Sporting Lagos’ hopes of sealing an away victory and boosting their chances of qualifying for the Nigeria National League (NNL) Super Eight were dashed on Sunday, as they were held to a dramatic 3-3 draw by Solution FC at the Awka City Stadium — despite a stunning hat-trick from Aliu Baba, Completesports.com reports.
In a tension-soaked, emotion-laden encounter, the Lagos side gave their all but could only settle for a share of the spoils.
Aliu Baba opened the scoring in the 29th minute, firing past a jittery Solution FC goalkeeper to hand Sporting Lagos the lead going into the break.
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The second half saw a revitalised Solution FC. Just five minutes in, Chukwuemeka Oyieke took matters into his own hands with a stunning long-range strike from about 25 metres out, beating Sporting Lagos keeper Clinton Lawani.
Only four minutes later, the hosts earned a penalty following a handball in the box. Valentine Ugwu stepped up and calmly converted, sending Lawani the wrong way to give Solution FC a 2-1 lead.
In the 64th minute, Baba levelled the scoreline with a powerful header, and in the third minute of stoppage time, he produced a moment of magic, volleying home to complete his hat-trick and seemingly snatch all three points.
However, just a minute later, Solution FC’s Divine Victor had the final say, scoring a dramatic 90+4 equaliser to break Lagos hearts.
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Reacting after the match, Sporting Lagos coach Shola Adegun was visibly emotional, describing the result as a painful way to end the season. Sporting Lagos missed out on NNL Super 8 after finishing in third position in the Conference B behind Kun Khalifa and Osun United.
“It is a painful one. We were really close — for us to lose it right at the end. It’s difficult to wrap your brain around it, honestly, when you score a vital goal in injury time. It’s a difficult ending to the season for us. It’s hard to say anything more than that,” Adegun remarked.
By Chigozie Chukwuleta, in Awka
