NPFL Youth League: Future football stars face off for championship showdown in Benin
(Made In Africa Sport) Benin City, Edo State, will host the championship finals of the historic first-ever Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) Youth League.
Following zonal qualifiers held across five locations on 1-3 February 2024, five teams have emerged victorious and are ready to battle it out for the coveted title.
According to a statement made available to Made In Africa Sport on Tuesday, 13 February 2024, the NPFL Youth League Committee Chairman, Pastor Emeka Inyama, confirmed the dates and venue.
The championship final play-offs will take place at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City from 24 February to 2 March 2024.
Note the Dates! We are headed to Benin for the #NationalFinals!
Time to discover the new generation. A week of unmatched greatness awaits! #TheBirthOfStars #NPFLU17YL #DiscoveringNewGen#NPFLYouthLeague pic.twitter.com/y3CWVJidb0
— NPFL YOUTH LEAGUE (@NPFLU17YL) February 13, 2024
Draws will be conducted for the qualified teams, and each of them will play four matches in a one-legged round-robin format.
“We expect the teams to arrive in Benin on the 24th, and the first round of matches will kick off on February 25th,” said Pastor Inyama, excited about the upcoming event.
Here are the teams vying for the championship:
- Rangers International (South East)
- Rivers United (South South)
- Remo Stars (Southwest)
- Katsina United (North East/West)
- Plateau United (North Central)
Path to Finals
Rangers International secured their spot in the South East (Group E), tallying seven points by winning two matches and drawing one out of three.
Rivers United clinched their place in the finals from the South South (Group C) after seeing off competitions from Bayelsa United, Bendel Insurance, and Akwa United at their home ground, the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium.
Despite a 2-1 loss to Sporting Lagos in their second match, the youthful sky blue stars of Remo exhibited an impressive performance, securing victory in a nine-goal thriller encounter against Sunshine Stars at the Olukismet Stadium in Ekiti, thus emerging as the South West (Group D) representatives.
Katsina United claimed the sole ticket from the North East and North West (Group A) by holding Kano Pillars to a goalless draw in their first match and securing a crucial win over Gombe United and Doma United at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium.
In the North Central (Group B), Plateau United suffered a 1-0 defeat against Lobi Stars but advanced ahead of the Benue youngsters due to a superior goal difference, following their level-point finish when they defeated Niger Tornadoes 4-0 and narrowly overcame Kwara United 1-0 at the Lafia City Stadium.
ALL 2024 NPFL U17 YL RESULTS
View all matches
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The Sharpshooters
Afolabi Omobolaji of Sunshine Stars and Rangers’ Igwilo Chimaobi topped the goal-scoring chart in the qualifying series. Omobolaji scored two goals each against Shooting Stars and Remo Stars while Chimaobi scored his team’s only goal in their opening game against Heartland and added a hat-trick against Enyimba.
They are closely followed by Terhinde Samson and Oluwaseun Akanji, the only two players to score in all three games for Lobi Stars and Sporting Lagos, respectively.
The two share second spot with Samad Adejumo (Shooting Stars), Nnorom Mmesoma (Heartland), Nelson Sule (Lobi Stars), Olatunji Yusuf(Kwara United), and Ebuka Ucheagwu (Enyimba).
