NCF to name new high-performance coach
The Nigeria Cricket Federation (NSCF) is set to name a replacement for departed head coach/high performance manager, Steve Tikolo, who stepped down recently, the NCF has said.

Tikolo, a Kenyan, led Nigeria for three years and during his tenure, Nigeria’s ICC T20 ranking improved from 42nd to 37th.

According to the NCF, Tikolo stepped down due to personal family responsibilities and has since rejoined the Uganda national team.

Speaking on the plans to continue the country’s upward move in the sport, NCF President, Uyi Akpata, told The Guardian in Lagos that the federation has concluded plans to unveil the new high-performance manager, who will be expected to build on the foundation laid by Tikolo.

Akpata said that the NCF is mindful of the nation’s new status as one of the fastest rising countries in the game, hence it has taken its time to search and contract a new manager for the game.

“We are going to announce the new Head Coach/High Performance Manager in a couple of days, and it’s someone we’ll all be excited about because he’s into all-round development,” Akpata said.

The NCF boss eulogised Tikolo for the job he did while in Nigeria, saying that the Kenyan brought a new impetus into the country’s cricket.

“We will always be grateful to Tikolo for all he did during his time here, and the best way to show that gratitude is to continue to work hard to improve further in the game.”
“The high-performance coach will work with the rest of the local coaches on an agreed programme.

“Our ultimate goal is to be able to qualify as Africa’s representative in the World Cup in a couple of years. So, we are directing ourselves towards that.”

Part of the way the NCF wants to adopt in getting to the desired height is by pitting the teams against the best sides in the world.

Recently, the federation hosted an invitational women’s T20i tournament, which brought together such world-class countries as South Africa, Zimbabwe, Rwanda, Ghana and Nigeria.

And continuing on that part, the federation will be taking the team to Rwanda for the yearly Kwibuka Tournament, which features Africa’s best teams and some of the toughest sides from Europe.

“We want to go to Rwanda and show that we can win it there,” he enthused. “There will be some other European teams coming for that tournament. So, we must demonstrate that we can mix it with the world’s best.”

One of the main things working for Nigeria is the average age of players in the national team, Akpata said, adding that most of them, especially the women, are still less than 19 years old.

He said: “We have a partnership with South Africa, which is helping us to build the profile of our players.

“Some of our players have moved to South Africa, where they have the opportunity to play with and against some of the best stars in the world.  That will help to improve their all-round game.”

Like many other sports outside football, Akpata said that poor funding has been the bane of cricket development in the country, adding that the federation has been working on ways to solve that problem.

He revealed that the federation has a method of sourcing funds for its numerous programmes, adding, however, that the game would grow faster if corporate Nigeria aligns with the NCF’s vision.

“We get like $980,000 from the International Cricket Council (ICC) yearly, but it is hardly enough to take care of our needs.
“There are many people who think that it is big money, but it is not big money for me. I can tell you that at the moment, each member of the board spends his own money on cricket.

“We are looking for corporate sponsors. What we aiming at, eventually, is to have people to adopt the team. So, if you say, Okay, you are adopting the female team, it means to take care of them when they are travelling for events. All our players are on a salary such that even when they are not playing, they still get their salaries.  That was why we came up with the central contract; we drew up a system where we pay them monthly. So, even if right now there is no tournament, at the end of every month, they get something to look after themselves and pay for their needs.

“There is, of course, also a health plan in place for the players. We have had situations where we’ve sent teams to India for over a month, even way before tournaments. We have always had situations where we’ve had batters go spend three or four weeks in South Africa; go to Zimbabwe, spend one, two, three months there playing their leagues. So, these are the kind of partnerships we’re trying to do. It is the value that we bring to any partnership that we are selling.

He said that the NCF is offering potential sponsors visible benefits and a value proposition that they may not get elsewhere.

“We have been to two World Cups in nine years. Some countries have been chasing the World Cup ticket without success for far longer than that.

“From what we have done, we have seen that we are not far from the top cricket countries.

And that is why today you have South Africa wanting to come to Nigeria; you have Zimbabwe and Namibia wanting to come to Nigeria. Now they want some of our players to go there and play. The question is, how are you getting these kinds of quality players?
“All the conversations we are having, the media talks and the sponsorship drive are for the players. They see the value proposition that we have, and that is why the process needs to continue.”