Preliminaries of the football event of the 2020 Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Games will kick-off on Monday January 27 at the Legacy Pitch, National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos, with the defending champions, ExxonMobil taking on NLNG in the opening match.
The match, slated to kick off at 8 am, is expected to ignite fireworks, as the two teams had been training hard for the crucial encounter.
“It is a game we must win to set tone for the successful defence of our trophy and send a signal to other contestants that we are not going to let go what we already have,” a Chevron player, who craved for anonymity, told Daily Sunsport yesterday.
In the second match, PTI and SEPLAT will take the centre stage for what had been described as a match of wits. The two would be making a statement to other contenders as a good result for either of them could put them in a good stead to challenge for the title.
The third encounter, which kicks off after lunch features NCDMB against competition giants, NNPC, while SHELL and TOTAL will renew their rivalry in the final game of Day 1.
On Day 2, SEPLAT and DPR will open the day in a tricky tie that will kick start their campaign, while CHEVRON and NCDMB take to the pitch in the second match. In other matches, Eroton will take on SHELL while NAOC and NLNG will end the day in a late afternoon match. There would also be matches on Day 3. Winners and runners up from the two groups will clash in the semifinals, which come up on Friday 30 January.