Sporting Lagos were held to a 1-1 draw by Barau FC in their Nigeria Premier Football League, NPFL, Matchday 6 fixture at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan on Saturday, sources report.
Barau FC took the lead on the stroke of half-time when Joseph Atule scored from the penalty spot after Stanley Oganbor was fouled inside the box. Sodiq Ayoade levelled for Sporting Lagos in the second half, and neither side found a winner in the remaining 30 minutes, as both teams shared the points.
Sporting Lagos head coach Jeffrey Buter described the result as disappointing and said his team deserved more. “Yeah, disappointing, like you said. I think we deserved more than a draw. We should have won this game,” Buter told the club’s media, according to match reports.
Buter also criticised the officiating and reflected on his side’s missed opportunities. “I think another day, the officiating is better. I think we get maximum points from this game. I am happy with the fight and courage,” he said. He added that fatigue affected the team’s finishing. “Fatigue is part of the game. I think we created chances, but we didn’t score early enough and the opponent took what they got,” the coach was quoted as saying.
The draw kept Barau FC in a strong position in the table, with one report saying the result saw Barau maintain top spot and extend their unbeaten run. Sporting Lagos will next face Ikorodu City in a local derby, another report says.
Buter urged his players to remain resilient and to build on the fight shown in the match. “But again, the fight and resilience to get something, you are going to need it in another game. We wanted to start strong like we did against Inter Lagos. We just have to keep fighting,” he added.
Match reports and post-match comments were published by Complete Sports and Daily Post.
Sources: Complete Sports, Daily Post.
Featured image: Sunnymachocho via Wikimedia Commons, CC0.
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