Victories for King Power Foxes and Monterosso on day 2 of the Gold Cup at Cowdray Park Polo Club
King Power Foxes vs La Indiana
Game three of the 2017 Jaeger-LeCoultre Gold Cup at Cowdray Park Polo Club, saw contrasting styles of play as Queen’s Cup finalist La Indiana fell short against King Power Foxes 9-7.
Looking to bounce back from a quarter-final exit in the Queen’s Cup, King Power Foxes controlled play in the opening chukka, scoring three goals, with one goal each from Facundo Pieres, Gonzalito Pieres and James Fewster, while only allowing a penalty 3 conversion from Agustin Merlos to take an early 3-1 lead.
After their slow start, the second chukka was all La Indiana as they displayed the fast paced style of play seen throughout the Queen’s Cup. Pressuring the King Power Foxes’ defense, Merlos scored his 2nd and 3rd goals of the game, along with Nic Roldan scoring his first goal to help La Indiana win the chukka 3-0 and take the lead for the first time in the game.
From that point forward, King Power Foxes changed the pace of the game, slowing it down and effectively using the on ball mallet work of both Facundo and Gonzalito Pieres. La Indiana was held without a shot or penalty attempt in the 3rd and 4th chukkas, while King Power Foxes amassed seven shots during that span. However, they were only able to convert one of those seven shot attempts, keeping La Indiana right in the game despite losing the open play battle.
Nevertheless, the 3rd and 4th chukkas provided King Power Foxes with the tactics necessary to beat a tough La Indiana team as they continued to slow the pace and began converting their shot attempts. Facundo and Gonzalito Pieres, scored a goal each in the 5th chukka to maintain their three goal lead and King Power Foxes was able to put the game away in the 6th chukka, thanks to a final goal from James Fewster to take the 9-7 victory.
Monterosso vs RH Polo
Game four of the 2017 Jaeger-LeCoultre Gold Cup featured a stunning upset at Cowdray Park Polo Club as Monterosso defeated Queen’s Cup champions RH Polo 10-9, handing RH Polo their first loss of the season.
A dominant first half from RH Polo saw them use a balanced attack with three goals from Rodrigo Andrade, two from Adolfo Cambiaso and two from Englishman Tommy Beresford to take a 7-3 lead into halftime. RH Polo was 6 for 8 (75%) from the field in the first half, while Monterosso was only 1 for 4 (25%).
After having difficulty creating scoring chances in the first half, Monterosso put four shots on goal in the 4th chukka, led by Ignacio Toccalino scoring three goals, two of which came directly from the throw-in, to begin the comeback and cut the deficit to one goal heading into th final two chukkas.
Monterosso continued to be effective from the field, converting seven of their last eight shots at goal while holding RH Polo to 1 for 7 (14%) shooting in the second half; a far cry from the efficient shooting seen from RH Polo in the first half.
After Matt Perry completed a long run past the RH defense to score the go ahead goal with minutes remaining in the 6th chukka, RH Polo had a chance to tie the game late. After winning the throw-in, Adolfo Cambiaso shot at goal from 50 yards out but a final effort from Ignacio Toccalino, saved the goal, as he took the ball off the goal line, in the process hitting it over his own end line. RH Polo’s Cambiaso had the resulting Safety 60 with no time remaining to tie the game but was unable to convert, handing a jubilant Monterosso team the upset and an incredible victory to begin their Jaeger-LeCoultre Gold Cup.
