Fox & Hounds sneak past EFG Bank Aravali, 7-6; Zacara averts upset for third win

By Alex Webbe

The Fox & Hounds (Max Routledge, George Meyrick, Jack Richardson and Tom Morley) scored a 7-6 win over EFG Bank Aravali (Jaime Garcia Huidobro, Alejandro Muzzio, Joaquin Pittaluga and Charlie Pidgley) Thursday afternoon at Coworth Polo Club, but they didn’t make it look easy.

Fox & Hounds rushed out to a 4-1 advantage after the first two chukkers with EFG Bank Aravali finding it difficult to break through the defense and put points on the scoreboard. Heavy grounds and misplaced divots were little help to the struggling team as they fell behind by three goals early on.

EFG Bank Aravali got into a rhythm that garnered them four goals in the third chukker while shutting out the Fox & Hounds attack. At the end of the first half EFG Bank Aravali was looking at a 5-4 lead.

The Fox and Hounds turned it up a notch in the fourth chukker, getting a pair of goals from Tom Morley while blanking the EFG Bank Aravali offense. The Fox & Hounds led after the fourth, 6-5.

With both teams concentrating on defense in the fifth, Alejandro Muzzio was allowed the only goal of the period. The bell sounded at the end of the chukker with EFG Bank Aravali and the Fox & Hounds deadlocked at 6-6.

Both defenses continued to excel as the minutes ticked away in the final chukker with neither team finding an answer. Jack Richardson finally managed to break through and score the winning goal for the 7-6 victory.

The victory boosted the Fox & Hounds record to 2-1 while the loss was the second for EFG Bank Aravali in as many outings. The Fox and Hounds will play their final league match on Wednesday, June 4^th against undefeated Dubai.

Zacara 10, King Power 9

Often sibling rivalries bring out the worst in brothers, but on Thursday afternoon it featured the best with Zacara 10-goaler Facundo Pieres managing to get the best of his older brother, King Power 10-goaler Gonzalito Pieres despite a stellar effort in a losing cause.

Zacara (Facundo Pieres, Lyndon Lea, Gonzalo Deltour and Matt Perry) took the field as the defending Cartier Queens Cup champion, averaging fifteen goals per game and boasting a 2-0 record. King Power (“Top” Srivaddhanaprabha, Pablo Llorente, Gonzalito Pieres and Marcos di Paola) entered the contest with an unassuming 1-1 record, but played like they were a title contender.

First chukker goals from Gonzalito Pieres and Marcos Di Paola went unanswered as King Power lurched out to an early 2-0 lead, but Zacara stormed back in the second. Matt Perry and Facundo Pieres scored two goals apiece while the limiting King Power to a single goal. Zacara had assumed the lead after the second frame, 4-3.

King Power was unable to mount an effective attack again in the third as Facundo Pieres scored twice for the 6-3 halftime advantage.

With spectators anticipating the second half surge that Zacara uses to finish off opponents, the offense stalled. King Power put up the only goal in the chukker, cutting the Zacara lead to two goals, 6-4. The King Power defense shut down Zacara for a second consecutive period in the fifth while putting up four goals of their own as Gonzalito Pieres looked to be in fine form. King Power rode off the field on top of an 8-6 score, with one period left to play.

Zacara regrouped for the final seven minutes of the match, displaying disciplined defense that allowed the King Power (1-2) attack a single goal while ringing up four scores of their own in the hard-fought 10-9 win.

The victory gives Zacara a 3-0 record with a final league match coming on Monday, June 2^nd against HB Polo (0-3).

Queens Cup action continues on Friday with a 3pm match between Sifani (Hilali Noordeen, Matias Torres Zavaleta, Nic Roldan and Juan Ambroggio) and Enigma (Jerome Wirth, Chris Mackenzie, Sapo Caset and Guillermo Willington). Sifani will be looking to improve on its 1-1 record while Enigma (2-1) can zero in on a berth in the quarterfinals with a victory.