Deadly Virus That Shouldn’t Infect Nigeria’s Female Football

Age falsification has become a recurrent decimal especially in Nigeria, where football players go to extremes to represent the country in major championships.

This will not sound strange to pundits of the game in Nigeria anymore because age falsification seems to be the norm rather than exception nowadays. Even the parents or guardians of these players assist them to falsify their ages in order to join the junior national teams.

In 1989, Nigeria’s youth national teams were banned for two years by world football governing body, FIFA, for fielding over-aged players in FIFA-organised youth tournaments. The ban led to FIFA stripping the country of her right to host the 1991 FIFA World Youth Championship.

Also in 1999, a coach said that he saw one of Nigeria’s players that beat his team by 9–0, at the FIFA U-17 World Championship in Trinidad and Tobago, enter a taxi “with his wife and two children” inferring that Nigeria had fielded over-age players .

Ironically, Nigeria’s female football was devoid of such indictment until 21 January, 2012 when the Confederation of Africa Football, CAF, disclosed that the body has received a formal protest from the Kenyan Football Federation, KFF, claiming that its Nigerian counterpart fielded an over-aged player in a FIFA U-17 World Cup qualifier first leg match played in Kenya. Nigeria’s Flamingoes won the match by 2-0.

In spite of the fact that the Kenyan FA later withdrew their protest and eventually honoured the return leg of the qualifier in Abeokuta, Ogun State in Nigeria, there is need for the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, to look deeply into the root of the matter to prevent the age cheat menace to rear its ugly head in women’s football in this country.

FIFA introduced the age grade championship with the primary aim of enabling transition of talented players from one age group up to the senior national team level.

While this objective is being achieved in other parts of the world, same cannot be said in Nigeria, and Africa as a whole.

For the cancerous age cheat menace that has eaten deep into the fabric of male football in the country not to invade female football, now is the time for all stakeholders in the country to wake up to their responsibilities.

Reacting to the Kenyan claim about Nigeria fielding of over aged players, NFF’s spokesman, Demola Olajire, said there is nothing to it, adding that the Kenyans were only scared of the Nigerian girls on the field of play.

In 2009, former Sharks of Port Harcourt coach and ex-international, Adokiye Amiesimaka, alleged that the country was fond of cheating because it gave the nation a competitive advantage.

Former NFF President, Sani Lulu had once said in respect of the MRI: “I’ll not use the MRI to disqualify my players” suggesting that the parents of the then national under-17 players were to verify their sons’ ages.

In a swift reaction, former Sports Minister, Sani Ndanusa dismissed the parent verification system and stated: “the whole world has gone digital and we’re following suit. We’re no longer in the analogue era.”

Ndanusa stated further: “FIFA wants MRI scans used and we’re going to adhere to that, simple.”

For our dominance in African female football not to diminish, it is high time all football stakeholders in the country kicked out age cheats from female football before it is too late.

—Bamidele Olowosagba