Former NFF presidential aspirant, Hon. Lumumba Dah Adeh has exonerated Coach Kadiri Ikhana from blame for the recent disaster that recently befell the Super Falcons at the recently concluded Africa Women Football Championship in Equatorial Guinea as he said even before the veteran coach was appointed, the team had lost steam.
Speaking to Trustsports on Ikhana’s decision to take the path of honour after the team’s abysmal outing in Equatorial Guinea, Lumumba commended the coach for taking the path of honour after what he described as “the worst ever outing by the Super Falcons, the female national team in the history of Nigeria’s participation in the AWC”.
He, however, said the performance of the Falcons in the last AWC has not by any means erased the enviable records of the coach as he said Ikhana remains one of the best Coaches in Nigeria whose engagement could not have been a mistake by the NFF.
“Coach Ikhana is among the top coaches we have in many ways but one; in terms of maturity, experience, discipline, technical ability, and motivation for self-improvement and lots more. He is a respectable gentleman, ex soldier and former National team player.
” It is however worthy of note that we, Nigeria, expected to rely on past glorious outings to continue to dominate female football in Africa as pioneer champions without working for it while others were initiating development programmes and closing the gaps. I recall and note that this decline did not start with this 2012, outing”.
Lumumba, therefore called on the NFF to “begin a programme to restore the female football league to the level that will attract better attention, produce and prepare more materials for the national teams handlers otherwise we may find ourselves running round the circles of coaches resigning whether voluntarily or otherwise”, he advised.