NNL: Gateway protest against ABS ABS berate Gateway

Gateway FC have protested their walkover by Abubakar Bukola Saraki (ABS) FC in a Nigeria National League (NNL) match scheduled to hold in Ilorin last Sunday.

A statement by the club’s Media Officer, Rotimi Oduniyi and made available to Tribunesport detailed “the harassment, intimidation and insults the players, technical crew and other officials were subjected to at Ilorin Township Stadium.”

The statement said that the team who arrived at the stadium at 2.25pm were allegedly locked out and prevented by ABS officials and supporters from gaining entrance while ABS were allowed in with their players seen warming up.

It added that all entreaties failed as Gateway were only allowed into the  stadium at exactly 3.55pm which was just five minutes to the start of the match.

It also alleged that on getting in, it was discovered that only 20 security personnel were present contrary to the 60 agreed on at the pre-match meeting.

Right there, the statement said Gateway gave a letter of protest to the match Commissioner, Mr Eyah Ezra, from Niger State as statutory but he allegedly refused to take it with the N200,000 protest fee as stipulated by law.

Meanwhile, the management of ABS FC has berated its counterparts from Ogun state over the show of same they exhibited before, during and after the match day 14 of the Nigeria National League (NNL) encounter last Sunday in Ilorin.

The management, in a statement signed by its Director of Football, Alloy Chukwuemeka, said Gateway United FC were accorded maximum respect according to the laws of the game.

Chukwuemeka, who is also the Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Premier League Club Owners, explained that it was shocking to see Gateway officials behave the way they did at the pre-match meeting earlier in the day.

Chukwuemeka stated that he was most disappointed by the action of Gateway United who he claimed said he wanted to start fomenting trouble right from there.