Desmond Iwuchukwu
Eight-time Federation Cup Champions, Rivers Angels advanced to the quarterfinals of the oldest football competition in Nigeria following a 1-0 win over Osun Babes at the Sapele Township stadium.
The game which was dominated by the Jewel Of Rivers saw early chances from Adaobi Okah and Chiamaka Okwuchukwu failing to find the back of the net.
Both sides went into the break with no goals to account for.
Rivers Angels resumed the second half with more intensity and pressure on their opponents and it paid off in the 67th minute with a penalty kick from Blessing Okpe after the assistant referee spotted a handball incident inside the box.
Assistant coach of the Jewel Of Rivers, Regina Akaraonye in her post-match reaction commended the players for their fight despite the poor state of the playing turf.
“It wasn’t an easy game, both teams gave their best but I have to commend my girls considering the condition of the pitch which wasn’t friendly so I commend their effort in not minding the bad pitch and grinding out a win today.
“The competition is getting tougher as one progresses and I always tell the girls that as we have been able to scale through from the round of 32 and 16, we need to consolidate on every win in order to get to the finale.
“We will go back to work on the lapses we discovered today ahead of the next round of the competition. We will equally continue to encourage the girls so they can keep giving their best during crucial games like this,” she said.
Rivers Angels now await the Competitions department to conduct the draws for the last eight to know who their next opponent will be.
