The new president of Nigeria Amputee Football Federation (NAFF), Prince Opukiri Jones-Ere has received a charge to put a lot of fresh ideas into running the body, in order to bring innovations into the game, Sports247 reports.
The charge came from Nnanna Nwakpa, a key defender in the amputee football national team, Special Eagles, who urged the new president to hit the ground running and start making an impact early in his tenure.
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Nwakpa, who is also the founder of Phoenix Amputee Sports Club, added during ‘Hot Seat’ segment of Inside Naija Sports weekly television programme that there is a growing need for the game to get a domestic league that would keep the players busy.
He started by welcoming Prince Jones-Ere aboard and congratulated him for winning the recent NAFF election, then quickly reminded him of the need to quickly get started and bring in many new ideas.
“I first say congratulations to the new president of Amputee Football Federation, but he has to hit the ground running. There’s no time to waste getting settled into office. He has to kick off immediately.
“He has to give the game more attention and create local competitions to keep us busy. We need a domestic championship that will give our players opportunities to showcase their talent in amputee football.
“We have many young ones who are up and coming. There are also some physically challenged people out there who don’t even know about amputee football. So, there’s a need for more awareness of the sport.
“This can be done through the introduction of a national amputee football league. A domestic championship will give us the chance to get more players involved in amputee football and give them the opportunity to showcase what they can do,” Nwakpa opined.
He also spoke about his personal efforts as a player and owner of a business venture that promotes programmes and activities in the game played by physically challenged people, which he confessed is not an easy venture.
“Just like every other aspect of life, getting started is always difficult. You put in every effort, but the results may not start coming as expected.
“That makes it look like all your efforts are worthless. But, when you know where you are going and what you want, you will just keep on trying your best.
“It’s a long-term thing, and you just have to keep on investing … not just money, but your effort as well. You just need to put in more effort.
“That’s what we are doing at Phoenix Amputee Sports Club. Sometimes, you may feel psychologically down, but when you remember your targets and aspirations, you just have to keep going.
“With a picture of what you have in your mind for the future, you will keep on telling yourself that you just have to keep on pushing to get what you want,” Nwakpa concluded philosophically.
