The Flying Antelopes.

Their dressing is well branded with prancing Antelopes. A beautiful departure to the popular Lion and Leopard heads.

Today at Lekan Salami Stadium Ibadan. We will witness a rekindling of one of the greatest football rivalries in the history of Nigeria.

Rangers Vs Shooting Stars.

No other came close.

And it entered the anals of football history in Africa after the semi finals of African Cup Winners Cup in 1977.

That game was played in Kaduna. Until then, Africa never saw anything like it. Even the Nigerian Air Force fighter jets did a great maneuvering display above the stadium before the start of the game.

To say it was electric would be downplaying it. But that was Rangers era. They arrived to rewrite history. The boys that rose from the ashes.

Rangers Vs Shooting Stars.

When Nigeria won its first African Cup of Nations in 1980. That feat was on the shoulders of Rangers and Shooting Stars.

Rangers had seven players in the then Green Eagles, Shooting Stars had five players. Rangers had Chairman Christian Chukwu, Silvanus Okpara, Okey Isima, Emmanuel Okala, Adokiye Amiesimaka, Ifeanyi Onyedika, and Aloysius Atuegbu.

Shooting had Mathematical Odegbami, Muda Lawal, Best Ogedengbe, Felix Owolabi and Tunde Bamidele.

The two boys from Benin were Henry Nwosu from New Nigerian Bank and David Adiele from Bendel Insurance.

Three foreign based footballers were invited. They are John Chiedozie from Orient FC, Usiyan Thompson from Appalachian State Mountaineers and Godwin Odiye from San Francisco Dons.

But Rangers and Shooting carried that team on their shoulders.

I remember one occasion during a birthday celebration of Chairman Christian Chukwu and Segun Odegbami was speaking about Chukwu’s leadership qualities and abilities to coach in the field. Such admiration and respect existed even when they were rivals at club level.

And that rivalry more than anything helped give us one of the greatest football commentators the world has ever heard of: Ernest Okonkwo.

He it was who named Christian Chukwu Chairman, Emmanuel Okala Man Mountain and Segun Odegbami Mathematical.

In one of his most celebrated commentary he churned out pieces of toasted bread buttered on all side with the slippery of his words.

Hear him:

“Odegbami dilly-dallies, shilly-shallies, and locates Elastic Humphrey Edobor. The storm is gathering near the opponent’s goal area, and it will soon rain a goal. Edobor turns quickly to the right and returns the ball to Odegbami. Odegbami kicks the ball towards Quicksilver Sylvanus Okpala who shoots an intercontinental ballistic missile from outside the penalty box. It is a goal! It is a goal!! Nigeria has scored!”

Pushing that art a little further during the 1985 World Cup qualifying game between Nigeria and Tunisia in Lagos, Ernest Okonkwo described the near perfect understanding between two Eagles players thus: “Okey Isima, with a short pass to Sylvanus Okpala. They both play in Portugal. They can communicate in Igbo; they can communicate in English; they can communicate in Portuguese and they just communicated with the ball”

Segun Odegbami describes Okonkwo thus:

” A master of descriptive language, always conjuring words easily, effortlessly and aptly like a magician with his bag of tricks. He had the power in words to give life to the most boring game. He was a flawless master of the English language, often taking listeners to the limits of their imagination.”

Okonkwo turned football commentary into high art of the most fluid form. Later day commentators like legendary Peter Drury naturally took it to another level.

Rangers and Shooting Stars……

I can’t forget when I was 10 years in primary school and we were at a final of school quiz competition. The last question was that I.I.C.C. Shooting Stars FC is one of the leading football clubs in Nigeria, what is the full meaning of I.I.C.C?

I smiled aloud because I knew nobody would get it. I was that confident. So I waited until they failed and I picked up the bonus points.

IICC = Industrial Investment and Credit Corporation.

It never left my brain till date.

If you are in Ibadan, Oshogbo, Abeokuta, Ọyo even Lagos. Go fill the stadium to capacity.