Achieving Success On This Very Assignment

Achievements in life may be very difficult to calculate because of the different times that one has recorded achievements. This is my case currently. I have had several achievements and may only be able to share one.

Sometime in 2022, I was appointed to lead a group of young boys to a football competition hosted by highly placed diplomats. The intention was to see how these young people who were dominantly students in high school would perform out of the four walls of the classroom.

Soon after we began the training session, I started noticing that most of the young boys who would naturally come late to school were the first to reach the training camp. They were so energetic and ready to go all day. It was as if I used a magic wand on them but in reality, it was just their love for football.

We had the aerobic session every four days and then trained for speed. Then we looked at holding the back against the opponent. When we were sure of settling these, through tough sessions of repeating the procedure, the students learned very fast. It was as if they were not the same students who had been having difficulty comprehending learning contents in the class.

Three weeks into the competition, we started training on two teams, playing against each other and making necessary corrections. As the team lead, I was taking notes of the players that would make the first team. That was one of the most trying times of this test. The students turned players improved as the day passed. At some points, I had issues on who would make the first team but I didn't let the confusion known to the boys.

They became all eager, wanting to know who would make the first team. Two days before our first match, I called for a briefing and told them:

The past weeks have been one of much exercise and training because we want to be the best. I have noticed that there has been great improvement on your side as players and as a team. The purpose of this competition for us is to bring back the trophy. So, we will succeed in doing that as a team. We win together. When you score a goal, it is for the whole team. There shall be no personal achievement in this team. For the team list, everyone of you qualified. The players that will feature in the first match shall be the following.

I called out the names of the players as others gave a resounding round of applause. It was a great moment for the boys. The training session ended on a light note as we all went to prepare for our first match.

My boys came into the field of play already. They wanted to be in the final and you can see the enthusiasm in their play. It was all team play. In the first half of our opening match the other team were two goals down. By the time the match ended, it was three goals to nil.

Our second match ended with one goal in our favour. The eastern team was our biggest threat but we eliminated them. The final group match was the easiest. We played our hearts on the football pitch and had a huge win of six goals to nil.

In the round of sixteen, we beat our opponent to reach the quarter finals where we won through penalty kicks. In the semi-finals, the stadium.was different. The crowd was so much that we felt like we were being watched by the whole world. The bots yet again got the day with two goals.

In the final, the team we played against came all kit up and looked like players who were from a football academy. When Insaw the countenance of my boys, I quickly called for a briefing where I told the boys:

We have come this far and won't let this opportunity slip. What you see is just like every other team we have played. Some of those teams appeared fierce but in the end we had the day. All we need to do is to play our team play approach and in the end, it is going to be our day.

Soon, the match started. Mid-way into the match, the opposing team got a penalty against us. Our goalkeeper caught the ball. He wanted to keep a clean sheet as throughout the tournament, he never conceded a goal.

In the last minute of the first half, we got a golden opportunity and the goal passed the keeper and shook the net. We lead by one goal. By half time, I told the boys that they haven't done enough in the mid-field. I asked them to try out of the box shots and they have seen our threats and are packing their box.

At exactly the seventieth minute, our skipper, Olamide headed the ball into the net and we made two goals to nil. It lingers on till the end where we lifted the trophy.

The ceremony was quite an experience. We had enough dignitaries from the government and the diplomatic corps. It was one achievement that made me feel so honoured, most of it is that I was given a responsibility and I delivered on it.