University of Calabar (UNICAL Malabites) and University of Agriculture Makurdi (UAM Tillers) are set to slug it out at the final of the 2018 Higher Institution Football League (HiFL) scheduled to hold at the Agege Stadium, Lagos on November 3, 2018.
In an exciting encounter at the University of Agriculture Makurdi Stadium, the UAM Tillers turned over a two-goal deficit to defeat the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU Giants) by 3-0 wining on a 6-5 aggregate score line.
The UNICAL Malabites also canceled the 1-0 deficit from their first leg match played in Ilorin with a 2-0 home win against the UNILORIN Warriors in Calabar.
The Stanbic IBTC Man of the match in the UAM Tillers versus OAU Giants game, Ebuka David, showed why he is presently the highest scorer in the tournament, with eight goals under his belt, as he scored again in the 42nd minute.
Two more goals from Abata Terkuma in the 3rd minute and Anthony Elaigwu in the 48th minute completed the rout on the OAU Giants.
Similarly, goals from Prince Umoh in the 9th minute and Osas Paul in the 18th minute were enough to give the UNICAL Malabites a comfortable 2-0 win over the UNILORIN Warriors despite a spirited effort from the Ilorin boys.
Commenting on the matches, the Director, PACE Sports and Entertainment Marketing Limited, Mr. Sola Fijabi said “we now have our four finalists who will play the finals to determine the first, second and third place winners. We appreciate all the schools that participated in the 2018 HIFL because they are all winners.
“They have all demonstrated good sportsmanship as they displayed fantastic football artistry. We also thank our sponsors for their support, looking forward to the next season”.
The 2018 HiFL commenced on August 1 with teams from the Sahel and Atlantic conferences. The top 16 universities from 79 NUGA-member institutions played in 30 games over a period of 14 weeks in a return leg elimination format.
Selected players from the 2018 HiFL will represent Nigeria at the upcoming International University Sports Federation (FISU) Games, the world’s largest collegiate sports competition.
The HiFL is organised by Pace Sports and Entertainment Marketing in partnership with the Nigerian Universities Games Association (NUGA).
