The fall of Afonja Warriors of Ilorin

Kwara United, many sports stakeholders and analysts were definitely convinced about the commitment and determination of the government to “truly” reposition the team and prod it to be atop the league table in the just concluded Nigeria Premier League season.However, prior to the presentation of the buses, the government had embarked on stream-lining of the […]

Kwara United, many sports stakeholders and analysts were definitely convinced about the commitment and determination of the government to “truly” reposition the team and prod it to be atop the league table in the just concluded Nigeria Premier League season.
However, prior to the presentation of the buses, the government had embarked on stream-lining of the management of the club with the appointment of an interim management committee based on the recommendation of a committee set up by the government. The Committee was set up to look into the problems confronting the team and proffer ways of resolving them.
One of the recommendations of the committee headed by the Chief of Staff, Alhaji Toyin Sanusi, however, was the need to stream-line the team’s management. Therefore, an interim management team was constituted for the Afonja Warriors. The team which is also headed by the Chief of Staff has as members former Commissioner for Works and Transport, Dr. Amuda Kannike, his Sports and Youth Development counterpart, Ramat Abaya, the team’s technical adviser, the team manager, among others.
The Chief of Staff who briefed newsmen on the decision said the interim management board would work concertedly with the management board headed by Barrister Bamidele Aluko. According to him, the Aluko-led management board was non-executive and will not be involved in the day-to-day running of the club.
As noble as the intention of the government might be, it has created a wedge in the team’s management as the Aluko-board reportedly felt slighted by the decision which removed it as a signatory to the account of the club.
24 hours after the stream-lining exercise, the League Management Committee (LMC) waded in, demanding that the government rescinds the decision within 72 hours or face sanctions.
LMC Chief Operating Officer, Salihu Abubakar had said in Abuja that Kwara United has violated the rules governing the league by appointing a serving commissioner in the state as a member of the interim board, and that the rules also forbid the sack of an existing board when it has not served out its four-year term.
On his part, Aluko told our correspondent that his board remains intact, adding that he is not aware of any interim management board.
He said there was no crisis in the club, saying what was happening was mere “misconception”.
For many sports analysts and fans of Kwara United Football Club (KUFC) in the state, it was crystal-clear that all was not well within the management of the team and they feared that the row could affect the performance of the club.
And true to their fears, the performance of the team began to nose-dive. As at August, 11 after the away match played against Heartland FC of Owerri, Kwara United was fourth on the table with 38 points from 24 games and was even tipped as a potential winner of the league. Prior to that crucial away win, the team had also secured six maximum away points after beating Sharks and Lobi Stars in Port Harcourt and Katsina Ala respectively during the first stanza. They had got a point each off Enyimba and city rivals, Abubakar Bukola Saraki (ABS), the other Ilorin based club that has been relegated.
Things were really looking up for the Afonje Warriors until when they played the week 29 game against Warri Wolves on August 30 in Ilorin. On the ill-fated day, some irate fans of the club attacked a match official in the game against Warri Wolves. The game was inconclusive and the league organisers had to take a decision.
The LMC looked into the matter and ruled that the match be replayed in Ilorin, a decision Warri Wolves vehemently challenged before the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Organising and Disciplinary Committee (O&D).
The O&D upheld the LMC judgment but ordered the match to be replayed in Abuja which informed Warri Wolves taking the case before NFF Appeal Committee that eventually gave them three points and three goals despite the earlier decision not to award any board room points.
The Emergency Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, thereafter ordered Kwara United FC of Ilorin to play its remaining home matches in Lokoja.
The ugly incident of August was however seen as the last straw that broke the camel’s back, as the performance of the team started to dwindle.
On the last day of the 2012/2013 season, kwara United were held to 1-1 draw by Akwa United, and it was the result that effectively sent the Afonje Warriors to relegation.
The Afonja Warriors finished 17th on the log with 50 points from 38 games to confirm their relegation.
To add salt to injury, another club in Kwara State, ABS owned and sponsored by the former Governor of the state, Senator Abubakar Bukola Sarki was also relegated.
Supporters of Kwara United have since blamed the team’s woeful outing on the management crisis that engulfed the team, noting that no club can flourish in such an environment.