T H E W E S T C H E S T E R C U P
M AT C H E S R E T U R N I N G T O
B R I TA I N M A R K E D T H E
T U R N I N G O F A P A G E A N D
A H A R B I N G E R O F P O L O
M A K I N G A R E V I VA L
Opposite
: The trophy is posed
with the Star-Spangled Banner.
This page
: A programme from the
day in June 1921 at the Hurlingham
Club, with hand-written scores
The Westchester Cup matches returning
to Britain marked the turning of a page
and a harbinger of polo making a revival,
in which pomp and circumstance were
supplanting austerity and mourning.
While on opposing sides, British and
American polo players personified the
ethos of gallant sportsmanship. And, though
pride and competitive spirit were always at
the fore, these men were gentleman in the
truest sense of the word; virtue and victory
held equal import.
Before Britain’s erstwhile victory, in
a gesture that epitomised the camaraderie
that existed between the two sides, when the
late Captain Cheape broke his nose, the 1914
match had been postponed at the Americans’
request. This kind of spirit would again be
prominent in 1921.
‘The first and foremost point to be
stored in our memories in connection with
the 1914 International matches is the good
sportsmanship of the Americans,’ wrote
British umpire Keith Markham in
Polo Monthly
.
‘I trust they know by now how their action
is appreciated and lauded by all the English.’
Now, the back of the greatest back of all time
put America’s chances in peril. American
team captain, and legendary back Devereux
Milburn – the lone holdover from the famed
‘big four’ along with HP Whitney and
the Waterbury brothers who won the last
International at Hurlingham – had
succumbed to a back injury. Arriving just days
before the match, Milburn said he was ‘not
confident but hopeful [he] could play’.
The British four, recalling the grace of
the Americans that typified polo of the era,
offered to postpone the match, but it went on
as scheduled. When the procession of ponies
cantered onto the pitch, Milburn was in the
saddle, joined by Webb, Louis Stoddard and
wunderkind Tommy Hitchcock, determined
to avenge their loss.
Though resolute, ‘the sportsmanship
shown by the Americans in readily assenting
to [English WWI veteran Beauvoir De Lisle’s]
selection as the arbiter of the contests has
evoked the warmest approval of the British
public,’ noted the Associated Press (AP).
Again, good will and competitive spirit
were in harmony.
Webb for one, a dogged competitor, took
the match as the most important of his life.
The Vanderbilt heir arrived three months
early with his family in tow and rented
an estate complete with lawn tennis and
a polo field, just to acclimate him and his
treasured ponies to the slower British fields.
He practised daily.
Britain still boasted three members from
the 1914 team: 10-goaler and team captain
Vivian Lockett, Frederick Barrett, who played
at nine goals, and Henry Archdale Tomkinson,
an eight-goaler. Lord Wodehouse, a 10-goal
player who, along with Major Barrett and
Lockett won the gold medal at the 1920
Olympics, replaced the fallen captain Cheape.
The Hurlingham Club spared no
expense to ensure the splendour of the affair.
The Americans were made honorary members
of Buck’s Club and treated to a luncheon with
the King. Unfortunately, the hobbled Milburn
could not attend. Hurlingham even built
extra grandstands and played host to another
luncheon for 1,200 and a tea for 5,000.
Majesty and splendour were making a return
via the Game of Kings.
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