Nigeria U-18 Handball Team Begins Camp Ahead of African Cadets Championship

The Nigeria Under-18 Male Handball Team has commenced camping in Abuja ahead of the 22nd African Cadets Men’s Championship scheduled to hold in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
Head Coach of the team, Abdulhakim Yakubu, invited 23 players to camp, with the players undergoing intensive training as the technical crew works to build a competitive squad for the continental championship.
Yakubu said the team’s preparations are focused on improving the players’ fitness, technical abilities, tactical understanding and team cohesion ahead of the competition.
Nigeria has been drawn in Group B alongside Tunisia, Algeria and Madagascar.
Other groups have Egypt, Cameroon and Congo in Group A; Morocco, Libya and Rwanda in Group C, while Guinea, hosts Côte d’Ivoire, Zambia and Burundi make up Group D.
The Nigerian squad comprises players across seven positions.
The goalkeeping department has Shuaibu Fridaymicheal, Shuaibu Muhammad and Lawal Muhammad.
Aliyu Rufai, Sani Muntari, Friday Pagiel and Sulaimon Abayomi Fashogbon are listed as centre backs, while Godstime Michael, Usman Umar and Samuel Achama will operate from the left-back position.
The right-back options are Huzaifa Abdulkadir, Obieze Akunebu, Gana Abubakar Tauhidi and Muhammed Yahaya.
Chikelu Chidiebere Divine, Hamza Yahaya, Aminu Dahiru and Abdulrahman Sani are the left-wing players, while Umar Mohammed, Abdullahi Abubakar and Zulkifilu Muhammed are listed as right-wingers.
The two pivots in the squad are Akibu Muhammad and Dominion Abukhate.
Yakubu will be assisted by Ayo Joshua, who is serving as assistant coach.
The technical crew is expected to use the camping programme to assess the players and fine-tune their tactics ahead of the championship.
The African Cadets Men’s Championship, organised by the Confédération Africaine de Handball (CAHB), provides a platform for young handball players across the continent to compete and gain international experience.
Nigeria faces a challenging group-stage campaign against Tunisia, Algeria and Madagascar, with the team expected to rely on its preparations in Abuja to make a strong showing in Abidjan.
The Nigerian side is expected to continue its training programme as it intensifies preparations for the continental championship.