Yola, Jos, Zaria eye top prizes at Bauchi 2018 Polo tourney
Yola, Jos, Zaria polo clubs are topping the list of established polo centres vying for top honours in this year’s Bauchi polo fiesta as the build up to the annual fiesta in the home of the foremost Yankari Reserves get into top gears.
The state is also lining up the largest contingent for the show- down. Organizers say other teams to storm the venue with a large contingent include Katsina, which has also vowed to successfully defend the biggest prize - the Governor’s Cup which they won in Bauchi last year.
Secretary Bauchi Polo club Haruna Usman Ningi revealed that arrangements are already in top gear as players and officials of Nigeria Polo Federation are expected in Bauchi in a matter of weeks for the big polo event taking place in the North Eastern part of the country.
He said over twenty teams from the major polo teams across the county have confirmed readiness to battle for top honours in what he said would clearly be the most memorable and hotly contested tournament in Bauchi polo experience in decades.
Four major prizes are up for grabs with the Governor’s Cup being the event’s biggest reward. Other prizes include the Emir of Bauchi Cup, Emir of Katagum Cup, Sarki Fulani Cup, Beginners Cup and the Veterans Cup.
The selected Cups to be competed for include the glittering Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Memorial Cup, The Commandant Cup, First Inland Bank Cup and the newly introduced Ramadan Cup.
Last year, Wali Stable polo team emerged the best performing team from Bauchi in the low-goal category, defeating more experienced oppositions from Kaduna, Kano and Yola, to cart home the coveted Tafewa Balewa Cup one of the major prizes at stake.
Speaking with newsmen shortly after carting away the trophy, sponsor of Wali Stable polo team, Ibrahim Bala Hassan, expressed delight with the performance of the players at the polo fiester that resulted to their victory at the competition.
Hassan, who is also the Chairman State House of Assembly Committee on Information, described the game of polo as one of the tools for ensuring peace and uniting various communities in the society.
In his remarks, the President Bauchi Polo Club Colonel Ibrahim Isah Adamu expressed delight for the peaceful conduct of the competition and commended the state governor for the support being rendered to the club in the state.
Long established as one of the premier tourism attractions in the country and beyond, polo has been played on the Dangiwa Umar Polo Ground for decades now. Last year, the ancient kingdom of Bauchi hosted the best of Nigerian polo teams from around the country, in an unforgettable week of exciting festival.