2017 African Patrons Polo: Abuja Almat Group retain General Hassan Cup Leighton Kings clinch Patrons trophy
Maurice Ekpenyong made history at the just concluded 2017 African Patrons Cup Polo Tournament as he powered his Abuja Almat team to successfully defend the General Hassan Cup title they won on first attempt last year.
Lagos based Bowale Jolasho and his Leighton Kings also shared the limelight of the biggest continental polo championship after edging two ambitious opponents, to clinch the Patrons Cup.
Almat Group polo lords ( Maurice Ekpenyong, Nura Suleiman, Idris Badamasi and Rabiu Mohammed) who are still smarting from their Dantata Cup victory in Kano last month, secured a nail-biting 5-4 victory over Sheyi Tinubu’s STL/Titan ( Sheyi Tinubu, Tata Ali, Khalifa Ibrahim and Ibrahim Dantala) in the explosive final.
Having previously seen off a crowded field of eight other teams, many of them featuring Argentine and South African professionals, Almat came from behind in dying minutes of the tense final, to win with Rabiu Mohammed scoring the golden goal three seconds to the final bell.
“It was a fantastic campaign, but in the final game, STL/Titan wasn’t an easy one. They came out fighting and at a point, took over the lead. But we were too determined Stories By Ernest Ekpenyong to just let it slip by and I want to thank my team mates for their concentration and our numerous fans for their unflinching support,” declared Ekpenyong who captained Almat Group in the successful title defense.
His counterpart Sheyi Tinubu who was playing his first Patrons’ Cup tournament congratulated the winners but hailed his team mates for putting up a good fight, though the result wasn’t exactly what they expected.
The Patrons Trophy final game that drew the curtain on the prestigious polo extravaganza pitched Leighton Kings against Honourable Aliyu Wadada’s Keffi Ponys in another drama filled finale that produced 14 high class goals.
Team Leighton (Bowale Jolasho, Babangida Hassan Katsina, Manuel Crespo and Martin Jauregi) started with a spark, with three quick goals in the opening chukka and remained in the lead throughout the fiercely fought final game.
Keffi Ponys, boasting Aliyu Wadada, Bello Buba, Leroux Hendrik and Tolito Ocampo fought back with two opening goals, but their late push did little to boost their campaign, as the Lagosians scored five more for an 8-6 final scores.
Many times patron of the year, Muhammad Babangida had earlier defeated Keffi Ponys in their opening game, to hand his Kangimi team ( Yahaya Atta, Diego White and Tom Dubrium), a runners-up winners in the Patron Cup series.
Crespo who pivoted the campaign of Leighton Kings’victory and Keffi Ponys striker, Bello Buba were adjudged the Most Valuable Players (MVPs) of the tournament, while Honourable Aliyu Wadada received special accolades as the most consistent patron African polo extravaganza.
Frontline Politician, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Speaker Kogi State House of Assembly, Right Honourable Prince Mathew, who represented Governor Yahaya Bello and Sadaukin Zazzau, His Highness Yusuf Idris, presented the prizes to the winners and the runners-up in a colourful closing ceremony at the foremost Fifth Chukker Polo &Country Resort in Kaduna.
The prestigious polo tournament which remains the only pan African polo event in the continent has built an impressive resume in a short time to becoming the biggest sporting event to support effort at eradicating the Breast Cancer in Africa.