Nasarawa United Football Club on Monday in Lafia defeated visiting Jigawa Golden Stars FC of Hadeija 3-1 to reclaim the second position on the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) table.
In the rescheduled Match Day 31 encounter at the Lafia Township Stadium, the home victory returned Nasarawa United to second spot after dropping to fourth position.
This had been due to results from other clubs’ Games and the rescheduling of their Match Day 31 fixture.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that from the onset Nasarawa United put up a brilliant performance, and they had a clear goal opportunity in the opening minute.
But Silas Nwankwo fluffed the chance by shooting wide in spite of facing the Jigawa Golden Stars goalkeeper in a one-on-one situation in the penalty area.
He however made up for the miss from a shot parried his way by the visiting goalkeeper, tapping in from close range in the 19th minute.
In the 31st minute, Nwankwo made it 2-0 to increase his goals tally this season to 13 and become the leading goalscorer in the ongoing 2020/2021 NPFL season.
NAN reports that Nasarawa United went on to take advantage of a counter-attack opportunity, with Nwankwo making hay with a shot.
In the second half, they extended their lead through Adamu Hassan who received a cute pass from Aliyu Abdullahi in the penalty box to blast home in the 59th minute.
Jigawa Golden Stars reduced the tally through Samuel Stone who rose from being fouled to score a penalty kick in the 86th minute.
Speaking to newsmen after the match, Bala Nikyu, Head Coach of Nasarawa United, commended his players for adhering to their game plan.
“If you get it right, you should thank God. My players did well today and I appreciate their efforts.
“This victory is a good one and our target of playing on the continent next season has not been derailed.
“We will continue to fight from on,”he said.(NAN)