La Magdeleine 11 – 8 Scone Polo Zacara
Park Place Vaara 11 – 9 King Power The Duke’s Ground
With two spots remaining for Wednesday’s Cartier Queen’s Cup semi-finals still up for grabs, an undefeated Scone Polo began Sunday’s action at Zacara against the 2-2 La Magdeleine. Alexandre Garese’s La Magdeleine struck first, blanking Scone Polo from the scoreboard while posting back-to-back goals from Min Podesta and Pablo MacDonough. Mounting a response for Scone Polo in the second chukka, goals from Adolfo Cambiaso Snr in the field and Poroto Cambiaso from the penalty line brought the match back level 2-2, only to be answered once more by MacDonough and Podesta. Scone Polo found themselves in a similar situation to the previous chukka and again relied on the Cambiaso duo. They contributed one more goal each, including a Penalty 1 for Adolfo to tie the match at 4-4 entering half-time. Creating some much-needed separation in the fourth chukka Ollie Cudmore initiated the scoring for La Magdeleine, to be followed by two goals from MacDonough from both the field and 30-yard line. La Magdeleine’s defence was an emerging storyline as Scone Polo would score just two goals from the field on 12 shots, putting immense pressure on Scone’s penalty taking to keep pace in the second half. Two crucial penalty conversions from the Cambiasos brought Scone Polo back to within two goals, but it was short-lived as La Magdeleine’s success in open play resulted in goals from Podesta and MacDonough to put La Magdeleine ahead 10-6. Adolfo and Poroto Cambiaso made one last push for a final chukka comeback that included Adolfo’s third penalty conversion of the match but despite these efforts, Podesta’s fifth goal in one of his best performances of the season sealed an 11-8 victory and guaranteed La Magdeleine’s place in Wednesday’s semi-finals.
With one of Andrey Borodin’s Park Place teams already in the semis, his second team, Park Place Vaara were looking to claim the final spot in a match against King Power on The Duke’s Ground. Executing a flawless knock-in, King Power opened the scoring as Mackenzie Weisz fought off Hilario Ulloa to run the ball through the goal. Park Place Vaara responded with consecutive goals from Ulloa and Juan Britos to hold a narrow 2-1 lead. Returning to the King Power line-up for the first time in three games, Nico Pieres brought King Power back to even in a match that was continuing to go back and forth. James Harper kickstarted a run for King Power with consecutive goals in a fast-paced second chukka to inch King Power ahead by one. It was evident though that these two teams were closely matched as Park Place Vaara erased the deficit in the third chukka to tie the game at 6-all. After feeling unwell at the start of the fourth, Britos then stepped up for Park Place Vaara, firing through two goals, including a nice cut shot to hold a two-goal advantage. Their defence stood strong too, keeping King Power off the scoreboard. However, Park Place Vaara’s lead evaporated after Weisz impressively ran a throw-in straight to goal and Pieres successfully fought through multiple defenders as one chukka remained to determine the last semi-finalist. A missed Penalty 4 from King Power opened the door for Park Place Vaara, with Britos scoring from distance and then drawing a foul in front of goal to add a penalty conversion. With just three minutes left, King Power charged down the field but Park Place Vaara produced some strong defensive play, including a backhand from Santos Merlos off the goal line, to secure a hard-fought, 11-9 victory and claim the fourth and final spot for Wednesday’s semi-finals.
Wednesday’s Semifinal Fixtures
12:00 pm – Park Place vs Great Oaks LL at Guards Polo Club. The winner of this game will receive the Hubert Perrodo Trophy.
4:00 pm – La Magdeleine vs Park Place Vaara at Guards Polo Club. The winner of this game will receive the Kerry Packer Trophy.
All games are being livestreamed by Guards TV in association with Polocam TV. Go to https://guards.polocam.tv/package
