Latest Football Transfer Deals, Rumours And Titbits

The done deals are not as exciting as the rumours and speculations, but still our man Paul has been able to come up with a blend that would definitely interest you.

you can follow Paul on twitter: @El_Pauleta on twitter and also follow @NewFanzone and we will follow you right back, lets keep the discussion going.

Done Deals:

– Aston Villa defender Antonio Luna has joined Hellas Verona on a season-long loan

– Leeds United have completed the signing of Zan Benedicic from AC Milan on a season-long loan

– Former Manchester United goalkeeper Roy Carrol signs for Notts County on a free transfer

– Derby County have completed the signing of Leon Best on a season-long loan from Blackburn Rovers

– Levante confirm that they have reached an agreement with Real Madrid to sign goalkeeper Jesus Fernandez

– FC Porto Defender Abdoulaye Ba has joined Rayo Vallecano on a season-long loan.

– Hellas Verona have completed the signing of Veteran defender Rafael Marquez from Mexican side Club Leon.

Jesus Fernandez, Photo Real Madrid fc

Today’s report and rumours:

– Jack Rodwell has travelled to sunderland to undergo a medical ahead of a proposed £10million move from Manchester city

– Burnley has had a third bid for Craig Dawson turned down by West bromwich Albion

– According to reports, Sporting Lisbon are prepared to allow striker Islam Slimani move to the premier league.

– Mainz winger Nicolai Muller is on the verge of joining Hamburg in a €4.5 million deal.

– Juventus have been told to come up with €20million if they want to sign Paris-Saint Germain winger Ezequiel Lavezzi

– New York Red Bulls sporting director Andy Roxburgh has dismissed reports that Ronaldinho is set to join the MLS side

– Everton manager Roberto Martinez is keen on signing Manchester united midfielder Tom Cleverly

– Swansea midfielder Jose Canas is due to hold talks with Spanish La liga side Elche

– Swansea city are weighing up a bid for Celtic right-back Adam Matthews

– According to reports, Manchester United are prepared to use Shinji Kagawa as a sweetener to secure the services of Ardan Turan from Atletico Madrid

– Juventus Director Beppe Marotta admits the club are continuing their search for reinforcements in defence

– Brazil internation Dani Alves is linked with a move to premier league side Liverpool

– According to reports, Everton’s attempt to sign Chelsea winger Christian Atsu on loan has hit a snag.

– Sunderland are been linked with a surprise swoop for Cameroon striker Samuel Eto’o

– Lorient and prepared to rival Lens for the signing of Wolves’ Mali international Tongo Doumbia

– Marseille have made an approach to sign Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa from Newcastle.

– QPR are close to signing Cardiff city midfielder Jordon Mutch

– Reports that Nottingham Forest have made a £3m bid for Albert Adomah have been rubbished by Middlesbrough.

Football tit bits:

– West Bromwich Albion’s record signing, Brown Ideye, will link up with his team-mates this week after confirming his visa issues have been resolved.

– FIFA has banned former Greece coach Fernando Santos for eight international games on Monday for verbally abusing match officials at the World Cup.

– Former England captain Gary Lineker has claimed FIFA’s decision to award the 2022 World Cup finals to Qatar was ‘ludicrous’ and suggested the game’s governing body is tarnished by a corrupt reputation.

– Pep Guardiola reveals that he left Barcelona because he was “at the limit” of his exhaustion in a new book about the now-Bayern Munich coach

– Everton’s Steven Naismith has purchased tickets for games at Goodison park this season which will be distributed among unemployed people in Liverpool

– Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal says players will discover if they have a future at Old Trafford later this week.

– Alessandro Del Piero has once again affirmed that he has no intention of quitting the beautiful just yet he will play on for at least one more season.

Tennis Balls:ITTF Goes Plastic For Future Events

ITTF Goes Plastic for Future Events

ITTF sanctioned events will now be conducted with plastic balls. Photo credit: Remy Gros/ITTF

From 1 July 2014, all International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) sanctioned and World Title events will be played using plastic composite balls instead of the traditional celluloid ball.

There are no rule changes, as plastic balls are according to the ITTF’s rules in table tennis competitions since the 1950’s. This also means that table tennis events may still be played with celluloid balls.

On the upcoming change, the ITTF President Adham SHARARA stated: “Any change in sport usually divides the participants into three groups. The “optimists” who believe the change is for the best; the “pessimists” who believe the change is a disaster; and finally the “indifferent” who just go with the flow.”

“Based on my experience, the proportion of people in each group changes with time, and eventually the majority just goes with the flow. In this case, the use of plastic balls was more for necessity rather than by design. The fact is that the supply of the celluloid sheets to make the traditional celluloid balls is dwindling will eventually no longer be available.”

The reasons for the change to plastic balls for ITTF sanctioned and World Title events are:

Most countries prefer not to produce celluloid anymore because of high flammability issues.
Celluloid balls are not allowed to be shipped on airplanes due to their flammable nature. This means that if shipped by air, special fire-proof containers must be used. The same applies when shipped by land or sea. This is very expensive and not cost effective.
Plastic balls are safer and much more cost effective than celluloid balls to produce.
There are currently four manufacturers (3 from China and 1 from Japan) and 21 brands that have their plastic balls approved by the ITTF for use in international competitions. A new manufacturer from Germany will be joining this list soon.

The ITTF has kept the levels of specification for the approval of plastic balls as close as possible to the specifications of celluloid balls. Some wider tolerances have been allowed for an 18-months period to ensure best quality. This will ensure that the plastic balls used in competitions will feel similar to celluloid balls, reducing disruptions to the players.

ITTF Athletes Commission Chairman and table tennis legend Vladimir SAMSONOV (BLR) stated: “I just started my preparations with the new plastic ball and it will take a little bit of time to adjust to it. In any case I am very exited and looking forward to Belarus Open where we will finally be able to play with the new ball. I am also very happy that my country is hosting the first World Tour event played with plastic balls.”

The first time the plastic ball will be used in an international competition will be at the GAC Group 2014 World Tour Belarus Open, which will take place from 21 to 24 August 2014.

The upcoming Youth Olympic Games will continue to be played with the celluloid ball as this was the ball used at all the qualification events.

In order to avoid any confusion and misunderstandings, plastic balls and celluloid balls are both legal, however, the ITTF world title events and ITTF sanctioned events will use exclusively the plastic balls, whereas all other events are free to choose the type of ball they wish to use.

ITF BEACH TENNIS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS, RESULTS – 3 AUGUST

ITF Beach Tennis World Championship

Italy’s Federica Bachetta and Sofia Cimatti claimed the women’s title at the 2014 ITF Beach Tennis World Championships in Cervia, Italy on 1-3 August. The men’s final was suspended due to bad weather and will resume on Monday 4 August at 4pm Italian time. Men’s and women’s pairs from 22 countries contested this year’s event, which included a qualifying event for the first time on 30-31 July.

This was the sixth edition of the Championships, and the second year that they have been staged in Cervia. This is one of the two flagship events on the ITF Beach Tennis Tour, alongside the recent World Team Championship in Moscow, Russia. Since the launch of the Tour in 2008, worldwide participation has continued to grow each year.

The 2014 Tour will see around 200 events held in 37 countries, while 54 nations are currently represented in the ITF Beach Tennis World Rankings.

For further information and full results, live scores, and live streaming, please visit the ITF Beach Tennis website: http://www.itftennis.com/beachtennis

Results

Women’s Final

(4) Federica Bacchetta/Sofia Cimatti (ITA) d. (8) Martina Corbara/Camilla Ponti (ITA) 64 57 61

Men’s Final

(1) Alessandro Calbucci/Marco Garavini (ITA) vs. (6) Luca Cramarossa/Luca Meliconi (ITA) 22 play suspended

NNL TEAMS’ RACE FOR PREMIERSHIP TICKET HOTS UP…

NNL TEAMS’ RACE FOR PREMIERSHIP TICKET HOTS UP… KATKEM PROMISES HITCH-FREE CONCLUSION OF THE LEAGUE

With eight matches to the end of the Nigerian National League (NNL) current season, clubs have intensified their efforts to secure their places in the four available spots to play the next season in the Nigerian Premier League cadre.

Also, the NNL Secretary, Monsieur Lawrence Katkem has assured that the remaining matches will be strictly monitored to ensure a level playing field for all the participating teams even as he commended all the stakeholders for the great successes so far recorded in the competition.

Among the front runners after last weekend’s Round 22 matches are Group A leaders- Wikki Tourists Football Club of Bauchi; second placed Kwara United FC, Mighty Jets of Jos, Kogi United and Plateau United respectively which have mathematical chances of finishing as top two teams in the group.

3SC

In Group B, Shooting Stars of Ibadan are leading the pack but they are closely followed by Abia Comets, Gabros International, Gateway FC and Abubakar Bukola Saraki (ABS) in that order.

While Wikki Tourists are the runaway Leaders in Group A with 41 points after 22 matches, Kwara United has 37 points just as Jets and Tornadoes have recorded 35 points each to put pressure on the leaders.

Gabros Int’l FC

However, the battle is hotter in Group B where two point are separating top team, Shooting Stars with 37 points from Abia Comets and Gabros with 35 points each while Gateway and ABS need only one win to topple the leaders.

Meanwhile, the race against time is getting tougher for some clubs still languishing in the bottom rung of the league ladder.

Among the candidates for relegation are two Abuja-based clubs- Nigerian Prisons and TEAP FC with paltry 16 and 25 points each in Group A while Unicem, Remo Stars and Prime DC of Oshogbo are most likely to kiss the canvas at the end of the season due to their poor performances in the league.

Sailing: RS:X And Finn Fleets Put Rio To The Test

Rio 2014 Test Event – Aquece Rio Day 1-1 Photo credit ISAF

Racing kicked off at the Aquece Rio – International Sailing Regatta 2014 with the Finn and RS:X fleets taking to two race courses on Guanabara Bay.

The day began with a press briefing that saw over 120 national and international journalists, broadcasters and photographers turn up to witness the first Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Test Event first hand.

At the briefing the attendees included Rio 2016 Executive Director of Sport, Agberto Guimaraes, Rio2016 Director of Sports, Rodrigo Garcia, Rio 2016 Director of Communications, Mario Andrada, ISAF Technical Delegate Alastair Fox and London 2012 Olympic gold medallist Mat Belcher (AUS).

Initiatives to improve water quality were explained – read more here – and an outline of the event, the largest ever Olympic classes’ regatta held in Brazil, was given.

During the press briefing Belcher said, “We’re really excited to be here. It’s the first time we’ve been here and we’re really impressed with the venue, the organisers and what sort of event we can expect for our class.

“It’s a big opportunity for the athletes to enjoy the environment, get an understanding as to what we can expect in a few years’ time, the currents, geographical effects and what type of wind we can expect.”

Once the briefing concluded attention turned to the racing action. A south easterly breeze coming in at 8-12 knots ensured that two races were completed in all three fleets.

Rio 2014 Test Event – Aquece Rio Day 1-2 Photo credit ISAF

Men’s RS:X

London 2012 Olympic gold medallist Dorian van Rijsselberge (NED) was on scintillating form in the 28-boat Men’s RS:X fleet and took both the day’s race victories.

Racing on Pão de Açúcar the Dutchman read the conditions perfectly to lead Byron Kokkalanis (GRE) who sits second on five points following a 2-3.

On the course the Dutchman said, “We were on one of the inside courses and close to Flamengo Beach. There’s a little bit more breeze towards the middle of the bay so I just tried to find the breeze and go fast.

“It’s not too crazy. The wind was light’ish so it was tricky but still fun and plenty of opportunities.

“You have to put a lot of work into racing. There’s a lot of pumping but once you pump it pays off if you go the right way so it’s key.”

With 28 racers on the water it’s not far off the Rio 2016 Olympic Sailing Competition fleet size. In two years’ time 36 racers will take to water and van Rijsselberge is enjoying the similarities, “We have a really nice fleet here. That’s the biggest plus. Everybody is here and it’s a strong field. I think it’s a really good test. We have the top ten from the last World Championship so it’s a high quality. That shows that everybody wants to see how it is and try to get the best out of it.”

Rio de Janeiro provides a beautiful backdrop to the fleets and the Dutchman enjoys his surroundings, “It’s nice to have two big monuments here. The Sugarloaf is a little bit in the way, it stops the breeze,” smiled Van Rijsselberge. “But it’s interesting and we’re enjoying it. The scenery is really nice.”

Rio 2014 Test Event – Aquece Rio Day 1-3. Photo credit ISAF

Women’s RS:X

Charline Picon (FRA) imitated Dorian van Rijsselberge’s (NED) performance by taking both bullets in the Women’s RS:X.

Picon has Rio experience under her belt and used the information she’s gathered on the opening day to lead Maayan Davidovich (ISR) by three points.

“The first race I had a very bad start but I finished first so I’m very happy,” beamed Picon. “I had a good downwind and good tactics. In the second I didn’t have a good start but I had a good battle at the top and finished second behind Marina [Alabau].

“We’ve had a good time here and came here last year and we were here in the winter and it’s very pleasant for competing. It’s nice to have Sugarloaf and everything around us.”

Brazil’s Patricia Freitas recorded two fourth places and is third overall on eight points.

Rio 2014 Test Event – Aquece Rio Day 1-4 Photo credit ISAF

Finn

Brazil’s Jorge Zarif used his knowledge of Guanabara Bay to his advantage on the opening day of Finn racing as he took a bullet and a second.

The 21-year-old first took to the bay when he was seven years and having trained regularly inside and outside of the bay he came to the forefront on the opening day.

“It was a good day,” said Zarif, 2013 Finn World Champion. “I’ve sailed here since I was seven in the Optimist but seriously I’ve been training here a lot for the last four or five years. Especially in the Naval School Course because it’s the one we will use more but we always sail by the bridge and outside.”

Seventeen Finns will mix up racing on the Ponte course which is inside the bay and Niteroi, outside of the bay. Rio 2016 will see 23 take to water and Zarif is relishing racing in conditions that will be present in 2016, “I like the fleet size because the Olympics will be like this. It’s close to what we will have and normally I don’t have good starts in big fleets so for me it’s better to have fewer boats.”

Ed Wright (GBR) sits second overall on six points with Race 2 winner Giles Scott (GBR) third overall.

Racing in the Finn and RS:X resumes on 4 August at 13:00 whilst the remaining seven fleets kick off racing. All five race courses will be used on the second day of racing.

Media coverage and results from the Aquece Rio will be delivered by the Rio 2016 team and ISAF through http://www.aquecerio.com/en/competicoes.php and http://www.sailing.org/2014-test-event.php

Nigeria’s Col. Ahmedu Emerges As FIBA Africa Zone-3 President

A former head of the FIBA Africa marketing committee and president Dodan Warriors Basketball Programme, Col Samuel Ahmedu (retd) has emerged the new president of FIBA Africa Zone-3 at the 16th Congress of FIBA Africa held in Antananarivo, Madagascar.

Ahmedu, who was formerly a member of the Nigeria Basketball Federation emerged president of Zone-3 after an initial 4-votes tie between him and the former Zone 3 president, Muktah Khaleh also of Nigeria who then stepped down to pave way for Ahmedu to be elected unopposed.

Khalehs gesture to step down, it was learnt, came after a series of meetings initiated by Nigeria Basketball Federation president Tijjani Umar with Ahmedu and other top FIBA World and FIBA Africa officials after which Ahmedu was given the all-clear by all eight delegates.

With that decided Nigeria remains in charge of basketball programmes in the zone which comprises Benin Republic, Togo, Ghana, Cote dIvoire, Nigeria, Liberia, Burkina Faso and Niger Republic.

However, Khaleh remains in the FIBA Africa board as he is now president of FIBA Africa Finance Council. He replaces Hamane Niang of Mali who is now president of the African basketball ruling body after the immediate past president Mabusa Eseka of Democratic Republic of Congo stepped down.

Other zone presidents elected at the 16th Congress of the continental body are; Zone-1, Omar El Barshushi of Libya emerged winner while Rokhaya Pouye of Senegal leads Zone-2. Juvenal Lufuma of DR Congo leads Zone-4, Hesha El Hariri of Egypt replaces Morris Aluanga in zone-5, Anibal Manave (Mozambique) zone-6 and Zone 6: Anibal Manave ( Mozambique) while Louis Abel Ntsay ( Madagascar) remains at the helm of zone-7.

Olusegun Ikuesan
NBBF MEDIA COMMITTEE

Super Stores Score All 3 Goals In 2-1 Win Over Gabros At Onikan.

Stationery Stores football club held on to 2 first half goals, One from Fuad Ekelojuoti and a goal and own goal from centre back Nnamdi Uchechukwu to defeat Gabros International of Nnewi 2-1 at the Onikan Stadium in Lagos on Sunday.

Central defender Uche Nnamdi opened scoring via a header from a well crafted corner kick in the 2nd minute to settle early nerves for the home team. But quickly changed from hero to villain 14 minutes later when he put the ball into his own net for the second time this season to put Gabros on level terms.

However it took just 4 minutes for the “Flaming Flamingos” to get back in the lead. Diminutive attacker Fuad Ekelojuoti calmly finished from the penalty spot in the 22nd minute after he was brought down in the area by Nwaigbo Chibueze.

His goal turned out to be the clincher, as both teams failed to convert their chances, although Stores had the most telling chances before the break.

The 2nd half saw Gabros take over the midfield, despite being a man down as early as the 57th minute, when Chinonso Ezuokeaba was given his matching orders for a high boot on Ibrahim Idris 35 yards out as he missed-timed an aerial ball that would have left Idris one on one with the goalkeeper.

The Coach Willie Ndube lead Gabros side maintained their composure and looked the better side in the 2nd half despite being a man down, But lacked the cutting edge to restore parity.

The coach later brought in 2 strikers in the 73rd and 78th minute. But Stores held on to take the much needed 3 points.

Stationery Stores Captain Olatunde Nurudeen said the team played well and was satisfied with how they played. ” We were not carried away with the one man advantage we had in the 2nd half, all we wanted to do was keep our shape. Gabros wanted the game but we already had the advantage and didn’t want to lose it”.

Loveday Omoruyi – Head Coach Stores

Head coach Loveday Omoruyi echoed his captain with his satisfaction for his team’s performance. He said ” The boys played well, we had 2 injured players after we had made all our substitutions, they were just there to make up the numbers for us. That explains why we couldn’t take advantage of the extra man we had on the pitch”. Loveday also dismissed allegations of biased officiating “I don’t know where they got that from. We all watched the game. The goal we scored was a clean goal and the penalty we got was well deserved and the red card decision was justified”.

Willie Udube – Technical Adviser Gabros

Gabros International Head Coach Willie Ndube complained about the officiating but went on to praise his opponents for their improvement. “They are a much better side since Loveday took over, when they came to Nnewi we could have beaten them with as much as 7, but for the heroics of their goalkeeper, we scored just one”. He however added that ” Gabros are still on course to gain promotion as they still retain their 2nd position on the log while the win helped Stores stabilise their debut NNL campaign.

Stationery Stores Fc

Stationery Stores Team List

1. Anthony Okoro
2. Adeyemi Kehinde
3. Hammed Sikiru
4. Ekpang Patrick
5. Olatunde Nurudeen
6. Uche Nnamdi
7. Emmanuel Obinna
8. Ekelojuoti Fuad
9. Obanuwa Afetu
10. Shinsinma Monday
11. Idris Ibrahim

Reserves
12. Adebayo Emmanuel
13.Ilusota Daddy
14. Lawal Michael
15. Azuka Fidelis
16. Enudi Solomon
17. Bisong Clement
18. Ogwuche Adah

Officials
Loveday Omoruyi – Head Coach Stores
Dabiri Sodiq – Asst Coach
Ebitimi Collins – Asst Coach
Alao – Asst Coach

Gabros Int’l FC

Gabros Int’l FC Team List

31. Ezekwe Chidiebere
2. Mbonu Ikechukwu
27. Nwaigbo Chibueze
19. Emmanuel Thompson
25. Ezuokeaba Chinonso
23. Nwaiwu O. Stephen
24. Ohanu Michael
14. Chukwude C. Stephen
10 . Nwosu Oluchukwu
34. Aminu Onyekachi
5. Mohammed Egahi

Reserves.
22. Okekem Hunefu
9. Onuoha Uchechukwu
3.Obasi Daniel
32. Nwachukwu Uchechukwu
8. David Timothy
28. Dennis Chidozie
4. Okoye Chukwudubem

Officials
Willie Udube – Technical Adviser
Dopa Uchechukwu – Asst Coach
Orefu Uche – Director
YY igwe- General Manager

Femi Adefeso

AIBA President: ‘Commonwealth Games 2014 Success Underlines Progress We’re Making’

The boxing competition of the 2014 Commonwealth Games ended in Glasgow showcasing the excitement and underlining the progress being made by the International Boxing Association (AIBA).

HRH the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and HRH Prince Harry were among the thousands who packed out the SECC Arena during the Games where 13 gold medals were being contested.

The AIBA President Dr Ching-Kuo Wu, said: “I would like to congratulate everyone who has taken part in the Commonwealth Games and made the boxing competition such a great spectacle.”

“Nothing provokes more pride than to see how these competitions have captured the imagination of sports fans and even members of the British Royal family. Commonwealth Games 2014 success underlines progress AIBA as the governing body for the world of boxing is making”

Among those to emerge victorious were the popular London 2012 gold medallist Nicola Adams, who beat Northern Ireland’s Michaela Walsh in the flyweight final and the AIBA President believes the Women’s Boxing competition has built on its success at London 2012 to confirm its importance on the world stage.

“This is an incredibly exciting time for women’s boxing, with the sport truly beginning to blossom following landmark inclusion in the London 2012 Olympic Games. We witness the birth of new personalities who lead our effort to bring the women boxing at the top of any other women sports,” – underlined AIBA President.

Finally, Dr Ching-Kuo Wu commented on head guards removal polemics: “Boxing is a contact sport and of course the boxers are going through an adjustment as we move to a consistent format for our competitions. As spectators will confirm, the changes AIBA are instigating are for the long term benefit of the sport and all to participate in it.”

South-West League: Cowrie Rugby Club Sets New Record As Racing Climb To second on Log…

Captain of Cowrie RFC Azeez Ladipo in Action

Racing Rugby Football club moved up to second on the South-West Rugby Union League table after beating Police Machines in a hard fought match at the Main bowl of the National Stadium on Saturday the 2nd of August 2014.

Their forwards dominated all areas of the park and they remained the dominant force throughout the game.

Racing winger, Imeh Okon raced away in the 20th minute for their first try while Abdul Adeshina went over the line for another try in the second half.

Tunde Olukorede of Gosar RFC delivering a superb tackle to an Hawkster Athletics player

It was not until the second half before Police Machines managed to hold onto the ball long enough to win a penalty which full back, Sulymon Oyebola converted to earn them a consoling 3 points.

Meanwhile, Cowrie Rugby Football Club turned in a record 151-0 points over Eco II RFC. The Defending Champions Cowrie RFC opened the scoring barely 4 minutes on the clock and added much more tries in both halves as they signaled their intent with some ambitious running rugby.

Wing sensation; Christian Ogar scored 4 tries while Onor Jato raced in 2 tries on his league debut. However forward players; Olatunji Oduntan, Emmanuel Chijioke, Samuel Ekpo and Hafis Ayinla are amongst try scorers.

Ekpo Williams of Racing Been rougffled by the Police Maching

Other games saw Hawster Athletics beat Gosar RFC 12- 3 while Lagos Rugby Club (the oldest club in the South-West league) retained their unbeaten run against Royal Stallions of Ilorin with a 15-10 victory.

Christian Ogar and Azeez Ladipo both of Cowrie Rugby Club are on top of the highest try/points chart with 95 and 89 points respesctively. They are being followed closely by Sulymon Oyebola of Police Machines with 71 points.

Christain Ogar of Cowrie on the move

The South-West league continues in a fortnight, thats the 16th August 2014 to be precise.

Kenya And Algeria Lose In Volleyball World Grand Prix

Kenya lost to Bulgaria in the FIVB Grand Prix for the second time in a week, a result that severely dented the African champions chances of making it to the tournament play-offs.

The African Queens were humbled 3-1 by the European powerhouse, with set points of 21-25, 25-8, 25-20 and 25-11 in this contest that lasted close to 70 minutes.

This result saw Kenya drop to fifth in the overall standings in Pool S, having been overtaken by Kazakhstan, who overwhelmed the other African team in the competition – Algeria – 25-8, 25-9 and 25-7 in another contest staged in Brno, the Czech Republic.

Kenya who have amassed a total seven points in five games, must now beat Australia in both teams final game on Sunday and hope that Kazakhstan – who have two more points – lose to hosts Czech Republic in the pool’s other match to stand a chance of sneaking through to the play-offs on the last day of competition.

Czech Republic lead the overall standings, followed by Bulgaria while Croatia sit in third.

Kazakhstan are fourth, Kenya lie in fifth, while Mexico, Australia and Algeria occupy the remaining bottom positions in the pool in that order.

Only the top four teams are guaranteed passage to the lucrative play-off phase, where lucrative cash prizes accumulating to about Sh. 85 million lie in wait for the teams.

Kenya who were eager to make up for the 3-2 loss suffered to Bulgaria in Mexico City last week, made the best possible start to the match, and were buoyed by strong support from the home crowd at the Zatika Hall in Porec.

Bulgaria’s Kremena Kamenova spikes the ball past two Kenyan blockers

Captain Brackides Agala and Mercy Moim helped Kenya snatch the opening point of the match, a crucial leverage that led to the Queens claiming the opening set.

Bulgaria then took over, and dominated in the proceeding three sets in a way like no other. At one point in the game, the European side led the second set 8-0 by the call of the first technical time out, then 13-0 and 16-2.

“I have noticed signs of fatigue within the squad. I hope we conjure up some energy from somewhere and win our final game tomorrow. Otherwise credit to the girls for working so hard today and matching a big time in some moments” Kenya coach David Lung’aho said after the match.

“We struggled in reception and the side-out today, you could see we were up against an established team.” team libero Elizabeth Wanyama added.

Kenya – who are debutants in this tourney – then seemed to give up in what turned out to be the deciding set despite leading for long spells until the 20-point mark.

By David Kwalimwa, Kenya press

Maikaba Joins Sharks Coaching Crew

Former Enyimba FC, Kano Pillars and FC Abuja Chief Coach, Abdul Maikaba has joined the technical set up of Sharks Football Club of Port Harcourt.

Maikaba, whose coaching career started with a youth side in Kano, has also tasted glory with Kano Pillars and Enyimba FC in the domestic scene.

The soft spoken coach who did not hide his admiration for the coaching style of the technical adviser of Sharks FC Gbenga Ogunbote and the quality of the team said he is in Port Harcourt to add value to one of the few traditional team’s in the elite league.

“I must say I’m particularly pleased with the progress the technical adviser whom I almost joined when he was with Sunshine Stars has made in this team”. Maikaba said

Maikaba who was introduced to the players and officials of the team over the weekend stressed that he has been monitoring the team’s performance from the unbeaten run in the first stanza of the league to the free fall.

He however expressed optimism that Sharks can still take its pride of place at the summit of the league by the end of the season.

” I have been following the team’s progress from when the run in the first round of the league until now, I’ve seen the team ,the boys are good and that is why I want to say Sharks can still reclaim the top spot before the end of the season”.

Maikaba joined the team for the first time at Saturday’s evening training session and will be the number three man In the Sharks dug out.

Odinga Odinga, captain Sharks FC

Meanwhile, captain of the side Odinga Odinga has promised fifty free match tickets to the first fifty fans that will be at the stadium for the Sharks versus Bayelsa United match day 21 on Wednesday in Port Harcourt,10 Glo recharge cards for the first ten fans and first fifty fans will also get the replica jersey at a subsidized price .

“You know we have not done pretty well in recent times, so starting from this week’s tie against Bayelsa United we want to bounce back to winning ways”

“The fans will have something to look forward to like I have always done, they will get free match tickets, Glo recharge cards but this time there is a new innovation the first fifty fans will get our replica jersey at four thousand instead of five thousand naira.” Odinga said

Golden Eaglets Lash Les Leopards 4-0…To Meet Gabon In Final Round

Ogun State’s First Lady, Mrs. Olufunso Ibikunle, Chief Mike Umeh and Dr. Lanre Tejuoso congratulating the Eaglets after the match

Nigeria’s U-17 team, Golden Eaglets are through to the final qualifying round of the 2015 African Championship to be hosted in Niger after a 5-0 aggregate win against Les Leopards of Congo
Democratic Republic.

Leading 1-0 from the first leg second round match played in Kinshasa last weekend, the Golden Eaglets confirmed their superiority yet again with a 3-0 win at the M.K.O Abiola Stadium in Abeokuta on Sunday in front of appreciative home fans.

There were first half goals for Suleiman Abdullahi, Victor Osimhen while Kehinde Ayinde and Samuel Chukwueze added the other two in the second half.

In attendance to watch the second leg encounter was Ogun State’s First Lady, Mrs. Olufunso Ibikunle who stood in for His Excellency, Senator Ibikunle Amosun as the Special Guest of Honour; Dr. Lanre Tejuoso( State’s Commissioner for Youth & Sport; Chief Mike Umeh, the NFF’s Acting President and his 1st Vice, Dr. Shehu Adamu amongst other important dignitaries.

Congo Democratic Republic line up

The Golden Eaglets dominated the game right from the outset with some good positional play but failed to convert early chances.

But on the dot of 30th minute, Suleiman Abdullahi scrambled the ball into the net
for the first goal after the Congolese failed to clear a dropped Kingsley Michael’s by goalkeeper Sese Bia Israel.

Michael nearly added the second goal five minutes later when his long range shot was parry away by Israel. From then, the Golden Eaglets mounted pressure forcing the Congolese to concede a corner in the 42nd minute.

Suleiman took the resultant free kick and Victor Osimhen nodded into the net after Israel’s failed to hold tightly to the ball.

At the restart, the Congolese nearly pulled a goal back in the 47th minute but Djemes Diala’s angular shot was caught by Goalkeeper Akpan Udoh. Udoh was also at his best few minutes later when he touched away Mutatu Mbedi’s well struck free kick.

Amuneke pulled out injured Chinedu Ndu for Samuel Chukwueze and it was the gifted striker that provided Kehinde Ayinde to bury the ball beyond Israel for the third goal in the 67th.

The last moment was very dramatic as Abdullahi saw his ball hit the goal post after the goalkeeper has been well displaced by Chukwueze in the 89th minute. But Chukwueze still had the final word when he drove the ball into the net with almost the last kick of the match.

Meanwhile, the Golden Eaglets would now meet Gabon in the third and final round towards a place in the next African U-17 Championship after the latter eliminated Ethiopia on a 3-0 aggregate on Saturday.

Golden Eaglets line up

Golden Eaglets Vs. Congo DR
A.Udoh- A. Muhammed (L. John 90), A. Usman; A.Bamidele, L. Halilu – E.
Agenor, K. Nwakali. K.Michael (, C. Ndu 57; S. Chukwueze 64) S.
Abdullahi -K.Ayinde, V.Osimhen