Fixtures for the Nigeria National League (NNL) Super 8 playoffs to determine which teams get promoted to the top tier of Nigerian league football have been released with the five-day tournament expected to end on January 10, just three days before the commencement of the 2018/2019 Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) season.
The much-postponed playoffs which had been scheduled to start on Saturday, 5 January will now kick-off on Sunday, 6 January at the Enyimba International stadium, Aba after organizers and seven of the eight participating teams agreed to move the kickoff date by one day.
The eight participating teams have been paired in two groups of four teams. Gombe United, Real Stars, Kada City FC and Kogi United have been grouped together while Bendel Insurance, Shooting Stars Sports Club, Remo Stars and Delta Force occupy the same group.
Gombe United will get things rolling when they take on Kogi United in the first match of the day at
Bendel Insurance
The teams will go at it again with barely any rest when they play the second round of fixtures just twenty-four hours later on Monday 7, January.
With the release of the fixture list and much more importantly, the yielding of dissenting NNL clubs to the directive from the Nigeria Football Federation that they participate in the Super 8, the League Management Company (LMC) and the NPFL can finally heave a sigh of relief over what has been a long drawn out and hugely undignified kerfuffle which has seen the commencement of league football in Nigeria held up for nearly two months.
Kada City, Bendel Insurance, Shooting Stars Sports Club, Remo Stars and Kogi United had earlier refused to participate in the Super 8 insisting that all eight NNL clubs be promoted to the NPFL on the basis of a purported understanding reached between the NNL and the NFF Executive Committee on 20 November 2018, which the NNL claimed guaranteed all eight clubs promotion to the top tier without the need for a playoff.
With the NPFL insisting on accepting only four teams determined by the Super 8 playoffs into the top tier, the ensuing impasse meant league football was grounded until now.
With all eight teams having travelled to Aba this time around, it appears that all parties involved have found a common ground and four teams from the NNL will play in the NPFL in the upcoming season which is scheduled to commence on 13 January 2019.
NNL SUPER 8 FULL FIXTURE LIST (Enyimba International Stadium, Aba.)
DAY 1, 6 JANUARY 2019.
Gombe United v Kogi United – 8a.m Kickoff.
Bendel Insurance v Delta Force – 2p.m Kickoff.
Kada City FC v Real Stars – 4p.m Kickoff
Remo Stars v Shooting Stars Sports Club 6p.m Kickoff.
DAY 2, 7 JANUARY 2019.
Real Stars v Gombe United – 8a.m Kickoff.
Delta Force v Shooting Stars Sports Club – 2p.m Kickoff.
Kogi United v Kada City FC– 4p.m Kickoff
Bendel Insurance v Remo Stars – 6p.m Kickoff.
DAY 3, 8 JANUARY 2019.
Rest Day.
DAY 4, 9 JANUARY 2019
Kogi United v Real Stars – 8a.m Kickoff.
Gombe United v Kada City FC – 2p.m Kickoff.
Shooting Stars Sports Club v Bendel Insurance – 4p.m Kickoff
Delta Force v Remo Stars – 6p.m Kickoff
DAY 5, 10 JANUARY 2019
Winner “A” v Winner “B”
LIST OF MATCH OFFICIALS
REFEREES
Bashir Salisu
Olayinka Olajide
Dr Udennaka C
Nwanesi B
Sani Salihu
Marcus Bwashi
ASSISTANT REFEREES
Isa Usman Katsina
Peter Ogwu
Sunny Atu
Sylvanus Umoh
Aminu Salihu
Haruna Dauda
