₦airaland Forum

eldee:
Ferdinand brings the global attention to it, and is that not how to get sponsors?

Super Eagles skipper, Kanu Nwankwo will not stop giving.

Nwankwo’s generous spirit took another dimension on Sunday,when he led his colleagues in the Eagles to cheer the Flamingoes in their Under-17 World Cup qualifier against Cameroun.

The skipper had promised that the Eagles would be at the stadium to cheer the girls, as he believed that the female teams had been neglected.

In their presence, the Flamingoes hammered Cameroun 3-0 to book their ticket to the Under-17 World Cup in New Zealand.

The Flamingoes have chalked up two wins and a draw in the qualifiers, after beating Ghana and Cameroun in Abuja and recording a 1-1 draw with the Camerounians in Yaounde. Nwankwo not only made good his promise to be at the stadium but also presented $10,000 to the Flamingoes and their immediate seniors, the Falconets.

Presenting the money, Kanu said $7,000 was for the Under-20 girls while the balance was for the Flamingoes.

He said the initiative was to encourage female soccer, which had been neglected for several years.

“This financial motivation I believe would encourage our female players and spur them into winning international trophies for the country,” he said.

He expressed regret at the neglect of female football in the country, saying playing soccer was difficult and required motivation of players.

“The way you treat players matters a lot , it is not just camping them, but to understand that they all have to take care of themselves and their responsibilities,’’ Kanu said.

NFA Chairman, Sani Lulu, commended the Eagles for the donation, which he noted “was first of its kind in the country.

“Eagles have set the pace and now we can start recognising the efforts of the female teams, the initiative was a foundation for all to unite and support sports development ,” he said.

Lulu said the Eagles’ initiative, was to show Nigerians, the need to support women football.

He said the NFA would support the female national teams by ensuring that they were accorded equal treatment with their male counterparts.

“Whatever we do for the male teams we will do for you, the female teams,” he added.

The NFA Secretary-General Bolaji Ojo-Oba, pledged a donation of N500,000 to support the initiative.

Mike Itamuagbo, NFA Marketing Consultant, also pledged a donation of N1.5million to the teams.

http://www.thetidenews.com/article.aspx?qrDate=06/24/2008&qrTitle=Kanu,%20team-mates%20boost%20Falconets,%20Flamingoes%20with%20$10,000&qrColumn=SPORTS