Dubai Polo Team

Park Place Vaara 12 – 9 La Magdeleine  The Duke’s Ground 
Dubai Polo Team 17 – 13 Clinova  Billingbear Park 

The second week of the Cartier Queen’s Cup began with Park Place Vaara meeting La Magdeleine in a League One matchup on The Duke’s Ground at Guards Polo Club. A game of contrasting styles, Park Place Vaara excelled from the field, while La Magdeleine found most of their attack from the penalty shooting of Pablo MacDonough. Striking early in the first chukka, MacDonough produced three penalty goals to give his team the 3-1 advantage but Park Place Vaara stormed back to take the lead just one chukka later. Holding La Magdeleine without a shot or penalty attempt in the chukka, Park Place Vaara pushed forward, receiving one goal each from Hilario Ulloa and Juan Britos. However the highlight of the chukka came as time was expiring when Santos Merlos picked up the ball on his own 60-yard line and ran the length of the field, running past MacDonough to finish the play and give Park Place Vaara a 4-3 lead. MacDonough’s fourth penalty conversion brought the game level once again at half-time as La Magdeleine would score all but two of their goals from the penalty line. In the decisive moment of the match, Park Place Vaara scored four goals in the fourth chukka, two off the mallet of Britos to take a significant three-goal lead. Scoring all 12 of their goals from the field, the proficient Park Place Vaara attack guided them to victory as perfect 7 for 7 penalty shooting from MacDonough was not enough to avoid La Magdeleine experiencing a 12-9 defeat. 

 

 

Striving to be the first team to three wins in the tournament, Rashid Albwardy’s Dubai Polo Team faced Clinova at Billingbear Park, picking up where they left off with a dynamic attack led by nine goals from Camilo Castagnola. Executing an exceptional two-man game with Castagnola and Guillermo Terrera, Dubai Polo Team scored five field goals in the first two chukkas of play.  This fast pace was matched by a determined Clinova side though that answered with five goals of their own as each team capitalised on their chances around goal. After Castagnola and Malcolm Borwick exchanged penalty goals to begin the third chukka, Albwardy scored his first of two goals in the game to complete a strong Dubai half with an 8-6 lead. The high-scoring game carried into the second half, but Dubai continued to have the edge as the ball moved at an electric pace. Shooting an impressive 72% from the field, Dubai Polo Team pushed their lead to five after three more goals from Castagnola and Perry’s first goal of the match. Despite some good attacking play of their own, with 10 goals through five chukkas, Clinova faced a difficult task with one chukka remaining. Two goals from Luke Wiles highlighted a final push from Clinova but the deficit was too great to overcome as Dubai Polo Team not only secured their third win but set themselves up for a highly anticipated match on Friday against Park Place Vaara for the top spot in League One. 

Wednesday’s Fixtures 

12:30 pm – Monterosso vs Marques de Riscal on The Queen’s Ground
3:30 pm – Twelve Oaks vs UAE Polo Team on The Princes’ Ground

All games are being livestreamed by Guards TV in association with Polocam TV. Go to https://guards.polocam.tv/package

Photos by IMAGES OF POLO
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Dubai Polo Team 16 – 12 Thai Polo NP Coworth Park 1
La Magdeleine 14 – 11 Clinova Prince’s Ground 

Looking to keep their early momentum flowing following a win against La Magdeleine, Dubai Polo Team was back in action in the Cartier Queen’s Cup at Coworth Park 1 against Thai Polo NP. Leading his team in scoring, Camilo Castagnola was quick to get Dubai on the scoreboard with two penalty conversions from the 30-yard line. A battle from the penalty line emerged as Thai Polo NP’s Ned Hine answered Castagnola’s success with two conversions of his own, followed by goals from brother Louis and Ignacio Negri. Accounting for five of Dubai’s first half goals, including four from the penalty line, the strong play of Castagnola saw Dubai take a narrow, one-goal lead going into the half-time break. In a match which saw 25 fouls between the two teams, Castagnola and Ned Hine once again traded conversions in the fourth chukka, with a drive from Matt Perry breaking the stalemate to keep Dubai ahead 10-8. In arguably the most defining moment of the match, Castagnola found some space to score three consecutive goals and put Dubai ahead by five. Despite a late push from Ned Hine with three goals in the final chukka, Castagnola finished his day with an astounding 11 goals, moving into second in tournament scoring and ensuring Dubai Polo Team remain undefeated, winning this match 16-12. 

Last playing in the Cartier Queen’s Cup in 2018, Clinova returned to the high-goal stage with a 2022 debut on the Prince’s Ground. The team had changed from the published line up, with six-goal, American player Jared Zenni, making his Queen’s Cup debut and young Englishman Luke Wiles (4 goals) teaming up with Alejandro Muzzio and Malcolm Borwick. Their opponents this afternoon were a determined La Magdeleine team led by Pablo MacDonough. Searching for their first win of the tournament, La Magdeleine took an early lead after first chukka foul trouble for Clinova resulted in three penalty conversions for MacDonough. Responding for Clinova, a combined effort from Muzzio and Borwick kept the score tied at 3-all. With only 15 shots combined from the field in the first half of play, the success of both teams from the penalty line defined play, as Borwick’s five first half conversions pushed Clinova ahead by one, leading 8-7 at half-time. After nearly three minutes of goaless play to begin the second half, an exceptional knock-in for La Magdeleine sprung Ollie Cudmore on the breakaway to tie the match. Quickly adding two more to their tally, La Magdeleine surged ahead, but this closely contested match carried into the final chukka. Borwick opened the scoring for Clinova in the final chukka to bring the game level for the seventh time.  Extra time now seemed likely. However, La Magdeleine turned to tournament-scoring leader Pablo MacDonough, who completed two crucial penalty conversions to secure a hard-fought 14-11 victory.  

Tomorrow’s Fixtures – Saturday May 21

11:30 am – King Power vs Twelve Oaks at Noel Farm – SL6 2NW
3:30 pm – Monterosso vs UAE Polo Team at TBC

All games are being livestreamed by Guards TV in association with Polocam TV. Go to https://guards.polocam.tv/package

Photos by IMAGES OF POLO
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Park Place Vaara 20 – 11 Thai Polo NP Princes’ Ground Guards Polo Club
Dubai Polo Team 12 – 11 La Magdeleine Dukes Ground Guards Polo Club

The prestigious Cartier Queens Cup tournament began today with the first 22-goal match on Guards Polo Club’s new Princes’ Ground. The result was a successful Park Place Vaara debut in an impressive match against Thai Polo NP. Coming off a successful season in the USA for Park Place, Hilario Ulloa, Juan Britos, Josh Hyde and new addition to the team, Santos Merlos, drew upon established chemistry to give Park Place Vaara a first half lead (8-6). Combining for all eight of their team’s goals, Ulloa and Britos were relentless towards goal with Ulloa adding two penalty conversions. Trying to recapture the magic from last year, Thai Polo NP responded with the Hine brothers, Ned and Louis, answering with six goals to trail by just two at the end of the high-scoring first half. Always ahead in this game, Park Place Vaara surged out of the half-time break with an 11-1 run that was led by perfect 7 for 7 shooting in the game from Ulloa. Despite eight penalty conversions from Ned Hine, Thai Polo NP were unable to slow the electric Park Place Vaara attack as Ulloa finished with a game-high 11 goals to claim an impressive 20-11 victory.

Moving to The Duke’s Ground for the second match of the opening day, the return of Rashid Albwardy’s Dubai Polo Team to the high-goal stage provided a nail-biting game that came down to the final moments. A competitive opening half featured a back and forth start to the match with the two teams exchanging goals to remain tied through the first two chukkas. Five goals from La Magdeleine’s Pablo MacDonough paced his team’s attack, including three successful penalty conversions, while Dubai Polo Team were unable to convert any of their first four penalty attempts. Regrouping in the third chukka, Camilo Castagnola drove forward to score his second and third goals of the first half to give Dubai a narrow 7-5 lead at half-time. Creating separation in the second half, Castagnola continued his success from the field, adding an additional four goals on just five shots, while an organised defence held La Magdeleine to just two goals from MacDonough over the fourth and fifth chukkas. Holding a three-goal lead and just one chukka away from victory, Dubai faced unrelenting pressure from La Magdeleine, who brought the game back within one thanks to an incredible shot from distance by MacDonough with just one minute of the match remaining. Time was now La Madeleine’s enemy and on the bell Dubai Polo Team were ensured a successful return to Guards Polo Club, winning this match 12-11. 

Tomorrow’s fixtures – Wednesday 18 May

11.30am: Twelve Oaks v Monterosso at Castle Ground, Flemish Farm
3pm: King Power v Marques de Riscal at King Power 

All games are being streamed by Guards TV in association with Polocam TV. Go to https://guards.polocam.tv/package

Action in the Queen’s Cup continues May 18, with Twelve Oaks facing Monterosso followed by King Power against Marques de Riscal.  

Photos by IMAGES OF POLO

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