British NFL star Efe Obada returned to London for the time yesterday, as a honourary captain as his Carolina Panthers beat a sloppy Tampa Bay Buccaneers 37-26, in the second game at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
This was the second of four games to be played in London this season and it did not disappoint.
There was action from the first play when ‘Bucs’ Quarterback Winston threw an interception and this was the story of his day as he would go on to throw four more and one fumble.
That led to a sloppy performance and the Bucs offence just never got going until it was too late.
The best running back in the NFL was the star of the show once again.
Panthers Christian McCaffrey ran in for two touchdowns, with one just before the half, which gave Carolina the momentum going into halftime.
However, the man everyone wanted to see was Efe Obada, who was emotional after been given a special jersey my head coach Ron Rivera, and was made honourary captain for the day.
The 27 year old who was born in Nigeria but moved to London at an early age was left homeless and raised in a foster home.
He only discovered the sport five years ago playing for the London Warriors but has had a rapid rise to the peak of the NFL.
He was on the verge of tears after an emotional homecoming game, which he described: “It was everything and more man, honestly. When we were coming out of the tunnel, it was just electric.
“There have been a lot of stages in my life where if someone told me I’d be here right now I’d laugh at them, but I’m here.”
Picture by nickhall under Creative Commons License
