Grassroots Drive Bears Fruit as Plateau Vipers, Benue Queens Rule North Central Handball

Posted : 05 October 2026

Plateau Vipers of Jos and Benue Queens of Makurdi have emerged champions of the 2026 North Central Division One Handball Championship, with the competition providing a platform for the discovery and development of emerging talents.

Plateau Vipers secured the men’s title after defeating Suleja Shooters 29-24 in the final, while Benue Queens overcame City Queens of Suleja to claim the women’s crown at the eight-day championship in Abuja.

The tournament also produced four teams that will represent the North Central Zone at the national Division One League, with two teams qualifying from each gender category.

The competition featured Plateau Vipers, Confluence Stars of Lokoja, Unity Boys of Abuja, Suleja Shooters, and Nasarawa Ambassadors of Lafia in the men’s category.

In the women’s event, Nuela Handball Academy of Ilorin, Inikpi Babes of Idah, Benue Queens, and City Queens competed for the zonal honours.

The championship formed part of the Handball Federation of Nigeria’s renewed strategy to decentralise talent identification and take competitive opportunities closer to players across the country.

HFN President Jibril Seidu said the federation would continue to strengthen its grassroots development programme through zonal competitions.

Seidu explained that the initiative was designed to identify promising players who could eventually progress to the national teams and sustain Nigeria’s presence at international competitions.

“All the teams you have seen here are from the North Central Zone of the country, and every state is represented with an academy or state team,” he said.

According to him, the approach represents a shift from relying predominantly on major league competitions for talent identification.

He said regional competitions would give more young players the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities while expanding the sport’s developmental base.

Seidu also pointed to Nigeria’s qualification for the 2027 Men’s Junior Handball World Championship in North Macedonia as evidence of the talent available within the country.

“How do we replace these players with upcoming players? This is the avenue for us to get players,” he said.

He added that the federation would replicate the zonal programme across other parts of the country, including the South East, North East, North West, and South South.

The successful teams from the various zones are expected to converge at a designated venue for the next stage of the competition.

The HFN president called for increased support from sponsors, state associations, and other stakeholders to sustain the grassroots initiative and create more opportunities for young players.

Meanwhile, Benue Queens coach Godwin Tondo attributed his team’s triumph to a long-term youth development programme that has focused on identifying and nurturing young players.

Tondo said the squad was assembled through a structured process that began with the selection of 92 girls from secondary schools, who underwent training and development over four years.

He said the team overcame significant challenges during its preparations but remained committed to the programme and its objective of producing competitive players.

“I feel very pleased being a champion today. The road to this stage was very, very hard, but I am very happy that we have got the result from all the toughness of the game,” Tondo said.

He promised that Benue Queens would build on the championship success by returning stronger and adopting a more tactical approach in subsequent competitions.

The North Central championship has provided more than just winners, serving as another step in the HFN’s broader effort to create a sustainable pathway from grassroots handball to the national teams.

Grassroots Drive Bears Fruit as Plateau Vipers, Benue Queens Rule North Central Handball

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