAF Women’s Player of the Year Award 13 times while the closest countries Ghana and South Africa won twice each Cameroon , Equatorial Guinea and
Zambia have one win each.
THE AWARD WINNERS:
*Men’s Player of the Year: Ademola Lookman (Nigeria)
*Women’s Player of the Year Barbra Banda (Zambia)
*Men’s Coach of the Year: Emerse Faé (Côte d’Ivoire)
*Women’s Coach of the Year: Lamia Boumehdi (TP Mazembe; Moroccan)
*Men’s Goalkeeper of the Year: Ronwen Williams (South Africa)
*Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year: Chiamaka Nnadozie (Nigeria)
*Men’s Interclub Player of the Year: Ronwen Williams (Mamelodi Sundowns/South Africa)
*Women’s Interclub Player of the Year: Sanâa Mssoudy (AS FAR/Morocco)
*Men’s Young Player of the Year: Lamine Camara (Senegal)
*Women’s Young Player of the Year: Doha El Madani (AS FAR/Morocco)
*Men’s National Team of the Year: Côte d’Ivoire
*Women’s National Team of the Year Super Falcons of Nigeria
*Men’s Club of the Year: Al Ahly (Egypt)
*Women’s Club of the Year TP Mazembe (DR Congo)
*Goal of the Year: Mabululu (Goal for Angola against Namibia)
*Best Referee (Women): Bouchra Karboubi (Morocco)
*Best Referee (Men): Elvis Guy Nguegoue (Cameroon)
Best 11 Women: Andile Dlamini; Michelle Alozie; Karabo Dhlamini; Osinachi Ohale; Lebohang Ramalepe; Linda Motlhalo; Rasheedat Ajibade; Ghizlane Chebbak; Barbra Banda; Asisat Oshoala; Tabitha Chawingwa
Best 11 Men: Andre Onana; Achraf Hakimi; Khalidou Koulibaly; Chancel Mbemba; Mohammed Kudus; Sofyan Amrabat; Franck Kessie; Yves Bissouma; Mohamed Salah; Victor Osimhen; Ademola Lookman
Outstanding Achievement Award: President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi (Egypt) and; President Paul Biya (Cameroon)
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