Naija players pre-match rituals in the Glo NPFL

You see them on match days just before they step onto the pitch. Some kneeling on the touchline and muttering their prayers, others would not kneel but would stand, hands pointed to the skies for brief moments. Some others would simply touch the line and make some signs on their forehead and chest before racing onto the pitch while others ensure they step onto the pitch with a particular feet before the other. Such rites have become commonplace even in global football grounds and they are usually undertaken in faith that they will produce a favorable outcome for the one doing them and his team.

These rites have varying degrees of significance to the one making them. For instance, Nasarawa United winger, Bature Yaro, believes it is the most important preparation necessary before any game. "Everything I do in life, God comes first so I don't joke with this. I always pray by the touchline before I enter the pitch," he said. He also claims it is a habit he does not neglect regardless of how low profile a game he is faced with. 

For Enyimba's goalkeeper, Olufemi Thomas, his beliefs are quite as firm but his style differs from Yaro's as the touchline marks the end of his own prayers. "When we are lining up in the tunnel from the dressing room, I start praying, until we get to the touchline, then I say Amen."

Striker Kabiru Musa says: "For me I wear my right boot on before the left and pull up the left one before the right. And I go into the pitch with my right foot first after I finish my prayers facing the direction which we Muslims face when praying." 

Bayelsa United captain, Salomon Junior, has an entirely opposite approach. "I pray and go into the field with my left leg first." Why the left leg? The Benin Republic-born defender says that is how he prefers it. 

A lot of times, these rites are more than just an attempt to influence the results of the game, it is also an opportunity to pray for injury-free games for them and for their teammates. Obviously, no one wants to finish the game with a broken arm or leg or to find themselves lying on a hospital bed before the game is over. 

"I raise my two hands to the skies and ask the Almighty God to see me and my teammates through the game, praying for protection throughout the game. Then I also ask for victory in the game," says Sunshine Stars goalkeeper, Danladi Isah.

The league's all-time record goalscorer, Mfon Udoh would touch the lines and do a sign of the cross and point it to the heavens. "The sign is symbolic of my belief on the price Christ paid for me, then I will say these words, 'I rest in your hands O Lord, take charge and grant me all the successes that this game holds.'" 

While these rites abound for many, there are others too like Odinga Odinga who do not think they need such rites. They simply walk past these 'praying mantis' lined up on the touchline and walk onto the pitch. For them, something else is more crucial. 

The Sharks FC of Port Harcourt Captain says: "I don't have any such routine. I believe in hard work." For him prayers are unnecessary if you have not done the needed work on the training ground. But Femi Thomas disagrees, saying it is a combination of the two. "I believe in faith and works. I will do my own part in training and then hand the rest over to God in my own way," Thomas explained.

culled from: npfl.ng