Dasuki leads Nigerian youths to South Africa

The quest to give Nigerian polo a fresh breath is fast becoming a reality, as a 10-man delegation of Nigerian youngsters are expected to jet out tomorrow to South Africa for a month-long training programme. The team, comprising Mallam Ahmed Dasuki, as leader of delegation, has seven participants, who are beginners and two officials, Mohammed Kyari, secretary Fifth Chukker Resort, Kaduna and Jibo Garba.The participants, who would also take on their South African counterparts in two international matches, are Bashir Bashir (jr.), Toby Edun, Khalid Dasuki, Fah’d Dasuki, Amir Baba Kusa, Hassan Abbati Ramahan and Altaf Abubakar.The team rounded off their preparations for the tour with a practise chukker at Fifth Chukker Resort, playing alongside experienced high handicappers like Bello Buba, Sayyu Dantata, Adamu Atta, Mohammed Babangida and Ibrahim Mohammed among others.Packaged by Oho Sports Limited, the programme would take the boys to Johannesbourg and Durban, where they would meet with top officials of South African Polo Association and visit places of interest like Nelson Mandela’s home in Lesedi Village in Soweto.Mallam Dasuki, who confirmed the trip to Sunpolo on phone, stated that the tour’s part of an ongoing effort to give the upcoming polo players the right footing in the noble game and shore up the popularity of Nigerian polo internationally.“It is our believe that the best we can bequeath this game is to bring up the young ones in the right way and keep them at breast polowise with what is going on internationally,” he pointed out.According to the intinary of the team, the delegation would arrived Johannesburg, Tuesday, where they would go through a two-day polo lesson at the East Rand Polo Club with the Evans Brothers (David, Steve and Garreth), one of the foremost polo playing family in South Africa.Fresh from East Rand Club, the delegation would fly to Durban, where they would be received by the Chairman of Natal Polo Team, Wily MacGibbon and Bridget Macduff, marketing secretary of South Africa Polo Association. The team would play their first practise match Saturday, before taking on the South African School team in a curtain-raiser, which precedes the 20 goal South Africa versus Chile international friendly.Sunpolo also gathered that the Nigerian youngsters would spend the better part of the tour receiving polo lessons from the former South African national team captain, Selby Williamson at his Jurassic Park Polo Club in Swartberg, Durban. Williamson, who has played polo at the highest level in countries like Argentina, England, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, India and Chile among others, first played for South African national polo team in 1996. He pivoted the Fifth Chukker team, which won the Georgian Cup last year in Kaduna and coached the South African team, which won the Vmobile African Masters for a record third time last year.The South African captain would have the boys for four days, showing them the techniques of stick & balling, positional play, anticipation, shot play and playing chukkas.Facilities at the park include three practise pitches, a stable for 120 ponies with 70 playing ponies and accommodation.Before leaving Jurassic Park, the Nigerians would take part in a mini tournament, after which they would fly back to Johannesburg for their second international friendly against the South African Juniors at Inanda Polo Club in Sandton City.It was also confirmed that the delegation would return to Nigeria in the last week of August, while another squad is likely to leave for Accra, Ghana few days later for the second leg of the Nigeria/Ghana international friendly.In their first meeting last year, a team comprising Fah’d Dasuki, Bashir Bashir, Akinkunle Akinkugbe and Amir Kusa shocked their hosts in their backyard.

From The Sun