Still rueing the goal feast opportunity that was lost against MFM last Sunday in Makurdi, Lobi Stars are in Owerri to confront a resurgent Heartland who until last week was a weeping child of the NPFL 2021/2022 amidst crisis of non payment of salaries and wages and a factionalized management in a Matchday 13 fixture of the NPFL 2021/2022 in Owerri.
Though Heartland were able to pull a stunning away draw from Akwa United over the weekend, that spark has not been good enough to better their standing on the league table, rather the new spirit in the camp of their bottom place contemporary MFM have sank them one place lower to the 20th position after winning a midweek home game against Katsina United in Lagos.
Lobi Stars gained a 12th position after overrunning MFM but slide down to 13th with a game in hand after the midweek games of Wednesday February 16, 2022 were decided in 7 other centres. Unarguably faring better than Heartland in all ramifications, Lobi Stars is just not on a jamboree in Owerri but here to make a statement.
Lobi Stars are sitting 13th with 16 points from 12 games with one outstanding to be played on Thursday, February 17, 2022 while Heartland are sitting a rock bottom 20th with 9 points in 12 games with a game in hand. Which ever way the result goes, the beneficiary will acquire an enhanced place on the log.
As a veteran club that have seen better days, Heartland is faring a bit better on the all time head to head, having won 11 times from 27 meets, leaving Lobi Stars with 10 wins and 6 draws in between. In their last 5 meets, Lobi Stars won three times as Heartland ended with two wins.
On current form in the NPFL 2021/2022, Lobi Stars in their last 5 games won 2, drew 1 and lost 2, while Heartland managed 2 draws and lost all 3 without a win. Significantly all the last 5 games between the two clubs were won and lost, if that trend has any thing to go by, this game too must produce a winner, incidentally Lobi Stars is only of the two that have won at away in the period under review, which is a good omen and can still be achieved in Owerri.
The voice of Eddy Lord Dombraye; “I thought we could leverage on the crisis that was in the camp of Heartland but as it is, the crisis seem to be over but our resolve to win the game in Owerri is still standing, we won’t leave empty handed” .
