Zedan and Bin Drai will play the The McLaren Cup final
Zedan and Bin Drai Polo will play the final of The McLaren Cup after winning this afternoon their respectives matchs in semifinals against UAE Polo and Wolves.
Zedan defeated UAE Polo by 12 goals to 8 and Bin Drai Polo did the same with Wolves by 9-5.
After two great semifinals, Zedan and Bin Drai, that already played in the qualifying round (BD won by 10-8) will meet next Friday for the deciding match of the first trophy of the Dubai Polo Gold Cup Series.
It was also a great day for the patrons with Amr Zedan (Zedan), Sheika Maitha (UAE Polo) and Saeed Bin Drai (Bin Drai Polo) scoring two goals each in their respective matches.
In the first semifinal, Zedan had to battle hard to defeat always complicated UAE Polo Team. Patron Sheika Maitha ́s team had a great start taking the lead by 4 goals to 2 in the first chukka and increasing the gap during the first minutes of the second period.
That was till Pablo Mac Donough, the ten goaler and Triple Crown winner with La Dolfina, put full power to his engine to score four consecutive goals and give Zedan the lead by one (6-5) at the end of the second chukka.
In the second half, patron Amr Zedan ́s team achieved to take control of the match to secure the victory and the ticket to the Mc Laren Cup final.
Pablo Mac Donough was the top scorer of the match with 8 goals and Jack Hyde, with 3 goals, the top scorer in UAE Polo.
Match progression:
Zedan: 2-4/ 6-5/ 7-7/ 10-7/ 12-8
In the second semifinal, things were a little bit more easy for Bin Drai despite of the continuous struggling of the Wolves team.
In the second half, the talented Guille Terrera led Bin Drai ́s team to the victory with great performance well supported by his teammates.
Raúl Laplacette with 4 goals was the top scorer of the match and Diego Araya, scoring 3, the top scorer for Wolves team.
Match progression:
Bin Drai: 2-2/ 4-2/ 6-3/ 8-3/ 9-5
Dubai Polo Gold Cup Series (Dubai Open), an 18 Goal Handicap competition, enters its seventh year under the Patronage of HH Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai. The tournament is now the highest handicap in the UAE.
The Dubai Open has been split into two tournaments. Starting with the McLaren Cup 2016, which runs from Friday January 22, 2016 to Friday February 5, 2016. The second tournament, the Julius Baer Gold Cup, commences on Friday, February 19, 2016 to Friday March 11, 2016.
The Dubai Polo Gold Cup Series is the fourth-largest tournament of its kind after Argentina, the US and the UK. First founded by Mohammed Al Habtoor in 2009, the tournament is the premier regional polo competition of the year, and attracts VIPs, society figures, and senior corporate executives from across the GCC. It has grown in tandem with the city of Dubai and since 2012, it is the only tournament in the UAE to be recognized and certified by the World Polo Tour (WPT).
It is played under the banner of the Hurlingham Polo Association (HPA), with the Gold Cup being played according to HPA rules and the provision of umpires is managed under strict international supervision by the HPA.
The participating teams will host some of the top-ranking World Polo Tour players, including Pablo Mac Donough, the 10-goal superstar and two-time ‘Triple Crown Champion with La Dolfina’; Lucas Montverde (9-goal handicap); Guillermo Terrera (8-goal handicap), Alfredo Cappella Barabucci (8-goal handicap) and Alejandro Novillo Astrada (8-goal handicap) and many others. The Dubai Polo Gold Cup will be held at the Dubai Polo & Equestrian Club in Arabian Ranches.
Six polo teams will be participating in the McLaren Cup 2016 18-goal handicap:
Mahra Polo – Patron: Rashid Al Habtoor
Bin Drai Polo Team – Patron: Saeed Bin Drai
Habtoor Polo Team – Patron: Mohammed Al Habtoor
UAE Polo Team – Patron: Her Highness Sheikha Maitha bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
Zedan Polo Team – Patron: Amr Zedan
Habtoor Wolves Polo Team – Patron: Ahmed Mohammed Al Habtoor / Khalaf Rashid Al Habtoor