There is virtually no football fan with a grasp of modern technology that doesn’t have a twitter account. Twitter is a convenient way for us to get our football news and the NPFL is not left out of this social media gathering. The League Management Company have made the NPFL closer to the fans on social media thanks to their activity on Twitter.
We will look at the 20 NPFL clubs and how they fare on Twitter. We will take into account the Twitter handle, the bio, header photo and how the clubs use this social media platform. There will be bonus points for some unique features as well. Let’s go.
Abia Warriors
Handle: Straight to the point. 10pts.
Bio: Yes we know it is Abia Warriors Football Club. What else? 2pts.
Header Photo: A badly cropped starting 11 photo. 4 pts
Bonuses and Deductions: (+5pts) for linking to an updated website. Any plans on making the account verified? There is another account (@AbiaWarriorsFC) that says it is the official handle, has links to the Abia Warrior website but have not tweeted since November 11, 2013. Lost password? A tweet per month in November, December and none in the New Year (-5pts). You can’t bank on the handle for adequate club info even on Matchdays (-2pts).
Total: 14 points
ABS FC
Handle: @AbubakarBukolaSarakiFC would have been weird. @ABSIlorinFC is ok but not too fine with the “Ilorin” part. I don’t think there are other better options. 7pts
Bio: I like the “official twitter account” part. We need more. 5pts.
Header: Just the tip of the club Logo? 1pt
Bonuses and Deductions: Active account (+2).
Total: 15 points
Akwa United FC
Handle: I don’t like underscores. Can you speak with the owner of Daniel with @akwaunited. He has just 9 followers. Who runs the @akwautd? The logo on @akwautd is more lovely. 6pts
Bio: None. Just there with the “official” (5pts).
Header: None. -2pt
Bonuses and Deductions: Link to a website whose last update was April 12, 2016 (-2pt). Active account (+2).
Total: 9 points
El-Kanemi Warriors FC
Handle: Nice. Can we make the “c” in caps? 9pts
Bio: Same as the others before. 5pts
Header: Starting 11 but cropped badly. 4pts
Bonuses and Deductions: Why arrive so late? (-2pt)
Total: 16 points
Enyimba FC
Handle: Perfect. 10pt
Bio: The regular stuff and that brag. 8pts
Header: An elephant with inscriptions. 7pts
Bonuses and deductions: verified account (10pts). No tweet since January 1st (-2pt) Link to a website that has been under construction since Nimrod started the Tower of Babel (-5pt).
Total: 28 points
FC IfeanyiUbah
Handle: No other option. 8pts
Bio: Good enough for 8pts
Header: Starting 11 plus other members of the club including the owner. A full squad picture may have been better. 5pt
Bonuses and deductions: Link to an updated website (+5). Recent activity not on twitter (-2)
Total: 24 points
Gombe United
Handle: Nothing more to add. 10pts
Bio: Good. 7pts
Header: 2017 with the club logo in the “0”. 3pt
Bonuses and deductions: Active (+2pt), link to an active Facebook account (+2pt), that logo needs an upgrade (-1pt), need a better graphic designer (-2pt)
Total: 21 points
Kano Pillars
Handle: What of @KanoPillars with just 1 tweet and 47 followers? Have a discussion Alhajis. I even prefer the forgotten @KanoPillarsFC handle that has not been used since October 21, 2013 although with just 17 tweets. Lost password or agreement broken? Ok, can we have @PillarsFC instead of @pillarsfc? The capitalization helps. 5pts
Bio: Regular, plus a link to the Hausa handle. 5pt
Header: The beautiful Sani Abacha Stadium. 8pt
Bonuses and deductions: Verified account (+10pt), link to a website that has not been updated since December 21, 2016 (-2pt), no tweet last year (-2pt), last tweet on Hausa handle was August 21, 2016 (-2pt), known for being hacked or taking offline for managerial issues (-5pt).
Total: 18 points
Katsina United
Handle: please change to @KatsinaUnited, it is free and better. Complete usage of small letters looks somehow. 4pt
Bio: Regular but with no “official” on it. 5pt
Header: Tried to fit the squad pix but the cropping was unfair to the players standing. 3pt
Bonuses and deductions: 24 hours old with 12 tweets as at Sunday night (January 8). For joining twitter (+1), link to a website that cannot be found (-5pt), incomplete match info on timeline (-2pt)
Total: 6 points
Lobi Stars
Handle: Sweet handle (10pt).
Bio: Enough to brag about. 8pt.
Header: None (-2pt)
Bonuses and deductions: Verified Handle (10pt), nothing meaningful tweeted since December 4, 2016 (-2pt), retweeting @RonaldOkoth_, is he a Lobi Stars player? (-2pt). Another account claims to be the official account (@LobiStarsFC), now I am confused. It even has “Approved by the management of the club” and looks more current and active although with just 292 followers. Confusion? (-10pt). That club logo (-1pt)
Total: 11 points
We will look at the remaining clubs (M-W) tomorrow.
SoccerGunz 