Nigeria Content Online

The Lagos Polo Club
witnessed one of its grandest moments during the last Easter holiday,
as a discerning crowd of polo enthusiasts and invited guests trooped to
the Ribadu Road Polo Theatre to watch Pretzels defeat Palms in the
final of the inaugural Easter Cup Polo Tournament.

Whatever the final
score, the winning team was guaranteed to enter the record books as the
first ever Easter Cup champions, and the Habeeb Fashinro-led Pretzels
made the most of the opportunity by coming from behind to win the crown.

The Pretzels
parading Olayinka Alakija, Abdulrahman Mohammed, Bashir Dantata (Jnr)
and Fashinro who is making a big come back to the game of kings,
out-scored Palms 7-6 in a decisive final game to make history.

Palms, boasting the
likes of Tunde Karim, Ahmadu Umar, Usman Dantata (Jnr) and Mayowa
Ogunnusi, had gone into the final as favourites on the heels of their
decisive semifinal victory against Easter Bonnets, and led from the
opening chukker.

That lead lasted
for three chukkers, but a momentary loss of concentration cost them
dearly as Dantata set up Fashinro in a last breath attack that produced
the winner with only seconds remaining on the clock. The better-rated
Palms were left to settle for the less fancied accolade of being
runners-up.

“It feels good to
be back to active polo, and winning this top prize has made it more
special. I want to thank my team-mates for their hard work and the fans
for their big support that helped us greatly, particularly in the tense
last chukker,” declared Fashinro after the final game.

Palms underrated Pretzels

Pretzels midfield
maestro, Bashir Dantata, who was upbeat throughout the game, said the
Palms were made to pay for underrating their resolve to hit back. “I
knew all along that they would make one bad move that would turn the
table against them and it came in the last minute of the final,” he
enthused.

One of the biggest
highlights of the three-day event was the participation of the Lagos
State Governor, Babatunde Fashola (SAN), who spent the Easter weekend
at the polo club where he rounded up his campaign for a second tenure.

Fashola, who shared
his dream of a new Lagos with the polo community at an interactive
session, promised new infrastructural transformation in Lagos, urging
the big boys to vote wisely and join the ‘green revolution’ drive of
his administration.

The final day
excitement continued in the subsidiary Owens Cup where Easter Eggs
overwhelmed their Easter Bunnies opponents 9-4 to cart home the
glittering prize, just as the Easter Tulips had the better of Easter
Bonnets in the race for the Churchward Plate.

Easter Eggs’
quartet of Muyiwa Sonubi, Adeyemo Alakija, Glory Mbano and Isa Kwame
relied on their running game to outpace Abdullahi Ibrahim, Obafemi
Otudeko, Damian Duncan and Bowale Jolaoso in the race for the title
named after the former president of the Lagos Polo Club.

The grand finale
of the high profile Easter Cup started on a blistering note as Musty
Fashinro powered Easter Tulips featuring Arie Esiri, Osaro Giwa-Osagie
and Ayo Olashoju overpowered Bode Makanjuola’s Bonnets, 3-2 to smile
home with the Churchward Plate.

Former Lagos State
finance commissioner and patron of Lagos Good fellows, Wale Edun,
Costain West Africa boss, Ayodeji Karim and Lady Fashinro were on hand
to give out the prizes at a colourful presentation ceremony that
brought down the curtains on the Easter fiesta.

The inaugural
Easter event which came barely a month after the Lagos 2011
International Polo Tournament joined the growing bouquet of Lagos
polo-hosted tournaments that include the Santa Cup, Captain’s Cup and
the President’s Cup.

The low goal fiesta
which galloped off with pomp on Good Friday, climaxed with an exciting
mix of 24 Lagos-based players vying for the three prizes at stake.

Organized and
hosted by the Polo Management Committee of the Lagos club, Easter polo
provided a welcome warm-up for Lagos polo players who are bracing up
for their second road trip this year since returning from Ibadan last
February.

Galloping for the Charity Shield

Dozens of
Lagos-based teams are in the final stages of preparations ahead of the
2011 edition of the Emir of Katsina Charity Shield tournament later
this month in Kaduna and the season-ending Kano International in Kano
next month.

Last year, Lagos
Lintrale made history as the first Lagos team to win the highly-revered
African Patrons Trophy, beating a world-class field of top
professionals to earn its first ever major title at Fifth Chukkers
Resorts in Kaduna.

Early this year,
Lagos Linetrale/Trafigura clinched another milestone, winning the
prestigious Majekodunmi Cup in a myth-shattering performance against
highly favoured Kaduna Fifth Chukker.

It is a
morale-boosting feat the Lagosians are hoping to build on during the
Charity Shield event later this month. “We are looking forward to the
Charity Shield and the Kano tournament with high hopes and this Easter
Cup has provided that needed warm up that would make us even more
competitive,” Makanjuola hinted.

The Lagos-based
polo patron, whose Caverton team remains one of top teams in the build
up towards the Charity Shield, is upbeat that a Lagos team would follow
in the good footsteps of Linetrale/Trafigura, and give the former
capital city its first Charity Shield title this year.

Six teams including
Kano Titans, Ark Polo, Kano Titans, Kaduna YY, and Kano BUA have
confirmed their entry in the crowded Mohammed Kabir and low goal cups
of the charity event that would be decided in the first stage of the
international event that pits together professionals from USA,
Argentina and South Africa.

LineTrale \Trafigura, Fifth Chukker, MRS, Barbedos, Deebee Farms and
Kano Titans are lining up for the high stake Charity Shield to be
decided at the height of 20 goals. The first stage gallops off May
25-29, while the high stake stage is billed for June 1-5.