Dolphins of Port Harcourt defender Austin Festus has called on Benin people to come all out to the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium to support his team ahead of their 2013 Federation Cup Round of 64 tie with NAF Rockets FC on Wednesday.
One of Rivers representatives in this year’s Federation Cup, Dolphins overcame their initial blip in the Globacom Premier League to finish the first stanza in seventh position with 28 points from 19 games.
Speaking ahead of the cup game in a telephone chat with SportingLife the mobile defender stated that Benin fans’ support would be crucial on Wednesday if Dolphins are to scale through to the next round.
Festus noted that Dolphins have a rich history in the Federation Cup but he warned his team mates against playing to the gallery against their not too familiar opponent based on the surprise element the competition had witnessed in the past.
” We are playing against NAF FC in Benin City on Wednesday and we must raise our game and avoid the disaster of the previous year where we were eliminated by Plateau United at Katsina Ala. We couldn’t believe our eyes but we lost out to them.
“This term we have learnt our lesson. We will need the support of the fans within and around Benin to come out and support Dolphins at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium on Wednesday,” Festus, a former Under 23 player told SportingLife.
Dolphins are joint fifth alongside defunct Stationery Stores of Lagos. And BCC Lions of Gboko in the all time list of clubs with most wins in the competition with four victories each.
The Port Harcourt side won it in 2001, 2004, 2006 and 2007. They beat El Kanemi Warriors 2-0 in 2001 and pipped Enugu Rangers 1-0 in 2004. They defeated Bendel Insurance and Enugu Rangers(again) both on penalties to cart away the cup in 2006 and 2007 respectively.
They are behind 3SC with 8 titles, defunct Lagos Railways(7 titles) and Enugu Rangers(5 titles).
