T he sudden death of ex-international footballer Endurance Idahor is the latest in the growing list of Nigerian players who have lost their lives on the pitch. The former U-23 player, aged 25, collapsed while starring for his Sudanese clubside El-Merreikh, on March 6, 2010. According to media reports, the late attacking pearl had a physical contact with a defender during a goalmouth melee. He slumped thereafter and was rushed to hospital, where he gave up the ghost.

In the past 20 or so years, Nigeria has lost some of its best local and international footballers, all of them to cardiac arrest. On August 12, 1989, Sam Tochukwu Okwaraji slumped and died in the last minutes of the encounter between Nigeria and Angola in the race for the Italia '90 FIFA World Cup Finals at the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos. In October1995, Amir Angwe died during an Africa Cup Winners Cup, duel involving his club, Julius Berger FC of Lagos and Maxaquine of Mozambique at the Onikan Stadium, Lagos.

A few years ago, former U-20 team skipper Tunde Charity died during a topflight domestic league match in Benin. John Ikoroma, ex-Golden Eaglets player, died during a trial session with a club in the Middle East. And not long ago, former Eagles' goalkeeper Sam Okoye and defender Charles Nduka were brought home dead from Iran and South Africa respectively.

Like Endurance Idahor, all these players died in their prime. The latest tragedy is a terrible blow to Nigerian soccer in particular and African football in general. Even the world football governing body, FIFA, was shocked by the sad incident. Endurance Idahor was an accomplished "goalador" even though he never crossed over to the senior level. In his lifetime, he made 176 appearances and scored a total of 118 goals. For a country that is in dire need of natural goal-getters, Idahor's death is a serious blow.

The latest casualty calls for urgent steps to be taken to stem this unfortunate tide. Football is a physical and strenuous team sport which exposes players to all manner of injuries. Some players are known to have suffered permanent incapacitation from such injuries. But sports administrators and coaches have a duty to safeguard the lives of sportsmen and women in their care. Oftentimes, athletes are subjected to matches and rigorous training without undergoing a medical check-up to ascertain the state of their health. Coaches are also in the habit of persuading players who complain of minor headaches before a match to play after administering painkillers to them. All athletes should undergo routine medical check-ups before and after matches.

We sympathise with the family of this soccer great. May his soul rest in perfect peace.

At the National Hospital, Abuja, early this Sunday, death snatched a distinguished scholar, an accomplished investigative journalist, an erudite educator, a selfless helper and an upright public servant. With Dr Stanley Macebuh's demise, we have lost one of the makers of modern Nigeria. Mourned by all and missed by all, Macebuh will, for a long time, remain in the memory of all Nigerian journalists and policymakers.

For Macebuh, the big break came in 1983 when he served as the midwife during the birth of The Guardian, a newspaper that has, since then, assumed the status of "the flagship". He was the paper's first managing director and executive editor. From the outset, Macebuh's The Guardian adopted a policy of addressing every person except elder statesmen like Nnamdi Azikiwe, Ahmadu Bello and Obafemi Awolowo as either Mr or Ms. This repudiated the obnoxious and pervasive title-mania  in the country. (One man could be addressed as "Chief Dr Honourable Alhaji…") However, pressure mounted by the title-crazy Nigerians, who felt diminished, killed that modesty chase. Macebuh's mastery of the English language was never in doubt, and it rubbed off on the entire publication. When he left The Guardian in 1989, the quality of the paper's editorials dropped at once.

It was not only The Guardian that Macebuh inspired and gave birth to. The Post Express, which made its debut in 1996, was also the child of Macebuh's brain. While he was still its managing director and editor-in-chief, The Post Express scored a first - the first Nigerian newspaper to be published on the Internet. But The Sentinel, a newsmagazine he also ran in Kaduna, in 1994, was not a success as it soon died a natural death. But every paper he touched - including the Daily Times that was unarguably the "flagship" before The Guardian's arrival - exhibited intellectualism that was the footprint of Macebuh. Editorial independence, elegant prose and professional pride followed him wherever he went. And they were infectious: other journalists in every paper he managed also regarded themselves as the best in the industry.

Without a doubt, Dr Stanley Macebuh was a great mind not just because of the mark he made on the journalism profession in Nigeria, but also because of his achievements as a scholar and a teacher. He was wooed back home from the United States where he lectured journalism and English in at least two universities: New York University and the University of California. He had also worked briefly at the New York Times. On his return to his home country, he was named chairman of the Daily Times editorial board. Macebuh's last known political appointment was as senior special adviser on communications and deputy chief of staff to former President Olusegun Obasanjo.