Despite the rain it was a weekend of frenetic activity at Guards Polo Club with The Cartier Queen’s Cup Quarter Finals being played.
Saturday 19 June saw rain force the Polo Office to move the first match to the Club’s Queen’s Ground, which was the host of one of the most memorable matches of the tournament so far. Although Scone Polo eventually won the match with a 9-7 score against King Power, the final result could have gone either way, with all eight players contributing to the play. The second Quarter Final on Saturday saw a repeat of the league match on Wednesday, with Monterosso once again beating White Crane, this time with a score of 12-9.
Sunday 20 June was a day filled with success for UAE Polo, with both of HH Sheikha Maitha’s teams earning themselves a place in Wednesday’s Semi Finals. The first match was a close contest between UAE Polo Team and Murus Sanctus-La Magdeleine at the Zacara Polo Fields, with each team matching each other throughout. Going into the sixth chukka UAE led 9-7, but Caset levelled the scores to 9-9 with two converted penalties, pushing the match into a seventh chukka. Within 30 seconds of the extra chukka UAE were awarded a penalty which Polito Pieres converted with ease to put UAE Polo into the Semi Finals.
The second match, saw the second UAE team compete, this time vs Park Place at Les Lions. The pressure was on for Park Place who were no doubt keen to secure their fourth consecutive Queen’s Cup Final place. UAE Polo II were the underdogs going into the match, having secured their place via last Wednesday’s penalty shootout. At half-time the scores were 6-6, Park Place put themselves ahead with three goals in the fourth chukka and with UAE II failing to score in this chukka, everyone presumed this would be the time Park Place turned on the turbo chargers to power ahead. However, this was not the case and there was plenty of drama in the fifth chukka, with Lucas Monteverde Jr sent to the sin bin after two yellow cards; Park Place failed to take advantage of their opposition being a man down, while Alfredo Capella converted two penalties to close the gap. Park Place failed to score at all in the sixth chukka, while Capella and Monteverde scored goals to bring UAE II level again. Just after the first bell rang out Capella was awarded a 40 yard penalty and just as he had remained calm and collected in Wednesday’s penalty shootout, he gave a similar performance yesterday, scoring the winning goal in the sixth chukka and taking their place in the Semi Finals on Wednesday.
The Semi Finals are scheduled for Wednesday 23 June with Scone Polo vs Monterosso at 12pm for The Hubert Perrodo Trophy, followed by UAE Polo vs UAE Polo II at 4pm for The Kerry Packer Trophy. Please note that in light of the recent Government announcement, extending lockdown for a further four weeks, Guards Polo Club has decided that The Cartier Queen’s Cup Semi Finals on Wednesday 23 June will be a Members’ only event, with only Members badges and Members’ guest badges valid on the day.
The Cartier Queen’s Cup Semi Final Teams:
Scone Polo (22): David Paradice (0), Poroto Cambiaso (6), Isidro Strada (6) & Adolfo Cambiaso (10)
Monterosso (22): Alessandro Bazzoni (1), Mackenzie Weisz (4), David Stirling (9) & Ignacio ‘Cubi’ Toccalino (8)
UAE (22): HH Sheikha Maitha bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (0), Tomas Panelo (6), Polito Pieres (9) & Tomas Beresford (7)
UAE II (22): Hugo Taylor (3), Lucas ‘Lukin’ Monteverde Jnr (5), Alfredo Cappella (8) & Jaime García Huidobro (6)
Photograph: UAE Polo II’s Jaime Garcia Huidobro vs Park Place’s Will Harper. By ©www.imagesofpolo.com