Nigeria’s Green Falcons Complete Double Victory Over Ghana Ahead of World Series

BY Phebe Obong
October 12, 2025
0 Comments
11 Views

Nigeria’s women’s rugby league team, the Green Falcons, recorded back-to-back wins against Ghana’s Leopardess after securing a 24–8 victory in the second leg of their friendly series on Saturday at the Alaro City International Rugby Pitch, Lekki, Lagos.

The win capped a dominant outing for the hosts, who had earlier defeated Ghana 40–0 in the opening fixture on Tuesday.

The friendly series served as part of Nigeria’s final preparations for the inaugural Rugby League World Series in Canada later this month.

Unlike the first encounter, the Ghanaian side showed more determination in the return leg, restricting the Green Falcons to a narrower margin.

Nigeria raced into an early lead with two quick tries to end the first half 12–2 ahead, while Ghana responded strongly after the break to narrow the scoreline to 16–8.

A late surge from the Falcons sealed the victory, with Faustina Akeje’s try restoring Nigeria’s dominance before another score closed out the contest at 24–8.

General Manager of the Nigeria Rugby League Association (NRLA), Isah Lawal, said the friendlies provided useful insights into the team’s strengths and areas for improvement ahead of the World Series.

“We wanted to make this game more structured and more constructed, and them being able to score this time, we don’t see it as a negative, but now we know the areas to tighten up and make sure we are sharp at the tournament,” he said

Chairman of the NRLA, Abiodun Cole, expressed optimism about the team’s prospects, noting that both local and foreign-based players would form the core of the squad for the international competition.

“We have fantastic guys in Alaro City behind us, and we also have a lot of support from ex-players who are home and abroad. The team’s strategy involves combining local players with those based abroad to create a formidable squad.

“With faith in their abilities and God’s guidance, the team is looking forward to putting up a good show in Canada,” Cole said.

Nigeria will compete against Ireland, Fiji, and hosts Canada for a place at the 2026 Women’s Rugby League World Cup in Australia and Papua New Guinea.