Traditional powerhouse Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC) have qualified for the play-off stage of the 2021 Nigerian National League with three games to spare.
The Oluyole warlords, after Matchday 19 now have an unassailable 40 points, 10 more than third-placed Ekiti United which means that regardless of the outcomes of the last three games, they will be among the Top 8 teams from the four sub-groups of the NNL.
The top 8 teams, best two from each group, will compete in the NNL Super 8 with the top 4 teams grabbing promotion tickets to the top-flight Nigeria Premier Football League.
3SC, coached by former player and ex-youth international Edith Agoye, have been in imperious form all season. They raced to 8 straight wins at the start of the campaign and have thus maintained the momentum with 12 wins, 4 draws and just three loses in Group B1.
Jostling for the second play-off slot in the group are Go-Round and Ekiti United with one point separating the duo but Nilayo on 28points and Delta Force and Nnewi United who are tied on 26points would all have a say about who joins 3SC in the Top 8.
In Group B2, the race is much tighter with as many as six clubs still retaining the hope of making the play-off. Just four points separate leaders Remo Stars(34) from sixth placed J.Atete(30) with Bayelsa United(33), Ibom Youths(33), Bendel Insurance(31) and One Rocket(31) all sitting pretty in between the duo.
There are four more games to play though Insurance have two games in hand while Remo Stars, Bayelsa United and Ibom Youths have one each.
In Group A1, Elkanemi Warriors of Maiduguri and Gombe United have picked the two play-off tickets with two games to go while in Group A2 Niger Tornadoes of Minna are through to the play-offs but with just one more game left and one point separating them, DMD and Yobe Desert Stars must slug it out for the last play-off tickets.
