Rivers United through to CAF cup group stage

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Nigerian Premier League champions Rivers United have scaled through to the CAF Confederation Cup group stage after a 1-1 draw with Libyan side Al Nasr.

United scaled the group stage in the return leg of the final playoff round of the competition on Wednesday night.

The Port Harcourt side had won the first leg 5-0 last week and capped it with a draw at Beninah International Stadium in Benghazi, Libya.

Al Nasr took the lead in the 39th minute of the encounter to give the hosts a 1-0 halftime lead, but Nwangwa Nyima equalised for Rivers United in the second as the match ended without any more goals, sending the Nigerian side to the main tournament on a 6-1 aggregate.

Rivers United would be the only Nigerian representative on the continent when the main tournament begins next year.

Plateau United, which would have been the second Nigerian representative in the continent this season, have crashed out following a disappointing 3-0 defeat at the hands of another Libyan side Al Akhdar today.

The Nigerian side thrashed Al Akhdar 4-1 in the first leg of the final playoff fixture of the CAF Confederation Cup in Abuja last week. Still, it could not defend its three-goal lead in Libya this evening.

Three second-half goals by Anas Al Werfalli, Mohammed Al Kista and Mostafa Hamza were enough to send Al Akhdar to the group stage of the competition, thanks to the away-goal rule.