Rivers United returned to winning ways in dramatic fashion, edging Kun Khalifat 4-2 in a thrilling encounter that saw the Port Harcourt side climb back to the top of the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) table.
Following a tough stretch of four consecutive away losses, including the setback in Lafia, the Pride of Rivers regained their form on home turf.
Rivers United waste chances despite Kun Khalifat win
Despite the victory, coach Finidi George did not hold back in his assessment of his team’s finishing and the overall attacking quality in the league.
“I felt in the opening minutes of the game, we had a couple of chances to have taken the lead. You know, when you have those kind of chances, you have to score. I’m not going to be the one to score, you know.
We talk about scoring, scoring, scoring. You have to create chances for you to score. And when you have chances and you don’t take them, it becomes difficult.
They got a glaring chance, and the guy missed it, and they scored the other one. We had to come back. I know our scoring ability at home has been good, so I felt we were going to have chances to equalise and even win the game. But I was not expecting four goals.”
The Pride of Rivers started brightly, with Okon Aniekeme opening the scoring after 16 minutes to register his fourth goal of the season.
However, Kun Khalifat responded through Abdulrafiu Omolabi before Sunday Adehi turned the game around just before the break.
Substitute Handsome Surveyor restored parity in style before halftime, ensuring Rivers United went into the break level in what was already turning into a six-goal thriller.
Finidi George questions NPFL strikers after Rivers United victory
The coach also highlighted the struggles of his forward Maclyn Biokpo during the match and other league strikers with finishing, pointing out that his defenders are currently leading the team in goals.
“That has been a problem. Not just at Rivers United, but the league in general. The highest goal scorers are on 10, 11 goals.
That is really poor. In our team, the highest goal scorers are defenders. For us to be where we are today, I don’t know if that is a miracle, but I think defensively we were very, very okay in the first half of the season, and I think that is paying off now.
Now that we are even scoring goals we have conceded, we’ll see how we can manage that. It’s still encouraging. It’s not easy on the players, but that’s how the league is.
Hardly do you find top strikers. The ones you have, you create chances, but they hardly take them. But as coaches, we continue to encourage them to see how well they will finish this season.”
Rivers United eventually secured all three points late on, with Iyowuna Douglas producing a moment of brilliance, finishing off a superb solo effort to seal victory and cap a standout performance.
The win sees Rivers United move one point clear at the top of the NPFL standings, taking advantage of Enugu Rangers’ slip against Shooting Stars.
Rivers United now turn their attention to a crucial away fixture against Warri Wolves, where Finidi George is targeting a key result to strengthen their title push.
“What we have to do is see how we can get at least one victory away from home, and we’ll do everything in our power to see how the boys can perform against Warri Wolves. If that will be the breaker, we’ll see how all that is going to be possible.
We want the boys to see how they can compete now that we’re going to play next weekend. We’ll go all out to see the best result that we can get. We don’t know what’s going to happen, but every team is fighting for something, playing for something, Warri Wolves also.
So, it’s going to be a battle. They’re also in that area where if you don’t win your home match, you find yourself in big trouble. We’ll see what happens.”
With momentum regained and the title race heating up, Rivers United will be aiming to maintain their position at the summit as the season enters its decisive phase.