By Daily Sports on December 2, 2016

By Victor Enyinnaya

The crisis rocking relegated Heartland FC of Owerri seems to have taken another dangerous dimension, the two warring factions have stuck to their guns for the supremacy fight aimed at the soul of the embattled team.

Investigation by Daily Sports revealed that since the of employment of Coach  Emmanuel Deutsch, a Camerounian, by Ozuruigbo Ugonna and his group and prompt disclaimer by team’s boss, Goodfaith Etuemena, there has been an uneasy calm in the team’s camp and the action of the Chairman is gaining much acceptance.

According to a top government official who pleads that his name be offline said Ozuruigbo is just out there to cause confusion and paint a picture that nobody sent him for. Etuemena is the authentic chairman of the club who has power with his board to appoint who heads the technical crew of the Owerri based team.

“Ozuruigbo and his spoilers should be ashamed that Heartland FC one of the oldies in the Nigerian League since 1976 will now be struggling with lesser teams in Nigerian National League. Ozuruigbo and his group are causing distraction which will take a toll on the preparations of the team. Gov. (Rochas) Okorocha must step in and call Ozuruigbo to order. Etuemena should be supported to give the team, the kind of leadership that would shape and redefine the squad to make it ready for the new season,” the top government source reasons.

Daily Sports had earlier quoted the Chairman of the club, Goodfaith Etuemena to have recently distanced him and members of his board from the purported employment of Deutsch as new technical adviser of Heartland.

It would be recalled that Deutsch, a former goalkeeper trainer of the side was unveiled as the new technical hand in Owerri by the team's Supervisor and Deputy Speaker, Imo State House of Assembly, Ugonna Ozuruigbo.

As at the time of filing this report, Heartland head coach Ramsom Madu was devotedly in charge on the preliminary programmes for the commencement of the new Nigeria National League season.

Etuemena denied that he and the management were neither aware nor party to the hiring of Deutsch revealing he was sacked as goalkeeper trainer based on poor performance before Heartland picked up a ticket for the CAF Champions League competition in 2009.

Daily Sports learnt by this dangerous signal by Ozuruigbo, the team is now factionalised between those who are loyal to Ozuruigbo and the Camerounian coach are allegedly training in a hide out near Owerri.

However, one of the prominent financial pillars and supporter of the team when it was Spartans FC who pleads for anonymity because of his exalted position said those that never knew how the team they have now dragged down was founded and funded, blamed the entire scenario on what he called the rot in the state which has sadly rubbed off negatively on the team he and others spent their hard earned personal income to keep in top flight football in the country’s league.

“Chief Sam Mbakwe never used Spartans to play politics hence we supported him throughout. It is on record that the late former Gov. maintained neutrality despite the fact that he provided subvention for the club. He never used Spartans FC for political popularity even though the team was well funded by his government with unparalleled support from prominent Imo citizens, which was why in agreement, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu out of patriotism took over the team and piloted it to greater height before he handed it intact back to the State Government,” he recalled.

He further said that was the Spartan spirit that guided the team before those the elder statesman  described as loud mouthed empty governors and their supporters used the team to play politics and the resultant effect is what has befallen the once dreaded Spartans’ team. Our once darling team has unfortunately been turned into another political movement; by these never do wells that now control the state apparatus, he rued.

“If the Governor who was instrumental to where the team found itself today is not behind Ozuruigbo and his gang, he should speak up and back the Etuemena led management board because the young man knew where he was coming from and going to. In short, he has depth programme that would bring the fallen team back to NPFL without delay.

“Nigerian football stakeholders should reject and resist Ozuruigbo and gang in its entirety because their mission is political,” he explains.

Etuemena has emphatically said Heartland FC has seasoned gaffers handling the players presently and if there’s need to effect any changes the board will go for coaches with better pedigree.

Heartland woefully failed the 2015/16 top-flight litmus test, finishing poorly on the 18th position on 44 points and will campaign in the nation’s second tier league, the Nigeria National League

•Photo shows Governor Okorocha.

Source Daily Sports

Posted December 1, 2016

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