The AGC competition has evolved tremendously. It is the view of many participants that the AGC Football Competition 2024 has witnessed profound improvements in both officiating, organisation and execution, thanks to the Sports Subcommittee of the AGC.
In a sudden twist, the referees in the ongoing AGC competition in Lagos have, for the first time, come under the microscope as Yenegoa and Owerri alleged their opponents Ibadan and Lagos respectively, were favoured by the centre referees, who officiated their games.
In the first game of the quarterfinal yesterday, Yenegoa had taken an early lead when the forward finished at the nearpost of the goalkeeper in the first half. Ibadan responded with a good finish of their own to restore parity.
A penalty was deservedly awarded by the referee, who brought the match to a close when the penalty was converted. Aggrieved Yenegoa players and coaching staff circled the referee, and claimed the game was brought to a stop prematurely.
Yenegoa players who spoke with Bib&Collar alleged that many decisions were in favour of their opponents, and accused the centre referee of conversing in vernacular with their opponents during play. At the time of this report, it is yet to be known if Yenegoa have lodged any official complaint to the sports sub-committee in this regard.
The first half of the second quarterfinal game between Lagos and Owerri ended in a cagey draw. Lagos took the lead when the Owerri defence could not clear their lines, allowing Emmanuel Chuks to round the goalkeeper and slot into an empty net.
A resurgent Owerri team fought back into the game with chances of their own which they failed to convert. Their hard job of recovery was undone by an allegedly controversial spot kick awarded by the referee when Owerri centre-back bundled Emmanuel Chuks to the turf outside the 18-yard box.
Irate Owerri players, who circled the referee to contest that the foul was committed outside the 18-yard box, alleged that the referee responded that he would not upturn his decision even if his assistant referee disagreed with him. The spot-kick was converted and the rest of the game petered out insipidly.
Some spectators who spoke to Bib&Collar after the game expressed their views that the foul was committed outside the 18, and that the decision to award a spot-kick by the referee was startling.
Jos and Bwari played out one all draw in the third game of the quarterfinal stage to drag the match to penalties, where Bwari came out victorious.
Benin beat Makurdi 3 : 1 to qualify for the Semis.
In the circumstance, Lagos shall meet Ibadan at 2pm today for the first match of the Semifinal, while Bwari shall meet Benin at 3pm in the 2nd semifinal game.
In the female competition which commenced yesterday, Abuja Women beat Lagos Women while Owerri Women and Benin Women played out nil-nil draw.
Today, Abuja Women shall meet Owerri Women at 12noon, while Lagos Women shall meet Benin Women at 12:50pm.
