By Ikenna Nwokedi
Ozalla Football Academy of Obosi has emerged as the champions of the 2024/25 edition of the ONEFID Unity Cup U-17 championship.
Ozalla FA saw off Olive Charles FA 4-3 on penalties after the clash ended 1-1 at regulation time in a keenly contested final match played at the Chuba Ikpeazu Stadium Onitsha on Wednesday, 8th January, 2025.
The football fiesta, which is in its third edition, was bankrolled by Onitsha Ex-Footballers in Diaspora (O.N.E.F.I.D) with eight teams vying for honours from November, 2024 to January, 8th 2025.
Ozalla FA for emerging champions, smiled home with the grand prize of N1million while Olive Charles FA, who came second position, took home N500,000. Michael FA, who defeated Success FC 3-1 in the third and fourth placed playoffs, was rewarded with the sum of N300,000 while Success FC got N100,000.
In the individual awards, Uchenna Onoja of Olive Charles FA claimed the award of the Most Valuable Player (MVP), Ifeanyi Dinho of Michael FA with a total of five goals in the championship was the Highest Goal Scorer while the Best Behaved Team award went to Success FC.
Reacting after the match, an elated proprietor of Ozalla FA, Ikenna Osueke thanked God for the victory and a hitch free competition without injuries.
Osueke praised his boys for their display throughout the course of the competition, describing it as a product of togetherness, hard work, and dedication. The football administrator promised that Ozalla FA will continue to produce football talents on yearly basis for the state and the nation at large.
In his remarks after the final match, Chairman of ONEFID, Nkemakonam Jideofor Nwonwu popularly known as ‘Olman’, stated that the third edition of the competition was remodelled to capture players who are Under-17 as they are the future talents and prospects.
Nwonwu described the entire competition as exciting and entertaining emphasizing that the future looks bright for the players and participating teams as the dream and target is to see players from Onitsha getting a place in the national Under-17, Under-20 and U-23 teams.
Nwonwu said: “I am impressed with what I have seen in third edition of this competition compared to the last two editions as we earlier remodelled it for players who are Under-17. Our dream and focus is to produce players from Onitsha who will don the green and white colours of our national teams playing for Under-17, Under-20 and Under-23.
“I think we are on course, and we are achieving this already with what we have seen in the course of this competition. I thank the proprietors of the various teams and their playing personnel for exhibiting the spirit of sportsmanship through the duration of the competition,” Nwonwu said.
Nwonwu also disclosed that he has personally scouted six players from the championship who can play in Europe and an invitation will be extended to them in an upcoming football program where scouts from Europe are expected to be in the country.
On his part, the Vice-Chairman of ONEFID, Barrister Iwuchukwu Abada, thanked the organizing committee for a great job. He re-echoed that the competition is for footballers that fall within the Under-17 age bracket, who they intend to assist and catapult to the next level of their career development.
Highlights of the grand finale was the decoration of the teams with medals, cash prizes, trophies and individual awards.
