Governor of Enugu State, Dr. Peter Mbah has congratulated the Rangers International Football Club of Enugu on their winning of the 2023/24 Nigeria Premier Football League, NPFL, title with a game to spare following their 2-0 victory over Bendel Insurance Football Club at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu, on Sunday.
A 33rd-minute goal by Kenechukwu Agu and 65th-minute goal by Chidiebere Nwobodo handed the Fidelis Ilechukwu-tutored lads their eighth league title and their second since 2016, as their closest rivals, Remo Stars and Enyimba Football Club lost their match-day 37 fixtures 1-2 each against Sunshine Stars and Sporting Lagos, accordingly. This left the Flying Antelopes with an insurmountable 67-point lead with a game to go.
Reacting to the development, Governor Mbah said Rangers title win and the display on the pitch were clear exciting reenactment of the greatness Enugu State was known for, also restating his government’s plans to commit more resources towards sports development in the state.
“I can tell you that we are very excited. The Government and the people of Enugu State are very excited. What we have witnessed here this evening is the renactment of the greatness that Enugu is known for. So, we have again witnessed that greatness here today.
“Part of what I said to the players before the match started was that they had the weight of history on their shoulders because they were walking the path where legends had walked and that it was incumbent on them to deliver; and I’m so excited again that this has happened.
“Indeed, our tomorrow is here. It is again part of connecting the dots; connecting the dots in the sports sector. As you already know, we want to be the number one in everything we do. So we have zero tolerance for failure or mediocrity and our work ethic is impeccable.
“Therefore, that also shows in what these young players did in the pitch. You could see them working extremely hard and I’m so excited because it feels like any world-class football tournament.
“You can see that what happened here shows that you don’t wish success into existence. Success requires painstaking planning and hardwork. And that is essentially what you have seen here today.
“We are going to continue on that trajectory, making sure that we have a superb reward system, we motivate our players and they go out there and bring back the trophy,” the elated governor stated.
On sports infrastructure, he said, “Of course, you would attest to the fact that getting our pitch back in shape immediately we assumed office to enable Rangers to play their home matches here at The Cathedral was a huge motivation for the players.
“But I want to assure Ndi Enugu that they have not seen anything yet. As you are aware, our goal is a total turnaround of the sports industry in the state, and that includes the sports infrastructure – building world-class facilities and upgrading existing ones to world-class also.”
Meanwhile, the Governor also presented the Club Player of the Match prize to Chidiebere Nwobodo of Rangers International Football Club.
