The bitter taste of last Sunday’s home defeat to Warri Wolves still lingers in the mouth. The recommended sweetener in football circles to mask the sour taste of defeat is to play another match and get a victory, irrespective of the opposition or venue. The taste of victory makes up for everything, and when sustained for long, it banishes previous sad moments and creates new memories.
We knew that the league fixtures in October would test our growing credentials, but we didn’t expect them to scorch the early progress we had made. From an unbeaten run to a winless streak. From second place to eighth on the table. Just one point from a possible nine, turning us from contenders into pretenders.
The next match is crucial, or we risk slipping further behind the pacesetters. The results we’ve recorded lately have cancelled each other out so perfectly that we’re a defeat away from a full reversal of form after ten matches. For the away win in Bayelsa, the home loss to Wolves balanced it. For the two away draws, two home draws evened it. For the two home victories, another loss would make it two away defeats to complete the circle. Two steps forward, two steps backward.
Matchday ten against Plateau United has become a defining point in this campaign, an opportunity to halt the slide and begin the climb again. Yet Jos has not been kind to us in the last decade. Our last win there came in 2004, when the People’s Elephant under Okey Emordi, with Stanley Eguma as assistant, defeated a young Plateau United side coached by Ndubuisi Nduka. That victory sent them tumbling down to the second tier.
Since the Peace Boys returned to the top flight in 2015, we’ve struggled to find joy in Jos. The best we’ve managed are two goalless draws, in 2020 and again in 2024. In eight visits, we’ve suffered six defeats, including the heavy 4–0 loss in 2020 that saw our former striker Ibrahim “Yuga” Mustapha score twice.
But football is never bound by history. Form books are good for previews but mean nothing when the whistle blows and the battle begins. Tactical shifts, intensity, and focus will decide this one. Plateau United haven’t been exceptional this season. They lost their opening home game to Katsina United and, despite picking up nine points from their next three home fixtures, they have struggled away from Jos. Their 4–0 defeat to Niger Tornadoes last Sunday leaves them 17th on the log, low on confidence.
The Rwang Pam Stadium is no fortress. It has already been breached this season. If Coach Ndubuisi Nduka’s rallying cry is matched with a clear tactical plan for recovery, we might just have a big game on Sunday. Jos is familiar ground for Nduka, and Plateau United a club where he once honed his coaching craft more than twenty years ago. That alone is a story worth writing. But if sentiment isn’t enough to inspire, then revenge should be. Plateau United handed us our only home loss last season. This is a chance to make it right.
For pride. For purpose. For the badge.
EnyimbaEnyi 💙
