Adamawa United FC of Yola on Sunday defeated visiting Heartland FC of Owerri 1-0 in a Match Day 19 fixture of the 2019/2020 Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL).
In the match played at the Pantami Stadium in Gombe, the hosts secured their second consecutive home wins after defeating Kwara United FC of Ilorin a fortnight ago.
They scored the lone goal of the match in the 64th minute through Yakubu Adam.
Speaking at a post match conference Coach Fidelis Ilechukwu of Heartland said his team failed to take advantage of the numerous opportunities that came its way but added that the team would go home to re-strategise ahead of its next game.
“The game has come and gone; not a bad game, not a bad officiating.
“The home team got their opportunities and took it; we had ours which we didn’t but football is like that,” he said.
He expressed optimism that the result would not affect their next match, adding, “Football is about today and not yesterday. This game is over and we are going to plan for the next match.”
He, however, berated the attitude of ball boys in holding on to balls as soon as the home team scored the lone goal of the match, saying, “it is not telling good about African football.
“ Most home teams train ball boys to hold on to balls when they score; it is not good because they are the future of the game and should not be taught how to play pranks,” he added.
Adamawa United Coach, Ibrahim Bariki, said the match was “splendid” because it was not easy getting the three points of the game.
Bariki, however, stated that in spite of the win, there were some lapses which needed to be worked on ahead of the next match, stressing, “we will change our approach to ensure we always utilise effectively our opportunities.”
On the officiating, he said, “it was a bit fair.” (NAN)
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