The APC candidate for Ado-Odo/Ota Federal Constituency, Engr. Tunji Akinosi have felicitated with Christian faithfuls on the celebration of Christmas.

In a statement made available to newsmen on Sunday, the immediate commissioner for Forestry urged the Christians to reflect on the teachings of the festival and transfer it into their everyday’s dealings.

“Among many other things, the teachings of Christmas revolve around sacrifices, love and compassion. I would like to urge the people of my constituency in particular and our dear country in general to take a leave from these values in their everyday dealings”, he said.

The APC stalwart stressed that development of the society rests on all its members, hence the need for people to imbibe the Christmas’ message in the course of building a society of dream.

While also charging Nigerians to use the opportunity of the sanctity of the festive period to pray for peace, unity and prosperity of the country, he advised them all to be modest and decent in celebration.

Dino Sporting Club CEO, Samuel Columbus Omomafe on Saturday received an award of excellence from the Ogun State Football Association.

According to the OGSFA led by board member of Nigeria Football Federation, Alhaji Ganiyu Majekodunmi, the recognition came as a result of the Dino SC boss’ immense contributions to the development football in the state and country at large.

Mr Omomafe, a seasoned grassroot football administration is known for his dedication and passion to the round leather game.

He has organized various grassroot football competition for youngsters all over the state, with international scouts in attendance.

He has also helped many players achieved their dream of playing professional football at any club of their choice in Europe.

“I’m really happy and honored to receive this awar,”

“Sometimes I’m a bit shy, but I’m really happy to do what I can do for my people to make things better and also contribute my qouta to the growth of these players and football at large,

“To be recognized by the FA means we are doing something right, and I can assure you, we won’t rest on our oars.” He said.

He presides over Dino Sporting Club, one of the fastest rising football clubs in Nigeria, and the current Creative Championship League Cup holders.

The Club is also rated as the 2nd best in the Creative Championship League, behind Beyond Limits.

Kaduna state beat Ogun state 3-2 (25-21, 24-26, 25-23, 17-25, 15-13) to win gold in the men’s volleyball event at the 2022 National Sports Festival in Delta State on Friday.

Kaduna state produced an outstanding performance against Ogun state who were unbeaten till the final match.

Kaduna surprisingly took the first set by 25 to 21 points in a set that saw the Ogun players struggle to get their rhythm. The second set produced a spectacular display from both sides as Ogun won by 26 to 24 points.

The young Kaduna players held Ogun state ransom in the third set 25 to 23 points before Ogun came back from behind to win the fourth set by 25-17. Kaduna finally cruised to victory in the fifth set winning by 15 to 13 points.

The Coach of Kaduna men’s team, Adamu Nitte expressed delight over the win against highly rated Ogun state.

Nitte revealed that most pundits did not give Kaduna state the chance of winning the finals adding that the Ogun team crushed all their opponents before entering into the finals.

He said 10 players out of the squad are making their debut at the National Sports Festival.

He said, “I am overwhelmed and cannot express myself because I am overfilled with joy. Kaduna was not the favourite to win the National Sports Festival but God is our strength and fortress.

“Ogun state is a very good side looking at their statistics but my boys did not respect them. 10 of my players are playing the National Sports Festival for the first time and this win will further boost their profile”.

He commended the Chairman of Kaduna State Volleyball Association, Engineer Musa Nimrod for believing in the team.

Meanwhile, Rivers State beat Kano state to win the men’s bronze at the 2022 National Sports Festival.

Lanreleke Sports Academy is a co-educational, fully residential and specialist Senior Secondary School, which boost of a world-class sports facility was founded in 2021.

Managing Director of Peculiar Ultimate Concerns Ltd, Engr Olanrewaju Adeleke in his remarks expressed his delights.

“We are delighted that all ball games of southwest zonal qualification of the National Sports Festival (tagged Delta 2022), will be hosted at the Lanreleke Sports Academy in Ileogbo and Bowen University.

“It will be a beehive of activities here at the Lanreleke Sports facility in the next four days, as seven ball games will be hosted here.

“I want to express my sincere thanks to the Planning Committee members for their commitment as we showcase our facility to the world.

“Here at the Lanreleke Sports Academy, we are raising talents to become future champions. 58 students were offered admission in our maiden session, this year about 65 students have gained admission and they are all on full scholarships.

“The closing ceremony is billed for Bowen University, as the two institutions have a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in the area of academy and sports.”

In an address delivered by the Osun State Commissioner for Sports, Honourable Azeez Olayemi Lawal, he itemized sed the importance of the event, as he charged the umpires on fairness.

“There are a lot of benefits the event will accord the State, economic boost of Ileogbo, showcasing the facilities within the state, as well as making friends among the participants.

“The organizers and officials must maintain fairness in their judgment as this is the only panacea through which the best teams (athletes) that will do the zone proud can be identified.”

Over 800 athletes from Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo and Ekiti State will be participating in football, basketball, handball, volleyball, hockey, base/softball and beach volleyball.

The 21st edition of the National Sports Festival (NSF) which was earlier scheduled to take place between 2-15 November, will now hold from 28 November till 10 December.

The Chief Executive Officer of OwoSports Integrated Services, Comrade Owolabi Aleshinloye has joined other well-meaning Nigerians to celebrate Honourable Kola Salako on the occasion of his birthday.

Comrade Alesh who is the Secretary of All Progressive Congress (APC) in Iju ward and coordinator of Ado-Odo/ Ota Progressive Secretaries (APS), described the celebrant as a leader par excellence.

‘I would like to Congratulate my indefatigable leader and Senior Special Assistant to Governor office of the Deputy Governor, Honourable Kola Salako on the occasion of his birthday.

“He is a man of honor and a selfless leader who has been working assiduously for the development of society and youth in particular.

He noted that the Celebrant who is a Senior Special Assistant to the Governor’s office of the Deputy Governor of Ogun State has impacted humanity positively, adding that he is a true inspiration for the youths.

Owolabi prayed to Almighty God to endow the celebrant with long life and prosperity as he continues to serve the good people of Ogun State.

Oyo and Osun State U15 teams are through to the semi-finals of the Ogunjobi U15 Memorial Cup after they compounded the woes of Ekiti and Ogun State U15 teams respectively.

A beehive of activities returned to the Sports Complex Ataoja School Of Science in Osogbo as six goals were scored on Matchday 2 of the tournament.

The Oyo State team who defeated a 10-man Lagos State team on Matchday 1, took the game to their counterparts from Ekiti State who had piped Kwara State in their opening fixture.

Shittu Fawaz was the unsung hero after he broke inside Ekiti State U15 team box, and hammered home the goal in confident fashion in the 20 minute and at the end proved to be the winner for his Oyo State team.

For Osun, they had Hamzat Qureeb to thank, after he scored from a sublime free kick in 52nd minute.

Victory for Oyo and Osun State U15 teams on Matchday 2 have placed each on top their groups with 6points each.

It was a superb Matchday 2 outing for Lagos State U15 team as they put behind their loss to Oyo State to beat Kwara State 3-1.

The Eko Boys meant business as they got a 5th minute lead through Uche Egwu and from there, he put his team in the driver’s seat.

Twenty-five minutes later, Kwara State U15 scored their first goal of the campaign after Arowolo Daniel broke in and steered the ball into the bottom corner of Lagos State goal to restore parity for his team.

Lagos then needed nine minutes to seal off the game to earn their first 3points and a chance to advance into the semi-finals, after Romans Obinna latched onto a defensive error by Team Kwara’s defender and coolly slotted home to restore Team Lagos lead in the 51st minute.

As the game got to its one hour mark; Afolabi Kehinde puts the game beyond Team Kwara’s reach with the third goal, after he dribbled past his makers and found the back of the net.

It was not too rosy for NPFL/LaLiga champions Remo Stars U15 after they shared the spoils with Ondo State.

MatchDay 2 Results

Remo Stars 0-0 Ondo State
Lagos State 3-1 Kwara State
Ekiti State 0-1 Oyo State
Ogun State 0-1 Osun State

MatchDay 3 Fixtures

Osun State vs Remo Stars – 10:00 AM
Ekiti State vs Lagos State – 11:00 AM
Oyo State vs Kwara State -12:00 PM
Ogun State vs Ondo State – 1:00 PM

VENUE: Sports Complex Ataoja School Of Science, Osogbo

#OgunjobiMemorialCup22

The groupings and fixtures for the maiden edition of the Western Nigeria Football Forum/Late Chief Taiwo Ogunjobi Memorial U-15 Football Tournament and Award ceremony have been released by the organizers.

A two group A and B with four teams and fixtures were unveiled by the organizers with interesting opening day matches that will herald the Wednesday kick-off date of the one-week soccer fiesta.

The two groups consist of tough teams with interesting fixtures, as old rivalries will be renewed during the tournament.

Group A is made up of U15 teams of Oyo, Lagos, Kwara and Ekiti while NPFL/La Liga U15 national championships; Remo Stars U15 will be slugging it out against Osun, Ondo and Ogun in Group B.

The format will see the eight (8) teams play 12 group stage matches; three each for a team, with each group leader and second placed team advancing to the semi-finals.

Winners of Group A and B will take on Runners-Ups of B and A respectively for a place in the grand finale.

Oyo State versus Lagos State will renew their rivalry with the first match of the tourney fixed for 10 am at the NYSC Orientation Camp Pitch in Ede.

Next will be Osun versus Ondo, two hours later. The stage will be set at 2pm as it’s an Ogun Derby, will Remo Stars squaring things up with the Ogun State U15 team.

The last game of the day will be between Kwara State and Ekiti Bees at 4 pm.

JC International Coaches Academy on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ogun State Football Association.

The partnership is aimed at developing grassroot coaches, as well as train and retrain the instructors in getting inclined with modern day coaching techniques.

Present at the occasion which held at the Ogun State FA Secretariat in Abeokuta were Ogun FA Boss and NFF Executive Board Member, Alhaji Ganiyu Majekodunmi, his vice, Alhaji Nojeem Lasisi, and Technical Chairman of Ogun State FA, Dr Bayo Fatoki.

Also in attendance were Representatives JC International Academy; Representatives of Ogun State Coaches Association and; other stakeholders.

In the full glare, all parties involved put pen to paper to activate the project which is expected to last for many years.

Speaking at the event, Chairman of OGSFA, Alhaji Ganiyu Majekodunmi stated that the development is a welcome idea, which prompted the FA to give organizers its backing, even as he charged the organisers to ensure best global practices are maintained during the exercise.

“One of my happiest days as a football administrator. I brainstormed on the MoU and I can tell you this is good and developmental. Interestingly, Dr Joseph Ogunsanya is a brother to Victor Ogunsanya, former Abiola babes defender. This is a big opportunity for us because government cannot do it alone. We thank you for this privilege. I want to assure you that it has come to stay for life. Football is progressing in Ogun State with many academies springing up. I will personally take this programme to NFF and possibly it can be introduced at the national level. I assure you of my outmost support. This can even go beyond football. On behalf of Ogun State government, I thank you very much for this opportunity. I’m giving it 100 percent support.”

Earlier, Chief Executive Officer,JC International Academy, Dr Joseph Ogunsanya thanked the OGSFA for its support and promised that the organisation will do its best with the help of its technical partners and all involved to have a successful programme.

“We want to develop coaches for ogun State by using the modern methodology. Concussion training is one of the things we want to imbibe in the coaches. Coaching interview and how to market players to overseas is also another aspect we are looking into. So, in all, it’s about educating and exposing the coaches to the modern techniques of the trades. The training will be for seven days and there are facilities and accomodations available for the interested coaches”

On his part, CAF And NFF instructor, Hakeem Busari, who doubles as technical director of JCI Academy said, the MoU is a game changer for grassroot coaches in Ogun State.

“This is the first time an FA will be signing an MOU if this nature. We need coach institute. We using JC international to improve all these. You need a database of coaches for easy assessment for coaches clinic. We want to develop coaches in Ogun State through best global practices. We hope we can build a good relationship that will germinate into development.” He concluded.

The Chairman of the Organizing Committee, Otunba Tade Azeez disclosed that the prestigious preseason tournament will feature top Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) and Nigeria National League (NNL) clubs.

“We have invited 18 clubs to participate in the tournament, and we are offering them the platform to prepare for the new season. We appreciate ValueJet for coming on board, and we have put together a solid Organizing Committee to deliver a top-notch tournament,” said Azeez.

The winner of this year’s edition of the ValueJet Cup will cash home Two Million Naira (N2,000,000), the first runners-up and second runners-up will be rewarded with a cash prize of One Million Naira (N1,000,000), and Five Hundred Thousand Naira (N500,000) respectively. 

All the participating clubs will get Two Hundred and Fifty Thousands Naira (N250,000) as appearance fees that will ease the club’s logistics.  

“We are investing ValueJet sponsorships to support the clubs, we want them to experience a top-quality preseason tournament and our objective is to ensure the clubs have the best preparation ahead of the new season, especially for our clubs that will participate in the continent. We have cash prizes in millions and all the participating clubs will get an appearance fee to make their preparation easy,” Azeez added. 

The Organizers have confirmed Mr. Bashir Badawiy and Mr. Oye Bawala as the Tournament Coordinators. 

In a demonstration of its commitment to promote, support healthy living among Nigerians and contribute to the fight against Sickle Cell Disease, Amazing Grace Diagnostics held an awareness program about Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) in Ogun State.

World Sickle Cell Day is observed annually on June 19 to increase global awareness, knowledge and understanding of sickle cell disease and the suffering faced by the affected people.

The program held at owode-Egba Ogun State on Sunday was to contribute to well being of children living with the sickle cell disease.

The program, with the Theme: ” SHINE THE LIGHT ON SICKLE CELL “, began with a novelty football match between Female Machine Football Club and Faweh Football Academy.

The football match was followed by an awareness walk on the streets, free testing for people and a lecture about the killing Cell at the Owode-Egba town hall.

Prominent guests like HRM Oba Kolawole Sowemimo, Medical Practioners, Healthcare providers, Parents/Guardians, Religious institutions, Children and sickle warriors were in attendance.

The organizer who is the Director of Amazing Grace Diagnostics, Mr. Harrison Omoragbon (Medical Laboratory Scientist) stated that the reason behind the initiative was to sensitize the people most especially the young ones not to continue the circle of mistake other parents made, to know their Genotype and make informed decision before getting into relationship as well as give hope to the sickle cell warriors.

“This programme is targeted at promoting awareness of sickle cell disorder; educating the community on prevention and management of sickle cell anemia and encourage warriors (sicklers) to have positive attitude to life as well as create database for information management and sharing.

“It is rural outreach where we talk to people about Sickle Cell and run free Genotype and blood group Testing. We are also providing free medication for people affected with Sickle Cell. This is our first outreach and we are happy to be well-received by the community members. People at the rural community lack access to real information and we want to help.”

Speaker at the event, Dr Oke Joshua, said that it is important to make information available to individuals, families and communities to reduce the likelihood of couples having children suffering from the disease.

“We all know how deadly the Sickle Cell Disease is, that’s why we are here with Amazing Grace Diagnostics to spread the gospel.”

Doctor Oke, further used diagrams to explain Genetic Compatibility, blood groups and genotypes.

According to him, information about these will help to know the type of blood each person has and influence choice of who to marry.

Meanwhile, The HRM Oba Kolawole Sowemimo, the Olu of Owode Egba lauded the organizers for the initiative and appealed to government to help create more awareness about the deadly disease.

“It’s a very good initiative and I commend Amazing Grace Diagnostics for doing such thing in our community. It will go a long way in prevent the spread of the disease. However we need more NGOs to follow Amazing Grace Diagnostics footsteps and help the people of the know more about what we are doing today.”

Meanwhile, the organizers promised to hold more awareness program as part of the contribution to the community.