Leighton Saopolo lead Lagos’ clean sweep with Open Cup, Oba of Lagos Cup

Leighton Saopolo were the biggest winners in the opening week of the 2022 Lagos International Polo Tournament, which came to a befitting climax with teams from the host state sweeping all the three prizes at stake.

Lagos Dangote set the pace with an emphatic victory against Centaur to clinch the debuting Adedapo Ojora Cup, before titleholders, Leighton Saopolo, successfully defended the Lagos Open Cup and the Oba of Lagos Cups respectively.
 
In a tense final witnessed by a capacity crowd that included former Senate President, Bukola Saraki and billionaire Abdulsamad Rabiu, Leighton Saopolo scored in the first minute of the game that went neck-to-neck, hitting 9 to 8 to deny Almat Petrogas their first major title in Lagos.

Before the Open Cup cracker, the duo of Seyi Oyinlola and Bowale Jolaosho had earlier defeated Centaurs to keep the Oba of Lagos title for the fourth consecutive year. They are bracing for a treble at the Majekodunmi Cup, which begins today.

Martin Juaregui broke from the bowling in to score the quickest goal of the festival so far, but Manuel Crespo equalised in kind and pivoted Almat, parading Ibrahim Haliru, Habib Buhari and Felipe Marquez, to a 4-1 lead in the second chukka.

The lead was soon wiped out with two quick fires from Juaregui and Ratamar to draw level in the third chukka and reclaimed the lead 9 to 7 in the fourth chukka
 
Juaregui and Ratamar were the chief predators for the Lagos side, as they held on till the end despite Crespo, a former MVP of the Lagos International Polo Tournament, netting the final goal to finish 8 to 9.

Today, five teams from Abuja, Kano and Lagos will start the journey for the event’s biggest prize, the Majekodunmi Cup.

In the fixtures, Kano Lintex and Abuja Almat team will play in the opening game of the Majekodunmi Cup series, just as action will begin in two subsidiary prizes, the Lagos Heritage Cup and the Italian Ambassador’s Cup.

For another year running, the prestigious festival host a renowned and faithful collection of sponsors with GTCO leading others like ChapelHill Denem, MTN, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCO), Metro Capital, Arbico, Vueve Clicquot and Coronation.