Seals Cup 2023: IPE joins 6-pointers as they rout Economics 4-0 on matchday 2

IBADAN (Made In Africa Sport)– It was all joy for the Faculty of Technology today, as both Wood Products Engineering (WPE) and Industrial Products Engineering (IPE) gathered all three points in comprehensive victories in their Seals Cup fixtures at the SUB pitch.

IPE joined the six-pointer club today as they strolled past Economics in a resounding 4 – 0 win, moving to the top of their group with six points after matchday two like MBBS and Psychology.

WPE needed their own three points quite badly, as they look forward to featuring in the knockout stages. They face the mighty Psychology next, but they got a breather with their win over Arabic & Islamic Studies (AIS) on Friday, 6 October 2023. We at Made In Africa Sport compiled a review of the day’s matches here for you.

AIS 0 – 2 WPE
Wood Products Engineering swept past their Faculty of Arts opponents Arabic & Islamic Studies in an interesting encounter. AIS looked to be on fire in the opening stages, troubling the WPE goalie with two shots in a few minutes. Soon, WPE’s wingers began to get some space and wreak havoc on the flanks.

Akin and MJB were particularly pesky, forcing the AIS defenders wide to find their striker Mujeeb in space for a clear chance. The first goal came calling soon enough, as Mujeeb pounced on the rebound from a cross floated in by Akin. The striker made no mistake from that distance, putting his side ahead smoothly.

Akin was a menace on the flanks for WPE, as his freekick from the left wing left the entire AIS defense stranded. The AIS goalkeeper made a good save, but Mujeeb was fastest to react, turning his header home to double WPE’s advantage. The scoreline could have been more remarkable, but for the wastefulness of the WPE strikers and MJB’s late red card. 2 – 0 was sufficient though, as they will now turn their attention to their upcoming fixture against Psychology to push through to the next phase of the tournament.

IPE 4 – 0 Economics
Industrial Products Engineering enjoyed a pleasant outing against Economics, stealing the show with their four-goal saga as they went top of their group while stacking up the goal difference.

The Economics goalie was to blame for the first game, as he failed to connect with Pius’ short freekick in an attempt to clear the ball. The failed clearance allowed the shot to sneak in for IPE. The next few minutes saw IPE spam some shots, piling pressure on the Economics defense in search of a weak link.

That weak link surfaced soon after as Kenneth slipped a defense-splitting pass through to Zee, who made no mistake in putting it past the keeper to make it 2 – 0. Zee turned provider later in the second half, as Paragon connected expertly with his cross to head home a third for IPE.

The fourth goal was a cross between bad luck and poor clearance, as the Economics defense stood in the way of a clearance and saw the ball go over the line for an IPE goal. It summed up their set-up throughout the game–unorganized and outclassed.

Law 0 – 1 Chemistry
Chemistry found themselves some valuable three points this afternoon, as Law fell to their first-half penalty. This came shortly after Ibrahim’s short freekick from the right edge of the 18-yard box.

Law struggled to find a smooth transition to their gameplay thereafter, as Chemistry assumed a defensive shape to safeguard their lead. There were chances for both teams, as the Law forwards couldn’t convert chances from Ibrahim’s set-pieces. The game ended in Chemistry’s favor, and they will be hopeful for qualification from the group stages after their matchday three fixture.

Classics 0 – 0 Physiology
Both teams were content with sharing the spoils, as they retained the top spots in Group E after their matchday two fixtures. They both won their first fixtures but were uninspiring in their game, as there was a lack of urgency, particularly from Classics.

The Group E leaders each have a game each before knockouts; they will have to be careful, as they are risking qualification.

Animal Science 2 – 1 Architecture
Animal Science lost their opening fixture in the Seals Cup after blowing an early lead to a dramatic comeback from Physiology, and it was their turn to come back on Thursday, as they canceled out Architecture’s second-half goal to take all three points home.

The Animal Science side was clearly the better side in the first half, as they wasted several golden chances to gain the lead. Bolu was wasteful on two occasions, as he rattled the crossbar once before sending a chance slightly wide of the mark. Toheeb and Robinson were brilliant on the right and left wings respectively, as they kept dropping chance after chance for Gbolahan and Bolu, only to see them wasted.

Architecture started the second half on a bright note and soon took the lead as Tayo dived low to head Bello’s long freekick home. The fatigued Animal Science side pulled their last reserves and were rewarded with a penalty for a handball against an Architecture defender. Toheeb made no mistake from the spot, and vigor returned to the Animal Science players after that.

A lofted pass found Gbolahan after the Architecture coach saw red for trespassing on the pitch. The striker kept striding through space before slotting his low strike beneath the onrushing Architecture goalie. The stands came alive as Animal Science spectators kept chanting after their players, urging them to keep things together only a little longer.

The full-time whistle was a welcome relief, and Animal Science can contend with Classics and Physiology for the top spot in the group.

Up next…
Saturday is a string of fixtures, with 12 teams facing off across groups F to H. Stay with us as we keep you up-to-date with Seals Cup happenings!