With 35 players and 20 officials, the management of Pelican Stars FC, a Calabar-based female Premier League team, says they have the capacity to win this year’s female Premier League.
The assurances were given in Calabar by Comrade, the Chairman of the team in an interactive session with the executives of Sports Writers Association of Nigeria, Cross River State Chapter.
Kombor, along with his management team including Chief Coach, Muritala Olaleko, also told the newly elected SWAN executive, that Pelican Stars has quality players in various Nigerian national female teams.
“As we speak to you, Pelican stars has contributed immensely to the constitution of the Female League Board which has been in existence for the past three years.
“We have 13 players in the three national camps. We have 4 players in the U-17 camp that participated in Costa Rica in February this year.
“We have six players in U-20, out of which five participated in Canada where Nigeria emerged runners up after losing 0-1 to Germany.
“And we have three players in the Super Falcons where two have been called to camp towards our AWC. Our own Esther Sunday has gone for trials in Turkey,’’ he said.
He said the team’s technical crew and management were happy to sustain cordial relationship with SWAN and its new executive.
“Having stayed for about 10 years as chairman of Pelican Stars, we know the capacity of SWAN and will willingly cooperate with you to drive the team’s progress in the league where we often play two matches a week,’’ he said.
Kombor said Pelicans Stars was before now in Amateur female League where he took them to the Professional League.
According to him the team campaigned for nine years in the pro-league before moving to the maiden edition of Premier League and reached the quarter finals of the FA Cup this year.
“As we speak we have 20 pro-league team and 12 premier league teams and innumerable division 1 and 2 Amateur league. Female league is even better today than male league. They do not have division 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 like we have in our league.
He also hinted that the female premier league will soon hit a 20-team mark: “At our next Congress we are going to make a 20-team mark in the female Premier League’’.
He also said that from the way the team is playing it will top the league, gain promotion, adding that although the team is currently second in the league and will be part of the Super 4 it has a major problem of funding.
“But our problem is finances. We appeal to our sponsors, the Cross River Government to improve our subvention to enable us to improve and also get a Media Officer.
Earlier, the Vice Chairman of SWAN, Albert Andinam, who led the SWAN team said they were at Pelican stars camp to intimate management of the Eddie Bekom-led new SWAN executive in Cross River State.
Andinam, who represented the Chairman, Eddie Bekom at the occasion, said that SWAN in Cross River is “ back on stream and reinvigorated to continually act as conduit for sports reportage’’ in the state, national and global level.
He said that SWAN was aware of Pelican Stars’ challenges which had no doubt prevented it from remaining the number team as it used to be in Nigeria’s female soccer, adding that they were in the camp to look at the challenges.
He said SWAN would love to have what he called system feedback of club activities including matches, sign-on of players, officials and other critical matters that could affect club performances and growth.
He said that SWAN in Cross River was willing to partner with the club for the growth of female football in Cross River, once touted as the cradle of female football in Nigeria, due to exploits of Pelican Stars.
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