Efforts to bring Nigeria back to the comity of rugby-playing nations will soon bear fruits, President of Nigeria Rugby Football Federation (NRFF), Ademola Are, said on Thursday in Abuja.
Are said the ban placed on Nigeria really harmed the development and growth of the game in the country and all hands had since been on deck to effect a change.
“Until this ban is lifted, our source of income is actually limited. We need funds from the international body, and we need funds from individuals and corporate bodies.
“Most especially, we need funds from the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development. There is really nothing we can do without the ministry.
“But the ban has to be lifted first for us to move, and uplift the game for the necessary development and growth,” he said.
Are was optimistic that having sent to World Rugby, the sport’s international governing body, the NRFF constitution as well as reports, pictures and minutes of their meetings, there would be a reaction.
“It is expected that Rugby Africa, the continental body, will send all these to World Rugby for deliberation and approval during their congress in May.
“From the feelers we are getting from federation Presidents from Africa, they are very eager that Nigeria will soon come back.
“They believe we have the population, and we have the economy and we have a very large pool of players to tap from. They are eager to bring us back to the fold,” the NRFF President said.
On a decision reached at their recent congress in Benin in March on the co-option of three members into the NRFF board, Are said these members were those with value.
“These are members that can add value to rugby in Nigeria and Africa, especially in the areas of finance.
The NRFF President said the federation’s new board plans to have programmes in all the states in all the country’s six geo-political zones simultaneously.
“We want to take the game to tertiarry institutions, as well as rejuvenate the league, whereby Northern and Southern teams will slug it out and a champion will emerge at the end of the competition.
“This will help us to discover more elite players within the country,” he said.
Are however noted that in all these the federation would need finance.
“We have been in touch with the Chairman of Padmozi. We have also met with the Sports Minister, and the ministry’s Permanent Secretary has also been good to us,” he said.
The NRFF President however solicited the unflinching support of all rugby club owners in various states in developing the sport, saying “they are the serious stakeholders”.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that NRFF, and by extension Nigeria, was banned from international rugby by World Rugby in 2021.
