NNL Clubs dare NFF, shun Super 8

Nigeria National League clubs have dared the country’s football governing body, Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) after most of the 8 clubs that qualified for the 2018 Super shunned the playoff despite NFF directives.
The NFF had after an emergency committee meeting Monday chaired by the NFF President, Amaju Melvin Pinnick, directed the go-ahead of the Super 8 Tournament of the Nigeria National League (NNL) to produce four teams to be promoted to the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) for the 2018/2019 Season.
The Emergency Committee thus directed that teams contesting the Super 8 Tournament, scheduled for Aba, should arrive the Abia State capital on Wednesday, 19th December, and the tournament must be concluded by Sunday, 23rd December for the Nigeria National League to present teams to the Nigeria Professional Football League for the new season.
“The Super 8 Tournament must go ahead with all the teams arriving on or before Wednesday, 19th December. I enjoin all the eight qualified teams to endeavour to be in Aba for this tournament, in order to ensure that the LMC has the names of the four teams promoted from the NNL, and go ahead to conduct its draws for the new season.
“Nobody foresaw these special circumstances. Yet, it is only by obeying the rules and regulations, and being guided by global best practice, that we can move forward. Nigerian Football is operating within the international football community, and not an oasis in any desert. The NFF Emergency Committee endorses the resolution of the expanded meeting that the best eight teams in the NNL should contest the Super 8 Tournament, from which the best four teams will be promoted to the Nigeria Professional Football League for the 2018/2019 Season,” Pinnick said in a press statement on Monday.
The Committee also directed that the NNL must proceed with the tournament as scheduled with the Clubs that report to Aba while stating that disciplinary action would be taken against those who fail to honour their obligations to participate in the Super 8 and the directives of the NFF.
The Nigeria Football Federation had on Monday through press release directed all the eight teams to arrive Aba and commence the playoff on Wednesday.
But in an apparent disregard to the directive, the NNL club owners had met in Abuja and announced that they will not be part of the Super 8.
The crises of misunderstanding between the NNL and NFF over the number of clubs to be promoted to the NPFL for the 201/19 have stopped the commencement of the Nigerian leagues on December 1, the earlier scheduled date by the League Management Company.
Report from Aba indicates that only three out of 8 clubs have arrived the Enyimba City, venue of the Super 8 Playoff. The three clubs in Aba are Gombe United, Delta Force, and Real Stars while other five clubs; Bendel Insurance, Shooting Stars, Kada FC, Remo stars, and Kogi United are yet to find their way to the God’s own state.
Eight teams are expected to arrive Aba, play a round-robin league while the top four teams automatically promoted to the elite league.