Nigeria senior men’s volleyball team has qualified for the 2019 All Africa Games in Morocco.
Nigeria beat Burkina Faso 3-0 (25-15, 25-22, 25-15) to secure the sole ticket of Zone 3 which consists of Burkina Faso, Cรดte d’Ivoire, Ghana and Niger Republic.
The head coach of the team, Japhet Nuhu attributed the feat to the determination of the players as well as the support from the volleyball Federation led by Engineer Musa Nimrod.
He said the boys knew what was at stake and could not disappoint the over 180 million Nigerians.
The Niger brass coach said, โI am glad this team has qualified for the 2019 All Africa Games in Morocco. It could have been disastrous if we did not qualify because the board led by Musa Nimrod has invested so much in the team.
โBefore the boys went to the court, I told them the volleyball family is expecting good news and we cannot afford to disappoint them. This is a new beginning for volleyball in Nigeriaโ.
Also speaking, the captain of the team, Daniel Nathaniel thanked his teammates for playing as one unit.
Nathaniel said, โThis is a dream come true for me because I will be leading Nigeria to the All Africa Games as a captain. We promise not to lower the standard of our game when we get to the 2019 All Africa Games in Moroccoโ.
The President of Nigeria Volleyball Federation, Engineer Musa Nimrod praised the players for qualifying for the 2019 All Africa Games in Morocco.
He urged them to continue to make the country proud in whatever capacity they find themselves.
Nimrod said, โIt is a great pleasure that Nigeria will be in Morocco for the All Africa Games. I am excited that these new set of players are performing beyond expectations and the board promise to support you ahead of the games.
Meanwhile, Coach of Nigeria’s Volleyball team, Nuhu Japhet has described his side’s victory at the All Africa Games qualifier held in Abidjan as a very great one for Nigeria and the players.
Japhet highlighted the bright moments of the qualifiers noting that the players were really great and the coaches equal to the task as well.
โWe thank God. The experience is great. We thank God for the victory because the level of the game in West Africa and our zone, zone 3, has grown, teams are getting better. Our Nigerian team is also good. Our players were great, the technical crew were up to the task, God helped us and we had victory.โ
Japhet also talked about the toughest game they had saying the host nation, Cote D’Ivoire were really tough nuts.
โWhat was the toughest game?
A- the most challenging was the host. The Cote d’ivore match was more tasking but thank God we were able to stop them from picking a set from our hands.
Niger team was not a pushover too. But with God and our efforts, we were able to defeat them at the count of 3-0, major count.โ
The Nigerian team saw off all comers at the All Africa Games qualifiers in Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire to secure a ticket to 2019 All Africa Games in Morocco.
