Veteran coach believes President GEJ's failed promise is bad for Falcons

Photo by Shengol Pix

The veteran coach believes poor motivation of the Super Falcons after their 2014 AWC triumph will discourage the players from impressing at this year's Women's World Cup

Former assistant coach of Nigeria U20 women national team Christopher Alor has disclosed that the country may not excel at the 2015 Fifa Women's World Cup in Canada if the Super Falcons are not adequately motivated.


Though they have been paired with the USA, Sweden and Australia in Group D for the 2015 World Cup, Edwin Okon's ladies, who won a record seventh title at the 2014 African Women Championship in Namibia, still await a promised reception with President Goodluck Jonathan three months after.
Alor, who was an assistant coach of the Falconets at the 2010 Fifa U20 World Cup, blamed the falling standard of women football to the insincerity and greed within the leadership of the country's football federation.

Despite hailing the improving standard of play, the former Oguche Babes coach insists a lot can be achieved if considerable attention and motivation is given to the various women national teams as well as the women league.

"The problem of women football is administration. The NFF do not care enough about women football at the national team level and even at the club level the management is very poor," Alor told Goal.
"The NFF needs to be sincere with their attention and care for women football. The players are there and the management of clubs like Rivers Angels, Sunshine Queens and Delta Queens are trying a bit.

"I'm impressed with the standard of play, only that our girls can play better if they are well motivated. Like the Falcons, if they are motivated, they are going to shake the world and do better than they have been doing. They have good technical crew and mature girls both at home and abroad.

"In female football, there is no pressure for female coach. But if it’s the male, you will see a lot of politics, but in female football there is no politics. If the motivation comes in they will surely do better.
"I'm not happy with the Federal government because how can a team go outside and perform and when they come back it takes them days and months to get rewarded.

"Imagine, you are telling a girl playing football that you are giving scholarship and she is not ready to read.
"Some of them don't want to read and that is some of the problems encountered in women football. So when they come back like this, you motivate them with job or financial reward."

He urged the NFF on early preparation for the Super Falcons ahead of the World Cup, suggesting the arrangement of high-profile friendly games and training tours will boost the technical and mental readiness of the team.

"If you are not well prepared, you prepare to face the odds. In preparation for World Cup, you have to camp thess girls for a long time. And they go for playing tour - they play friendly matches.
"And during these friendly matches, injury could come, performance can fall, then there could be changes and you are removing and bringing. And when you are bringing, the players can blend.

“So you camp about 35 players, go for friendly matches and training tours. Before you go for the World Cup, you will see that those girls will be at the highest peak.
"I don't know the plans of the new NFF, they have technical department and they have a role to play.
"Preparation means going out of the shore of your country to play good teams like Germany, Japan, England and Brazil. I know it will cost a lot, but if they want these girls to shine at the World Cup that is what they should do," he concluded.

Nigeria will begin their campaign to better their best ever quarter final finish at the 7th Fifa Women's World Cup against Sweden on June 8 in Winnipeg.

The tournament holds from June 5 to July 6.