Bendel Insurance Football Club of Benin on Thursday threw away all points to arch-rivals Shooting Stars Sports Club of Ibadan after conceding a late goal in the Matchday 22 of the Nigeria Premier Football League at the Lekan Salami Stadium, Ibadan.
The Oluyole Warriors defender, Muritala Taiye produced the only goal of the tie to earn the three maximum points in the second minute of five minutes of extra time added to the game after the 90 minutes of regulation time.
Muritala found the back of the net after heading home a poorly cleared ball near the box of the Benin Arsenal, following a scramble, as he nodded the ball beyond the reach of Amas Obasogie when the hosts’ fans and supporters were exciting the match venue in frustration.
The Benin Arsenals were unlucky to get any breakthrough against Shooting Stars earlier after creating many scoring chances in the game as Sarki Ismael and Divine Nwachukwu’s one-on-one moments with Shooting Stars’ goalkeeper Okemute between the 60th and 70th minutes of play were good chances not well taken.
Julius Emiloju’s long-range strike that hit woodwork shortly before the halftime whistle was another missed opportunity that would have given Insurance the lead.
Bendel Insurance began the current football season with a convincingly 2-0 victory over Shooting Stars in the first round in Benin City.
The Benin Arsenals will now shift their focus to their next match which is another away fixture against Plateau Utd on Sunday as they continue to find a way out of their goal drought situation.
