3rd May, 2011
Baring any unforseen circumstance, the victorious Flying Eagles of Nigeria, winners of the just concluded African Youth Championship, AYC, will jet out to South Korea tonight for a four-nation invitational tournament.
The four-nation invitational tournament will be hosted by Korea Republic in Suwon City from 5-10 May, and Coach John Obuh aims to use the tournament to prepare his team for the FIFA World Youth Championship, WYC, which will be played in Colombia.
Africa’s newest champions, Flying Eagles, were received in Lagos yesterday by appreciative Nigerians who trooped out en masse to receive their heroes.
The nation’s ambassadors defeated perennial arch-rivals, the Junior Indomitable Lions of Cameroon 3-2 in the final of the 17th Orange Africa Youth Championship in South Africa on Sunday.
The entourage, led by the president of the Nigeria Football Federation Alhaji Aminu Maigari, touched down at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, yesterday afternoon and was received by the first vice president of the NFF, Chief Mike Umeh, the NFF technical committee chairman, Barrister Chris Green, Sports Ministry/National Sports Commission dignitaries as well as top shots of the Lagos State sports ministry.
And in a far departure from the uninspiring motorcade provided for the Super Falcons on their arrival from South Africa after winning the 2010 African Women Championship, Flying Eagles were driven in a state-of-the-art air-conditioned Busscar double deck open roof bus from the international airport to the presidential wing of the local airport where they were received by the Sports Minister and Chairman, National Sports Commission, Prof Taoheed Adedoja among other dignitaries. The leader of delegation, NFF president, Alhaji Maigari presented the trophy won by Flying Eagles to the minister.