Day two of quarterfinal competition in the British Open Polo Championship for the Cowdray Gold Cup hosted by Cowdray Park Polo Club kicked-off between UAE against Vikings, where an exhilarating encounter resulted in a commanding victory for UAE 13-4.
Dominant on both sides of the ball, UAE combined 43% shooting from the field with a perfect 3 for 3 at the line. Despite hitting all their conversions, Vikings struggled in open play. Managing just thirteen shots at goal, only one crossed the line. Taking advantage of Vikings’ shooting difficulties, UAE, led by six off the mallet of Tomas Beresford attacked early and often to outperform their opponents and clinch the resounding nine-goal win to earn their spot in the semifinals.
Initiating their fast paced-attack, two goals from UAE’s Beresford and Lucas Monteverde Jr. were answered by back-to-back conversions from Vikings’ Diego Cavanagh and Juan Martin Zubia. Displaying excellent ball control, UAE’s Bartolome Castagnola added his name to the scoreboard, as 50% accuracy in the field was just enough to vault UAE into the lead 5-3 at the break.
Breaking free in the fourth, UAE’s dominant second half featured a potent attack from Beresford and Bartolome Castagnola, including four from Beresford to give UAE a 10-3 advantage. Pinned on defense, Vikings managed only three shots in the field entering the final chukka of play and large deficit to overcome. Barraging the goal once more, UAE added another three onto the scoreboard, with a final effort from Vikings’ Juan Martin Zubia unable to close the gap, as UAE’s impressive performance sealed the 13-4 triumph.
Concluding quarterfinal action, Scone went head-to-head against Park Place, with Park Place emerging victorious 11-8.
Narrowly outshooting Scone with a 43% conversion rate, the relentless efforts of Facundo Pieres leading Park Place with eight-goals succeeded in containing the power and talent of Scone’s Poroto Cambiaso. Struggling to convert from the field, Scone kept themselves in contention shooting 80% at the penalty line, but Park Place’s fast-paced and efficient attack delivered the three-goal win to advance into the semifinals.
Opening the scoring from the penalty line, Poroto Cambiaso successfully converted one goal on two attempts, but Park Place’s Pieres and Matt Perry answered from the field to take an early 2-1 advantage. Trading goals in the second, the two teams swapped scores once more in the third, but Park Place’s first half accuracy was on full display to send the team in blue to the tents with the 4-3 lead.
Maintaining their formidable performance, Park Place opened the second half with three unanswered, as their well-structured defense held Poroto Cambiaso to only two-goals in the fifth chukka. Faced with a four-goal deficit entering the sixth, a combined effort from Panelo in the field and the youngest Cambiaso at the line kept Scone in contention, but two more from Perry and Pieres was all Park Place needed to hang on for the 11-8 victory. Forging one step closer to defending their British Open Polo Championship title, Park Place were also the recipients of the Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha Memorial Trophy.
British Open Polo Championship for the Cowdray Gold Cup Semifinals:
Wednesday, July 19
Dubai vs Marques de Riscal at 12:00pm (BST)
UAE vs Park Place at 4:00pm (BST)
Photo Credit: ©Mark Beaumont