While appraising how far the Nigerian super eagles have come and how much they have influenced us as a country, it is pertinent to trace their history and how the team started out.
Of course, this history will not be completed without the mention of the first-ever indigenous captain of the team,
Richard Etim Henshaw, from Cross River State, who was the first-ever captain of the first assembled super eagles team as they were then called.
He played for the defunct Marine FC of Lagos before the journey to the UK in 1949. The team toured the UK and created major upsets even as they played barefoot, without boots.
The team left Nigeria on the 29th of August 1949 on a 2 weeks journey to the UK.
The team had 18 players on board including the chairman of the Nigerian football association, Captain Donald H Holley. They were billed to play 9 matches in total.
Among the team, 13 were picked from Lagos, 2 from the eastern part of the country, 2 from the western region, and 1 from the northern region.
The team as reported was not only picked for their football skills, they were also picked for their competence in their major fields.
Like the captain, Richard Henshaw, he was to take a qualifying test in the UK in Marine engineering after the tour.
After their first match with Marine Crosby FC which ended 5-2 in favor of the visiting Eagles, the Marine Crosby club had in delight and awe as to the skills exhibited by the eagles, donated all the proceeds from the ticket sales to the Nigerian Football Association.
This amounted to about 200 pounds.
The team made their return voyage to Nigeria on the 29th of September while the captain, Henshaw stayed back to complete his test.
This outing granted the eagles the opportunity to land several club affiliations in the UK.
Ottun joined Liverpool FC, Titus Okere joined Swindon Town, Teslim ‘Thunder’ Balogun joined Petersborogh, he also had a stint with Queens Park Rangers.
Henshaw also had a stint with Cardiff FC.
These sets of Eagles are worthy to be immortalized by the FG as they made the country proud even as they played without shoes and sacrificed their own part for the creation of what has come to become the super eagles we are proud of today…..S££ MOR£
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