NAIROBI, Kenya, February 26 – Nairobi Polo Club chair Fredd Kambo expects the next season to be as exciting and entertaining as the just-ended as more players emerge.
Kambo said plans for the new season are already in the pipeline and are hopeful the weather will play its part in allowing them to organise entertaining matches.
“Same (level of competition)…hopefully, we get good weather. Our season starts in May so we have our vets ready to go. We are going to start vaccinating the horses today as guys get a break. We just look forward to more exciting polo,” Kambo said.
He described the just-ended season as a success although he bemoaned the heavy rains in January, which derailed the tournaments that had been planned to bring the curtains down on the 2023/24 season.
“From a Kenya Polo perspective, it was great. We managed to play every tournament that we wanted to play but from Nairobi…obviously the whole of January we were rained out. So that made it difficult to finish the way we wanted to finish,” the chair said.
He added: “Thankfully, we are happy to push some of the tournaments to this month, particularly the Soldier’s Salute, which is very important for us given we have the patron all the way from the United Kingdom. Very happy that we also managed to play the Chairman’s Cup so it’s all good.”
Kambo further paid homage to several players who he said have proved their mettle throughout the season with their skills on the pitch.
“Michelle Morgan…she’s been amazing…she plays in the Subsidiary mostly. She’s been amazing this season. Alice Owambo has just come in…her first season, she’s playing extremely well. Jamie Excel…he’s been amazing in the 1.5s and under. Those are the guys who have been amazing,” he said.
Kambo was part of a Tusker Malt team that beat SBM Bank 6-5F to win the season-ender Chairman’s Cup at the Nairobi Polo Club on Sunday evening.
The thriller saw Tusker Malt head into the 3-1F lead by the second chukka before the bankers hauled themselves back into the fixture in the third chukka.
The final chukka was a see-saw battle before Malt scored a last-second goal to take top honours.
The chair describe the tie as a befitting end to the season.
“I am glad that we were able to play a close final. You never want a whitewash…it was actually a two-day match. On Saturday, Tusker Malt were way ahead by the aggregate score…we were ahead by five goals. We made the decision to start at zero today and I am glad we did because it was very competitive,” he said.
SBM Bank’s Vishal Somaia was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) whereas his pony, Snazzy, was crowned the best.
