Chairman of the Nigeria Women Football League Mrs. Dilichukwu Onyedinma has stated that the Super Falcons lost to Equatorial Guinea in last weekend’s 2016 Rio Olympics Games qualifier in Bata because eight key players didnt play.
The African champions have been eliminated from the race to play at the Olympics, after losing 3-2 on aggregate to their rivals from Equatorial Guinea, who will now play South Africa in a two-legged match-up to decide the team that will progress to the Rio Games.
She said that the likes of Asisat Oshoala, Francisca Ordega, Onome Ebi and Esther Sunday would have made the difference had they played the return leg.
“The real issue as a mother who has been with the team for a long time is that the players were not happy with the treatment they got from the government after they won the AWC last year. While other victorious teams were rewarded by the government, these players got nothing for their effort.
They felt they were not appreciated and that somehow, made them not to honour our invitation against Equatorial Guinea. “It was not easy to beat them without our key players. If players like Oshoala, Ebi, Sunday, Halima and Ordega are not in your team, the tendency to lose is higher and that was what happened to us in Bata.
We were supported by the NFF President, Amaju Pinick, who even threatened to take Equatorial Guinea Airline to court for initially not allowing us to enter the plane from Cotonou.
“If not for Pinnick’s intervention, who even told them he was ready to charter a plane to airlift us to Bata, our story would have been more disastrous.
They used everything against us but the major problem was that our players were not there when we wanted them most”, added Onyedinma, who said that efforts were afoot by the NFF leadership to contact all the clubs where Super Falcons players are playing their club football.
“Our women football will rise again because the current NFF boss is desirous of correcting all the wrongs in the game. He was with me at the FIFA Women Symposium in Canada and his passion and enthusiasm are genuine. He means well for the game and we must support him. He has held seven board meetings in the last nine months of his administration.”, added Onyedinma.