June 1986. In our lifetime as students in a secondary school, there are things that makes them memorable. As an individual, when you find your friends and you understand your place in the circle of life within the school. As a group, when you have collective achievement like backing each other up in sports, fights, girls or academic. Then comes the final part - the school achievement. From winning quizzes, debates, races at inter house sports. The ultimate joy though will be winning a football tournament. For a boys school, it does not come any higher than that. School sports has eluded us this year losing to Army comprehensive high school 2-1 in the Akure local government games. It was a graceful loss, as the opposition was definitely better. We did not have the luxury to watch the game but you can see the mass sadness when it was announced. We have seen success in athletics with Badmus Akinbowa and Dayo *Away Bullet* Afe, handball victories with Ayo *Sir Pupe* Oladuti and his team but never with the football. Our team was just like Nigeria Green Eagles in the mid eighties; crushed by the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon, ground to a halt by the Black Stars of Ghana or pipped by the Desert Lions of Algeria. Aquinas will lose to Akure High school or Army Comprehensive. But there was a whiff of hope when we entered the Catholic cup and we got through to the final. There was hope of a cup being won in football so we were elated. From Dotun Adegbulu our goalkeeper; able and dependable both in handball and football, egbon ID, our dependable defence and marshal, to kerubu, our speed "gonzalez" on the wings and our maestro, embassy; whom we even coined songs for him and his ability amongst a host of good players, we were looking forward to that day.
Days later, we were told the game was going to be played at the Ondo state sports stadium. Wow 🤩! We saw this as a great omen. Home advantage as the whole school started planning to go as it was accessible. There was a nominal fee to get in but most of us will steal to get the money to get in. History was about to be made. We heard about the great teams of the school that won the Omitola Cup in the seventies but nothing in the current decade. The school splashed out. New boots were bought. New kits were ordered as we left no stone unturned in our desire to see a fully kitted team. We all contributed 20 kobo each towards the kit.
Everything was in place. The team trained every day after school; harnessing the plan for the game.
The d-day came. Kick off was scheduled for 4pm. That school day was a waste. No one was listening; our mind was elsewhere and our imagination ran riot. We could see the game and those played the game could see what needs to be done 😀. A tight defence, with our midfield roaming to get the ball to Kerubu on the wings and embassy will play as No. 10 and score the goals or create them. Simple 😅. We turn up at the stadium and it was cool ahead when the school bus drove in at 3:30pm. The warm up was short and crisp. Then the boys from Stella Maris came out. Whether it was the speed at which they ran unto the pitch or the size of their thighs, I am not sure but but I tripped on my left foot staring at the opposition 🥲. Not a great omen. The teams lined up and the game started. The Stella Maris team was passing the ball, creating triangles in the middle of the pack. The time the ACA boys forayed forward, the Stella Maris defence mopped our crosses easily. Even our stars were looking like ordinary players. Before we can settle down, we were 1-0 down. 😔. We were still hopeful, it is a game of 90 minutes. Our heroes will turn it around 🤞. Little did we know that it was a replay of the African cup of Nations in 1984 when the mature indomitable lions of Thomas Nkono, Emmanuel Kunle, Theopile Abega and Roger Milla took apart the young team led by Mudashiru Lawal with the young boys like Rufai , Keshi, Henry Nwosu and Tarila Okorowanta (I loved that name!!) apart. I digress...
Half half ends 1-0 and we are all waiting for the second half when our team will rise up to the occasion. It was a long evening and dusk was setting in. So was our chance. The second goal went in from a corner and our team started driving forward haphazardly; abandoning and tactics. We knew time was running out and they were throwing everything at it. Nothing was sticking. 5 minutes to the end, 3-0. Despondent, delirious, deserted, depleted of energy, I started walking out of the stadium knowing we have lost and I had about 8km walk gone ahead of me. The distance has never been an issue; the time thinking about the loss was. Our hope dashed by a school from Okitipupa. That statement in a way will be seen racist; looking down on them but in those days, township school were seen to be superior just because they were in cities. How wrong we were...
The next day at the assembly, I got the final confirmation of the score. 3-0. Then came the conspiracy theories. Stella Maris had mercenaries on their team. They had HSC players in the team. All I can say is - we lost. Full stop 🛑. Awawi ni the rest and leyin aponle, abuku lo kan. ACA had to fi se osun, ka fi para. WE LOST. The cup was so near but so far. Unlike like Green Eagles that became the Super Eagles that waited 12 year and led by the young Keshi in 1984 to victory in 1994, ACA never got near the Catholic cup. It was discontinued and kept by Stella Maris. The cup we coveted so much that we never won.
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