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Will Pinnick's Formula Work for super Eagles.....?

Posted: Thu May 21, 2020 1:07 pm
by Enugu II
Given Pinnick's clear focus on recruiting players born overseas and eligible to play for Nigeria, it is pertinent to ask whether it would work for the Super Eagles. He clearly is a man who does not hide his believe that everything abroad, including furniture, is better than those in Nigeria. He has already demonstrated this, SUCCESSFULLY, with recruitment of overseas athletes (including those without any connection to Nigerian citizenship, allegedly). The question is can this translate the same way with football. Here are some background for tase who do not realize a strategy that is quite in the open.
Secrets of Delta State’s leadership in sports – Pinnick
ON MAY 19, 201312:00 AMIN SPORTS Kindly Share This Story:FacebookTwitterEmailWhatsAppPinterestShare

Amaju Melvin Pinnick, chairman of the Delta State Sports Commission, here spoke with ISAAC OLAMIKAN on the secret behind the string of successes the state has achieved in recent National Sports Festivals and other issues. This can be attributed to two factors namely predisposing and facilitating factors. The predisposing factor is the vision of Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan in establishing the state’s sports commission which is the super structure for sustainable sports development. In 2007 when he sent names of commissioner nominees to the state House of Assembly for consideration he did not include the name of anybody for the sports ministry. Instead he sent a bill to establish the Delta State Sports Commission in line with national thinking. I call that a predisposing factor because the structure that we have not only been developmental but futuristic. The structure is all embracing. It makes provision for the creation of a platform in the commission for sportsmen who are aging to be replaced by younger ones who are being groomed. So, there is no vacuum. The other factor is the facilitating factor whereby we do strategic planning and prompt release of funds for all our programmes.

We do not let lack of funds or bureaucratic bottlenecks to hinder our resolve to maintain the top position in sports. In all these we praise the vision of Governor Uduaghan for sustainable sports development. We do not poach, rather sportsmen come to the state on their own volition. I hate the word poaching because in this time and age there is what is called free movement of sportsmen. For example, an athlete wins a gold medal for a state and he gets N50,000 as his reward. If that athlete knows that if he had won the gold medal for Delta State he would be given N1,000,000 which state do you think he would prefer? We have a department that takes care of our athletes welfare as far as their home town. An athlete who knows that winning a gold medal makes him to get N1,000,000 and automatic employment as his reward will be proud to wear the colours of the state that offers him such an opportunity.

What we have done in Delta State is to create a comfort zone. It doesn’t prevent us from doing the needful. I can tell you that close to 90 percent of our medalists at the recent National Sports Festivals were home grown talents. To me, poaching is a made up word just to paint our achievements in a negative manner. We do not poach athletes they come to us. We came back from the last National Sports Festival and before Christmas most of our athletes were smiling home with millions of naira. Kingsley Forcados that got nine gold medals in swimming got N9million as reward. Team Delta captain, Faith, that won six gold medals got N6million reward from the state government. She built a house in Obiaruku with the money she realized from the last two National Sports Festivals. That is in line with the human capital development of the three point plan of the Uduaghan administration. If you look at the global scene, Philip Idowu, a Nigerian, is competing for Great Britain even Daniel Igali that we’re celebrating today competed for Canada. These countries provided platforms for the athletes. Apart from these things we have put in place to better the living standards of our athletes, we also ensure provision of quality facilities. Athletes need quality facilities to perform. So, if you look at all these factors where is the poaching of athletes that some people talk about come in? The girl that won silver medal for Lagos State in the last sports festival is from Delta State but we are not complaining. Her parents live in Lagos. We have an Itsekiri man in charge of youth development in Cross River State. That is his comfort zone and we are happy for him. I share a robust relationship with him. People look for greener pastures; that is the reason they move around. Otherwise, Warri Wolves FC would have been filled with Warri people; Enyimba FC would have been filled by Aba people etc. In sports, we try as much as possible to eliminate all kinds of boundaries.

Read more at: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/05/sec ... s-pinnick/
Why we’re investing in Olympic athletes – Delta
ON DECEMBER 23, 201112:00 AMIN SPORTS Kindly Share This

The Chairman of the Delta State Sports Commission, Amaju Pinnick has explained the rationale behind the government’s release of the N25m training grant to Blessing Okagbare and other selected Delta State athletes to begin preparations for the London 2012 Olympics Games. Speaking in a telephone chat from Asaba, Pinnick said that the release of the training grants to Delta State athletes who are based in foreign climes was not just for the Olympics only but also to enable the beneficiaries to get into top shape ahead of next year’s National Sports Festival holding in Lagos.

Gov Uduaghan He added that the such money, was also meant to get the athletes in the best shape when competing at global sports meets. The Sports Commission boss said that in line with the Human Capital Development policy of the Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan-led administration, the country has gained immensely from the investment of Delta State in Sports as her athletes often form the bulk of the nation’s contingent at international competitions. It would be recalled that at the just-concluded 2011 All African Games in Mozambique, athletes of Delta State extraction who are on scholarship abroad won six out of the ten gold medals picked in athletics.

Meanwhile, Pinnick has berated the National Sports Commission over the amended rule by the National Council of Sports which has excluded foreign-based athletes from participating at the next National Sports Festival in Lagos. “Restricting eligibility to only Nigeria – based athletes will deprive Delta State of making use of the athletes, whom the government has invested in hugely. There is no way an athlete can become great if he stays in Nigeria because the facilities are just not enough to groom world class athletes.

“If we are truly serious about developing our athletes, there is no way that they would not be taken abroad to experience new ways of doing things, which is what we are doing in Delta State. We are trying to develop these athletes and it is so wrong for us to be denied the right to use our athletes in the country”, he added.

Read more at: https://www.vanguardngr.com/2011/12/why ... tes-delta/