The qualifying rounds for the Cartier Queen’s Cup are heating up, with some teams beginning to dominate while some surprises have also been in store for spectators. Saturday 24th of May was another triple header with plenty of high goal drama for the crowds to soak up.
Match 1:
The Teams:
The first of today’s three games was an impressive 12-9 win for King Power, continuing their unbeaten run in this year’s tournament. Both King Power and La Magdeleine were tied, neck and neck, in the first half of this game. King Power then accelerated away in the second half to give themselves an impressive five-goal lead. Some great play from Pablo MacDonough and Ricardo Garros delivered results while England international Tommy Beresford fired through three goals. La Magdeleine stayed focused and started to close the gap in the sixth chukka, scoring two goals back-to-back off the sticks of Facundo Fernandez Llorente and Min Podesta. Jeronimo del Carril, who had spent much of this match battling Beresford, also found the flags at the end of the chukka but it was too late. King Power’s remarkable fourth chukka goal-fest had been enough.
Chukka Breakdown:
Score Progression:
Game Statistics:
Match 2:
The Teams:
Next up was an equally tight affair between Sunjay Kapur’s Aureus and Alexie Calvert-Ansari’s White Crane. Aureus were looking for their first win after losing by a goal to King Power earlier in the week. For White Crane this was their first outing in this year’s competition, and they were leading 5-4 at half-time. Fortunes switched in the second half with Aureus pulling away. A penalty plus a field goal from Benjamin Panelo gave Aureus a 7-6 lead after the fourth. He continued his assault on goal, joined by his brother Tomy, giving Aureus a comfortable 10-7 lead at the end of the fifth. Pablo Pieres and Matt Perry worked hard to get White Crane back into this game in the sixth but time was against them. To confirm Aureus’s superiority in the match, Kapur delivered a fine run down the field to score just before the final bell.
Chukka Breakdown:
Score Progression:
Game Statistics:
Match 3:
The Teams:
The final game of the day saw Kazak and Sujan Indian Tigers battling for both league status and the Royal Windsor Horse Show Cup. This was another closely fought game. Jaisal Singh’s Tigers won the battle 9-8 but Kazak were in contention every step of the way. In fact Sujan Indian Tigers were only ahead at the end of the sixth chukka. In every other chukka break Kazak were either ahead by one goal or the teams were level. Kazak, in their first Cartier Queen’s Cup tournament, had lost by the narrowest of margins in their opening match and they will be disappointed that the same has happened here this afternoon on The Duke’s Ground at Guards Polo Club. Jo Peck, Media Director for the Royal Windsor Horse Show, presented the Royal Windsor Horse Show Cup to a delighted Jaisal Singh.
Chukka Breakdown:
Score Progression:
Game Statistics:
All games of the Queens’s Cup can be seen here
Polocam.tv – Quality Streaming Service
Image credit Pablo Ramirez
Stats provided by International Polo Academy