Niger Tornadoes head coach, Abubakar Bala has warned his players not to get carried away by the victory they had against El Kanemi Warriors ahead of their last Group A tie with Gombe United on Saturday in the ongoing NNL Super 8 in Enugu.
In a game played on Wednesday at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu The Ikon Allah Boys recovered from first-half profligacy to score twice in the dying moments of the game through Daniel Edeh’s penalty and Nurudeen Jimoh’s exquisite finish in the 84th and 89th minutes.
Bala while reacting to their first win of the playoffs noted that the halftime pep talk to his players was the brain behind their unrelenting display that was eventually rewarded with two late goals.
He said he told his players at halftime that they played very well but that they must be coordinated in the attack to ensure all their hard work and build up to the attack won’t amount to a wild goose chase and that he was happy they heeded it with the two goals they scored against very tough opposition.
“It was a tough first win for us. But I can’t say that we struggled in the first half because we played very well and had the best chances to score which we didn’t take,” Bala told dasportstainment247.com.
“The boys were able to settle down in the second half and the result were the two goals we scored. We are glad to get a win after the draw we had against DMD. It was a game we should have won but it was unfortunate the game ended goalless.
“We know that even with the win, we have not yet accomplished our mission. We must ensure we keep our feet on the ground and approach the game with Gombe United with all seriousness.”
Bala who was once a coach of the Flying Eagles talked through the hard way and difficulties Tornadoes have to pass through to be on the verge of NPFL promotion.
“It has not been easy honestly but we have tried to make our players happy with the wonderful support from the Niger State Government. We are happy to be in the position we are presently and I must thank the State Government under the stewardship of Abubakar Sani Bello for his support to the team.”
Tornadoes are on top of Group A of the NNL Super 8 playoffs with four points from two games and will need at least a point against Gombe United to seal a return to the NPFL for the first time since the 2018-19 season.
