Dubai have won the Gold Cup for the British Open Polo Championship for the sixth time. On Sunday 21 July, on the Lawns at Cowdray Park, they beat La Dolfina Great Oaks 11-3 in a final that was far more one-sided than we had expected.
The line-ups
Dubai were captained by Camilo “Jeta” Castagnola, with Rashid Albwardy, Antonio Heguy and Beltran Laulhe. La Dolfina Great Oaks fielded Dillon Bacon, Kian Hall, Diego Cavanagh and Adolfo Cambiaso Jnr. Eighteen teams took part in the tournament.
Castagnola takes over
The main story was the performance of Jeta Castagnola. He scored eight of Dubai’s goals, seven of them from open play, and was named Most Valuable Player. His prizes included a £1,000 voucher and a Yeti cooler, which sounds a little modest for a man who has just won the Gold Cup. The Best Playing Pony award went to Alberta Gulfstream, who was ridden by Castagnola and is owned by the Dubai Polo Team. The Best Playing Patron Pony was Dubai Chalita, ridden by Rashid Albwardy, who is also a Dubai Polo Team animal.
Redemption for Dubai
For Dubai, this was a very satisfying day. They had lost last year’s final by a single goal, to the UAE, and they came back this time with a thoroughly convincing performance. This was their sixth Gold Cup title. Sophie Turner presented the trophy to Albwardy.
Our view
An 11-3 scoreline in the biggest final of the English season is rare. The usual story at Cowdray is a tight game that ends in the final seconds, as it did last year, and La Dolfina Great Oaks had been unlucky to lose narrowly to Talandracas in the Queen’s Cup only five weeks earlier.
The big trophy has found its home for the year. England’s focus now turns to International Day at Guards on Saturday, when the national team face Argentina in the Coronation Cup, and we will report on that afterwards.
Sources: Cowdray Park Polo Club
