By Lucky Isibor,
There is jubilation by football lovers in Benin City, the Edo State capital as the campaign by Insurance Football Club of Benin to secure a place in the Nigeria Professional Football League, NPFL, has yielded the desired result after the 1-0 defeat each handed Remo Stars and Shooting Stars last Monday and Wednesday in their second and third match respectively, in the Nigeria National League Super 8 Play-offs in Aba.
The team’s promotion to the elite NPFL league brings to an end Insurance FC’s eleven years quest to reverse its fortunes and restore the faith of its teeming fans in Nigeria and beyond.
An elated Chairman of the Edo State Sports Commissioner, Godwin Dudu-Orumen, was quoted as saying: “The Insurance that people see today is a product of many years’ efforts and hard work put in place to ensure the realisation of this dream.
“The darling club of the Edo people had been away from topflight football for a long time and our sports-loving governor ensured that we got all the support needed to achieve that dream.”
He saluted the efforts of the Edo State Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, and his deputy, Rt. Hon. Philip Shaibu at repositioning the club for the feat the team has achieved.
“The team have a lot of young players, who are hungry for glory. But the focus is to finish as high as possible in the abridged NPFL when the season begins. It will be foolhardy to gain promotion and return to relegation the same season, so we will ensure a correct blend of youth and experience to remain in the topflight.
“After that, we will then work on winning titles in the league and achieve continental qualification as well,” Dudu-Orumen added.
