Sports
FIFA U-17 W’Cup: Golden Eaglets lose to Australia in final group match
The Golden Eaglets of Nigeria were defeated 2-1 by their Australian counterparts in their final group game of the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup.
It was Nigeria’s first defeat at the tournament, as the team already qualified for the second round of the competition after winning their first two matches against Hungary and Ecuador.
The defeat on Friday night takes nothing away from the Manu Garba’s boys as they finish top of Group b, but the victory, meant everything to Australia, who finished third in the group with 4 points – enough to reach the round of 16.
Read Also: West African table tennis stars converge in Abidjan for regional honours
Nigeria dominated the opening exchanges but it was Australia who opened the scoring in the 14th minute with Noah Botic slotting home off a perfect cross.
Just about seven minutes after, Peter Olawale restored parity for the Golden Eaglets with a fine effort, before Botic scored his second of the night through a penalty in the 54th minute.
In the other Group B match, Ecuador defeated Hungary 3-2 to book their spot in the Round of 16, as they finish second on six points with an inferior goal difference.
Third-placed Australia stand a high chance of reaching the round of 16 as one of the four best third-placed teams.
Join the conversation
Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism
Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.
As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.
If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.
Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.
INVESTIGATION: In Kwara, multimillion-naira milk processing plant is abandoned, converted to a chicken outlet
After the government spent millions of naira to establish a milk processing plant in Kwara State that would provided jobs...
SPECIAL REPORT: For Sokoto communities, promise of healthcare is akin to death sentence
In this story, ABDULRASHEED HAMMAD delves into the dire realities of Primary Health Care services in Sokoto State, shedding light...
ICYMI…SPECIAL REPORT: NNPCL hides behind PIA to frustrate disclosure, accountability
Nigeria’s major oil company, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), in what appears to be a common practice of disregard...
INVESTIGATION: Multi-million naira Ekiti resort center remains uncompleted a decade after
The multimillion-naira project, expected to comprise recreational buildings, now consists of cassava farmland, a bush used for excretion, and a...
SPECIAL REPORT: Torturous experiences of students with disabilities in Oyo tertiary institutions
For students with disabilities in Oyo state-owned tertiary institutions, learning is a torturous and distressing experience, considering the building structures...