FRANCIS ACHI/ Abuja
Patrick Ngwaogu, assistant coach of Abia Warriors 
As football fans across Nigeria are looking forward to the resumption of football hostilities in the Nigeria Professional Football League NPFL, Patrick Ngwaogu, assistant coach of Abia Warriors has said that the team is in good shape after playing 18 friendly games to cope during the long break occasioned by the crisis in the Nigeria Football Federation.
Ngwaogu said that the management of the club had to resolve to playing quality friendly games with teams within the South East and South South, adding that  the players were kept busy with these friendly  fixtures which brought out the best in them. The games also afforded the coaching crew to see the players that are ready for the remaining hurdles to cross in the league when it resumes on a date that has been tentatively fixed for September 2.
” We did not bargain for the long break due to the crisis in the NFF. It was not what anybody in the club expected. Abia Warriors had to play 18 friendly games during this period. This may not even be the last count . However, we are satisfied with the performance of the players after losing one game in the friendly games played”, Ngwaogu said.
” The team won 15 games, drew 2 and lost 1. We lost to J. Atete 2-1 in Delta state. We played teams in home and away format. Abia Warriors defeated Akwa Starlets home and away. Beat Rovers 3-2 in Calabar. Also defeated Beyalsa United 1-0 in Yenagoa and Delta Stars 2-0 at Ughelli. The only draw the team had was with Rivers United in Port Harcourt”, he added.
” We are glad with the fact that the team got some positive results at away. To win games at away be it a friendly one is a great morale booster to the team and we are hoping that the form the team exhibited with the quality friendly  games they played during emergency break will be re-enacted when the league resumes soon”, he said.
Abia Warriors currently lies in the 8th position with 34 points from 24 games and the team had gone unbeaten in 14 games before the league went on an emergency long break due to the leadership tussle in NFF.
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