Godswill Atibule has expressed relief as Ikan Sports began their Showtime Season XIII campaign with a hard-fought 27-25 victory over Green Backs in the second game of the opening day at the Showtime Sports Arena, Lekki, on Sunday.
The contest lived up to expectations, producing drama until the final moments.
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Ikan Sports stormed into an early lead, going 14-0 up midway through the second quarter before Green Backs rallied to reduce the deficit.
At halftime, the scoreboard read 14-6 in favour of Ikan Sports.
The third quarter saw Ikan Sports extend their advantage to 21-6, but Green Backs refused to back down, clawing their way back to set up a tense finish.
With four minutes left in the final quarter, the score stood at 25-27, but Ikan Sports held firm to secure the win.
Speaking after the game, Ikan Sports’ Godswill Atibule admitted it was more of relief to grind out the win but expressed satisfaction with the result.
“We had to grind out a win against the Green Backs. Honestly, I don’t think we started well in the first and second quarters, but in the third quarter we woke up.”
” Even when there was miscommunication, we still managed to hold on. A win is a win, and we’ll take it,” he told Sports247.
Looking ahead, Atibule promised a more aggressive approach in their next outing.
“The next game, we’re just going to attack, attack, and attack. Almost all our touchdowns today came once in a while, but next time, every attack must count. We’ll be sharper,” he added.
Ikan Sports will hope to build on the narrow win as the season progresses, while Green Backs will take positives from their spirited comeback despite falling just short.
