PLAYERS AND OFFICIALS OF LOBI STARS COMPLICIT OF MATCH FIXING — UJAH

By Reliance Udoenyin

The Media Officer of Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) side, Lobi Stars, Emmanuel Ujah, has accused players and officials of the club of match-fixing, alleging complicity of former coach Daniel Amokachi.

Lobi Stars’ season has been plagued by both on-field and off-field difficulties, including poor results that have left them at the bottom of the league table, frequent coaching changes, and administrative tussles.

Recently, players of the club were reportedly attacked by cult members during a training session at Government Secondary School, Makurdi, with some players pointing accusing fingers at the management.

However, in an exclusive interview with Today Sportslive,  a sports show on Today 95.1 FM Port Harcourt, Ujah dismissed the claims, stating that no such attack ever occurred. He alleged that the players staged the incident to avoid sanctions for misconduct observed by the management during a match against Abia Warriors.

“Let me make it very clear that the players were not attacked. This is what happened,” Ujah began.

“During our last match against Abia Warriors, we suspected a foul play as if the match has been compromised by the players of Lobi. So, we resolved that we were going to have a meeting on Monday (Mar. 31st 2025) with the video and find out what happened because the video showed that when a player of Abia Warriors kicked the ball, one of our players dodged the ball, the defender. So we asked question, what is the role of a defender in a match? You’re supposed to block the ball! He dodged the ball and the ball went inside the net.

So we scheduled a meeting on Monday so we can now caution them, if possible apply sanction.

Sensing that we’re going to apply sanction, they now staged-managed attack that looks like cultist came and attack them. Then they went viral, taking the pressure to the board and management of the team. They even claim that the management sent cultist to attack them. That is not true. This is the true position. So in that case, they took the fight against us and draw sympathy.”

While discussing the outcome of the meeting, Ujah highlighted a suspicious pattern in the way Lobi Stars have conceded goals this season, which, according to him, suggests foul play.

“So we had the meeting. Instead them apologizing to us, the management end up apologizing to them. This is what happened. No any cultist attacked the players. It is the players themselves that know what they’re doing. They know they are gambling with the club.

Look at it, since our matches started on week day 1, they used to score Lobi at 85, 88′; 85, 88′, 80′ 85 minute; a certain pattern of scoring against us has been going on. Something is happening that you and I need to look into. That is all. That is what happened,” he submitted.

When asked to clarify the allegations that players and officials of Lobi Stars were involved in match-fixing, Ujah confirmed the claims. He added that despite the management’s efforts to help the club avoid relegation, some players have been gambling on the outcomes of their matches.

“Exactly. You have hit the nail on the head and you know your job,” he told Henry Oguguo, the show host.

“That is what is going on. They’ve not won any match since the second stanza of the league. They’ve conceded more goals and we have given them free hands.

We’re a club where some players are taking 600k without kicking a ball. The management on their part have been doing [their] possible best to ensure we come out of this relegation because it’s getting worse by the day.

Sometimes they (the players) will be playing the game goalless then suddenly…so we look at this video of Abia Warriors’ match, when we look at how Lazarus (John) dodged the ball with which he was face to face with we asked ourselves what’s the role of a defender in a match? So I agree with you totally. This is match fixing,” he concluded.

Ujah alleged that the act of match-fixing has persisted from the previous management into the current board led by Phillip Nongu. He attributed this to the chairman, Nongu, refusing to dissolve the team and the board inherited from the past administration.

“The present management or board led by Dr. Phillip Nongu took over the team after one man has been with the club for more than four or five years. When he took over the team, he didn’t dissolve the team. He allowed continuity. He used the same players from the previous management to continue prosecuting matches.

So, there’s this unwholesome practices that have been going on in Lobi. They have been betting at Bet9ja (you know we can’t hide anything again), fixing matches.

They’ll ask people to bet that they’re scoring us 2 goals today so go and bet. We told him (Nongu) to dissolve the team and let the people go and bring other players in the second stanza of the league, those (he) can control.

Even Amokachi (Daniel) in our first meeting told us that the players and officials are betting.

The present management said ‘ok let’s give them the benefit of the doubt’ and that benefit of the doubt we’re paying dearly for it now.

I am telling you that there’s a lot of betting activities going on among the players and officials of Lobi Stars Football Club of Makurdi. Now, that they’re sure the team is going on relegation, they’re doing it with impunity.

We’re going to watch. The next match nothing will happen. I’m not afraid to tell you this. I’m not afraid!” He boasted.

When asked whether Amokachi encouraged such behavior, he responded:

“Yes! It was a handover from the past management. Amokachi came and warned about it. In fact, he warned that this is going on but we(the management) should not write about it. We should not publicize it but he warned the players in one of our meetings. He warned them to stop! But he couldn’t sustain it. He couldn’t apply discipline.

There are some people in the past management that were fond of this, that is before the present Chairman of Lobi Stars took over. It was the order of the day.

How can you explain that in the second stanza, Lobi…a big club like that has not been able to win even one match. How can you explain? Can you beat that?

Lobi is a big club! We’re funded. The governor of Benue state has funded the club very well. Forget about the saying that we’re playing away. If you have a good team you can go and win anywhere. I don’t want to talk about that. I don’t want to talk about it because at a point in time we were playing away and we were topping the league.

Again, the person we removed thought that he is the only one that can manage football in Benue state. And that is his players and officials that are still there. So it was easy for them to manipulate all these games. We took over and allow the status quo to remain and then they took advantage. They vowed to make them team go down and they’re succeeding in their task.”

Lobi Stars last won a match on the 14th of December, 2024 when they defeated Plateau United by a single goal at home. Since then, the team has recorded 9 losses and 4 draws in 13 matches.

Quizzed further by Today FM’s Reliable Reliance Udoenyin, Ujah was asked to confirm whether the previous management, the current leadership of the club, and Daniel Amokachi were complicit in match-fixing with the players. He stated:

“The present management brought Daniel Amokachi. The past chairman was removed so Amokachi came in the present Dr Phillip Nongu led management.

He (Amokachi) had a meeting with us and said that he has met several unwholesome practices in Lobi Stars, that the players and some officials are betting and that should stop. He couldn’t control it before he left.”

He also revealed that neither the past nor the present management, including Amokachi, made any attempt to report the issue to the NFF’s ethics committee. He accused the previous management of enabling the practice.

“The previous management was even promoting such practices. So with the same players here and the same officials here, they continued with the present management. All the people the present management met are their with the same character (of match fixing).

During our meeting with Amokachi, we asked him what he met on ground. He said he met so much unwholesome practices and indiscipline among which betting is part of. He warned that that should stop. I don’t know any other further thing. But if you’re saying that because he warned and did not take action and so he is an accomplice then so be it,” he concluded.

Efforts made to reach Amokachi for response has been futile so far as the ex Nigerian international is yet to respond to calls and text messages sent to his phone.