Park Place and VS King Power Claim Remaining Semi-Final Spots in Cartier Queen’s Cup
The remaining quarter-finals in the 2019 Cartier Queen’s Cup began with an exciting 9-8 overtime victory for Park Place over UAE on the Castle Ground at Flemish Farm, while VS King Power claimed the 13-10 victory over Dubai on the Queen’s Ground at Guards Polo Club to capture the final semi-final spot.
The opening semi-final of the day produced a fast-paced match that resulted in an impressive comeback from Park Place to force overtime and ultimately claim victory. Despite producing more opportunities from the field and holding the foul advantage, UAE shot just 43% from the field keeping Park Place in the game as they converted four of their final five shots off the mallets of Juan Britos and Hilario Ulloa. The duo for Park Place were effective from the opening chukka, erasing UAE’s one goal lead on handicap, with two goals from Britos, both assisted by Ulloa to hold an early 2-1 lead. UAE responded with a relentless attack for the remainder of the first half, outshooting Park Place 7-3, with Santiago Toccalino igniting the offense with a goal and an assist while limiting Park Place’s counterattack to hold a slim 5-4 lead.
Early fouls committed by Park Place to begin the second half favoured UAE, who continued their momentum to extend their lead to three. Lucas Monteverde Jr scored his second goal of the game as an active receiver downfield, while Park Place continued to struggle generating offense, scoring just two goals over the previous three chukkas. Sapo Caset effectively kept the Park Place offense contained, allowing Santiago Toccalino to drive forward and maintain their three-goal advantage leading into the final chukka. Britos began the comeback with a field goal, quickly following up with an assist to Ulloa to cut the deficit to just one. A Park Place drive downfield resulted in a Penalty 2 conversion, sending the outcome into overtime. Causing a turnover on a knock-in, Ulloa shot from over 60 yards out, finding the goal and sending Park Place into the semi-finals with the thrilling 9-8 victory.
The last quarter-final of the 2019 Cartier Queen’s Cup featured a tale of two halves, with Dubai controlling play throughout the opening half, only to fall into foul trouble allowing VS King Power to pull away behind four penalty goals from Polito Pieres and accurate 69% shooting from the field. The opening two chukkas provided end-to-end action with zero fouls committed by both teams and Dubai striving to build on their two-goal handicap advantage. VS King Power dominated the throw-in line, winning four of five in the first chukka to produce a balanced offense resulting in a field goal each from Pieres, Juan Martin Zubia and Marcos Di Paola. The duo of Camilo and Bartolome Castagnola provided difficulties for the VS King Power defence, combining for three goals and three assists in the second and third chukkas, pushing Dubai into the 8-5 lead with just three chukkas left to claim a spot in the semi-finals.
The pace slowed in the second half due to foul trouble from Dubai, as the pressure from VS King Power led to consistent offense from the penalty line. A penalty 2 conversion for Pieres helped reduce the deficit to just one as Dubai was held off the scoreboard due to fouls giving VS King Power the field advantage. Pieres continued to lead VS King Power back into the game, adding a Penalty 4 conversion and field goal, while Dubai’s Camilo Castagnola added his third goal of the game, leaving the score tied with just one chukka remaining. Quickly scoring on the opening throw-in, Ignatius Du Plessis gave Dubai the lead, but VS King Power was unwilling to concede defeat, with a dominant attack to finish the game. Three unanswered goals from Pieres, two from the penalty line, gave VS King Power their first lead since the opening chukka to complete the comeback and claim the last spot in the semi-finals with the 13-10 victory.