By Harry Awurumibe, Editor Abuja Bureau
For the management of the victorious Delta Queens Football Club of Asaba, Christmas has come in June as the players, officials and the entire people of Delta state are still celebrating the 2023 Nigeria Women’s Football League (NWFL) Premiership title won on Sunday after a hard fought 2-1 defeat of defending champions Bayelsa Queens of Yenagoa at Stephen Keshi Stadium, Asaba.
It has to be said that the 2023 NWFL Premiership Super 6 lived up to the billings as the six clubs that participated in the one week women’s football extravaganza tried their best.
They are Delta Queens (Champions), runners up Bayelsa Queens, Rivers Angels (3rd place team) and Confluence Queens (4th place finish), Edo Queens of Benin City and FC Robo of Lagos.
The competition kicked off on high note as Matchday 1 produced surprise results especially in Group A after Rivers Angels of Port Harcourt easily dispatched FC Robo of Lagos by scoring two unreplied goals in 2-0 win in the opening match with goals from Chiamaka Okwuchukwu (36′) and Adaobi Okah (79′) while in Group B Delta Queens 3-1 Confluence Queens with goals from
Ekpenyong Effiom 19′ for Delta but Confluence’s Peter Martha made it 1-1 in the 30′ before Samuel Vera scored in 34′ and Ekpenyong Effiom in 90′ to make it 3-1 on the first day.
Matchday 2 saw Confluence Queens bounce back to the winning ways by edging Edo Queens 1-0 courtesy of Chukwuamaka Osigwe’s 56′ strike while the last group match produced a contrasting results as NWFL Premiership defending champions Bayelsa Queens piped multiple league champions Rivers Angels 1-0 to top Group A on the same day Delta Queens held Edo Queens to barren draw to finish top of Group B ahead of Confluence Queens.
By the above results, Delta Queens set up an epic final against Bayelsa Queens, winners of the 2022 edtiton and CAF Women’s Champions League even as Rivers Angels settled for a clash with Confluence Queens in the 3rd place match.
If the losers’ match between Confluence Queens and Rivers Angels which the later won 2-0 courtesy of goals from Adaobi Okah 61′ and Ikekhua Oghenebrume 68′ at Stephen Keshi Stadium, Asaba did not leave up to expectations, the final game between Delta Queens and Bayelsa Queens met the standard expected of such heavyweight fixture.
It was a match the home team was well motivate to grind out a victory no matter what happened on the day for the mere fact that the competition held on home turf and the hunger to win a silverware for the first time in 12 years.
Even the early setback of conceding an own goal after captain Chisom Henry miscued the ball in the 14′ to give Bayelsa side an early lead and also missing a penalty through central defender Fehintola Mabokanje who lost a penalty kick in the first half when the center referee Yemisi Akintoye of Lagos awarded a deserved foul against Bayelsa Queens’ desperate defender for shirt pulling inside the 18-yard box. Bayelsa led 1-0 at half time.
Expectedly, Delta Queens fought back gallantly in the second half to win 2-1 with fleetfooted Chinaza Agoh whose winning goal, a solo effort came in the 86′. She evaded all the crunchy tackles by Bayelsa Queens’ defenders as she surged from the left side of the VIP stand, was tackled twice but she managed to curl a left-footed shot which hit the upright before resting in the net, beating goalkeeper, Monle Omini.
She had earlier drew her team level in the 67′ with an acrobatic kick which beat Bayelsa Queens’ goalkeeper Omini hands down.
At full time, there was ecstatic scenes around the Stephen Keshi Stadium as Delta Queens players, officials, top government officials and home fans hugging and holding each other with Head Coach Tosan Blackson kissing the field and pointing two fingers to the heavens in thanks to God for the sweet victory.
Before Agoh’s brace in the 67′ and 86′, the entire stadium was as quiet as a graveyard with the duo of Delta State Commissioner for Sports, Chief Tonobok Okowa and Chairperson of Delta Queens FC, Ms Henrietta visibly worried that the match maybe lost to Bayelsa Queens but the equaliser rejuvenated them while they went wild in jubilation when the second goal came to ensure that Delta Queens held on to win the match.
Meanwhile, Domo Okara’s team was devastated that they were unable to hold on to their early lead or score more goals in the epic encounter to retain the trophy they won last year which allowed Bayelsa Queens to represent Nigeria in the WAFU-B play-off in Cote d’Ivoire where they secured CAF Women’s Champions League ticket.
Now, Delta Queens will fly Nigeria’s flag in WAFU- B competition in Benin Republic later in the year and the club management has to get to work by first knowing why two previous representatives of Nigeria in the CAF elite women’s inter-club football competition.
Aside being presented with a glittering NWFL trophy and a cash prize of N10 million naira for the victory, Delta Queens cleared all the individual awards on the day as goalkeeper Mgbechi Anderline won the Best Goalkeeper Award.
Also, Chinaza Agoh was named the Most Valuable Player of NWFL Premiership Super 6 after a remarkable brace against Bayelsa Queens while Mercy Omokwo won the 2022/2023 NWFL Premiership Top Scorer Award by scoring nine goals in 15 games in the just concluded season.
Prompt News reports that both Rivers Angels of Port Harcourt and Bayelsa Queens of Yenagoa that represented Nigeria in the first and second editions of the football fiesta did not make it to the podium finish.
While Rivers Angels crashed out in the group stage, Bayelsa Queens dropped out in the second round as South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns FC won the maiden edition while Morocco’s ASFAR (Women) FC are the current CAF champions.
