Nigerian female national team, Super Falcons’ former invitee, Chinasa Mandy Ukandu is flaunting her recent strides in the development of women’s football and happy that her sterling efforts are yielding results, Sports247 reports.
Although many analysts, stalwarts, fans and stakeholders of women’s football in Nigeria may have forgotten about her, the product of Community Action Through Sport (CATS), a former project of The British Council in Lagos, disclosed that she is still waxing strong and very active as a youth developer.
Read Also: Heart Of Lion Football Academy’s Coach Relishes Impact Of Grassroots Seminar At Teslim Balogun Stadium
Miss Ukandu, who was also a pioneer member of Dreams And Teams’ ventures for students as well as initiator of Help The Talent Project (HTTP) and Youth Sports Initiative (YSI), said she is happy with the strides she continues making as the current head coach of CATS Ladies, which is now a full-fledged privately owned club based in Surulere, Lagos.
She disclosed further in an exclusive chat with Sports247, “I’m presently based in Lagos, where I’m working as a coach with CATS Ladies and Goals for Girls, focusing on player development.”
Chinasa, who has featured in many international youth football development programmes like Premier Skills, Debate To Action and earlier won an online contest for the World Remit Future Stars coaching programme, disclosed that producing a youngster for the Nigerian female youth national team, Falconets, is her latest big achievement.
“My most recent impact in football is mentoring and developing young female players in CATS Ladies and other training football programmes. One of the highlights for me was seeing our goalkeeper, Jane Ijirigho, get called up to the under-20 national team and secure a loan move to Nasarawa Amazons FC.
“Moments like that remind me why I’m passionate about grassroots football – helping young talents grow, gain exposure and take the next step in their careers,” she stated emphatically.
Despite having already made her mark at various levels of female development and in the promotion of youth football extensively, Chinasa disclosed further that she is always aiming to achieve something greater with each passing day.
She stated, “My plan is to continue promoting grassroots football, help more young female players reach higher levels and expand our Goals for Girls training programmes in schools.
I want to create more opportunities for young players, especially girls, to be scouted and supported through structured competitions, like Addbrand Cup, and training.”
The highly articulate instructor, who is also a past winner of the Nigerian Youth Leadership Award and studied Economics/Accounting at Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education in Ijanikin area of Lagos, admitted that funding has been the biggest obstacle in her efforts to make a bigger impact, hence her appeal for support from well-meaning Nigerians and corporate bodies.
“My biggest need at the moment is to secure support and partnerships to strengthen our football development programmes. With better resources and sponsorship, we can provide quality training, proper equipment and more opportunities for young female players to be discovered.
“I would love to appeal for assistance from anyone who believes in the power of football to change lives. With more support, we can give young female players better exposure, training, and opportunities to grow into professionals,” Chinasa concluded.
