The Queen’s Cup, one of the most prestigious polo tournaments in the world, resumed on Saturday with two matches of the quarterfinals. The current matchday saw wins by Park Place over defending champions RH Polo and by Valiente over Talandracas. The final of the Queen’s Cup is scheduled for Sunday, June 17th.
PARK PLACE 9-5 RH POLO (at Zacara)
The holders of the Queen’s Cup were knocked out of the competition by an in-form Park Place, playing in this tournament for the first time. RH Polo made amends in the second chukker, firing though 3 goals giving them a comfortable three-goal advantage at the start of the third. Those with their money on Ben Soleimani’s team must have felt any bets might be safe. Park Place quickly put paid to that idea, with Juan Britos starting the third with a penalty and then firing through a field goal. This chukka closed with an amazing goal from the Park Place patron, Andrey Borodin. So at half-time it was all square, 3-3, and everything to play for. The second half very much belonged to Park Place, firing through six goals to only one in reply from RH Polo. Borodin produced another stunning goal, successfully weaving his way through traffic to score in the fourth. His 10-goaler Hilario Ulloa added to the tally in this chukka and Britos confirmed the team’s supremacy by adding another three to the mix in the final two periods of play.
Park Place: Andrey Borodin 0 (2 goals), Juan Britos 7 (5), Hilario Ulloa 10 (2), Tommy Beresford 5. Total: 22.
RH: Ben Soleimani 0, Mín Podestá 5 (1 goal), Sapo Caset 9 (3), Rodrigo Andrade 8 (1). Total: 22.
Score Park Place: 0-0, 0-3, 3-3, 6-3, 8-4, 9-5.
Umpires: Jason Dixon and Julian Appleby. Third man: Peter Wright.
VALIENTE 10-9 TALANDRACAS (at The Duke’s Ground)
The focus moved to The Duke’s Ground at Guards Polo Club this afternoon for the second quarter-final match. This was a great game packed with drama, tension and some of the biggest shots in the tournament so far. With Valiente 1-0 up, the game stopped following a heavy fall by Talandracas’s Julian de Lusarreta, who appeared to collide with Valiente’s Adolfo Cambiaso. The latter got to his feet after a while, both horses had already cantered back to the pony lines unhurt, but Lusarreta remained on the ground. The Club’s ambulance service tended to him on the field before he was “;blue lighted” to hospital � although reports coming through by the end of the game were that he was OK. Juan Gris Zavaleta took the injured player’s place. There was some surprise when it was also announced that he would have to sit out the first two minutes of the restart due to Lusarreta’s double yellow due to the foul on Cambiaso. Rob Jornayvaz’s Valiente, in a most sporting gesture, decided not to play these two minutes competitively and the spectators were treated to a spot of high-goal stick and balling! As soon as the time-out had elapsed though this game was very much back on.
Valiente’s Hugo Lewis made it 2-0 in the second only for Fran Elizalde to win a horse race against Cambiaso to take it to 2-1. Magoo Laprida, who had scored Valiente’s opening goal, found the flags again before the bell, giving them 3-1 on the scoreboard at the start of the third. Not surprisingly with such talent on the field, this continued to be a tight game with Alejandro Muzzio producing some fantastic play for Talandracas, giving them the lead for the first time in the fourth chukka (5-4). With the score reading 7-7 at the start of the fifth, few would have bet against extra time. Elizalde sent a 60-yard penalty wide in this chukka and many asked if that was the turning point of the game. Then, with the scoreboard registering 9-8 to Valiente and the first bell having rung, Cambiaso did what he is famed for: produced a run a goal out of nowhere to score, giving Valiente a valuable, two-goal cushion (10-8) going into the sixth. Plenty of whistles in this period and both teams struggling to get themselves free. Then some lovely Talandracas team-work resulted in team patron Hugues Carmignac closing the gap once more, but no more time to repeat the feat. So it is Valiente that will play Park Place on Wednesday on semi-finals day.
Valiente: Rob Jornayvaz 1, Hugo Lewis 4 (2 goals), Magoo Laprida 7 (4), Adolfo Cambiaso 10 (4). Total: 22.
Talandracas: Hugues Carmignac 0 (1 goal), Alejandro Muzzio 7 (4), Fran Elizalde 8 (4), Julián de Lusarreta 7 (Replaced by Juan Gris Zavaleta 7 in the first chukker). Total: 22.
Score Valiente: 1-0, 3-1, 4-3, 7-7, 10-8, 10-9.
Umpires: Tim Bown and Peter Wright. Third man: Jason Dixon.
The Queen’s Cup will resume on Sunday:
12pm: Les Lions vs La Bamba de Areco, at The Castle Ground, Flemish Farm.
3pm: Emlor vs La Indiana, at The Queen’s Ground.
ALL MATCHES WILL BE STREAMED LIVE ON POLOLINE TV.
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