Team Cuala claims third place at Alumni novelty tourney
Team CUALA narrowly missed out of the final finishing third as Bells University emerged champions of the Alumni Novelty Football tournament to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State.
The event which took place at the Campos Mini Stadium, Lagos was organized by the Covenant University Alumni Association (CUALA) had six university alumni teams namely; Afe Babalola University, Bells University, Covenant University (host), Landmark University, Redeemers University and University of Ibadan.
The event kicked off with 3 knock-out rounds. In the first knock-out match between Redeemers University and Afe Babalola University, Redeemers won 2-1 to advance. The second knock-out match between Landmark University and the University of Ibadan ended in a 1-1 draw at full-time. UI won the penalty shoot-out 3-2.
In the local derby, a clash to determine who rules Ota, Covenant University took on Bells University of Technology and also ended in a penalty shoot-out after a 1-1 draw. 15 minutes into the game, Bells opened scoring from open play and took the lead into the break.
When second half action resumed, Team CUALA pumped up the heat. Their efforts paid off when Leroy Datuowei scored with a fantastic header. After regulation time, the result stayed 1-1. Unfortunately, Bishop David Oyedepo boys lost 4-3 in the penalty shootout.
Both teams met again in the semis and the result didn’t change. Bells University beat Covenant University 1– 0 to reach the final. In the second semi-final match, University of Ibadan beat Redeemers University 3-2 via penalties to book a final place after they played 1-1 at full time.
In the third place match, Covenant University beat Redeemers University 1 – 0 courtesy of another fine goal by Leroy Datuowei. Bells University took their fine form into the final to beat the University of Ibadan 2-1.
President of the Covenant University Alumni Association (CUALA), Kemi Onabanjo-Joseph said the novelty match has produced the right mood to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the institution.
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“In commemorating the 20th anniversary of our beloved alma mater, Covenant University, we thought it would be important to extend the celebration to the broader society, including other alumni communities. Football is a unifying game, despite how competitive it can get, and we decided to leverage the novelty tournament as a platform to bring communities together for value exchange.
We are grateful to the alumni associations that accepted our invitation and look forward to an expanded tournament next year and beyond,” she concluded.