Nigeria Content Online

Nigeria’s female U-20 football team, Falconets, arrived the
Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos last night to a heroic
reception by fans, and travelers.

The team, which arrived the country at about 8.30pm via
Lufthansa and KLM flights, spent over two hours inside the terminal, clearing
their luggage and attending to other undisclosed activities, before coming out
to be received by supporters.

Members of the Nigerian Association of Women In Sports,
officials of TomTom, and the Supporters Club as well as family and friends of
the players danced and sang victory songs at the airport, while awaiting the
arrival of the team, which won the Silver medal at the U-20 World Cup in
Germany.

Taiwo Odebunmi, an NFF board member who accompanied the
Falconets to Germany for the competition, said Nigerian youth are capable of
making the country proud, if they are given the necessary support.

“We are grateful to God for taking us this far, and we
also appreciate the president of our country for his support, because this
shows that we still have dedicated youths in Nigeria that can make us proud
when the time calls for it provided they are given all the requested
assistance,” he said.

Mr Odebunmi also said the tournament has given the ladies
“fulfilling exposure,” and that they will be groomed to become the country’s
future senior females team, the Super Falcons.

Comparing the recent performance of the country’s
national senior boys team, the Super Eagles, to that of the Falconets, Mr
Odebunmi, said Nigeria failed to achieve success in South Africa because of the
over dependence on old players.

“The problem we have with the Super Eagles is that we
rely so much on the old players forgetting that there are youths within and
outside Nigeria that are hungry to become famous just like these girls,” he
said.