ACLSports.com: The crowd was expecting an easy game for Nigeria against Ivory Coast but we saw almost a contrary situation.
Ladi Jalmet: That was what many people thought, but the Ivorian team were good, very good. They were no pushovers. Although they lacked some experience, they know how to fight in any day. They gave us headache in the first set because we weren’t expecting the level of resistance they put up against us.
ACLSports.com: And you returned stronger for the killer punch in the second set. Were you at a time thinking you could lose the game?
Ladi Jalmet: It’s a match, a competition, anything could have happened. We needed to concentrate and push them back and stop committing the faults we made in the first set. And that paid off. You saw the gap in the score: 12-25.
ACLSports.com: Looking into the future, what do you need as a team to get stronger for the next round?
Ladi Jalmet: We need early camping. We need to be together for a long period to understand ourselves the more. This team was put together within two weeks, remember. So we still need some basic understanding and groundwork to be fit for international competitions.
ACLSports.com: And money, incentives too!
Ladi Jalmet: Yeah, yeah. Look, football is not the only sport. Our authorities need to invest in other sporting disciplines like volleyball. It is part if their responsibility.
