Rivers Angels of Port Harcourt captain, Catherine Kenneth has described her side’s victory in the 2024 President Federation Cup as compensation for how they failed to win the women’s league some weeks earlier.
A penalty by Blessing Okpe against Naija Ratels of FCT was all it took for Rivers Angels to clinch the trophy at Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan, Lagos and Kenneth admitted it was a huge relief for her team.
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It became the ninth FA Cup trophy overall for The Garden City side, and they are the first club to win the competition under its new nomenclature, all of which made her label it a huge achievement by her team.
Although Kenneth confessed that she and her colleagues wanted to win Saturday’s final with a wider margin, she conceded that they are satisfied with their ability to be champions again this year, after failing to clinch the Nigerian Women Football League (NWFL) Super-6 in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.
Speaking with Sports 247, Kenneth stated with delight, “It’s indeed a blessing … losing the league then coming back to win this one. That’s why I tag this as the big one.
“It’s also remarkable that the boys are also in this competition, and our final came before their own.
“It’s a big one for us, and we are very, very elated to have won this trophy. God has shown us mercy.”
The jovial skipper then gave an insight into the approach that was adopted by the club to help the players recover from their league setback and retain the FA Cup.
Kenneth added: “After losing in the Super-6, we had to do a lot of psyching up. Thanks to the sponsors; they encouraged us in every way they could. That motivated the girls.
“We became determined and hungry for victory. With that anger in us, we told ourselves that we had to fight for this one. Knowing that we were supposed to win the league, we had to redeem our image.
“With that anger in us, we came to the Federation Cup, and we were beating every team.”
She concluded with her analysis of Saturday’s final at Onikan Waterfront, where she admitted that God’s hand lifted them up, because Naija Ratels proved to be tougher than expected.
“We won the final, but it was not the margin that we wanted. We were supposed to have wrapped this match up, as we had done in all the others before it.
“We have to admit, though, that, for them to have got to this point, they were no pushover. We had to struggle a little but, in the end, this is how God wanted it to be.
“Overall, so far, so good. We have to thank God that He did not drop us. It’s indeed a great privilege. We are very honoured; we are very, very happy.
“We can’t find words to express our joy. We are happy because of the impact that winning this cup is going to make on our CVs, our careers, our personal lives, down to our families and well-wishers. It is indeed massive for us,” an exhilarated Kenneth concluded.
