Former Rangers International FC of Skipper and Coach, Christian Chukwu, says the club has returned to the pinnacle of Nigerian domestic football league with the team’s league triumph on Sunday.
Rangers beat El-Kanemi Warriors of Maiduguri 4-0 at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu, to win its first domestic title since 1984.
Chukwu, who coached the team to the 1984 triumph, noted that his joy could not be quantified as past memories of missed opportunities had been erased.
“Enugu has experienced painful 32 years wait for this experience and the team should be commended for taking the club and state to the pinnacle of Nigerian football.
“I have not felt happy like this for a long time and I can say that such applies to the ex-players, officials of the team and the fans who thronged to the stadium to witness this spectacle,’’ he said.
The then Technical Director of the team attributed the success to God’s grace, hard work, unity, discipline and tremendous support from the state government and well wishers.
“The players exhibited unparalled level of discipline and believed right from the first day that they could make history.
“The team will take a deserved rest and commence earnest preparations to defend the trophy and participate equitably in next season’s CAF Champions League.
“The team will be fortified to plug noticeable areas of defects while organisational capacity will be enhanced for optimum performance,’’ the former Green Eagles Skipper said.
Chukwu said that the performances of Rangers and other teams in the league showed that the salvation of the Super Eagles lay with home-based players.
“There are abundant talents in the Nigerian league and the national team selectors should switch their interest to the home front and give the players the same opportunities as their foreign-based counterparts,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, substitute Ifeanyi Egwim suffered a serious leg injury as Rangers International FC whipped visiting El-Kanemi Warriors 4-0 to win the 2015/2016 Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) title.
Egwim who replaced Ocheme Edoh in the 83rd minute was bearing down on goal in the 88th minute after a pass down the flank had split the visiting side’s defence line open.
Goalkeeper Yekeen Kazeem, who was by now open and defenceless, advanced on him for a charge which fell the towering forward.
As referee Ferdinand Udoh pointed at the penalty kick spot and handed the goalkeeper a red card, Egwim’s two teammates who ran towards him to bring him up started crying.
Other players who ran to the spot just inside the El-Kanemi Warriors box could not bear to continue looking, with many turning away and placing their hands on their heads.
Even referee Udoh could not bear to look further, and his gestures, thereafter, showed the extent of the injury.
Medical personnel quickly called for the ambulance which took Egwim, who look to have been injured just below the knee, away for further treatment.
The mood was further expressed minutes later when Chisom Egbuchulam scored the resultant penalty kick in the 90th minute for the match’s fourth goal and to complete his hat-trick.
He refused to jubilate the goal, even after some teammates rushed to him, lifting his shirt to his face and bending double to weep.
It was a sad end to a day which had looked promising for Rangers from the game’s opening minute when they started to dominate the game.
Bobby Clement’s shot was handled by Abraham Audu for a second minute penalty kick which Egbuchulam expertly scored for the game’s first goal.
The Maiduguri-based Warriors seemed not ready to spoil the much-awaited party at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, and it showed in their fightback.
They looked laid-back, even though Rangers were on fire and looking capable of scoring many goals.
Obinna Nwobodo could have extended the lead in the 29th minute with his shot from about 28 metres out, but goalkeeper Kazeem’s acrobatic response prevented that.
The fluidity of the hosts’ offensive play was a beauty, and it yielded further result in the 40th minute when Osas Okoro finished off a good move from the right flank.
Egbuchulam scored his second and the game’s third in the 64th minute, before the 90th minute penalty kick which gave him his hat-trick and took his league season tally to 16.
The victory took Rangers to 63 points from 38 matches, three ahead of challengers Rivers United FC of Port Harcourt who were 2-1 winners over Akwa United in Uyo.
Rangers have now equalled Enyimba International’s seven-title record achieved in the 2014/2015 season.
