“Double Champions for the first time ever“, belted out fans of Beyond Limits after attaining a dream they longed for. 

It’s May 2024. And the first half of the year, marking the end of the 2023-24 season, couldn’t have ended any better for fans of the TCC League, particularly for fans of the Ikenne based stars.

Their team had just recorded an epoch-making achievement of not just winning four straight league titles, but also attaining an elusive League and Cup double.

All of this came under the distinguished tutelage of Coach Olumide Ajibolade, a gaffer now proving to be his own competition in the same year he represented the league at the national level (joining the backroom staff of Nigeria’s U-17 team for the WAFU Qualifiers). It’s no wonder he was voted Coach of the Season (23/24).

Speaking of the National team, four players from the TCC League – Kparobo Arierhi (Beyond Limits), Ebenezer Harcourt (Sporting Lagos Academy), Abidemi Amole (Real Sapphire), and Musa Akinfenwa (Real Sapphire) – represented Nigeria at the U20 level and helped the Flying Eagles win the WAFU Cup and qualification to next year’s AFCON tournament. 

But we can’t speak about Beyond Limits’ double without mentioning Sporting Lagos. Coached by Shola Adegun, the Lagosians made a first-ever TCC Cup final appearance, pushing their opponents all the way to penalties. And although they lost the final, their cup run was another show of tactical ingenuity, displayed by a coach who is now in charge of a team in the second tier of Nigerian football.

What about Coach Dan Darko? His Real Sapphire side became the first TCC club in history to finish the first half of a season (24/25) unbeaten – in both league and cup competitions.

These feats are a testament to how TCC has grown beyond just being a seedbed for players, but has morphed into a nursery for the best coaches in the country, with her tentacles spreading across the globe. A TCC-NPFL managerial journey in the near future?

The same year witnessed exits and a new addition. VOE joined the family in place of Escola United, and wasted no time giving fans memories to cherish in their short stay.

We can’t forget the goals, the comebacks, acrobatic saves, and heart-stopping moments. And a lot of them seemed to happen in March.

On the 7th, Beyond Limits trounced Dannaz in a 7-1 whitewash. 11 days later, Real Sapphire overturned a 3-2 half-time deficit against Gbagada, winning the game 4-3. The game between Valiant and Iganmu, played on the same day, finished with the same scoreline. A week later, Dino recorded an 8-0 record win over Escola, a triumph that has a special place in TCC’s Hall of Fame.

And what about the in-person grand TCC awards, that celebrated the uniqueness of the vision, and shone a spotlight on the teams that made the league tick? What about the first issue of the Rising Star? 

From the bravery of Valiant FC, to the fierceness of Dino, the resilience of Dannaz, the royalty of Real Sapphire, the stealth of Iganmu, the vastness of Atlantic Business, the depth of Broad City to the renaissance of Gbagada, it is clear that men mount in 2024. While the wins of 2024 strengthen us, the lessons of 2024 embolden us, and with the many impressive notes, TCC marches into 2025 fuelled with utmost confidence that the best is yet to come.