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Sunshine
Stars are four points behind league leaders Dolphin FC of Port-Harcourt
but the Akure-based side will hope to reduce the gap when they play
Ocean Boys in one of Sunday’s fixtures in the Nigeria Premier League
(NPL).

Sunshine have
enjoyed a blistering home form in their adopted home ground in Abeokuta
winning all their matches, and will be hoping that league leaders,
Dolphins stutter as they also travel to Kano to play against Zamfara
United today.

Gbenga Odubote who
is in charge of Sunshine Stars is already looking beyond today’s match
as he remains certain that his team will win its first league title at
the end of the 2010/2011 season.

Sunshine was
unlucky to lose 1-0 by Dolphins in their last match, in the opinion of
Coach Odubote, who said, “We did not deserve to lose”.

“We did not deserve
to lose that game because Dolphin did not play better than us but that
is football and we have to forget that game and move on,” Ogunbote told
SuperSport.com.

The former Gateway
FC handler said the team has no excuse not to win today’s game and also
do well in the league overall as the club management have been very
responsive to the team’s needs “Financial entitlements to the players
are paid as at when due and that is enough motivation to the players.
So there is no excuse for failure,” he said.

“We want to win the
league title and we will achieve that target. We have the players to do
the job and the sponsors have been wonderful,” he concluded.

Sunshine Stars are
second on the NPL log with 26 points from 14 matches; and a win against
Ocean Boys could cut Dolphins lead to just one point – if Dolphins do
not get any change in Kano.

Dolphins seek win
at difficult Zamfara Aware of the hot breath on their neck, Dolphins FC
will be seeking to extend their lead at with a win in Kano against
Zamfara United though they know it will not be an easy task.

Dolphins currently
lead the table with 30 points from 14 games, four points clear of their
closest rivals, Sunshine Stars who are at home this weekend.

Dolphins also have one of the best away forms this season, having picked up
maximum points on the road on two occasions, in Jos against Plateau
United and in Ilaro against Crown but Dolphins have never picked a
point on the road to Zamfara United in the history of both clubs.

Last season,
Dolphins lost 3-2 despite leading 2-1 until the 87th minute and in 2007
the year Dolphins were relegated, they also lost 1-0 to Zamfara United.

Other matches It
will be a clash of two teams with identical form guide of just one win
each in their last five games. Though the Flying Antelopes may have won
this same game last season by with a two-goal margin, Alphonsus Dike’s
men are yet to score in the last 270 minutes of football in the league.
However against a Kwara United team who have been awful in recent
times, Rangers might just get back their scoring boots today to add to
the 17 goals that they have scored at the Nnamdi Azikwe this season but
with no goals scored away.

Also in Ijebu Ode,
Shooting Stars will have to put behind them the one year ban handed to
their star striker Gbolahan Salami as they play bottom side, Jos
University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) Football Club. Though the Oluyole
Warriors have been far from impressive in their last two home matches,

the team is expected to get back to winning ways against a JUTH side yet to score any point away from home.

The last Sunday fixture is between two teams meeting for the first
time ever in the top flight; Bukola Babes and Lobi Stars. Bukola Babes
who many have described as the revelation team of this season will not
only want to maintain their unbeaten run but also garner the maximum
three points to maintain her status as a top four team on the league
table.