Shooting Stars Sports Club of Ibadan (3SC) edged visiting Inter Lagos 2-1 in the 2026/27 season opener played at the Lekan Salami Stadium on Friday, www.aclsports.com reports.
The Oluyole Warriors, who lost on the opening day of the previous campaign, started on a winning note courtesy of goals from Lucky Emmanuel and Sodiq Ibrahim, while Inter Lagos’ first-ever NPFL goal was tucked home by Uchenna Njoku in an eventful contest.
Despite the off-field incidents rocking Nigerian football in recent days, the league went on as scheduled, and it was an entertaining game to usher in the new campaign.
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3SC head coach Salisu Yusuf handed home debuts to Issa Yusuf, Olakunle Akala, Abdulaziz Dalhatu and Taheer Abubakar, while Mustapha Lawal started between the sticks at the expense of Godgift Elkanah. Inter Lagos’ head coach, Shakiru Giwa, kept faith with most of the boys that impressed during preseason and from the promotion campaign.
Shooting Stars went in front through Lucky Emmanuel with a tidy finish after some neat work by striker Sodiq Ibrahim a quarter of an hour into the contest. The lead lasted seven minutes as Iyede Kewe ran through the home side’s defence before squaring the ball for captain Uchenna Njoku for the simplest of finishes.
The home side sprang to life afterwards and kept going forward in search of the lead, but Inter goalkeeper Favour Bala made some stunning saves to keep the scoreline intact. However, on the stroke of halftime, Shooting Stars were deservedly awarded a spot kick, which Ibrahim converted to open his account for the season.
After the break, Shooting Stars continued to press forward but lacked the cutting edge to put the game beyond their opponents. Both sides made changes as the half progressed, and the Oluyole Warriors had a golden opportunity to seal the win in stoppage time when they were awarded a penalty after Qamar Adegoke was fouled.
However, fellow substitute Mustapha Adams saw his spot-kick come back off the post from 12 yards, leaving Shooting Stars to settle for a narrow 2-1 victory.
Action of this opening match day continues on Sunday with nine more games.
