By Promise Etim
Dakkada FC battled back from a goal down to a second successive home win with the 2-1 defeat of Wikki Tourists of Bauchi in a rescheduled Matchday 11 fixture played at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, Uyo on Wednesday.
The fixture could not hold as scheduled after the visitors suffered an accident enroute Uyo for the fixture in February.
The home side drafted captain Aniekan Ekpe to the starting eleven after seeing off his suspension following a red card on Matchday 12 away to Heartland FC of Owerri. The visitors were without goalkeeper Stanley Nwabili, who has been between the sticks for them in their previous 12 games.
Usman Abdallah’s men drew first blood on 26 minutes when Idris Mohammed Guda’s inch-perfect volley flew past Oramade Olawale for the opener, following a swift move orchestrated by Chinedu Udeagha.
Dakkada would push to resist a further advantage for the visitors, emerging in droves and taking possession of the midfield just after the half hour mark.
Then came the leveller from an unlikely source, three minutes before the break. Austin Osagande rose highest to head Unwana Asuquo’s cross past goalkeeper Ibrahim Pius on 42 minutes.
The home side made a number of changes going into the second half in a bid to checkmate the physical play of Abdallah’s men, which gave them an edge in the first half.
The gamble paid off in the 65th minute, when substitute Isaac George raced to meet Christian Ekong’s through ball, before powering behind an helpless Pius to put Dakkada in front.
Late push by the Bauchi side would amount to nothing as Dakkada were weary of the tenacity and quality of the likes of Chinedu Udeagha and Nafizu Yahaya, thus keeping them off the ball in the final third, to earn themselves a crucial win which propels them to 7th place in the log.
Chief Coach of the home side, Lawrence Kingsley expressed optimism in his side’s fortunes after coming from behind to defeat Kano Pillars and Wikki Tourists within three days, while looking forward to their next fixture away to Adamawa United.
“The comeback mentality the boys have shown in the past two games is enough motivation to get us a result in Gombe against Adamawa. We are going to strategize for the next fixture, because it requires an entirely different approach.
“I am worried that we are conceding goals at home and have to fight back to win. We have observed the gaps and will attempt to address it in the coming fixtures”, he told npfl.ng.
Wikki handler Abdallah admitted his side lost to a better team on the occasion, but promised to work on lapses observed during the fixture.
“I love to see a team that come from behind to win. They have a lot of guts and certainly deserve to win. We created a few chances as well.
“We (Wikki) have a lot of work to do defensively. This is a problem I had identified from beginning of the season. I love giving opportunities to younger players, so they can gain some level of experience. The future belongs to them and I enjoy seeing teams like Dakkada and Wikki giving the inexperienced players opportunity to better themselves. This is what the game is about, building for the future”, Abdallah said on a positive note.
Team News:
Dakkada XI: Olawale, Unwana, Williams, Inamoto, Odinaka, Doyeni, Ekong, Osayande, Phillips, Ekpe, Kokoete
Wikki XI: Ibrahim, Olayinka, Abdullahi, Ambrose, Djonjang, Guda, Emmanuel, Nafizu, Udeagha, Damala, Ismail
STATS:
Fouls Won: 17-13
Corners: 6-1
Shots: 9-5
On Target: 6-3
Yellow: 0-1
Red: 0-0
Offsides: 4-1
Saves: 2-4
