It was an emotion-ladened encounter between Bobbies United and Lord Honour, when the semifinal battle for a place in the final of the 2019 Bet9ja Royal Cup took place on Tuesday, December 3 at the Kwale Township Stadium with the latter going home with a 3 – 1 triumph over the former.
The fame enjoyed by Bobbies United’s prodigy, Anderson Esiti, and Lord Honour’s leading light, Oghenekaro Etebo, with the Super Eagles precedes these two grassroot clubs in Delta State.
And that seemed to have given this fixture all the needed attention, passionate followers on both sides, and the egocentric push to play for pride on the pitch.
Bobbies United drew the first blood of the tie, when they opened scoring mid way through the opening period through Ogaga Ogude to go ahead 1 – 0.
There was a dramatic twist, however, for Bobbies United, after forward Emariojake Lucky needlessly picked up a red card.
Tempers began to fray among the two teams after the incident, as play was momentarily stopped for few minutes before halftime.
However, the resumption of the second half saw Bobbies United playing like the side broken in spirit, as Lord Honour was quick to capitalise on this seeming flaw in the opponents.
Three goals through Bakare Ayo, Akin Ola and Siakpere Kpobor turned the game in favour of the elite side, with a 3 – 1 scoreline chalked on the board.
Less than few minutes to the end of the tie, Lord Honour had their own fair share of disciplinary issues after Alex Adogbeji was red carded, following a yellow card.
In spite of that, it was a little too late for Bobbies United to equalise the 3 – 1 deficit and force the match to be decided through spot kicks.
With this result, Rolly FC and Lord Honour will trade tackles in the final on December 14 at the Stephen Keshi Stadium.
And Osevan FC will play for bragging right against Bobbies United in the losers’ final.
