Team NNPC successfully defended their title as champions of the Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Games when they emerged winners of the 19th edition that ended at the Moshood Abioa National Stadium complex Abuja at the weekend.
The Nigerian oil giants topped the medals table with 19 gold, 10 silver and 22 bronze medals to beat NLNG with 15 gold,12 silver and 11 bronze medals.
Shell placed third with7 gold, 6 silver and 9 bronze medals, while NCDMB with 7 gold 5 silver and 6 bronze medals placed a close 4th.
Team Chevron also made a strong showing winning 6 gold, 6 silver and 6 bronze medals to finish 5th, while Total Energies with 3 gold, 4 silver and 13 bronze medals made the top 6 in the medals table.
Meanwhile, Team NCDMB won the final match of the football event after running away with a lone goal victory over hard-fighting NLNG.
The match which was played at the main bowl of the Moshood Abiola National stadium Abuja saw the two teams creating numerous chances but failed to convert any. The first half ended on an even note.
On resumption for the second half, the victorious NCDMB mounted pressure on their opponents who were equally resilient.
Emmanuel Opuwari breached the stubborn NLNG defence and broke the deadlock in the 85th minute with a clinical finish. The victors held onto their slim lead until the centre referee sounded the final whistle.
“It didn’t start today,” Opuari said, after the close encounter. “From Port Harcourt, when we played the preliminaries, we promised ourselves that we were going to Abuja to win the trophy. That has come to reality today. We knew it was going to be ours to lose. This is just the beginning.”
Coach of the new football champions of NOGIG 2024 Ada Gwegwe said he was happy with his players who, in his words demonstrated seriousness, discipline and focus. “They put in everything and the result was expected. They trained very hard and played to instructions. It was our prayer to stop NNPC’s dominance in football. This is just the beginning,” he enthused.
Earlier, NNPC defeated NMDPRA 3-2 on penalties to win the third place match and the bronze medal.
