NFF, NPFL Stage Jos Pre-season Tournament To Prepare Clubs For CAF Battles

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) have organised a pre-season tournament in Jos, Plateau State, to help Nigeria’s representatives in continental competitions fine-tune their preparations for the CAF club competitions.

NPFL Chief Operating Officer, Prince Davidson Owumi, said the tournament was designed to provide the participating clubs with competitive match conditioning ahead of their continental campaigns.

Speaking to the media shortly after Tuesday’s fixture draw, Owumi explained that the NFF and NPFL decided to organise the tournament because the domestic season is scheduled to begin only a few days before the CAF club matches.

“Considering that our season would be commencing a few days to the CAF club matches, the NFF and NPFL resolved that it would benefit the clubs to have their players participate in a competitive tournament to further deepen their fitness and cohesion,” Owumi said.

NPFL champions Rangers International, runners-up Rivers United and Federation Cup winners El-Kanemi Warriors are among the participating clubs.

They are joined by Plateau United and Mighty Jets, who received wild-card invitations as representatives of the host state, while Katsina United were drafted in at short notice to replace Shooting Stars.

Owumi said the tournament format had been structured to guarantee Nigeria’s continental representatives four competitive matches, from the round-robin stage through to the final.

“We acknowledge the support of the NFF in securing the buy-in of the Plateau State Government to host the tournament, and it is our expectation to see the clubs and their players take advantage of the platform to fine-tune their match preparations and plans going into the competition,” he added.

Rivers United, Plateau United, El-Kanemi Warriors and Mighty Jets featured on the opening matchday on Wednesday, while El-Kanemi Warriors face Katsina United and Rangers take on Rivers United on Thursday.

The final is scheduled for Sunday, August 23, with all matches taking place at the New Jos Township Stadium.