The 2020 GTB Lagos International Polo Tournament galloped off on an exciting note Tuesday with Lagos Wontra bagging a 6-5 win over Lagos Almina Group while Golden Alchemy outplayed Lagos Dania A+ 10-4 in the Silver Cup encounters.
Wontra, formed by Charles Oluwole, Altaf Abubakar, Yemo Alakija and Aliyu Tijani, underlined their intentions from the start with Tijani scoring with an inside shot with barely 20 seconds inside the keenly-contested Stream A game but none of the sides was able to hit target till the chukka elapsed.
Altaf made it 2-0 for Wontra as he scored in the opening seconds of the second chukka before two-goaler Tijanii, who was the man of the match, scored again to make it 3-0 with a solo goal having picked the ball in the 60 yards.
Rabiu Mohammed scored Almina’s first goal but Tijani restored Wontra’s three-goal lead almost immediately converting a low shot but Almina which also featured Ahmadu Husaini, Omoruyi Giwa-Osagie and Yasin Amusan won’t give up yet as Mohammed scored a 40-yard to keep the game alive.
Giwa-Osagie’s goal kept the match on knife-edge finishing off a move orchestrated by team captain Yasin Amusan but Tijani again scored before the clock beeped for a 5-2 second chukka lead for Wontra. Alakija’s goal which was Wontra’s sixth was sandwiched by Husaini and Mohammed goals and it proved to be the difference between the sides.
The second match of the day was contrasting to the preceding match as Alchemy outplayed Dania A+ to lay claims as one of the favourites for the Silver Cup Khalifa Adams was the stand out performer scoring a handful of Golden Alchemy’s goals while Sadiq and Bilal Dantata, as well as Musadiq Tahir, also played crucial roles in securing the vital victory in Stream B.
Action-packed Matchday 2 on Wednesday will see five matches to be played in the Silver Cup while an enthralling Open Cup tie is anticipated between Lagos A+ Bluechip and Lagos Shoreline to round off the day’s activities.
