Nigeria’s U-18 male handball national team kicked off their campaign at the ongoing 2023 IHF Trophy Intercontinental Championship in Costa Rica on a winning note following a comfortable win over Nicaragua in their opening match Thursday morning.

The Nigerian boys, who are yet to lose a game in the championship since 2019, dominated their Central American opponents for the entirety of the game to clinch an emphatic 46-30 victory at the prestigious BN Arena in San Jose.

With 81 per cent near-shot efficiency of the players such as Tahir Ahmed Lawal and Olawale Ajibike, Nigeria comfortably beat the first half 19-9 as Nicaragua came out rejuvenated in the second half spearheaded by Zaymond Sincler, who forced Nigeria into turnovers to get 50 per cent seven metres shot efficiency.

The experience of coach Emeka Nnamani and his boys played a huge part in the half as Nigeria managed to narrowly come out 27-21 to secure a well-deserved 46-30 victory in the match and maintain a four-year unbeaten run in the championship – they haven’t lost since the defeat to Chinese Taipei in the final of the 2019 edition.

In total, Nigeria had 62 per cent shots in the game with a 74 per cent all shots efficiency compared to 56 per cent all shots efficiency got by Nicaragua, with the West African nation essentially winning the match through the six metres, near shots, wing shots and more of fast breaks as Azeez Olaitan Sulaimon won the man of the match prize.

Nigeria will face Guadeloupe, an island group in the southern Caribbean Sea, in their next match in which a World Cup ticket is at stake.