The last day of the league matches for the 2026 edition of the Cartier Queen’s Cup was full of drama. Firstly there was an additional game on the match card as the Polo Office had to reschedule the previous day’s postponed UAE v Ojo Caliente contest. The weather added to the excitement, with players battling heavy rain, strong winds and bright sunshine all in the space of five minutes and Group Two had to be decided by a four-way penalty shootout!
Balanz Capital were already through to the quarters and this match just confirmed their dominance in League Three, defeating Sujan Indian Tigers 12-9. Jemima Walker was playing in place of Jaisal Singh and the Tigers fought until the final bell but struggled to contain the Balanz team in the second half. Sujan Indian Tigers were the first off the mark, with a goal in the first minute off the stick of Juan Martin Zubia and they successfully kept Balanz Capital in check in the first half. Scores were level 4-4 at half-time. Claudio Porcel’s team then pulled away in the second half. Juan Britos scored early into the fourth for the Tigers before Jeta Castagnola and Lorenzo Chavanne fired through five goals between them. Zubia got two back in the fifth but Castagnola and Chavanne continued to impress. Zubia delivered a double in the sixth chukka, the only player to score in this period, but the Castagnola/Chavanne double act had done its work and Balanz Capital head unbeaten to the quarters.
Image credit: Art of Polo
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Second Match
Next up was a tense game between Ojo Caliente and UAE Polo Team. The winner of this match knew they would have to compete in a four-way penalty shootout later in the afternoon to continue to the quarters. With so much at stake it was not surprising that this game was strewn with penalties. Ojo Caliente struggled to get on terms with a resurgent UAE Polo Team. Juan Martin Nero seemed to gain possession of the ball at every turn while team-mate Lucas Monteverde Jnr fired through the goals. The score was 8-3 in favour of UAE at half-time and although Ojo Caliente came back strongly in the sixth, Facundo Sola scoring four goals, it was not enough to change the outcome of this game.
The penalty shootout for Group Two was held immediately after this game, featuring Black Bears (Tomas Panelo), Ferne Park (Facundo Pieres), Kazak (Nico Pieres) and UAE Polo Team (Lucas Monteverde Jnr). All four teams had finished the league stages on two wins and two losses. The Pieres brothers came out top in this nail-biting contest, ensuring Ferne Park and Kazak’s Cartier Queen’s Cup adventures continues.
Image credit: Art of Polo
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Third Match
The final game of the day was a real thriller – Park Place v Akasha. There was plenty at stake and the result was a great game. The winner would head into the quarter-finals while the loser would be heading home. Park Place dominated the first two chukkas, with Hilario Ulloa delivering some wonderful polo. Park Place, the defending champions, were 6-4 up at the end of the second but had to settle for a draw (8-8) at half-time. Pablo MacDonough, who scored 13 of Akasha’s 14 goals, was now proving harder to manage. He was superb at making the most of any space. Four goals in the fourth chukka, to only one in reply off the stick of Andrey Borodin, emphasised Akasha’s intent. Louis Hine galvanised the Park Place squad in the fifth by scoring back-to-back goals and the sixth saw MacDonough and Ulloa scoring to level the scores and push this match into overtime. The spectators were hoping this chukka would run for a while – it had been such a great game – but a foul from Jeronimo del Carril gave MacDonough the opportunity to fire through a 40-yard penalty to win the game and that all-important ticket to the weekend’s quarter-finals.
Image credit: Art of Polo
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Stats provided by https://poloreport.com/