Still An Unfavoured Sport in Nigeria

Last February in Cape Town, South Africa, Joseph Ofoha, coach, Rivers State Rugby team, was told by rugby fans that they were surprised to learn that the game is professionally played in Nigeria.

Ofoha, who also the coaches the Lagos-based Cowrie Rugby Football Club, struggled to explain that there was a league in Nigeria. He blamed the situation on sparse media coverage of the game.

That may be true, but it does not fully explain why the game has not caught on despite a number of schemes, by governments and individuals, to promote the sport. Professional players and coaches from South Africa, England and other countries have organised training sessions and coaching clinics in Nigeria, but very little has been achieved from such programmes. With no uniformed league, structure or institution, rugby is a sport that has little identity in Nigeria. Sport fans are oblivious of rugby activities and many more do not know that the sport is played at all.

Rugby has also suffered from internal politics and squabbles, which have drawn the sport ten years back. Factions within Nigeria Rugby Football Federation, NRFF, have tussled for leadership of the federation and this led to the ban of rugby activities by the International Rugby Board, IRB, in 2009. The board was, however, reinstated in 2012, following pleas by the National Sports Commission to the IRB.

Rugby was introduced to Nigeria by the British during the colonial era. The game was dominated by white settlers and expatriates for a considerable number of years and was also popular at secondary schools. In Lagos State, schools like King’s College, St. Gregory’s College and CMS Grammar School played the sport. Some players from these schools turned professional, playing for some of the big clubs in the world.

Even at that, the game did not get converts in shoals. This has ensured that the game remains way below the radar of the average sports fan. In Lagos State, Friends of Rugby Association organise and administer the Lagos Rugby Union League, which has eight teams. They operate a centralised league in which all the teams play at the main bowl of the National Stadium, originally a football pitch.

Three matches are played every fortnight on Saturdays from noontime to 6pm. The jerseys, kits and officials are provided by Friends of Rugby.

But in the North, rugby is more organised. The league is referred to as the Northern Rugby League. Kano, Zaria, Kaduna and Plateau are the states that participate. They operate the home and away system like it is practised in more developed leagues.

Rugby has also been introduced to the South-East and South-South geopolitical zones, but the leagues in those regions are yet to be fully functional. These leagues are managed by the Friends of Rugby.

Richard Ajayi, the new NRFF President, is hopeful that rugby will witness growth and development in Nigeria. There are a few hints of such. Ntiense Williams, an IRB educator for Nigeria and Secretary of Friends of Rugby Association, believes that the involvement of non-rugby minded individuals in the sport has considerably added to the stagnation of the sport. “Unfortunately the board that was formed is made up of non-rugby people, more or less political appointees. If the national body can be united then the game will grow considerably,” he said.

He explained that if rugby could attract about one per cent of the country’s population, there will be a significant change to the game. “Nigerians are well suited to play the game of rugby. We have the character, the will power, agility, speed, strength and charisma to excel. We need more support from Nigerians,” he said.

Williams said a person like James Usman Zagi, an employee of the Nigeria Prisons Service, who started a rugby union league in Nasarawa State, should be supported by the government and the national body.

John Sylvanus, coach of King’s College Rugby Team, said: “Tournaments at the secondary schools will enable us have a structure. This is a good investment as well because the players will become familiar with the rules and go on to become pros,” he said.

He blamed the stunted growth of the game in Nigeria on limp structures and mismanagement of funds. “Rugby is a developing game in Nigeria, but because there are no proper structures it’s lagging behind. Poor leadership and politics have marred the progress of the sport. Funds are not used properly.

“Funds should be channelled to the schools. Some players I coached have become professional because they were properly groomed, but when you don’t play early, it will affect you. We shouldn’t be talking about the national team or league; we should be talking grassroots,” he explained.

John Arinze of Police Machine in the Lagos Rugby Union League is sore at the poor media coverage of the sport. “It’s unfortunate that the media have concentrated on football alone. Many journalists don’t know the rules or penalties in this game. For Rugby to be popular and accessible to many, we need television coverage of matches at prime time,” he said.

Arinze admitted that there are a lot challenges for rugby players like him. He identified finance as a major one. “If we could get considerable funds from the federation, we would use that to entice sponsors and fans,” he said.

The national rugby union team, nicknamed Black Stallion, is currently ranked 91st in the world, sixth from bottom. Nigeria has never qualified for a Rugby World Cup, but has competed in qualifying tournaments. Nigeria played its first international against Zimbabwe on 1 August 1987, losing by 111-12 in Nairobi. The greatest success was recorded at the 2007 Castel Beer Trophy, where Nigeria beat Burkina Faso in the final of the north section.