As we near the end of the qualifying rounds of the British Open Polo Championship for the Cowdray Gold Cup, the action is heating up and with 1 team now out of the running we wait to see how the chips will fall for the final teams battling it out for their spot in the quarter finals.
Match 1:
First up was an exciting match which pitched two evenly matched teams against each other. Both Aureus GV and Calatagan had a win and a loss in hand heading into this match and with tricky final matches, this was a key result, both teams needing the win. It was tight throughout, neither team managing to make any breakaways on the scoreboard and with the lead and possession changing throughout it was anyone’s game. It was even going into the final chukka and with 2 goals apiece in the 6th it all came down to extra chukka. With the pressure on it was Aureus GV that proved themselves calm and collected under pressure, slotting home the all important golden goal to take the win.
Match 2:
Another upset in the second match saw Jehangiri Polo overcome Queen’s Cup winners Park Place, leaving the boys in blue without a win in the tournament and out of the running for the quarter finals while, new to the high goal, Jehangiri have only lost 1 game so far, to UAE Polo. Jehangiri dominated throughout the game, starting early with a lead they maintained until the final buzzer, neutralising any Park Place attacking threat and able to get free up front for nice, running goals. While both teams had opportunities at goal, it was Jehangiri who showed themselves to be cool under pressure, slotting home 9 out of 19 from the field while Park Place seemed unable to find the posts with only 3 out of 14 shots converted. Park Place were unable to score in chukkas 4 and 5, allowing Jehangiri to extend their lead resulting in a comfortable win.
Watch all Gold Cup matches here: https://cowdraypolo.co.uk/cowdray-tv/
Image credit Mark Beaumont
Stats provided by International Polo Academy