Ibadan Polo’2016 Polo: Lead City Group, Kano, Lagos Share Top Honours

Ancient city of Ibadan in Oyo, celebrated one of its grandest moments, hosting the prestigious Ibadan’2016 Polo Tournament, which came to colourful climax recently with host Ibadan, visiting Lagos and Kano sweeping the stakes.

Just as Lagos snapped off a five jinx of playing second fiddle with a big win, Kano were only able to manage a solitary title, a dramatic departure from their show of supremacy in Ibadan.

Expectedly, Ibadan’2016 rumble will be fondly remembered by the home fans for gifting them their once lost Ibadan Cup. After an exciting week of intensive polo campaign, the Ibadan polo lords were the best for it, winning the event biggest prize, the Ibadan Cup.

With Nigeria’s World Cup star and tournament MVP award winner, Hamisu Buba pivoting Ibadan Lead City Group, the trio of Edozie Onwuli, Ahmed Umar and Ibadan polo skipper, Koyin Owoeye proved that determination and concentration are keys to successes.

They stared with a spark, defeating pre tournament favourites, Kano Susplan in their opening game and put out Lagos Caverton boosting Glory Ebano, Abdulmumini Musa, Murtala Dantala and patron, Rotimi Majankuela in a tense final match that ended 6-4 in favour of the home Boys.

Ibadan polo captain, Koyin Owoeye who described the event as one of the most exciting Ibadan tournaments in years, hailed all the visiting players and the teeming polo enthusiasts for making the glamorous fiesta such a huge success.

 “We are particularly indebted to our numerous sponsors for their unflinching support which ensures the successful hosting of this international polo tournament even at such notice,” Owoeye added.

"We are heading for Lagos, Kano and other tournaments with the right frame of mind, having picked up few tricks from our tournament. Anybody who stands on our way in any of the cups we are targeting would pay dearly for it," Owoeye warns.

Lagos that stormed the Oyo State capital city with four teams put up a good fight, harvesting one out of the three major titles at stake, while Kano who arrived the Ibadan capital city with a record seven teams, could only managed the Ade Alakija Cup won by the debuting Kano Fas Agro Sacks.

 The debuting Murtala Dankaka Fas Agro squad won the Ade Alakija Cup on first attempt, denying Ibadan Challenge the low-goal title in a hotly contested final.

The Ikoyi  based polo kings who have been playing second fiddle in the annual festival for four years now, produced the winners in the event’s second biggest title, Also playing their first Ibadan tournament, Lagos Marina outpaced Ibadan Leo Bigga Heirs team in the final to win the event’s medium-goal crown, the Rotimi Cup.

Rubicon, Air Peace, Daewoo Dominate P/H’2016 Polo Festival

The galleries at the foremost Port Harcourt Polo Club were jam-packed with royalties led by the Emir of Katsina, HRH Dr. Abdulmumuni Kabir, business tycoons and dignitaries who turned up in their numbers to witness the annual Niger Delta polo tournament which climaxed with fanfare last weekend.

The prestigious polo carnival that pitch top polo stars left in its glowing trail many memorable highpoints that would linger for a long time. One such glittering highlight was historic participation of the Emir of Katsina and Life Chairman of the Nigerian polo, who spend three days at the festival.

The royal father who was warmly received by royal fathers from the Niger Delta and the entire Nigerian polo family was on hand to present the T Y Danjuma and the Roland Cookey-Gam Cups prizes to the winners and runners-up, before returning to his ancient Katsina Kingdom.

After eight days of tense league games and close Semi Finals and final games, the Niger Delta Polo top finishers as Guards Brigade Rubicon from Abuja was one of the top performers, lifting the event’s biggest prize, General Hassan Katsina Cup beating Kaduna Kakuri and Port Harcourt Air Peace to the runners-up finish.

Army, Profile others light-up Twelve Twelve Fallen Heroes Tourney

Three high goal teams loaded with top stars, Kaduna Profile, Katsina Max Air and Abuja Keffi Ponys competed for the high stake President Cup at the inaugural edition of the international charity polo tournament that heralded that commencement of business at the magnificent Twelve Twelve Polo & Turf Club.

After six closely fought games, the historic event that attracted the crème de la creme of the society thrilled from start to finish, with the three combatants earning three points each with a win and loss, and after some intricate mathematics by the organizers, Max Air was declared winners with half goal, the slimmest victory margin that could only be possible in the noble game of kings. Kaduna Profile who defeated Max Air 4-3 in a tense final game, finished second, while Keffi Pony that lost by 11/2 goals to Max Air on the opening game, were second runners-up.

The President Cup is a high-goal trophy that is among the annually competed cups at 12-12. The cup is aimed at celebrating the past and present presidents and Heads of State of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The 2015 edition of the President Cup is also aimed to creating awareness on the condition of the Internationally Displaced Persons from the North East.

The race for the Commemoration Cup was no less fierce with six equally matched teams, Trademark, Dagonyaro Farms, Almat Group, Titans Heritage and Terra E& P teams jostling for the title that was played in tribute to the brave and courageous men and women of the Nigerian Arm Forces who paid the ultimate price of death in the ongoing war against insurgence in the North East.

Terra E&P and Dogonyaro Farm emerged to play in the final after two rounds of group matches. In what may well be an epoch for the Twelve Twelve, it was Nigeria’s most rated players, Bello Buba who pivoted Terra past Dogonyaro  Farms with a slim 51/2-5 margin.

The pick of the four days historic tournament was undoubtedly the Chief of Army Staff Cup that heralded the return of  Brigadier Saa’d Abubakar and the former Nigerian Polo Federation (NPF) Scribe and one time Golden Boy of Port Harcourt polo, Musa Yahaya to active polo.

Hail Georgian Kings: EL-Amin Prove Themselves Best in History

Founded only two decades ago, in 1995, that, in truth, doesn’t confer the team with a long history. But El – Amin’s achievement’s, as a polo organization, has been phenomenal.

Since making its debut in Nigerian polo scene, the team has won every conceivable tournament and trophy on sight, making it not only Nigeria’s best and dominant team, but one of the finest outfits in the world as well.

Mohammed Babangida and his EL-Amin super stars have been a team in perpetual quest for glory. Player for player, pony for pony, tournament after tournament, this team has battled and conquers all, to perpetually stamp their supremacy in the noble game of kings. 

The Georgian Cup, one of the biggest Africa’s most wanted polo prize, was undoubtedly the pick of the pack at 2015 Kaduna International Polo Tournament which thrills to a colourful climax in front a surging crowd of over 10,000 polo enthusiasts.

The one-cup, three game, winners takes –all polo prize was bracing up history books as the oldest and the most revered polo prize in this part of the world which put the Georgian within the realms of such world class prizes on offer at the British and the Argentine opens.

The 2015 Kaduna International Polo Tournament left an enduring legacy in the mind of polo enthusiasts and the height of it all, was the Nigerian high-goal kings, EL-Amin that celebrated their 20th anniversary with a big bang.

What a glorious way to finish. The Georgian Cup and the best Kaduna polo fiesta, capped by the most exhilarating final and won by the best team of all-time, EL-Amin, led by polo’s finest players and piloted by the game’s Patron of the Decade supremo, Mohammad Babangida.

That conquest was their 12th title and a record achievement for any polo team ever for the 400 years old coveted polo crown that has been at stake annually in Nigeria for 95 years now.

Thanks to their daring quest and self belief that has been their hallmark in the last two decade, EL-Amin has dominated not only the Georgian Cup, but other high-goal titles like Majekodunmi Cup in Lagos, Emir of katsina Cup in Kano, the Nigerian Cup in katsina, IBB Cup in Minna and Hassan Katsina Cup in Port Harcourt.

“I'm really proud of the last 20 years, the highs and the lows, it has been an unbelievable journey,” Mohammad Babangida said. “I'm not too sure it's the end yet. There is a lot to happen with EL-Amin team. “I have a lot of time to sit back, relax and assess where we are. Where I am as a person, where I am as a player and maybe sit back and write a few more goals for the next few years.” Babangida declares.

“I think the future of polo in Nigeria looks bright. There are a lot of up and coming players around and a great deal of talents yet to be discovered.”   “Once young people get into polo, they’re passionate, like all of us. Polo is not just a sport; it’s a `way of life’. It takes over your life, and it has to be all- encompassing,” he added.