Twelve schools have booked their spots in the national finals of the first Samuel Okwaraji Championship, backed by FirstBank Plc, after zonal qualifying tournaments were completed across Nigeria’s six geopolitical regions.
Ondo and Ogun emerged from the Lagos centre, a four-state group that also included hosts Lagos and Oyo. Ondo finished top with seven points from three fixtures and were the only side not to lose, sealing first place with a 2-0 final-match victory against Ogun. Ogun secured the other qualifying place after defeating both Lagos and Oyo. Lagos placed third on four points, having recorded one win, one draw and one defeat, while Oyo finished last without earning a point.
Imo and Abia collected the two available qualification places at the South-East centre in Owerri.
Ezeachi Secondary School of Orlu, Imo State, completed a perfect campaign with three victories and nine points. They beat Estington Academy International School of Orueke, Ebonyi State, 1-0 at Dan Anyiam Stadium in Owerri, following earlier successes against Enugu and Abia.
Community Secondary School, Aba, representing Abia State, claimed the second berth by beating Saint Theresa College of Nsukka, Enugu State, 2-1 in their last fixture. Abia had begun the tournament with a 2-1 win over Estington Academy before suffering a 1-0 defeat to Imo in their second outing.
Delta State topped the South-South zone in Calabar with 10 points, while Rivers State ended second on seven points to take the remaining qualification slot.
Six schools had already secured qualification from the Northern zones.
