The Queen’s Cup continued on Monday, May 30, with La Magdeleine and Clinova claiming victories. Guards Polo Club’s premier tournament sees fifteen teams, up to 22 goals, compete for the coveted trophy.
First up, La Magdeleine took a narrow 9-8 win over Thai Polo NP. The latter took the lead in the first two chukkas, but the French team, led by their superstar Pablo MacDonough fought to secure a 4-3 advantage in the third chukka. Thai Polo NP managed to re-claim the lead in the two following chukkas, but in the last La Magdeleine reinforced their attack, outscoring Thai Polo NP 3-1 to secure a the 9-8 win.
The big surprise of the day came in the next contest, when Clinova defeated Park Place Vaara, one of the tournament favourites. Clinova’s performance was remarkable considering that they were held scoreless in the first two chukkas, with Park Place Vaara taking a commanding 6-0 win at the end of the second. Slowly and steadily, from the third chukka onwards, Clinova began to closing the gap. They managed to tie the game 7-all in the fourth chukka, a score that remained in the fifth. Clinova held Park Place Vaara back in the last, ultimately securing the significant victory.
QUEEN’S CUP – MONDAY, MAY 30:
LA MAGDELEINE 9-8 THAI POLO NP
La Magdeleine: Alexandre Garese 0, Ollie Cudmore 6 (1 goal), Pablo MacDonough 9 (6), Facundo Fernández Llorente 7*. Total: 22.
*Subbed in by Martín Podestá 7 (1).
Thai Polo NP: Ned Hine 5 (2 goals), Lucas Criado Jr 5*, Agustín Merlos 7**, Louis Hine 4 (3). Total: 21.
*Subbed in by Ignacio Negri 6 (2).
**Subbed in by César Crespo 6
Score La Magdeleine: 0-2, 2-3, 4-3, 4-5, 6-7, 9-8.
Umpires: Jason Dixon & Julian Appleby.
Third man: Ben Turner.
CLINOVA 9-8 PARK PLACE VAARA
Clinova: Raja Karim 0*, Alejandro Muzzio 7 (3 goals), Malcolm Borwick 5 (4), Bautista Bayugar 8**. Total: 20.
*Subbed in by Luke Wiles (2).
**Subbed in by Jared Zenni 6 (1).
Park Place Vaara: Joshua Hyde 0 (1 goal), Santos Merlos 4 (3), Hilario Ulloa 10 (4), Juan Britos 8 (1). Total: 22.
Score Clinova: 0-4, 0-6, 3-7, 7-7, 7-7, 10-9.
Umpires: Ben Turner & Tim Bown.
Third man: Julian Appleby.
BPP UK: Awesome; owned and ridden by Hilario Ulloa.
The penultimate classification round of the Queen’s Cup will take place on Tuesday, May 31:
12pm: Marqués de Riscal vs. UAE (Manor Farm).
3pm: Monterosso vs. King Power (Noel Farm- SL6 2NW).
The Queen’s Cup final is set to be played on Sunday, June 12.
The Queen’s Cup – Teams & Fixture
IMAGES:
La Magdeleine vs. Thai Polo NP