Promotion seeking Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC) of Ibadan, ended their first-round campaign in the 2020/21 season of the Nigeria National League (NNL) with a decent goalless outing away to Ekiti United on an unsuitable playing surface of the Oluyemi Kayode Stadium, Ado-Ekiti.
The Oluyole Warriors, thus finished the first stanza on top of the log, a position they occupied since the season started way back in February.
Chief coach of the high riding Stars, Edith Olumide Agoye, fondly called Esin, spoke on the outcome of the match day 11tie, plans and expectations for the second round, the magic behind 3SC’s impressive performance so far, the support of the Governor Seyi Makinde-led government and other issues. Excerpts.
What is your take on Sunday’s result against Ekiti United?
Yes, it was a very good one point against Ekiti United last Sunday. We are very happy with how the game went, we are very happy that with the fact that our players responded very well during the game. We came with a game plan and it worked perfectly well, we are happy with the point and we are very satisfied.
Are you satisfied with the performance of your players in the game?
Yes, we are very satisfied because of the condition of the pitch. The pitch is not a pitch for football and when you go to play on such a pitch and you come out not losing, I think you should be happy, you should be happy with picking a point. We understand that not every pitch all over Nigeria will be like our home ground where good football can be played but each time we find ourselves playing on such a difficult pitch, we always try to adapt and we are very happy that what we did that earned us a point.
What is your general overview of your first-round performance?
We are very satisfied. Initially, our aim was to be on top of the table, we know we have prepared very well, we know we were ready before the commencement of the season but at that point, we did not really know how many points we would be able to pick. The idea was to go into every game with the aim of picking the three points, we did that for all eleven matches, we are very happy and satisfied with the number of points we were able to pick, 28 points out of the possible 33 is commendable.
How will you rate your opponents in the first round?
I will simply say none of the teams were pushover. Every game was very tough and difficult. The result we got notwithstanding, no game was easy, we had to give in all we had to achieve what we’ve achieved so far. So I give it to all our opponents, they were all very strong and that is why I said the second round will be tougher. Like our team, every team wants to make it to the elite division, so it is always going be keenly contested.
What are your plans for the second round?
Yes, the second round will be a bit tougher than the first round, we are very aware of that, we want to continue from where we stopped when the league resumes and that demands a lot of hard work. We are not afraid to put in a very good shift in order to be able to do that. It is a challenge for us, We set a standard from all the games we played in the first round, we will try as much as possible to surpass and do much more better than what we did in the first round during the second round.
Any plan to overhaul the team?
Last Sunday, what we want to do was to go in, to eat well, to rest and enjoy what we’ve done in this first round. I promise you as from Monday morning, the technical crew will sit down, we will look at what we’ve done well, we will look at where we’ve come short. We will try as much as possible to see where we can improve the team, then we will talk with the management on our plans.
What were the major factors responsible for your impressive performance in the first round?
Well what you are seeing is the result of diligence, hardwork and patience. If you look at our team very well, this is a team that has been together for about four years, a team that has been consistent, due to continuity in every aspect.
What you are seeing is a good model for every Nigerian team that wants to succeed and we are very happy with the way we are working with Shooting Stars, we are happy with the results we got.
This success so far, is a combination of lot of good things going well for us. A lot of people have done one or two things in their own way to help us to achieve what we’ve done. Firstly, we have a football loving governor, His Excellency, Engineer Seyi Makinde, our number supporter, who has been supporting us financially and morally and we really appreciate him. I want to commend the Honourable Commissioner for Youth and Sports Asiwaju Seun Fakorede, who has been doing wonderfully well for Shooting Stars since he came in.
We also commend the fans, the supporters who are praying day in, day out for the club, who are doing one thing or the other in their personal way to help the team.
Also worthy of commendation is our management, headed by Rasheed Balogun, an astute football administrator, our Team Manager, Dimeji Lawal, all the members of the technical crew as well as the players and every other official and staff of the club.
Above all, we give all glory and adoration to God for putting these people in positions to be able help Shooting Stars.
What should the teeming supporters, fans be expecting in the second round?
We want to assure them that we will not relent because we have not done anything yet. Our major goal is to see that Shooting Stars return to the topflight at the end of this season. Thank God we are already heading towards achieving that but we will work harder to ensure that we improve on what we did in the first round. So, I want to assure our supporters and fans that we will not rest on our oars until the promotion. ticket is secured, which we believe, we will get by the grace of God.
