Pony power, team spirit propel Kenya to Polo glory in Harare

It did not come on a silver platter!

They had fought hard for it, following careful planning and well-thought-out strategies before putting everything into action, and ultimately emerging victorious.

The first scare from the Zimbabweans came when they won the opening match, catching the Kenyans off guard and signalling that it would not be business as usual.

Starting the match with the advantage of half-fraction of a goal from their low handicap, the Zimbabweans proved their mettle by winning the first match 6.5-6.

Kenya had a strong squad of handicap six, which included team captain and handicap 2 Geoff Morley, handicap 3 Jose Craig, handicap 2 Will Millar, and handicap -1 Charley Morley.

The Zimbabweans included Ben Brown, Chris Archison, Scott Campbell, and Matthew Moxon, all of them being Under Handicap Three players.

With the first loss, the Kenyan squad was well aware of the task ahead, and they had to fight hammer and tongs in the chase for top honours.

And the Kenyan team knew very well that it was not going to be easy to overcome the stiff opposition when playing away from home if they did not plan well.

After analysing their mistakes in the first match, Kenya swung into action and made amends in the next two matches, convincingly winning all of them to fly home with the coveted trophy, the Calvary Cup from Harare last Monday.

They defeated the Zimbabweans 8-6 in the second match, a development that gave them the much-needed morale and confidence, which they exuded when they took a flight from Nairobi to Harare two weeks earlier.

Kenyan captain Geoff was quick to notice their first mistakes and promised to rectify them before taking the pitch in their next matches.

After that, the Kenyan captain revealed and warned his teammates that they had used the wrong ponies, and they (horses) had to be changed for them to achieve positive results thereafter.

“We lost the first match while using the wrong horses, and we needed to seek the right ones to beat the opposition, just the same way we do it at home,” Geoff told Nairobian Sports.

After consulting their hosts-Zimbabwe Polo Federation (ZPF), Kenya was given the liberty to choose the right ponies, which they thought and felt was good for them from a wide stable.

Thereafter, in their second match, Kenya defeated Zimbabwe 8-6, with each player putting through the ball twice during the encounter.

It was total teamwork, according to the captain.

“That was a tough match, but we believed in ourselves and played together as a team while supporting one another before coming out victorious,” said Morley.

And in the final match, Kenya was in a class of their own, and the match was theirs to lose from the first to the final whistle.

They defeated Zimbabwe 10-6 to keep their winning streak intact in the international polo global assignments, with two more similar engagements left before the season ends.

Kenya is set to host Zambia in a 10-goal international match at Manyatta Polo Club in Gilgil in August.

Thereafter, Kenya will play a composite team of foreign players from different nationalities at Nairobi Polo Club in September to wrap up the international season.

And with the last two losses in their backyard, the Zimbabweans could not believe their horses were used to do the damage.

The venue of the massacre was at Thornpark Polo Club last weekend in Harare, Zimbabwe’s largest city, which, before independence in 1980, had the name Salisbury.

Kenya’s total determination and their quickness to get acquainted with the foreign horses made the East Africans overcome the herculean task with their heads high when they took a flight back home.

“We had a great game today on Sunday. The opposition was tough. Ben Brown played well and kept us busy. We were fortunate to be lent great horses. They were great!” Kenya captain Geoff said.

The 10 goals were equally spread between the four players.

The Best Playing Pony was awarded to the eight-year-old pony christened Bluethat. It was used by Jose Craig.

Geoff described the matches as very competitive, with his Best Playing Pony being ‘Royal’.

The Most Valuable Player was Zimbabwean Chris Aitchison.

He praised the hospitality given to the Kenyan team in Harare.

And with that accomplished, action now shifts to the Manyatta Club for a series of national assignments, which will result in the selection of players who will face Zambia at the same venue in August.