By Dayo Awoniyi
Sunshine Stars head coach, Bobola Akinfolarin, has voiced his disappointment following his side’s narrow 1-0 defeat to Shooting Stars in a hard-fought Matchday 36 encounter of the 2024/25 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) season.
The match was decided in the 84th minute, when a late penalty was awarded to the hosts after a scramble in the penalty area at the Lekan Salami Stadium in Adamasingba, Ibadan.
The penalty proved to be the only goal of the match, securing a crucial victory for Shooting Stars.
In his post-match comments, Akinfolarin admitted that the loss was a painful one, particularly given the manner in which it unfolded.
“Conceding a late penalty is always difficult, and this one feels especially tough,” Akinfolarin said. “It’s a painful result, but we must remain focused.”
Despite the setback, the Sunshine Stars coach emphasized that his team must keep their eyes on the remaining two matches of the season.
“We have two more games to play, and our aim is to bounce back and finish the season strongly,” he added.
With the defeat, Sunshine Stars are now looking ahead to their next fixtures, hoping to recover from the disappointment and secure vital points to close out the campaign.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. He began his career at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
