Nigerian polo players
The second stage of the MTN Lagos Polo International Tournament got underway at the Polo Club Road Ikoyi with Lagos HST showing great form to beat Dangote 11.5 to 1 in the seven-team Lagos Open Cup.
HST, which has Karim Mdeihli, Mohammed Mdeihli, Ali Berjawi and Bruno Cipponeri, started the game with a 3.5 goals advantage by the virtue of their handicap difference and they never showed their inferior handicap difference as they scored six straight goals most of which came from the mallet of Argentine Cipponeri.
Cipponerri began his spectacular virtuoso performance converting two 40-yard penalties. He also scored another one to give HST a comfortable 6.5 goal lead at the end of the first chukker.
The second and third chukkers produced four more goals with HST getting three while Dantata, parading Audu Dantata, Sani Dangote Adamu Yaro and Ibrahim Audu, got off the mark through Yaro, who was his side’s liveliest player for the day. The highlight of the game came in the third chukker when Yaro made a frantic goal-line clearance off a Cipponeri’s 50-yard shot which he chased just about the place that the South American hit the shot.
The fourth chukker of the highly entertaining encounter which also has Oando, Samsung, Southern Sun, Atlantic Energy, Ashton Wells, Chapel Hill Dunham among others, surprisingly failed to produce any goal with Yaro’s diagonal snap shot from about 25 yards hitting the upright after a frantic chase by Berjawi.
Cipponeri capped his spectacular outing with another goal in the fifth chukker to put HST in a favourable position to grab a top spot in their group which will see them moving into the final on Sunday
All the seven teams will play two games each and with goals difference always going to be a deciding factor the big-score win will be relished by HST.
The three-team Majekodunmi Cup also got underway Wednesday with Linetrale Delaney testing their skills with Ironcladin an evening kick off.
Thursday’s game will see Dangote confront Tavia Trojan while Titans 1 will clash with YY Ibako.