BY OUR SPORT CORRESPONDENT IN JOS
PLATEAU UNITED’S mountain fortress was breached in spectacular fashion as Abia Warriors staged a clinical 2-0 smash-and-grab at the New Jos Stadium.
The high-altitude arena, usually a graveyard for visiting teams, became a playground for the Umuahia-based Warriors, who defied the thin air and a hostile home crowd to secure one of the most significant away wins of the NPFL season.
From the first whistle, the New Jos Stadium—a venue famed for its intimidating atmosphere—felt strangely subdued. Plateau United, missing eight key players through injury, looked like a shadow of the side that usually dominates on the Jos rocks.
Despite the vocal support echoing around the concrete stands, the home side struggled to find their rhythm on a surface that seemed to favour the visitors’ quick counter-attacking style.
The breakthrough came as a hammer blow to the Jos faithful.
Abia Warriors capitalized on a defensive mix-up that silenced the stadium, clinical finishing ensuring the home fans were left looking at the scoreboard in disbelief.
While the New Jos Stadium is often cited as a “12th man” for Plateau United, it was the Warriors who looked more at home.
They doubled their lead with a sweeping move that carved through the heart of the Plateau defense, leaving the home side’s continental aspirations looking as shaky as their backline.
Plateau United threw everything forward in the closing stages, spurred on by the desperate roars from the bleachers, but the Warriors’ backline stood as firm as the Plateau hills themselves.
As the final whistle blew, the pockets of traveling Abia fans were the only ones heard in the vast expanse of the Jos arena.
For the hosts, it was a bitter end to the year at a venue where they usually expect maximum points. For Abia Warriors, it was a masterclass in how to conquer the heights of Jos.
