Akanni Seyi
The General Manager of NPFL hopeful side 3SC of Ibadan Rasheed Balogun has hinted that, the club would not give less to the yearnings of its teeming supporters and most especially its financier.
While reacting to questions posed by journalists on the ever spiffy Sport Platform, Sports World, Balogun who has worked with Stationary Stores FC and Julius Berger FC both of Lagos attributed meagre resources available to the modest club during the past regime as the breaking point and main reason while the club ‘nose-dives’ at the time.
Ekulekule, as he is fondly called by his admirers led Sunshine Stars to the Premier League, a feat no one expected the team to achieve back then.
Balogun, a disciplinarian, and a grassroots football manager started like a scout for Stationary Stores FC where he discovered players like Peter Rufai, Joe Audu amongst others. He has contributed immensely to the development of grassroots football in Lagos State, Ogun State, Ondo State and Oyo State.
“My inability to promote 3SC to the Nigeria Professional Football League NPFL beat my imaginations but I have put that behind me. By the grace of God, Shooting Stars will return to the NPFL.
“I promoted Shooting Stars to NPFL and we played it twice on meagre amount. The money we were getting was slashed and there’s nothing we can do about it. It was one of the reasons Gbenga Ogunbote left the club and that was the beginning of our problems.
“We could not get what we wanted to prosecute the league. We have tried twice to return to the elite division but we couldn’t make it, the last season was the third one and that was when we got it right simply because it’s a new episode from another government who’s interested in sports.
“Am not criticizing anyone at this stage, some governments might placed premium on infrastructures at the detriment of other areas while some are all encompassing like what is happening at the moment in the state. This last season, we were bossing the group unbeaten before the league was suspended abruptly, we have again put our house in order this season, we are going to get it right,” the lsale Eko born Soccer Administrator told Sports World.
