Semi Finals take place for the low, medium and high goal categories at Santa Maria Polo Club
The Semi Finals are over and Sotogrande is gearing up for a weekend of Finals. Polo Times takes a look at the finalists, plus a little sneak peek at where the Brits have got to out here in sunny Spain.
Starting with the low goal and it’s another Final for La Clarita, the Brit team who have taken everyone by surprise and are now going for the Triple Crown. Clare and Chris Mathias along with talented 3 goalers Freddie Horne and Juan Cruz Merlos have taken the low goal by storm, beating everyone to reach their third Final of the tournament. On Tuesday 25 August they beat former Final opponents Opel – John Smith, 9-8 in a tense match that ended up a lot closer than they would have liked. They will play Valdeparras – Lynx (who beat GSA 7-6) on the evening of Friday 28 on the fields of Los Pinos.
The Brits of the medium goal tournament have not enjoyed such success, as England Captain James Beim’s team Equus, featuring young star Kian Hall, lost to Golden Goose Deluxe Brand in the Semi Final on Tuesday 25 August. Malcolm Borwick’s Opel – Royal Salute will be playing the Subsidiary Final on Friday just before the Final between Golden Goose Deluxe Brand and Sainte Mesme takes place.
It was all drama for the only Brits in the high goal section, James Harper and Max Charlton, their season ending in a high tension match with Dos Lunas in the Subsidiary Semi Final. Tempers were flaring during the game and resulted in the La Indiana Patron, Micheal Bickford receiving a red card. Sent off for the rest of the match a scrabble ensued to find a suitable replacement and it was Luciano Irarrazabal who took the 1 goaler’s place in the team, but La Indiana couldn’t get it together and lost 15-13 to the Dos Lunas side.
The Semi Finals were less dramatic with unsurprising wins from Dubai and Lechuza Caracas who will go through to face each other once again in the Final on Saturday 29 August.
Photograph: Chukka break team talk for La Clarita in the Gold Cup Semi Finals. By Katie Vickery
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