Rivers United F.C.

Rivers United Football Club is a professional football club based in Port Harcourt, Rivers State that participates in the Nigerian Professional Football League, the highest level of domestic Nigerian football. The club was formed by the merger of Sharks F.C. and Dolphins F.C. in 2016. Their home stadium is the Yakubu Gowon Stadium, formerly Liberation Stadium in Elekahia that has a seating capacity of 30,000.[1]

Rivers United
Nickname(s)The Pride of Rivers
Founded2016
GroundAdokiye Amiesimaka Stadium
Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria
Capacity38,000
ManagerStanley Eguma
LeagueNigeria Professional Football League
2021–22Nigeria Professional Football League, 1st of 20 (Champions)
WebsiteClub website

Rivers United FC has remained in the top flight since its first season. They have been performing well in this season’s CAF Confederation Cup where they defeated a South African opponent to set up a highly anticipated matchup against Enyimba.

History

Rivers United was founded in 2016 after the Rivers state government got permission to merge Dolphins FC and Sharks FC. Both clubs were run by the state government and were having difficulty with finances off the pitch.[2] Sharks were relegated to the First Division in 2015 while Dolphins had barely escaped after a 2–2 draw on the final day.[3] Rivers United' crest contains both a shark and a dolphin as a result of the merge.[4]

Stanley Eguma was appointed Rivers' first coach and led them to a win in their first ever league match, 1–0 over Enyimba.[5]

The club finished second in the 2016 Nigerian Premier League which qualified them for the 2017 CAF Champions League for the first time.[6] A four-goal second-leg win over Mali's AS Bamako with Esosa Igbinoba and Bernard Ovoke each scoring braces put Rivers past the preliminary round.[7] However, they were eliminated by Sudan's Al-Merrikh 4–3 on aggregate in the first round after losing a 3–0 first round lead.[8]

2021–22: Nigerian Professional League Champions

On June 25, 2022, Rivers United won their first Nigeria Professional League title with four games to spare after Akwa United beat their nearest challengers, Plateau United 2-1 in Uyo.[9]

Rivers United ended the season with 77 points, breaking the league record of 73 points in a season.[10][11]

The 2021-22 Nigeria Professional League title is their first league title since the merger between Dolphins and Sharks FC of Port Harcourt in 2016.[12] It is also the first NPFL title by a Rivers-based side since the Dolphins won in 2011.[13][14]

Rivers United won 23 games, drew 8, and lost 7 of their 38 league games as they claimed the 2021-22 league title with 10 points ahead of their closest rivals, Plateau United.[15][16][17]

Staff

Head Coach

  • Stanley Eguma

Assistant Coach

  • Fatai Osho

Acting General Manager

  • Okey Kpalukwu

Welfare Secretary

  • Albert Chinwo

Media Officer

Current squad

As of 13 February 2023

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
2 MF  NGA Solomon Okuruket
3 DF  GHA Amphiah Emmanuel
5 DF  CMR Ngweni Ndasi
6 DF  NGA Enyinnaya Godswill
7 FW  NGA Fortune Omoniwari
8 MF  NGA Ukeme Williams
9 FW  NGA Bernard Ovoke
10 FW  NGA Agu Kenechukwu
11 MF  NGA Morice Chukwu
12 FW  LBR Korvah Albert
13 MF  NGA Akpesiri Naibe
16 GK  NGA Victor Soshima
18 MF  NGA Chiamaka Madu
19 DF  NGA Festus Austin (Captain)
20 MF  NGA Joseph Onoja
No. Pos. Nation Player
23 GK  GHA Seidu Mutawakilu
23 MF  GHA Paul Acquah
25 FW  NGA Malachi Ohawuma
26 MF  GHA Farouk Mohammed
27 FW  NGA Simeon Sakin Bolaji
28 FW  NGA Nwangwa Nyima
32 MF  GHA Shiraz Mohammed
34 GK  NGA Darlington Ovunda

Notes
  1. "Dolphins, Sharks merged, now Rivers Utd F.C." Vanguard. 19 February 2016. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
  2. "Dolphins, Sharks F.C merge to form new club". Pulse Nigeria. 19 February 2016.
  3. Orevba, Babajide (19 February 2016). "Dolphins, Sharks change name to Rivers United". Legit.ng - Nigeria news.
  4. "Dolphins renamed Rivers United Football Club | Goal.com". www.goal.com.
  5. "'We can't lose to Enyimba'- Rivers United coach Stanley Eguma stokes up the fire ahead of must win title cracker this week". Linda Ikeji's Blog. 6 June 2016.
  6. "CAF clubs competitions draws: North African ties for Rangers, FC Ifeanyi Ubah". 22 December 2016.
  7. "Rivers United trash Real Bamako". supersport.com.
  8. Agberebi, James. "CAFCL: Rivers United Blow Big First Leg Lead Vs Al-Merrikh, Crash Out". Retrieved 25 October 2018.
  9. "Rivers United claim maiden NPFL crown after Plateau United lose in Uyo". Nigeria sports news, transfers & gossips. 25 June 2022. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  10. "Rivers United Lift 2021/22 Nigeria Professional Football League Trophy as Dakkada Beat Drop on Last Day. – Inspiration FM, #1 Family Radio Station". Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  11. Chidiezie, Jidechi (18 July 2022). "10 things you should know about the 2022 NPFL champions Rivers United". Pulse Nigeria. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  12. "Rivers United win first Nigerian league title". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. 26 June 2022. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  13. "Rivers United claim maiden NPFL crown after Plateau United lose in Uyo". SportsRation. 25 June 2022. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  14. "NPFL: Eguma hails dogged Pillars after sealing record points". Punch Newspapers. 4 July 2022. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  15. "Leaders Rivers United 10 points clear after big win over closest rivals Plateau United – Score Nigeria". Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  16. "2021-22 league title NPFL azscore.ng". azscore.ng. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  17. "Rivers United". betsapi.com. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  18. "Rivers Utd get management team". supersport.com.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.