Shooting Stars F.C.

Football club infobox
clubname = Shooting Stars FC


fullname = Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC) Football Club
nickname = Oluyole Warriors
founded = 1950s
ground = Lekan Salami Stadium
Ibadan, Nigeria
capacity = 18,500
chairman = Mutiu Adepoju
manager = Franklin Howard
league = Nigeria Division 1
season = 2008/09
position =
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Shooting Stars Football Club (often nicknamed 3SC or "Oluyole Warriors") is a Nigerian soccer club based in Ibadan. They won the African Cup Winners' Cup in 1976 [http://www.rsssf.com/tablesa/afcup76.html] . They play their home games at Lekan Salami Stadium.

The club was one of the founders of the Nigerian Premier League in 1972, when they were called "WNDC Ibadan" (Western Nigeria Development Company). The acronym "Shooting Stars" was added with the suggestion of the late Jide Johnson and Niyi Omowon as team foundation members who believed that the players were "stars" in their own right.

Shooting Stars is one of the most followed football clubs in Nigeria. Shooting Stars play their home matches at the Lekan Salami stadium. The stadium was actually named after one the prominent supporters of the club who is now deceased. Before, "sooting" as it is called by its supporters used to play at the famous Liberty Stadium which was one of the venues for the world youth soccer championship in 1999.
Shooting stars is one of the most decorated clubsides in Nigeria alongside Enugu Rangers and the defunct Stationery Stores F.C. of Lagos.In fact, shooting stars and Enugu Rangers are known as the tradtional football clubs in the country.They both dominated the football scene in the country during 70s and 80s.
Shooting stars have played and won many matches against top club sides in Africa. Shooting stars won the first edition of CAF cup,defeating the Nakivubo Villa of Uganda 3-0 in the finals at the Lekan Salami stadium after the first leg ended goaless. Shooting stars was also the first Nigerian clubside to win an international trophy in 1976 when they won the African cup winners.
Many well known international stars have played for Shooting Stars in the past.These include the former African footballer of the year Rashidi Yekini,"the mathematical" Segun Odegbami and so on.
They ended their 2004/5 season in fifth place in the Premier League. After the introduction of a strange league format by the Nigerian Football Association, Shooting Stars got relegated to the lower division in the year 2006 and they are fighting to be back at the top where they belong.

Achievements

* Nigerian Premier League: 51976, 1980, 1983, 1995, 1998

* Nigerian FA Cup: 31977, 1979, 1995

* African Cup of Champions Clubs: 21984, 1996

* CAF Cup: 11992

* African Cup Winners' Cup: 11976

*West African Club Championship (UFOA Cup): 11998

Performance in CAF competitions

*CAF Champions League:::1999 - Group Stage

* African Cup of Champions Clubs: 3 appearances::1972: Second Round::1981: Second Round::1984: "Runners-up"::1996: "Runners-up"

*CAF Cup: 3 appearances::1992 - Champion::1993 - First Round::1995 - Second Round

*CAF Cup Winners' Cup: 4 appearances::1976 - Champion::1977 - Semi-Final::1978 - First Round::1980 - Quarter-Final

Current team

* Samson Abiodun
* Adigun Adebayo
* Yinka Adedeji
* Yomi Adigun
* Sakiru Lawal
* Solomon Olukoya (MF)
* Gabriel Olalekan
* Kareem Lukman
* Olumide Ojebode (Captain)
* Wasiu Taiwo
* Jerry Uche
* Ibrahim Yusuf
* Edith Agoye
* Kola Ademola

Famous players

*Mutiu Adepoju
*Sani Abacha
*Muisi Ajao
*Olumide Harris
*Friday Christopher Iwezu
*Ademola Johnson
*Ajibade Kunde Babalade
*Mudashiru Lawal
*Ebenezer Ojo
*Gordon Osusu
*Felix Owolabi
*Patrick Pascal
*Ike Shorunmu
*Rashidi Yekini

References

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/africa/4374879.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/africa/4374879.stm]
* [http://www.shootingstars.com.ng/history.html http://www.shootingstars.com.ng/history.html]