The Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to the Edo State governor on sports, Sixtus Omokhagbor has revealed reasons behind the success achieved this season by Edo Queens following their triumph, Nigeriasoccernet.com reports.
Edo Queens emerged champions of the Nigeria Women Football League Super Six tournament played in Bayelsa in May edging five others- Rivers Angels, Bayelsa Queens, Heartland Queens, Confluence Queens and Nasarawa Amazons.
Omokhagbor attributes this success to the increased support given to the team by the state government during the tournament.
“It’s a huge feeling, we are happy. We have had trials on this back-to-back and were not successful, but we have finally landed it,” Omokhagbor stated. “The Edo State government has invested so much in sports and the girls. I told them before the tournament that they were owing the people of Edo State and I’m happy they delivered.”
"Their match bonuses and allowances were increased by 100 percent. The players got 70,000 naira for winning any game and 2.8 million naira for a win while a goal scored was 500,000 naira. This gave the players a winning mentality. Their feeding allowance was 10,000 naira daily, and we gave the players over 190,000 naira each for the 19 days spent.”
The governor's aide states that preparations for WAFU B champions league will commence as soon as possible, more legs will be added to the team and better welfare package will be given to the team.
“I want to appreciate the Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, and his wife for the massive support given to this team, which has yielded great results,” he added. “We are going to work immediately for the WAFU B Champions League; we are not going to sleep. The girls are going to camp immediately, and we will also shop for good footballers to beef up the team.
“We are going to get the best legs to strengthen the squad, and the players will earn in dollars when they compete in the continental tournament. We are going to go with focused minds and excel in the CAF Women’s Champions League.”
Uche Dozie