2020 is upon us and as we look back at 2019 and our accomplishments and failures in football, it is imperative that we also remember the impact individuals that we lost to death.
Let us salute them together.
The year had barely started when news of the death of Taiwo Ogunjobi on 11th of February 2019, at the University College Hospital in Ibadan from an undisclosed illness.
Ogunjobi first burst on to the limelight as captain of the 1973-74 Nigerian Academicals that went on to dethrone the mighty Ghanaian one as the regional powerhouse. He went on to join the Shooting Stars in 1975 and after a brief interruption to study in the US, he returned to the club and led them to the final of the 1984 African Cup of Champions Club where they fell to Zamalek.
In the same year, he would also make his debut for the then Green Eagles retiring from active football two years later.
Ogunjobi went on to wear a slew of administrative hats including Minister of Information of Oyo State, General Manager for Shooting Stars, Gabros FC and Julius Berger, Secretary-General of the Nigeria Football Association and finally Chairman of the NFF Technical Committee and the Osun State Football Association.
He passed at the age of 65.
While we were still smarting from his death, came that of multiple African Women's Championship winner and former Nigeria women's under-19 captain Ifeanyi Chiejine.
She passed away on the 21st of August after a brief illness, sending the entire country into mourning.
Chejine was known as a total team player and rose up the youth ranks to take part in an amazing three Wolrd Cup's (1999, 2003, 2007 ) as well as the 2000 and 2008 Summer Olympics.
She scored 15 goals in 61 games for Nigeria
She last played for SSVSM-Kairat Almaty in the Kazakhstani Championship after having played for FC Indiana in USA's W-League, KMF Kuopio, and PK-35 Vantaa in Finland and Zvezda Perm in Russia.
Then of all days, on that of our Independence, came the double deaths of Ani Ekong and Saturday Glory who played for the Uyo Police Machine in the Nigeria Women's Pro League.
Both were tragically hit by an errant driver on Stadium road in Uyo as the team prepared for the playoffs in Lokoja to get promotion to the Nigeria Women’s Football League.
As if that was not enough, our hearts would be tested again when the grim reaper would reappear for former youth international captain Isaac Promise just one day later on the 2nd of October.
He was the captain of the Nigerian team which won the silver medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.
He played for 14 years, most of which were in Turkey, for 10 clubs starting with Gençlerbirliği in 2005 and ending with Austin Bold FC in the US in 2019.
He scored a total of 77 club goals during his career.
Promise died of a heart attack.
We sincerely thank all of them for the joy they gave us while alive, their national spirit and hope that they find eternal peace and again extend our heartfelt condolences to their families.
Unna well done!
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