11th October, 2012
Richard Friday is a member of Rocky Stars Football Academy of Okota whose team lost 0-2 to Flaming Mauri Football Academy of Lagos Island at the just concluded U-15 Henry Ajomale Cup. He spoke with Grassroots Soccer Guide on why his team lost to Flaming Mauri and how he started his football career
Your team did not win Ajomale Cup, what went wrong?
We tried our best but unfortunately we could not win the match. When we met Flaming Mauri FC in the group stage, we defeated them 1-0 but I felt sad when we lost to them in the final.
How would you rate your performance against Flaming Mauri?
My performance was not quite impressive because as a striker, I was supposed to score which I failed to do. Before the match, I promised my fans to score at least two goals but unfortunately I was marked out throughout the game.
Your coach said over confidence and lack of the determination were responsible for the team’s loss, how would you react to this?
I totally disagree with my coach.We, everybody saw that we wanted to win the game but unfortunately we lost to the better side. Flaming Mauri got their two chances and converted it. We got our own chances but we could not convert it which cost our defeat at the end of the day.
When did you join Rocky Stars Football Academy?
I joined the club in 2008 and I won many laurels for the club in the last few years. I was a member of the team that won Chairman’s Cup in 2008 after we defeated Golden Stars 2-1 in the final. In 2009, my team defeated Elite FC 1-0 to win Klolly Cup.
Where do you see yourself in the nearest future?
I see myself playing for Rangers FC of Enugu before moving to Europe. If you ask me which club I would love to play for in Europe, I will say Real Madrid FC of Spain. I like the Spanish club because they play good football.