Rivers Utd held by resilient Ikorodu City in Port Harcourt

It was matchday in Port Harcourt as Rivers United hosted Ikorodu City in a rescheduled Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) clash. The “Oga Boys” lined up with a new midfield trio of Ibifubara Dagogo, Folarin Temitope, and Tomisin Adebayo, while Oparaocha  Chidera led the attack. Gift Udoh continued at left-back in Ayo’s absence. The game […]

It was matchday in Port Harcourt as Rivers United hosted Ikorodu City in a rescheduled Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) clash.

The “Oga Boys” lined up with a new midfield trio of Ibifubara Dagogo, Folarin Temitope, and Tomisin Adebayo, while Oparaocha  Chidera led the attack. Gift Udoh continued at left-back in Ayo’s absence.

The game kicked off with both sides showing early intent. In the 6th minute, Folarin found Chidera in space, but his fierce strike was parried by the Rivers United goalkeeper. Fifteen minutes in, the visitors-maintained composure, pushing forward with confidence.

As the first half drew to a close, neither side could break the deadlock. The second half began with a substitution—Musa Maliq replaced Folarin Temitope as Ikorodu sought fresh energy in midfield. On 66 minutes, Goodluck Anuba came on for Taiwo Alao, signaling a tactical adjustment from the Lagos side.

Rivers United continued to press, but Ikorodu City’s defense held firm. In the 80th minute, goalkeeper Michael produced a stunning point-blank save to deny the hosts a certain goal—arguably the moment of the match. With four minutes remaining, Chidera Oparaocha and Tomisin Adebayo made way for Naheem Odugbemi and Emmanuel Matthais. After five minutes of added time, the referee’s whistle confirmed a hard-fought stalemate.

Following the outcome of the match, Ikorodu City move up to 5th place on the NPFL table with 15 points, while Rivers United, who still have two games in hand, sit in 9th position with 13 points.