For Abasiofon Uwah, football is more than a game. It is a dream, a career, a responsibility and, above all, a journey of faith.
The Rivers Angels forward has experienced the excitement of scoring goals, the pressure of competition, the difficulty of balancing football with education and the importance of having people who believe in her ability.
Looking back at her journey, Uwah describes her rise in football as a product of commitment, sacrifice, support and God's grace.
Her story is one of a young player who knew what she wanted and decided to pursue it with everything she had.
Uwah looks back fondly on her time with Rivers Angels and the 2020/25 league season, particularly the moment she achieved one of the targets she had set for herself.
Becoming a leading goalscorer was not simply another football statistic for her. It represented the fulfilment of a personal ambition she had prayed and worked for.
“It was my greatest and happiest moment of the season because that was my expectation and I prayed about it. It was something I was pursuing. I said, ‘This is what I want to become.’
For Uwah, the achievement was evidence that dreams backed by hard work can become reality.
She believes strongly in the role of faith in her journey.
“I know that God will not fail me. Grace found me. That’s all I can say. God has been faithful to me.”
But she is also quick to acknowledge that football is never an individual effort.
Her teammates and coaches played important roles in helping her develop and perform.
“I couldn’t do it alone. With my teammates and my coaches, everything was possible.”
That understanding of teamwork remains an important part of her football philosophy.
Uwah's love for sport began during her secondary-school years.
Interestingly, football was not the only sport that caught her attention. She also participated in volleyball and badminton.
But as time went on, football began to stand out.
She started to see football not simply as something she enjoyed, but as a pathway through which she could build a career and potentially achieve something significant.
That was when the dream became clearer.
She wanted to become a professional footballer.
“I wanted to be a football player. This is what I want to become. This is my career. I want to push with it.”
The dream was no longer just about playing football for enjoyment. It became about developing herself, reaching a professional level, representing her country and eventually playing outside Nigeria.
Every successful footballer has people who contribute to the journey, and for Uwah, some of the most important figures were the women who saw something in her before she had fully realised how far her talent could take her.
She particularly remembers her sports “mum,” Blessing Nkor from Akwa Ibom.
Uwah says Kinam recognised her passion for football and encouraged her to develop it further.
She also recalls the role played by Blessing, whom she described as a school mum, in helping her move forward.
These individuals provided more than encouragement. They helped create opportunities for Uwah to continue developing her football.
“She saw that I had passion for football. She said she would like to develop it and take me to another dimension.”
That kind of support can make a major difference in the career of a young footballer.
Talent may open the door, but guidance, encouragement and opportunity often determine whether a player is able to walk through it.
For Uwah, one word best describes the sacrifice she has made for her career:
Commitment.
She says she committed herself to football and made the decision to put her career at the centre of her ambitions.
Her dream goes beyond becoming a professional footballer.
She wants to represent Nigeria and play for clubs outside the country.
“I committed myself to football. I said, ‘This is what I want in life. This is what I want to become.’ I want to become a professional footballer, represent my country and go to other countries to play for clubs.”
That commitment has required her to keep pushing even when the journey becomes difficult.
She has also received encouragement from people around her who have reminded her to keep praying, remain focused and never give up.
The message she has carried with her is simple: keep working because the result will eventually come.
One of the biggest challenges Uwah faced while developing her football career was balancing education with the demands of the sport.
Going to school, studying and training was not easy.
For a young player trying to develop professionally, managing both responsibilities can be exhausting.
“It’s not easy going to school, studying and playing football. It was the biggest challenge for me.”
Yet the challenge also helped shape her discipline.
Football requires punctuality, consistency, physical preparation and mental concentration. Education requires the same kind of commitment.
For Uwah, learning to manage both worlds became part of her development.
Her recent campaign also produced impressive individual numbers.
Uwah recorded 13 goals and five assists, statistics that underline her importance in the attacking department.
For a forward, goals are often the most visible measure of performance, but assists also tell another part of the story.
They show a willingness to contribute to the team beyond simply finishing chances.
Still, among the goals she scored, one stands out as her favourite.
Asked about her most memorable goal of the season, Uwah pointed to her strike against FC Robo Queens.
It is the kind of moment that remains with a player long after the final whistle.
Every striker has defenders they would rather avoid.
For Uwah, facing strong defenders has been part of the learning process.
The challenges posed by experienced opponents have helped test her ability to find space, hold possession, make decisions and create opportunities.
Rather than seeing difficult defenders as obstacles alone, they can become part of the education of an attacking player.
Every difficult duel offers another lesson.
For Uwah, stadiums are more than football grounds.
They are places where memories are created.
Among the grounds she remembers fondly is Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, a venue associated with major football moments in Nigeria.
Playing football in such environments can be a powerful experience for a young player who once dreamed simply of becoming a professional footballer.
It represents the distance between where the dream started and where the journey has taken her.
Away from football, Uwah has her own simple preference.
Her favourite meal is rice and stew with egg.
It is a reminder that behind the footballer is still a young woman who enjoys the ordinary things of life when she is away from training and competition.
When asked about her most memorable moment of the season, Uwah reflected on her time with Abia Angels and other football experiences that have contributed to her development.
Football careers are built from many individual moments: a first goal, a difficult match, a new teammate, a tough training session, a victory, a defeat and the lessons that follow.
For Uwah, each experience has become part of a larger story.
Uwah's story also highlights the importance of the football family around a player.
She repeatedly acknowledged her teammates and coaches for their support.
A striker may score the goal, but football is built collectively.
A pass creates an opportunity. A coach provides tactical direction. A teammate creates space. A goalkeeper protects the result.
Uwah understands this.
Her individual statistics may carry her name, but she knows the journey belongs to more than one person.
Uwah's ambitions extend beyond the Nigerian league.
She wants to represent Nigeria and eventually play for clubs in other countries.
That ambition reflects the dreams of many young African footballers who see football as a global career.
For Uwah, however, the objective is not simply to leave Nigeria.
It is to continue developing, compete at a higher level and prove that the talent and determination she has demonstrated can take her further.
The 2025/26 season did not produce the result that everyone connected to the club wanted.
Uwah acknowledges that disappointment but refuses to allow it to define the future.
Her message to the supporters is one of appreciation and hope.
She thanked the fans for their support throughout the season and encouraged them to continue believing in the team.
“I want to say thank you to the supporters. They came massively for us throughout the league. We couldn't give them the result they wanted, but we are still hoping that the 2026/27 league will not be like that. We will make them proud.”
That statement captures the mentality of a player who understands that football has both highs and lows.
There are seasons when everything seems to fall into place, and there are seasons when the desired results do not come.
The response is what matters.
For Uwah, the response is to work harder, remain hopeful and return stronger.
Abasiofon Uwah's journey is still being written.
From her early sporting days in secondary school to discovering football as her true career ambition, from the support of people who believed in her to the challenges of combining school and football, her story has been shaped by persistence.
Her 13 goals and five assists are milestones, but they are not the destination.
The dream is bigger.
She wants to become a professional footballer, represent Nigeria and compete internationally.
She knows there will be more challenges.
There will be difficult defenders, difficult matches, difficult seasons and moments when progress feels slow.
But the philosophy that has brought her this far remains unchanged:
Commitment. Faith. Hard work. Support. Never giving up.
For Abasiofon Uwah, the journey from dreamer to goal scorer is only one chapter.
The next chapter could take her far beyond the Nigerian league.
And if her past is any indication, she intends to meet that future with the same determination that turned a childhood ambition into a football career.
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