The opening Matchday of the female category of Seals Cup kicked off in thrilling fashion with the Matchday offering standout performances and controversies. Asides the tournament’s opener that saw ASSE and KHE share the spoils, all fixtures were played at Zik Maracanna.
With 4 groups and 16 teams, each match presented so much excitements with some living up to the hype. Here’s how things went down across all groups:
The departments of ASSE, Human Kinetics, Statistics and LARIS were the Participating teams in Group A. The curtain raiser between ASSE and KHE was an unforgettable one that featured 4 goals shared between both teams. The game featured end to end actions, comeback goals and a star performance from Favour of KHE.
However, the second game between LARIS and Statistics sparked controversies. Statistics had fell behind 1-0 but mounted a comeback to win 2-1, both goals coming from a FreeKick and a Penalty. According to some of the fans and even the LARIS players, the freekick and penalty given was highly controversial especially considering the fact that the referee was from the department of Statistics. They expressed disappointment as to why a Referee from their opponent’s Department should be allowed to officiate the match.
Group B had the departments of MBBS, Law, Physiotherapy and Forestry. Last season’s finalist, MBBS faced off against the Department of Law in a keenly contested match. Laura, the transfer player of MBBS had put her team ahead just before halftime before the transfer player of Law, Grace, found an equalizer through a well taken freekick to level the score. MBBS who were without their key forward, Eseosa, held on to their own to finish the game in a Stalemate.
In the second game of the group, Physiotherapy and Forestry also played out a 1-1 draw. Physio had struck early through Rasheedat but Forestry equalizer came just before the break. Despite chances for both sides, neither could secure a winner. These results mean that all teams in Group B now sit evenly on one point.
Archeology/Anthropology, Sociology, Microbiology and Environmental Health Sciences were the Participating departments in Group C. Archeology/Anthropology, just like their male counterparts enjoyed a commanding start to their campaign, defeating Sociology 2-0, all thanks to a brace from Kemi. Kemi’s clinical finishing and leadership set her apart as one of the Matchday’s top players.
The other fixture between Microbiology and Environmental Health Sciences didn’t hold as Microbiology did not show up for the scheduled match. This handed Environmental Health Science a 3-0 walkover victory.
Philosophy, Pharmacy, History and Computer Science were the members of Group D. Philosophy produced the most emphatic performance of the round, sweeping aside Pharmacy in a 4-1 victory. The 4 goals for Philosophy came from Heritage, Anwuli, Anjola and Gloria. Pharmacy managed a late consolation through Kesh. This result meant that Philosophy now too the group.Meanwhile, History and Computer science played to a goalless draw. Both sides were defensively organized but struggled to create meaningful chances in the final third.
Impressive individual displays, comeback wins, defensive solidity – Matchday 1 had it all. With every group finely poised and more fixtures ahead, fans can expect increased intensity, higher stakes and possibly more amazing performances as the tournament progresses.
