Sebastian Broderick

Sebastian Broderick was a Nigerian footballer who played both domestically and internationally before having a successful career as a coach. Broderick played football from a young age where he was noted for being a gifted midfielder. He joined Onitsha in 1960 before moving to the Electricity Corporation of Nigeria Football Club of Lagos (ECN FC) two years later. With ECN he won two editions of the Challenge Cup, the first in 1965, followed by a second title in 1970. Broderick then transferred to Bendel Insurance where he won his third Challenge Cup in 1972, with him scoring a goal in the tournament’s final.

For the Nigeria national football team Broderick played in three matches at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. Their final group match in Mexico was against Brazil with the Nigerian team leading 3–0 by halftime. The Brazilian team, however, scored three goals in the second half to draw the match. A year after the Olympics the Brazilian team Santos FC toured Nigeria with Pelé being part of the travelling squad. The match was played at the Onikan Stadium in Lagos with the Nigerian team told “not to allow Pelé to score.” Despite these instructions, the greatest player of all-time scored two goals with the match ending in a 2–2 draw.

Following his retirement as a player Broderick switched to coaching in 1975. He undertook a coaching course in Durham, England, which was followed by being attached to the English clubs Manchester United, Manchester City, and Queens Park Rangers, spending one month with each team to complete his coaching training. Broderick then returned to Nigeria to coach the Nigeria under-17 national team. The coaching course and training in England paid off, with him leading the team to victory at the inaugural edition of the FIFA U-16 World Championship in 1985. The tournament was played in China with Nigeria beating West Germany 2–0 in the final. Broderick also led the side at the 1987 FIFA U-16 World Championship where they lost in a penalty shoot-out in the final to the Soviet Union. His final achievement as a coach came in 1996 when he led Udoji United to win the Nigeria Premier League.