Kunle Adelabu
-Charges football scouts to attend matches to capture raw talents
The Chairman of the Ikorodu Divisional Football Association (IDFA), Alhaji Luqman Shonibare, has assured spectators at the ongoing 13th edition of the Bolowotan Gold Cup that there will good officiating in the 69 matches remaining in the tournament.
The tournament, which is being held at the Police Barracks Playing Ground, Igbogbo road, Ikorodu, commenced on Monday, June 14, 2021, with four matches.
Shonibare, who spoke with THE IMPACT after the matches, commended the professionalism displayed by the Referees in – charge of the first four matches while also assuring that the good officiating will be maintained throughout the tournament which will last for about two months.
“Today, we have played three matches and the tempo of the matches was very high. We have been able to see good goals, great goalkeeping, tactical play. We thank God that today, we have been able to see raw football as it is supposed to be”, Shonibare said.
“Spectators should be expecting fantastic and top notch officiating in other remaining matches. I can gaurantee this anytime because I was a former General Secretary of the Lagos State Referee Council for six years and before then, I was the Assistant General Secretary for six years.
“I know the caliber of referees that we have in Ikorodu. We have good trainers here too. The Lagos State Referee Council Training Officer is from Ikorodu in person of Jelili Ogunmuyiwa. The training officer for the Ikorodu Referee' Society, Ayeni Ridwan, is a referee in the NPFL and one of the best referees in Nigeria.
“In Ikorodu today, you can mention six referees that have been given award for best referee in the state and I am one of them. Also in that category are Jelili Ogunmuyiwa, S.T Ayeni, Ridwan Ayeni and Jokogbola Olansile. That shows that we have a tradition of producing good Referees in Ikorodu.
“Ordinary referee – in- training in Ikorodu Referees' Society is more than a grade one referee from other states. Before you get to the Grade One, you would have officiated in the State or National level or the premier league. The Grade 2 and Grade 3 and Referee – in = training are referees that are still under training to acquire qualification and promotion to Grade one”, he said.
Speaking further on the quality pedigree of Referees in Ikorodu, Shonibare said that about four referees from the Ikorodu Referees' Society are officiating matches in the Premier league and added that officiating football matches at the grassroots will not be a problem for such referees.
“Ikorodu has about four Referees in the Premier league, almost six in national leagues and over ten in the amateur league. So, what do you expect from them in terms of performance in the local league and tournament like this?” he asked rhetorically.
“Look at the fantastic officiating in the first four matches, nobody has complained about the officiating. We have started very well and we are going to continue in that direction and maintain the standard.
He said that part of the measures that the IDFA has been able to put in place in the recent time to ensure that the standard of the officiating improved in Ikorodu was the constitution of the Referees’ Unit with seasoned referees as members.
“At this 13th edition of the Bolowotan Gold Cup, we want to improved on the past mistakes and that’s the reason we have put in place the Ikorodu Division Football Association Referee’s Committee with the former training officer of the Lagos State Referee’s Council, a retired Assistant Referee and a Referee who emerged as best Referee four times when he was active and a FIFA retired Referee, Alhaji Saheed Ayeni, as the Chairman.
“We have also brought in the Chairman of the Ikorodu Referee’s Society as well as the Secretary of the Ikorodu Referee’s Society to also act as the Secretary of the committee. We also have Kabir Baoku, a retired Premier league referee, and also Afinni Issa, who is currently officiating in the national league”, he added.
“When you look at the criteria that we have used, you will know that we gave a formidable Referees’ Committee. So, it is the committee that will be looking into the officiating and if there is any mistake, the man in charge of the committee has the experience and knows how to correct that.
“We have also said times without number that if a referee commits an obvious mistake, he or she will suffer for it. We have also put together a Disciplinary Committee in case any referee violates the rules”, Sonibare also revealed.
“We are ready for this competition and I know that by the special grace of God, we are going to ensure that we have a good outing”, he declared.
The IDFA Chairman also hinted that the 32 team format will be maintained for the longest football tournament in Ikorodu so as to accommodate other tournaments in the football calendar.
“We are just starting, the tournament has been the biggest competition in Ikorodu. This is the only tournament that attracts more than 32 teams but the fact that the world cup for now only takes 32 teams, we cannot but keep the 32 teams format for this tournament too”, he said.
“All the 32 teams that registered for the competition are fully prepared and ready to showcase the soccer talents that we have in Ikorodu. We have raw talents that are waiting to be tapped and nurtured.
“The tournament is okay and well managed with the 32 teams format and it is easy for us to organize between a month and half. To have more than that, it means that we will have to extend the period and when we now organize a competition for three, four months or more, how do we organize the others?
“We have Under -10, 13, 15, 17, 21 tournaments and also a league and other state competitions. We also have players that are playing in the NPFL and the rest. If we limit it to 32, we can have time for other tournaments”, he further said.
He charged football scouts, both locally and internationally, to attend matches during the tournament to detect young, raw and talented players.
“We are calling on scouts, locally, statewide, nationally and internationally, to come and see raw talents that can be developed to give them maximum benefits”, he said.
