James Jonah was the star of the day bagging a brace as Abia Comets FC defeated visiting Dakkada FC, 3-1 on Saturday, January 20, 2024.
The encounter was a 2023/24 Nigeria National League (NNL) Sourthern Conference Group A matchday nine fixture and was played at the Umuahia Township Stadium, Umuahia.
After dominating the opening exchanges, Comets took an early lead, in the 14th minute through James Jonah, who headed home from a delightful cross from teammate Hyacinth Olieh.
Abia Comets should have been two up five minutes later, Jonah had a good scoring chance, when he dribbled past two Dakkada FC defenders but failed to slot home with the goal athis mercy.
The home team continued to dominate the game, much to the delight of head coach Okechukwu Ejeh and the fans at the Umuahia Township Stadium.
In the 36th minute, Hyacinth Olieh who provided assist for the opening goal scored to double the lead for his side , when he tapped the ball to the net from Benjamin IIuyomade’s expertly taken free kick. That goal ensured Abia Comets went into the half time break with a healthy 2-0 lead.
In the second half, the hosts continued from where the stopped as James Jonah bagged his brace to make it 3-0, when he headed home a delightful free kick delivered by Akpan Mfreke, in the 48th minute. That counts as his third goal of the 2023/2024 Nigeria National League season.
Dakkada FC grew into the contest and got a consolation goal through veteran skipper Aniekan Ekpe, in the quater of the match, a well struck free kick that went past Abia Comets goalkeeper, Chibueze Lambert. The match eded 3-1 in favour of Comets.
With the victory, Abia Comets FC have now extended their unbeaten run to four games, and hav climbed into the top four in the Southern Conference Group A log with 13 points.
In his post-match interview with Abia Comets FC Media, shortly after the encounter, coach of te winning team Okechukwu Ejeh praised the performance of the players, saying that the team will continue to work hard and improve.
His words; “It’s a vital three points for us against a tough Dakkada FC side. But it was a good game for us because we won but there are still area that we need to work on because of the goals scoring opportunities we failed to convert in the game.” Ejeh concluded.
Comets will be on the road, for their next league fixture. a matchday 10 encounter against Rovers FC on Saturday, January 28th, 2024, at the U. J. Esuene Stadium, Calabar.
