Ughelli Rovers Football Club suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 loss to OYC Football Club in the New Year Mega Lottery Nationwide League One (NLO) Division One 2025 Season encounter at Asaba Centre 1 of the Stephen Keshi Stadium, Delta State, on Thursday morning, marking their second consecutive defeat in a space of five days after a promising start to the campaign.
The match began with both sides trying to ascertain dominance, and the pressure swinging momentum in no order as both teams randomly pressed each other on the counterattacks with both backlines keeping their feet firm.
However, Ughelli Rovers had other plans coming close to set the tone in their favour but were denied by a high-alerted OYC FC defense.
Similarly, the Ughelli-based side were cut off unawares down the far-right midfield to switch play with a long-through pass down the centre, only to be intercepted by central-defender Okulu Samson.
The Eguono V’Owvian Boys, took to an early lead through Echanomi Godfrey’s brilliant header on the 25th minute, giving the home side a deserved 1-0 lead but only to be pegged back three minutes before the break.
A resilient OYC FC side pushed Ughelli Rovers back on their heels, setting up Julius Sunday to go past his marker and unleashed a powerful shot into the back of the net on the 42nd minute to pull the Warri-based outfit level at halftime.
The second half saw both teams tossing each other around in a feisty battle for control, with end-to-end action and neither side willing to be subdued.
The intensity continued, but Ughelli Rovers’ hopes were cut short when Ovwhigorieta Favour received a second yellow card in the 65th minute, reducing them to 10 men.
Despite an obvious disadvantage, the Eguono V’Owvian Boys fought valiantly to regain the momentum, but their strength fell to Diri Gift’s 70th-minute strike, slotting past captain and goalkeeper Efe Bartholomew to put OYC FC in the lead for the first time in the game and what proved to be the decisive goal.
OYC FC’s defense set-up in the closing stages, ensured they held firm, securing all three points from the thrilling tie and leaving Ughelli Rovers to a second straight loss of the season.
The final whistle from the centre referee brought the game to an end, with the Warri-based side completing a comeback in their second meeting with the Eguono V’Owvian Boys, having drew 0-0 at this same preliminary stage last season.
This defeat marks Ughelli Rovers’ consecutive loss in their campaign, following a narrow 1-0 defeat to arch-rivals Isoko United, after their lone goal season-opening victory against a Sapele-based Itamah Football Academy side.
With two crucial matches remaining at Asaba Centre 1, the Eguono V’Owvian Boys face an uphill battle to keep their qualification hopes alive for the 2025 NLO Zonal Playoffs.
The team’s spirit and confidence will be tested the most in the coming days as they aim to salvage what is left off their campaign.
With three points accumulated from three games; one win and a back-to-back losses, more than an extraordinary would be needed for tide to change in their favour.
Speaking exclusively to Platinum News at the post-match interview, Ughelli Rovers’ assistant coach Davidson Otega, who filled in the shoes of ailing head coach Ekete Nyerovwo, expressed disappointment while remaining steadfast.
“We showed character, even with ten men, but we must be more clinical. We started well and showed our quality, but we let the game slipped off our fingers. Now that we know better, we must do what’s right as we take every match with more determination and aggressiveness.
“The red card didn’t help, but we will learn from this. We’ve got three games left, and we will fight to the last whistle to get back on track. There’s still a lot to play for, and we will fight until the last whistle,” he lamented.
Utmost attention is now turn to their next fixture against another Oleh-based side Holy Arrows Football Club, knowing that only a resounding victory can boost their momentum as they dare to climb the NLO Asaba Centre 1 standings and revive their dreams of a qualification slot.