MEMBERS of the highbrow Lagos Polo Club celebrated one of their most memorable Easter holidays in recent years last weekend, with polo enthusiasts, family members and invited guests present at the Ribadu Road theatre to witness Pretzels victory over Palms in the final of the inaugural Easter Cup polo tournament.Whatever the final score, the winners were guaranteed a special place in the record books as the first ever Easter Cup champions, and the Habeeb Fashinro-led Pretzels made the most of the opportunity, coming from behind to win the crown.Pretzels, parading Olayinka Alakija, Abdulrahman Mohammed, Bashir Dantata (Jnr) and Fashinro, who is making a big come-back to the game of kings, outscored Palms 7-6 in a decisive final game to make history. Palms, boasting the likes of Tunde Karim, Ahmadu Umar, Usman Dantata (Jnr) and Mayowa Ogunnusi, went into the final as favourites on the heels of their big semi-final victory against Easter Bonnets, and were leading from the opening chucker.Their lead lasted for three chukkers, but a momentary loss of concentration cost them dearly as Dantata set up Fashinro in a last breadth attack that produced the winner with seconds to go. The better-rated Palms were left to settle for the less fancied runners winners.It feels good to be back to active polo, and winning the top prize made it more special, Fashinro declared. I want to thank my teammates for their hard work and the fans for their big support that helped us greatly, particularly in the tense last chukker.Pretzels midfield maestro, Bashir Dantata, who was upbeat throughout the game, said the Palms were made to pay for underrating their resolve to hit back. He enthused: I knew all along that they would make one bad move that would turn the table against them and it came in that cliff hanger last-minute of the final.One of the biggest highlights of the three-day event was the grand participation of the Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, who spent the Easter weekend at the polo club as he rounded off his campaign for a second tenure.The final day excitement continued in the subsidiary Owens Cup, where Easter Eggs overwhelmed Easter Bunnies 9-4 to cart home the glittering prize, just as Easter Tulips had the better of Easter Bonnets in the race for the Churchward Plate.Easter Eggs quartet of Muyiwa Sonubi, Adeyemo Alakija, Glory Mbano and Isa Kwame relied on their running game to out pace Abdullahi Ibrahim, Obafemi Otudeko, Damian Duncan and Bowale Jolaoso in the race for the title named after the former president of the Lagos Polo Club.The grand finale of the high profile Easter Cup ended on a blistering note as the Musty Fashinro-powered Easter Tulips featuring Arie Esiri, Osaro Giwa-Osagie and Ayo Olashoju overpowered Bode Makanjuolas Bonnets 3-2 to smile home with the Churchward Plate.
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