Sebastine Brodericks-Imasuen, the revered coach who steered the Golden Eaglets to their inaugural U-17 World Cup victory in 1985, has passed away at 85. According to PUNCH, he had been on life support at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital for over a year following a diagnosis of Ischemic stroke in December 2022, eventually succumbing to the condition.
This type of stroke occurs when a blood clot obstructs or narrows an artery leading to the brain, often forming in arteries damaged by plaque buildup (atherosclerosis). Brodericks-Imasuen’s health struggles were confirmed by family sources, initially revealed by Bamidele Oguntuashe, a player he coached during the 1989 U17 World Cup in Scotland, and later validated by Harrison Jalla, Chairman of the Professional Footballers Association of Nigeria Task Force, through a WhatsApp post.
Beyond his coaching achievements, Brodericks-Imasuen had a distinguished career as a football player, representing Nigeria at the Mexico Olympic Games in 1968 and notably scoring a pivotal free-kick goal for Bendel Insurance in the 1972 Challenge Cup. He gained widespread recognition as part of the coaching trio that astounded the world in China in 1985. His impact stretched further when he led the Midwest junior side to victory at the inaugural National Sports Festival in 1973.