The newly appointed Super Falcons' coach, Kadiri Ikhana, is one of the finest and noblest in his ancestry. His early training and upbringing presaged the glory of his later years. And though a teenage life at the United Primary School, Ilorin, Kwara State, in the mid 1960s fanned his romance with the round leather game, it was in the Nigerian Army that Ikhana's football career received a boom after he was exposed to and brought up in soldiery.

He led the Flying Horse FC, which was his first club in Kaduna, to various Challenge Cup competitions in the early 1970s before meeting with the likes of Innua Lawal Rigogo, Segun Olumodeji, Kenneth Olayombo and Ganiyu Salami to represent the Nigerian Armed Forces football team in three World Military Games, including Germany '73 and Damascus '75. Outside the Nigerian Army, Ikhana made history with club football when he partnered great players as Felix Agbonifo, George Omokaro, Henry Ogboe, Leotis Boateng, Francis Monidafe, Peter Egharevba and David Adiele in the Bendel Insurance squad that defeated Enugu Rangers in the final of the 1978 Challenge Cup in Lagos.

He was also part of the Green Eagles team that won Nigeria's first biggest trophy – the 1980 Africa Nations Cup – also in Lagos. As a coach, Ikhana has continued to create more records. He was the pioneer coach of El-Kanemi FC in 1986, leading the club to promotion to the second division and, in 1991, led Kano Pillars to the final of the Challenge Cup.  He stood in for coach Shaibu Amodu when BCC Lions of Gboko defeated Julius Berger in the 1994 Challenge Cup in Bauchi. Ikhana's best record so far in his coaching career came in 2003, when he led Enyimba FC of Aba to win the CAF Champions League, which had eluded the country for decades.

Speaking with GOWON AKPODONOR from the Falcons' camp in Abuja during the week, Ikhana revealed that the discipline he got from his school days in Ilorin and his military training in Kaduna shaped his sporting life.

AS a teenager, Ikhana's dream was to hit the top of his football career early. He got it. He started his football journey as a goalkeeper at the early stage of his elementary education at United Primary School, Ilorin, but soon became a utility player, commanding the right fullback position the moment he broke into the school's senior team in primary six. From there, the seed of his soccer career was planted.

The young lad was in elementary six when he started earning money from football. Then, the management of an Ilorin-based sugar manufacturing company floated a football club called Tate and Lyle FC and the young Ikhana was one of the school players on its pay role. He was earning two shillings, which was big enough to take care of his immediate needs.

"I was born in Ilorin and started playing for my primary school's senior team in primary six. I started as a goalkeeper, but sometimes at training, I did feature as a defender, especially when many players did not show up," he noted. "There was a particular day I played in the right fullback position and did very well. From that moment, our Games Master decided that I should keep to that position (defence) and that was how my goalkeeping journey ended.

"When I was promoted to primary six, I played for Tate and Lyle FC, which was then featuring in the lower division of the Nigerian League. I was being paid two shillings, which was big money at that time."

His school football career, which was beginning to enjoy patronage from companies within Ilorin, was disrupted soon after, as his elder brother took him to Kaduna while he was in primary six. In Kaduna, Ikhana gained admission into Baptist Primary School in Kawo, but the young lad could not stay to complete his primary school because, according to him, the absence of his parents, especially the mother, was beginning to affect him negatively.

He returned to Ilorin and after completing elementary school, he gained admission to the newly founded Ilorin Grammar School, and Ikhana was among the first set of students. His secondary education was barely six months old when his brother requested once again that he crossed over to Kaduna, this time to begin a journey into the Military School. That was in 1965.

Before leaving for Kaduna the young Ikhana registered his presence in the prestigious Principal Cup competition by leading Ilorin Grammar School to the semifinal.

Looking back to his days in Kaduna, Ikhana reminisced with nostalgia: "I tried my luck to enter the military school but it didn't work. My brother, a military man, was still trying to work out something when riots broke out in the north. The tension was so much that I decided to return to Ilorin. I was in Ilorin when the Nigerian Civil War broke out."

In line with destiny, however, Ikhana's relocation from Kaduna only prepared the ground for his enlisting into the army, as he explained: "When the war broke out, my father, an ex-service man, advised me to join the army when soldiers came to recruit young men in my town. I heeded the advice and that was how I joined the army."

He then began another journey to Kaduna where he had his military training. He was posted to the Artillery Division in early 1968, where he was trained among the first set of soldiers to handle the 4070 guns used as anti-aircraft. While the sound of guns and granades of the Federal Army was waning, the Nigerian Army came up with the idea of sports in 1969, thus giving Ikhana's football career a new beginning.

He featured in the Inter-Unit football competition organised in the Artillery Camp Headquarters and excelled, and was picked as one of those to represent the Artillery Camp Headquarters during an Inter-Brigade Games, where he again proved his worth. From the Inter-Brigade Games, he was picked to join the Nigerian Army Division team.

In Kaduna, he was playing soccer for a team called the Flying Horse in the city. He recalled: "I played my first Challenge Cup in 1969 with the Flying Horse and got to the semis. We did very well and my dream then was to lift the Challenge Cup trophy, but we were cut off at the state semi-final stage."

In 1970, the first Nigerian Army Games took place and Ikhana, with the likes of Rigogo, Olomodeji, Olayombo, Salami and Fregene, who featured for the army football team, won the soccer gold. Ikhana was posted to Lagos in 1971, but his division in Kaduna manipulated it because of his importance. In 1972, He led the army football team to soccer gold in the second Nigerian Army Games.

Soon after, another order came from Lagos, this time from the Supreme Headquarters, for him to relocate to Lagos, and without option, he moved to the Abati Barrack. Before his relocation to Lagos, the Nigerian Armed Forces Games, which comprises the Army, Navy and Air Force, had been introduced and Ikhana played his way into the football team and later qualified to represent West Africa at the World Military Games held in Germany in 1973. The team finished fourth.

On his return from Germany, he participated in the second Nigeria Armed Forces Games and led the football team to gold medal. Two years later, he led the Nigerian Armed Forces team to qualify for the World Military Games held in Syria, Damascus, where they lost in the group stage.

Returning to Nigeria, the bulk of the players, including Ikhana, were selected to represent Nigeria at the 1975 edition of West African Football Union (WAFU) Cup held in Senegal. The team, which also had six players from Shooting Stars of Ibadan, got to the final, with Ikhana playing in all the matches. It was his first national team assignment for Nigeria.

Nicknamed Kawawa in his playing days, Ikhana retired from the Nigerian Army in 1977 to focus on his football career. The news of his retirement from the army soon spread to Benin City and coach Alabi Aissien, who was managing Bendel Insurance at that time, quickly grabbed the opportunity with two hands. Ikhana thus became part of the renaissance Bendel Insurance team that went to Lagos in 1978 to conquer all the big teams on its way to Challenge Cup victory.

With his excellent marking ability, he stood out in that Insurance squad after he single handedly played out Rangers wing wizard, Nwabueze Nwakwo, in that epic final the Benin Arsenal won 3-0. Looking back to the 1978 magic moment in Lagos, Ikhana said: "That was the time football was football in Nigeria. As early as 10.00a.m, the National Stadium in Surulere was already filled to capacity. Over 55 lorries came from Auchi, Ekpoma, Agbor, Warri, Sapele and other parts of the old Bendel State to cheer the team in Lagos. We had a great team loaded with great players and our captain, Felix Agbanifo, did an excellent job. It was one of the best moments in my club football career."

He added the National League trophy in 1979 with Bendel Insurance and another Challenge Cup title in 1980. That same year (1980), he made history with the national team – the defunct Green Eagles – when he teamed up with the likes of Segun Odegbami, Christian Chukwu, Adokie Amesiemaka, Emmanuel Okala, Felix Owolabi and the late Muda Lawal to win the Africa Cup of Nation in Lagos.

Ikhana and co were honoured by President Shehu Shagari with Member of the Order of the Niger (MON). He was also in the 1980 Moscow Olympic team. He quit national team in 1981, but continued his club football with Abiola Babes, from where he finally quit active play in 1985.

As coach, he has created more records than other Nigerian coaches, especially in club football. He was the pioneer coach of El-Kanemi FC in 1986, leading the club onto promotion to the second division, and in 1991, led Kano Pillars to the final of the Challenge Cup. He stood in for coach Shaibu Amodu when BCC Lions of Gboko defeated Julius Berger in the 1994 Challenge Cup in Bauchi.

Ikhana later went to El-Kanemi and in 2000, led the club to another promotion to the first division. His biggest record so far in club football coaching came in 2003, when he led Enyimba of Aba to CAF Champions League victory, which had eluded the country for decades.

Ikhana was recently appointed coach of the female national team, the Super Falcons, by the Aminu Maigari-led Nigeria Football Federation (NFF). No Falcons' coach in the past paraded such rich profile as Ikhana, and the man has promised to do everything possible to make history with the team. Perhaps, his tenure may see the Super Falcons surpass its quarter-final record set at the USA '99 FIFA Women World Cup under coach Ismailia Mabo.

Looking back to his school days in Ilorin and Kaduna, Ikhana said: "To see the crowd cheering you on the pitch was a big motivation to the players. Then football in Nigeria was more appreciated, unlike today when virtually all the clubs and even national teams play before empty stadia. But I won't blame the people because so many factors are responsible for it these days.

"There is this win-at-all-cost syndrome, which is killing the game. There is cheating on the part of club management, which derives joy in not paying the players their wages. Some club management engages the services of area boys, who harass innocent fans and even steal their cars, handsets and other valuables during matches. There is poor officiating and many other things, which are not good for the system. Everybody must be ready to play a role in this battle to bring back those glorious moments to our football."