Shooting Stars returned to winning ways with a 3-1 victory over Ranchers Bees in their Matchday nine Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) clash at the Lekan Salami Stadium on Friday.
The Oluyole Warriors ended their five-game winless run with first-half goals from Desmond Ojietefian and Damilola Akinola, before substitute Qamar Adegoke added a third in the second half.
The hosts made a bright start to the encounter and took the lead in the 14th minute when Desmond Ojietefian broke the deadlock with a well-placed header.
However, Ranchers Bees restored parity in the 38th minute through Isah Ndala Aliyu. The equaliser came from a well-worked set-piece routine, as a dangerous delivery into the box was flicked home by Isah to make it 1-1.
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Shooting Stars regained the lead seconds before half-time when Damilola Akinola scored his first goal of the campaign. The visitors failed to deal with a long throw from Issa Yusuf, allowing Akinola to capitalise and put the hosts 2-1 ahead.
The Oluyole Warriors had a golden opportunity to extend their lead few minutes into the second half after being awarded a penalty. However, Yusuf missed from the spot, keeping Ranchers Bees’ hopes of getting something from the game alive.
Determined to secure a much-needed victory, Shooting Stars made a triple substitution on the hour mark. The changes paid off in the 71st minute when Qamar Adegoke, one of the substitutes, made an immediate impact by scoring the hosts’ third goal.
The forward received the ball on the edge of the box before driving towards the byline and unleashing a powerful effort into the net from a tight angle to make it 3-1 and seal all three points for Shooting Stars.
The victory lifts Shooting Stars to 12th place on the NPFL table with 11 points, while Ranchers Bees drop into the relegation zone, sitting 17th with eight points.
Shooting Stars will look to build on the victory when they travel to face Ikorodu City in the South Western derby on Sunday, October 25. Meanwhile, Ranchers Bees, now winless in five matches, will be desperate to return to winning ways when they host Doma United on the same day.
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