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Efforts seem to be
paying off for the footballers that put up good performances during the
recently concluded Lagos State Principals Cup as GT Bank, the sponsors
of the tournament, have gone a step further to help realise the dreams
of the young male and female footballers. A one-week camping exercise
was organised for the 25 players that were chosen throughout the
campaign.

The event which had
the final matches played at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos has
already produced four players for the new U-17 team under John Odigie,
and two players for the Lagos team. GT Bank set up a one-week camping
exercise for 25 promising youngsters at the serene surroundings of the
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, under a
foreign coach, David Penney and four Nigerian coaches- Yisa Sofoluwe,
Waidi Akanni, Ann Agumanu-Chiejine and Bankole Olowookere.

Penney, said: “A
week has not been enough to give a valid assessment of the program.”
However, one thing that the Briton is hoping to leave with the
youngsters is the knowledge of how to re-fuel their bodies with the
right elements.

“I believe they
will have learned what to eat and what to drink and likewise those
things that will not help their growth. Their behaviour on an off the
pitch is an important part of their education.”

Catching the limelight

One player who has
used the occasion of the 2010 Principals Cup to catch the limelight is
Ibrahim Jamiu, a student of Gaskiya Senior College in Lagos. He has
been invited into the U-17 national camp on account of his exploits.

“It has been a
worthy experience and I thank Coach Odigie for allowing me to make the
trip. The training has been very nice; the surroundings have been a
welcome change from the Lagos scene. The coaching has been great and
what I have learnt in the days that I have been here will benefit me in
the national team. For a striker, I need to know more about positioning
to help me get the goals for my team and that is one of the things that
I have learnt here and I will be a better player when I get back to the
national camp,” Jamiu said.

Chinyere Nwoku,
Deputy Manager, Communications and External Affairs with GT Bank and
the officer in charge of the Principals Cup franchise, believes the
initiative can only get better.

“We wanted to do
much more than sponsor the tournament. This camp is like going the
extra mile for the talents that were exposed during the competition.”

Another beneficiary
of the get-together is Nene Pius. A slim and very shy 16-year old, she
is just happy that her skills are being recognised.

“You know that it
is a challenge to play football as a female but I have to thank my
parents who after some fight agreed to let me pursue my dream. Now I am
in this camp and I hope to make it into one of the national camps very
soon.”

Sofoluwe is of the view that the programme will revive the dwindling fortunes of the national team.

“We have lost all
the foundations of our game. The skills needed to get the ball under
immediate control, make runs off and on the ball – these are the
attributes that are missing in our players and they are letting us
down. If we can get it right from this point then the future can be
brighter again.”

Penney had good last words for the four local coaches and the
players. He said, “This week can only be the beginning of greater
things. We need to carry on with this kind of program and make sure
that Nigerian players have well developed football brains.”