The 2018 Armed Forces International Polo Tournament in Abuja / Nigeria ended on Sunday with the Warriors of Morocco emerging champions after defeating their Pakistani counterparts by 11 goals to 6. The four-day event which took place at the 1212 Polo Club in Abuja featured teams from six countries such as Nigeria, Morocco, the U.S., India, Pakistan and Egypt.
The finalists Pakistan and Morocco started the game with much enthusiasm and were at par for most of the first and second chukka. But Morocco ended the third chukka with a slight lead and by the end of the fourth overran their opponents.
The final event was attended by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, who represented President Muhammadu Buhari, as well as the Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan-Ali. Femi Asenuga, the Managing Director of Mutual Benefits Life Assurance Ltd.: “This is something that is on the national spotlight. It is an event that brought great teams from great countries to Nigeria.“
Ranking of the teams:
1 Morocco
Cpt Sidi Mohammed El Mhamdi 1
Lt Ahmed Mounkachi 0
SGT Moulay Abdeslam el Hanafi 0
Novillo Santiago Astrada 4
2 Pakistan
Maj Haseeb Minhas 2
Maj Salman Feroz 0
Lt Col Usman Azad 2
Maj Adil Sultan Rao 1
3 Nigeria
Lt Col Y Bello 0
Lado Ibrahim 2
Abdulmalik Badamasi 2
Col Kakazir 1
Adel Mohamadin 0
Mohamed Saleh 1
Mohamed El Swedy 2
Marwan Mostafa 2
Chris Jones 1
Alex Wicker 0
Lt Col Sammer Chaudhary 2
Maj Arjun Patil 2
Maj Yatindar Kumar 1
SWR Santosh 0
Photos: Agustina Lacroze