PT July 2009

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Contents

POLO TIMES

Publisher Margie Brett margie@polotimes.co.uk Editor Yolanda Carslaw yolanda@polotimes.co.uk Deputy Editor James Mullan jamesmullan@polotimes.co.uk Art Editor James Wildman james@polotimes.co.uk Advertising Karen Saunders karen@polotimes.co.uk Subscriptions Becky Ford becky@polotimes.co.uk Accounts Debbie Mason accounts@polotimes.co.uk Intern Josephine Brooks Contributors Antje Derks, Arthur Douglas-Nugent, Aurora Eastwood, Mark Emerson, John Horswell, Lorna Jowett, Claire Milford Haven, Tony Ramirez, Andrew Seavill, Clare Sheikh, Herbert Spencer, Miles Underwood Front cover Jamie Morrison and Kirsty Craig clash at Polo in the Park, by Andrew Tobin Designed and typeset by Wildman Design www.wildmandesign.co.uk Printed by Stones – Banbury, Oxfordshire Mailers Jordan & Co – Witney, Oxfordshire Subscription per annum UK £55 Europe & Ireland £65 Rest of the World £75 email: admin@polotimes.co.uk or subscribe online at www.polotimes.co.uk

Polo Times East End Farm, North Leigh Oxfordshire OX29 6PX Tel: 01993 886 885 Fax: 01993 882 660 email: admin@polotimes.co.uk www.polotimes.co.uk © Polo Times Limited 2009 and Database Right 2009 Polo Times Limited holds the copyright & database right to the information it publishes in Polo Times and on the Polo Times website. No content may be reproduced or distributed without the consent of the Editor. ‘Polo Times’ is the trade mark of Polo Times Limited.

ISSN 1461-4685

22 Apes Hill triumphant in a dramatic Queen’s Cup News 4 8

All the latest news HPA news

Comment 11 12 14 16 19 20

Herbert Spencer’s global view Interview: Howard Hipwood & Luke Tomlinson Letter from Pakistan Arthur Douglas-Nugent’s umpire’s corner John Horswell’s players’ forum Your views: letters to the editor

Reports 22 28 34 36 37 38 40

28 Polo in the Park

Queen’s Cup at Guards Polo in the Park in London Arthur Lucas at the Beaufort Dollar Cup at Cowdray Gerald Balding at Cirencester Park Ladies Challenge Cup at Coworth Around the clubs

Features 42 46

Pony Club at 50: from 1959 to 2009 Behind the scenes at Trippetts Farm

The knowledge 50 53 54 57 58 61 64 68

42 Pony Club polo at 50

Duty vet with Mark Emerson Horsemanship with Andrew Seavill Pony power: BPP in the Queen’s Cup final Feeding with Lorna Jowett Travel: Calcot Manor Hotel, Gloucestershire Property: homes for Pony Club families Gear: summer special – picnicking in style What’s on in July – tournament information

Out and about 70

Social snaps from the season so far

77 82

Classifieds A week in the life of: Juan Gris Zavaleta

46 Trippetts – behind the scenes www.polotimes.co.uk July 2009 3

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from the Editor IS 2009 A YEAR of innovation? It seems so. I take my hat off this month in particular to two brave parties: Daniel Fox-Davies and Emma Tomlinson/Nick Wood. Their bold ventures – respectively Polo in the Park (see page 28) and the UK’s inaugural embryo and polo pony sale at Guards (see opposite) – have been impressive given the potentially tricky climate. No matter that take-up of the playing ponies in Emma and Nick’s sale was poor: to launch such a sale you have to start somewhere, and in general the sale was well received.

As for Polo in the Park, accounts I have heard have been overwhelmingly positive. Glen Gilmore went further, telling our reporter that the powers-that-be in “normal” polo could learn from it. “It provides polo people with an example of how novel ideas could freshen the game up,” he said. Whether Glen is referring to the Gilgit-style “suicide dash”, adopted at Hurlingham to kick off each match, I’m unsure…

Whether our game really needs “freshening” is a matter for debate in itself. Some would say that last month’s final of the Queen’s Cup (see page 22), between two well balanced teams, provides proof that high-goal polo in its present form is already supremely exciting.

My view this month seems to differ from our esteemed columnist John Horswell (page 19), who declares he did not thoroughly enjoy the latter stages of the tournament. Most astonishingly, I read with sorrow, the Sultan of Swing even says his hero Juanma (Nero) has been looking “a bit ordinary” at times! Tell us what you think of the high-end polo you have watched this summer – whether 22-goal, an international or Polo in the Park – by writing to letters@polotimes.co.uk.

Finally, for all aspiring polo writers, there’s still time to enter our Polo Times Writer of the Year competition. With the forthcoming school and university holidays in mind, we’ve extended the deadline to Tuesday 28 July. Players or fans of any vintage and from any location can enter – as long as you’re not a professional writer already. See the June issue for details – or look at the news archive at www.polotimes.co.uk.

Yolanda Carslaw

4 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

Test aims to revolutionise skills from grassroots up RENOWNED POLO COACH and author Major Hugh Dawnay has devised a polo-playing “gymkhana test” that is set to become a new tool in fostering talent at the lower levels of the game.

The test requires a player to hit a minimum of five shots in a particular order and to “get round” as quickly as possible. It is designed to encourage low-goal players to adopt the attitude of taking training and playing seriously and to hone their skills from the word go. It puts players in a pressured environment, which, Dawnay says, should give them the confidence to assert themselves in a match, rather than leave the ball for the higher-handicapped players on their team.

A bit like a sophisticated gymkhana course, the test requires accurate tactics, as well as good horsemanship and the right technique for a variety of shots. Dawnay wants players to take the tests regularly to help them develop the thought processes they employ for certain plays – rather than just whacking the ball without thinking.

“It will get players into good habits rather than bad ones and will help develop both the thinking behind shots and their execution,” he says.

“Once players and coaches get over the unwelcome idea of putting themselves under individual pressure, they will see that a simple test like this could revolutionise the quality of the lower levels of the game.”

The test has received the backing of SUPA’s Mike Hobday and Charles Betz, who have already used it as the principal means for picking the teams to play in the La Martina International Polo Festival later this month. The chosen players will represent SUPA against

RCBPC juniors, Kirtlington Park’s juniors and the Young West Indies. Hobday and Betz believe that by nurturing the idea in their members that they should be taking playing and practising seriously, the lower levels of the game will develop the best talent far more efficiently.

Mike Hobday thinks bringing children up on these kinds of technique-improving exercises isn’t a problem: “School kids are already used to tests, so can handle individual pressure – they actually like the opportunity to show their capabilities,” he says.

+10

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30 Yards

50 Yards

Shoot 90 Yards

Players complete the course (as indicated by the arrow) as quickly as possible, shooting from as far out as they choose once they have rounded the 90-yard cone. They will incur a five-second penalty if they score inside the outer goal-posts and a 10-second penalty if they miss altogether. If players of differing handicaps are competing against each other, further time penalties will apply.

Action returns to the seaside BEACH POLO RETURNS to Sandbanks in Poole for a second year this month. Matches start at 2pm on both days of the British Sand Polo Championships on the 10-11 July. The six team entries range in handicap from 11 to 14 goals.

Professionals due to appear include Jamie Le Hardy, Jack Kidd, Peter Webb, Nicolas and Vieri Antinori, the Ormerod brothers, Jamie Morrison and Nico Fontanarrossa. Patrons are a similar bunch to last year, many of them fairly local. They include Romilla and Simon Arber, Spencer McCarthy and Charlie Cooke. Play, like last year, will be on a large sandy arena close to the shore and surrounded by grandstands.

Each day will feature four matches, including a 15-goal arena international between England and the US to round off the action. England’s team comprises Chris Hyde (nine goals in the arena),

A game at last year’s launch event at Sandbanks

Ryan Pemble (6) and Simon Holley (0). A party on both days will follow the action. Tickets for polo, the party, or both range from £35-£70. As PT went to press, tickets were down to the last few for the Saturday. Visit www.sandpolo.com for more.

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News in brief ◗ ENGLAND BEAT South Africa in an arena test match at RCBPC last month that replaced the postponed London Polo Championships on Horse Guards Parade. An MVP award-winning performance from South Africa’s Sipho Spilsbury looked set to have given the visitors victory as they led going into the final chukka, 14-9. But England’s Chris Hyde came alive – riding best playing pony Manchita, owned by Piki Diaz Alberdi – and England won 17-15.

Ponies could be inspected at the Guards ponylines the day of the sale, but not ridden – the trial day was two days before

Select few pick up a bargain AN AMBITIOUS PLAN to launch a new polo pony and embryo auction came to fruition last month. Some 30 playing ponies and youngsters, plus nine embryos, went under the hammer after the Queen’s Cup semis on 10 June.

The sale was staged by Polosaleroom.com, which was set up

by Emma Tomlinson and her fiancé Nick Wood this year. Among those who submitted lots, at a cost of £85 each, were Emma Oliver, members of the Tomlinson family, Charlie Mayon and Jenny McShane.

Playing ponies could be tried at the Beaufort two days earlier – but turnout for this was poor. Two rings – one for the current lot, one for the lot-inwaiting – were set up by the Guards clubhouse, and onlookers and bidders sat on the terrace as the action was overseen by auctioneer Andrew Elliott.

Top lot among playing ponies was Blue Ice, a great-grandson of Northern Dancer, entered by Emma Oliver. The mare went for £10,600 to a telephone bidder from Belgium, Niels Oosterbaan.

Lots just missing their reserves included Alan Kent/Ricardo Pavoncelli’s Mercurio and Lucy Taylor’s Gorgeous.

The Tomlinson family paid top price for an embryo, bidding £15,900 for one by Open Maestro out of Elaborate, entered by Gonzalo Pieres. Other embryos were entered by Carlos Gracida, Gaston Laulhe, Black Bears, Luke Tomlinson and Trippetts. A stallion parade took place before the matches.

Take-up for playing ponies was disappointing, with just eight meeting their reserves. But five of the nine embryos sold, and a sixth afterwards.

Nick Wood said: “What went well was that you could watch the horses as

you bid. They all had a pre-vetting so it was transparent. People were getting bargains: George Gemmell was cock-ahoop with his buy, and some nonbidders felt they’d missed out.

“But we've learnt playing ponies need to be tried or seen ridden on the day. Roddy Williams, Ryan Pemble and Nicky Evans told me they’d have liked to have seen them stopped and turned with a rider. They would also have liked to see more Thoroughbreds.”

Aurora Eastwood, who sold a yearling, said: “The organisation was great. But it was a shame so few Guards members knew about it.”

Nick admits he and Emma were not entirely disappointed to retain Lot 31, who was foaled two days after the sale.

They like her so much they may hang on to her. But some unsold lots are still available at www.polosaleroom.com.

◗ A POLO MATCH will feature in the new Britney Spears music video for her single Radar, the Daily Mail reported last month. The 27-year-old pop star is reported to have filmed a scene in Santa Barbara, in which she is pictured enjoying a game of polo with a group of friends. Spears, seen dressed in vintage Givenchy, was looking quite the lady. ◗ PLAYERS OF ALL levels still have time to register their ex-racehorses in a bid to win up to £5,000. Retraining of Racehorses (RoR) has introduced the prize this year, and two runners-up will receive £2,500, with the producers of all three winners receiving 20 per cent. All ex-racers can enter, from Pony Club to high-goal. “Quite a lot have registered already – from players such as Max Routledge and Henry Brett to people I’ve not heard of,” says Di Arbuthnot of RoR. It’s free to register at www.ror.org, and players need to email Di a resumé of the horse’s career and its summer plans.

Horses need to be registered by 8 July.

RoR is also holding a training seminar on 6 July, led by acclaimed polo pony producer David Morley. Race trainer Charles Mann and vet James Main will also speak. It takes place at HPA HQ, is free, and you can sign up with the HPA.

www.polotimes.co.uk July 2009 5

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News News in brief ◗ MOTORISED POLO is taking off this month in Germany as players climb onto Segways. They will ride the twowheeled, self-balancing vehicle at the fourth annual Woz Challenge Cup, held in Cologne on 17 July.

The first Segway match took place in 2003 in Minneapolis during half-time of an American football match. It has since gained popularity, especially in the US and Germany.

The rules have been adapted from mainstream and bicycle polo, and the ball is similar to an arena ball. With the Segway only reaching speeds of 12.5mph, the match might be missing some of the excitement of real polo. But, on the other hand, a Segway is able to cover 15-20 miles with one charge of the battery, so there’s no need to change mounts between chukkas! ◗ HORSE OWNERS ARE being urged to have their say on government proposals for a new independent body for animal health. The plans, which would take effect from 2012, include charging a compulsory £10.50 annual levy on each horse, plus an unspecified sum to cover insurance for exotic disease.

Charges for other livestock range from 4p for poultry to £4.80 per head for dairy cows.

A series of “roadshows” to inform the livestock industry have taken place around the UK, and the three-month consultation period ends on 30 June.

But many details for the scheme remain unanswered, such as whether the owner or keeper of a horse is liable for the levy, whether single horses will be “taxed” and whether the insurance will cover the loss of a horse if it has to be culled during an outbreak of disease.

HPA chief executive David Woodd said the scheme throws up more questions than answers. “How DEFRA is going to administer it I don’t know,” he said.

“They can’t even control the passport system.” For more, visit http://www. defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/newindependent-body-ah/index.htm

6 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

Cowdrays to leave family seat ONE OF POLO’S MOST historic country homes is set to be transformed into a country house hotel. The 16-bedroom Cowdray House, now home to the 4th Viscount Cowdray, his wife Lady Cowdray and their children, will from next year no longer be used as the family seat. According to reports, the family is finding it too large for their needs. They plan to move to the house in nearby Fernhurst that they vacated in 1995 when the 4th Viscount inherited the title from his father.

Lord Cowdray told the Midhurst & Petworth Observer: “A house this size is a hell of a responsibility and a big tie. In the years we’ve been here, I have worried whether I will be leaving Perry [his heir Peregrine, now 14] with a wonderful asset or a noose around his neck.”

The house, which overlooks Cowdray Park’s two House Grounds, was home for more than 60 years to the 3rd Viscount Cowdray, UK polo’s

Polo’s post-war benefactor, the 3rd Viscount Cowdray, who died in 1995

most generous and greatest post-war pioneer. The property was bought by his grandfather, the first Lord Cowdray, in 1909, and dates in its current form from 1878. However, a house has stood there since 1793, when what is now Cowdray Ruins, the Montague family’s seat, between the Lawns and Midhurst, burnt down.

Many polo players who were at Cowdray in the 1960s and 70s will remember the parties the 3rd Lord Cowdray held, especially after the Gold Cup final and typically featuring a few good duckings in the swimming pool.

AMONG EXHIBITORS at Cartier Day this month will be Jacqueline Stanthope, who specialises in oil paintings of polo and other horse sports. Her connection with polo started when she was growing up in Dundee and became a regular, sketchbook in hand, at Dundee & Perth Polo Club. She was given a set of oils for her 11th birthday and she executed her first commission at 14.

Two of her early commissions were of Smith’s Lawn, and it is to Guards that she returns to unveil her new collection of oil paintings and prints.

Pictured on the right is her painting “Battle Cry”.

Among Jacqueline’s clients are racehorse owners and breeders, which has enabled her to foster her polo links, as many of those clients have polo interests too. She works from her home studio in County Durham, with her lurchers Robbie and Mac as constant companions. For more, visit www.jacquelinestanhope-polo-art.com

The 4th Viscount, though a regular spectator at polo over the years, has never been as much of an enthusiast as his father, and it was his brother, Charles Pearson, who became involved in the game.

Lord Cowdray told the Observer that after the war his father, too, thought he might not continue living there, but that things improved.

Another consideration, he added, was that the house does not fit in with his vision of sustainable living.

“You just cannot have a sustainable home in a house of this size built all those years ago,” he told the Observer.

“Greenhill [at Fernhurst] has low ceilings and is far more sustainable.”

The family has expressed interest in finding a business partner who would lease the property and convert it into a hotel, spa and conference centre. “The chattel and pictures would remain and be leased to the hotel,” Lord Cowdray told the Observer.

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Action from last year’s SUPA University Championships at Offchurch Bury

SUPA sets ball rolling on accident cover THE DEBATE ABOUT personal accident gumshield was worn) for dental work – insurance has been reignited after SUPA as Alan Kent did recently. He adds that introduced compulsory cover for all its personal accident insurance is available members in higher education. At last through some clubs, and says some month’s university championships at people have their own policies.

Offchurch Bury students were playing “It’s something we’ve been through for the first time with the cover, which time and time again,” says Woodd. costs SUPA £26 per student per year However, SUPA’s Mike Hobday, who through Lycetts. It pays out £25,000 for has worked closely with Plunket to death, various injuries and permanent introduce the policy, says: “Somebody total disablement. Dental expenses are has to lead the way, and I hope this will also covered up to £1,000, and students be a stepping stone. We had a few are covered worldwide. injuries at Offchurch Bury that the NHS About 10 per cent of mainstream will pick up, but one girl was hit in the clubs, including RCBPC and Guards, mouth. In this instance she didn’t need have this year adopted a similar policy to claim for her teeth but, if it had been on behalf of their members, which costs worse, she could have done so.” £80 per person and At this stage “Somebody has SUPA has adopted pays out £50,000, and up to £2,000 for to lead the way” the policy for dental work. No university students – Mike Hobday matter what players’ only, because line of work, the policy also pays £125 a schools tend to have their own week for up to two years if a player has insurance that covers polo. an accident playing polo or practising Hobday hopes that, once young and cannot work. players are used to having built-in The HPA has considered similar personal accident insurance, they will policies for its members, including then expect it as they get older. several put forward by Piers Plunket, “There were 300 players at who is in charge of polo at Lycetts, but Offchurch Bury,” he says. “About half of last time the council voted on the idea in those will carry on polo in some form.

2007 it was rejected. Until around 2003, We’ve found the number of players HPA membership included player-towho have their own horse – just one player and personal accident insurance horse, often – has increased, and it’s but, after one claim for £5m and two for these people who are most in need of £200,000, the insurer pulled out. Third this sort of cover. party liability is still included, however.

“If you have 25 ponies and employ David Woodd, HPA chief executive, professionals you don’t worry about points out that the Injured Players’ and having to pay for something like dental Officials’ Fund is available after work, but for most players it makes a accidents. For instance, players can difference. In my view this sort of deal claim up to £2,000 (or £4,000 if a could be adopted by the HPA, too.” www.polotimes.co.uk July 2009 7

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News News in brief ◗ EUROSPORT IS SET to broadcast what it claims is the first ever live coverage of polo in Europe. It will screen a 40-goal game between La Dolfina and Ellerstina, held in Deauville, France, on Saturday 1 August at 2pm.

The match will see La Dolfina attempt a revenge attack on Ellerstina after their win in last year’s Argentine Open. Both Adolfo Cambiaso and Facundo Pieres are expected to play. Eurosport commentators will explain the rules and follow the play, as well as conducting live on-site interviews. The programme can be seen live in more than 59 countries.

The game also follows another 40goal game played in France last month, at Polo de Paris, the same spot where Argentina won the 1924 Olympic gold medal for polo. In a match billed as “Perfect Polo”, Facundo Pieres, Pablo MacDonough, Miguel Novillo Astrada and Lolo Castagnola beat Marcos Heguy, Mariano Aguerre, Agustin Merlos and Juan Martín Nero, 11-9. ◗ THE ARGENTINE Tourist Board has appointed a polo attaché with the aim of building tourism around polo’s cultural and historical links. Mariano Mussa, the Buenos Aires-based new appointee, was in Paris at the 40-goal match above, where all the players were Argentine.

He will also be attending Cartier Day, where the Argentine Tourist Board is organising hospitality and providing information on sponsorship activities for those wanting to visit Argentina and learn to play or watch polo there. The UK market is now considered a priority target, especially with the addition of more flights by British Airways providing a now-daily service to Buenos Aires. ◗ A RECORD 78 teams took part in the SUPA La Martina National Universities tournament held at Offchuch Bury Polo Club last month. Among the winners of the three-day championships, held from 12 to 14 June, were Royal Holloway, Warwick and Durham universities. A full report will appear in PT’s August issue. ◗ GUARDS HOSTED the Jack Wills Varsity Polo Day on 6 June, in which Oxford University, Harrow School and Harvard University were the three victors.

Harrow took on Millfield instead of Eton after the team was unable to take part due to an outbreak of swine flu that temporarily closed the school. Millfield gladly took up the challenge, but could not match Harrow, losing 71/2-2.

In another change to the format Oxford played Durham instead of Cambridge, who pulled out, they said, due to the over-commercialisation of the event. The traditional Varsity match between Oxford and Cambridge went ahead at Kirtlington the following day – read more about it in Around the Clubs on page 40.

8 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

Latest from the HPA HPA chief executive David Woodd rounds up the news from UK polo’s headquarters Young England to play South East Asia Young England will be playing South East Asia on Saturday 4 July at Coworth Park.

The following team, to be captained by Nick Pepper, has been selected to represent the hosts.

Young England (11): Jack Richardson 2; Max Charlton 3; Nick Pepper 3; Eden Ormerod 3

Handicap changes out now Mid-season changes were sent to clubs following the stewards’ meeting on 24 June and should be available on the HPA website by the time you read this: www.hpa-polo.co.uk

Fill in your bursary forms The Overseas Work Experience Bursary forms have been emailed to all clubs.

Applicants must be either 17, 18 or 19 years of age on 1 October 2009. All applications need to be with the HPA by Saturday 25 July.

UK Universities vs British Universities, UK Schools vs British Schools, and Coco Boutique Ladies vs Roxton Ladies

Dates for the diary SUPA Festival This will be held over the week of 6-12 July, and some of the matches that will be featured are as follows: • 5 July – RCBPC vs SUPA, to be played at RCBPC • 6 July – KPPC vs SUPA, to be played at Kirtlington Polo Club • 7 July – SUPA International: SUPA British International vs Young West Indies, to be played at Guards Polo Club • 11 July – SUPA International: SUPA British International vs Young West Indies, to be played at Cirencester Park Polo Club. Also that day, Cirencester Park will host UK Colts vs British Colts,

Monday 6 July – ROR Seminar, at Little Coxwell Monday 6 July – Umpire Seminar for Pony Club & Junior HPA players, at Little Coxwell Thursday 9 July – Junior HPA matches commence Wednesday 22 July – Handicap meeting for 4 to 10-goal players, at the HPA office Those who would like to attend the ROR and Umpire seminars at Little Coxwell on Monday 6 July (as above) should email amanda@hpa-polo.co.uk to RSVP or to obtain more information. ◗ Contact the HPA on 01367 242828

Polo in Spain provides new low-goal incentive improved their polo but been a good asset to the club.

LOW-GOAL AMATEUR PLAYERS have the chance this Criteria include horsemanship, skill, understanding of the summer to aim for a new HPA award: most improved rules, tactical awareness, a sustained high level of player of 2009. Four shortlisted contenders from four sportsmanship on the field and a continuing positive regions will be invited to take a team to play a round-robin contribution to the club’s overall environment. tournament near Jerez in Spain this October, and the The collection of nominations from each region will be winner of will be crowned most improved player. pooled into four “hats”, and one name chosen at The award is backed by Polo Del Sol, a new random from each. These four players will then British-owned polo estancia in Andalucia, which each be invited to put together a team of 0 to 2 will cover each team’s horse hire, goals, with a maximum of one professional accommodation and food. The estancia’s (max handicap 4) in each team, to play at Polo owner, Mike Robinson, feels it will provide Del Sol in October. an incentive for low goal players to improve Nominees from each club must be received their game. by 31 August. The winning amateur will receive For the purposes of the award, the UK has the inaugural 2009 award at the 2010 Audi Polo been divided into four regions. Each fully Polo Del Sol’s Mike Awards. Full details are available by downloading affiliated club is allowed to nominate one Robinson will host four amateur player who has, over the course of 0-2-goal teams in Spain the award brochure in the news section of the HPA website: www.hpa-polo.co.uk the season, been seen not only to have as part of the award

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A new petition is challenging current legislation that prevents full-time workers from driving horseboxes both days of the weekend

Horsebox drivers driven to petition THE UK POLO COMMUNITY is being urged to get behind a horse industry campaign to fight the ever-increasing bureaucracy over vehicle legislation, writes Abi Butcher.

Since 2006 it has been mandatory for all horseboxes over 7.5 tons to have a tachograph fitted and for drivers of such vehicles to keep records of driving time. Under this ruling (EC Regulation 561/2006), drivers of both private and commercial lorries are required to take prescribed weekly rest periods of either 24 or 45 hours. This is not just a rest from driving – it is from any work.

So, according to Vehicle Operator Services Agency (VOSA) regulations, any player or parent who has a full-time job – regardless of whether or not it is related to polo – is not legally allowed drive a large horsebox for both days of every weekend.

This is increasingly being more strictly enforced but a petition has been launched by Horse & Hound, the British

Horse Society, British Equestrian Federation and British Driving Society to apply for exceptions to be made for horsebox drivers.

Driver certificates of professional competence and Welfare of Animals during transport certificates of competence are also causing huge confusion.

“Last year we spent a long time establishing what was allowed,” said HPA chief executive David Woodd. “Trying to work out what you can do is a nightmare. It is so complicated that a lot of people are putting their heads in the sand. But ignoring the legislation and hoping it won’t catch up with them is no good – we should be stopping it.

“We need to drum up as many signatures as possible, and we plan to email all HPA players about it.” ◗ To sign the petition challenging the legislation visit www.horseandhound.co.uk/vosapetition

Charity cup raises £55,000 AN ALL-STAR CAST turned out for the third running annual Jaeger-LeCoultre charity cup, held at Ham polo club on the 12 June. Among those watching were Princess Beatrice and England football team coach Fabio Capello, who took a day off after the successful recent World Cup qualifiers to enjoy the two exhibition matches, followed by a fund-raising auction.

Nearly 300 guests enjoyed a Lanson Champagne reception followed by an Argentine lunch. A ladies’ match kicked off the action, featuring among others Clare Milford Haven, Lia Salvo of Argentina and Nina Clarkin, who won MVP. The afternoon men’s match starred 10-goaler Adolfo Cambiaso, who faced a line-up that included his La Dolfina team-mate Lolo Castagnola. The game ended in a 2-2 draw.

Guests included Fabio Capello, with Yasmin (left) and Amber le Bon

Lots at the charity auction that followed included a Jaeger-LeCoultre ladies’ watch, a polo clinic with Clare Milford Haven and a helicopter ride.

Proceeds were divided between Ideas del Sur, an Argentine charity devoted to underprivileged children, and the British charity, Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres.

A NEW POLO CLUB is up and running in Lincolnshire – the county’s first, as far as its founders know.

Player James Reeve (pictured), who was brought up at Leadenham Manor, has set up Leadenham Polo Club on the family property and brought in Mark Holmes, former polo manager at Watership Down, to manage it and act as chief instructor.

The club, which is in the village of Leadenham at the fringes of prime Belvoir hunt country, has two fields, 20 ponies for rent and accommodation for visitors in its seven-bedroom clubhouse – a former farmhouse.

Already it has 20 members and a sizeable Services contingent, as RAF Cranwell is seven miles away. ◗ Visit www.leadenhampoloclub.com www.polotimes.co.uk July 2009 9

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PERSONAL ESCORT

RECTOR

by MR PROSPECTOR – DANCE NUMBER.

This Chilean bred stallion won BPP in the Chilean Open, played by G Donoso. In UK Rector played the Queens Cup, Gold Cup and the Coronation Cup. Full brother to Africana, winner of BPP in the Prince of Wales Cup. First crop playing well.

Sire of many top New Zealand bred polo ponies, notably SPOOK played by Pablo Macdonough for Broncos.

10 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

– by MR LONG (TB).

MR COFFEE - by KUNDAKI. This Argentine bred stallion played in the USA with E Panelo and then in the UK for G Donoso, winning BPP in the Warwickshire Cup and playing many seasons in the Queens Cup and Gold Cup. He was a top horse when Gabriel led Chile to victory in the Coronation Cup. His first crop is now being broken in.

CLARK – by NIGHT OPERA (TB AUS) - out of CLARET. SIRE - 'Night Opera' Brown/black Australian TB DAM - 'Claret' - 'Monty' - 'Pinky' 'Claret' - Champion pony at Ellerston 2005. Played in the Argentine Open 2005 with Gonzalito Pieres. Champion Pony at Cowdray Gold Cup 2006. Full sister to 'Burgundy' and 'Champagne'.

Half sister to 'Dinghy' and 'Shiraz'. All playing for Ellerston UK.

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Global view Comment With Herbert Spencer, who has been following polo around the world for 40 years

Why it’s a tricky business subbing for a superstar Piana. Would it not be more logical, and fairer, to apply the double substitution and possibly lowered team handicap rules across the board, regardless of whenever the need arises in a tournament, first game or final?

This would avoid the strange anomaly of a professional playing for more than one team in the same tournament.

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FIP CAN’T LEAVE THINGS IN THE AIR The Federation of International Polo (FIP) has scheduled an open forum and closed

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and the zone play-offs that precede it, will be held. The FIP’s flagship event is traditionally staged every three years, but the last championship, in Mexico City 2008, was a year late. Now both the venue and the year for the next one are still up in the air because of difficulties with sponsorship and funding.

The FIP is also faced with the tricky problems of getting all its members (national polo associations) to sign up to the protocols of the World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) and with concluding

Would it not be more logical, and fairer, to apply the double substitution rules, whether first game or final?

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hould the Hurlingham Polo Association (HPA) take another look at the rationale of its substitution rules in high-goal polo, under which a team can suddenly reconstitute itself by drafting in a player from another side in the same tournament if one of its superstars is out of action?

Such substitutions are allowed for players with handicaps of 8, 9 or 10 in the final stages of a tournament, when the team providing the substitute is no longer in contention. The HPA’s pragmatic reasoning is that there are few players of that level readily available and finding one that has not played in the tournament might cause delays and prove costly to a patron (for example, flying in, at short notice, an appropriately handicapped player from Argentina).

What happens, however, if one of a team’s higher-rated players is put out of action earlier in a tournament, when all the other 8-10 goalers in the country are still playing for opposing sides?

Surely it should be the responsibility of a patron to cover such an eventuality when he first fields a team. If a patron chooses to build his original team around one or two superstars, he should also be ready to make substitutions for them, at whatever cost, without relying upon a player from another team.

HPA rules also allow for double substitutions to make up the numbers when a player is sidelined and for a team playing on at a lower aggregate handicap in such circumstances. That’s exactly what happened when Dubai’s 10-goaler, Adolfo Cambiaso, was sidelined in a firstround match for the Queen’s Cup: two substitutions were made and the team played at 21 rather than 22 goals.

Yet when Cambiaso was again injured in a crucial quarter-final match, Dubai was allowed to bring in 10-goaler Juan Martin Nero from eliminated side, Loro

Photograph by Brett O’Callaghan

Not enough Cambiasos: when a 10-goaler is injured it’s hard to find another who isn’t playing in the same tournament

executive committee meeting in London for 27 July. The latter session at the Cavalry & Guards Club in Piccadilly will be a crucial one on several outstanding issues and its outcome is bound to be viewed as an indicator of just how effective the federation is in representing the sport of polo worldwide.

The executive committee at its London meeting will be faced with urgent consideration of when and where the federation’s ninth World Championship,

exactly what role, if any, the federation should play in the current concern over equine welfare. This second problem for discussion revolves around whether the FIP should consider the introduction of substance control and dope testing of ponies in all the polo-playing countries.

Unless the FIP meetings this month produce some firm decisions on these and other issues, the federation’s leadership could come away with the makings of an omelette on its collective face. F

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PTJuly 2009 p12-13 As I see it JM YC MB

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Comment Interview

Photograph by Centaur Photographic and Mike Roberts

As Cartier’s backing for International Day at Guards reaches 25 years this summer, Diana Butler talks to the England team captains then and now, who reveal their crowning moments, their regrets and their rivalries

How important is Cartier International Day? LT: “Cartier International Day is one of the best sporting days worldwide. It is a huge success and I think there is a good balance between the polo and the social side. It is a wonderful way to bring fresh people into polo and it’s a great introduction to our sport.

“My first game as captain – against New Zealand in 2006 – was only my second game since breaking my pelvis earlier in the year, so my memory of that match is just of the relief I had that I was playing at all. The game I have enjoyed most so far was last year’s, when we defeated Australia.

“I can recall going to watch the Coronation Cup games on International Day as a child, when Howard and Julian [Hipwood] were playing, and it was just a dream then to think that I would be captain myself one day.”

the match with eight good horses then we are happy.

“Of course, Argentina is lucky because the side will have the pick of the ponies from two of the leading high-goal teams [La Bamba De Areco and Dubai]. We won’t have any championship ponies to call on. My patron [Cow Williams of Apes Hill] is really supportive but he does not have championship ponies. Malcolm Borwick has a few I think from Jerome Wirth of Enigma, but nothing like those that Argentina can call on.

“This pony power will make a huge difference on the day. England does have the advantage that we are already experienced playing as a team, but Argentina has several underhandicapped players and the Cambiaso factor should never be ignored. He is nearly invincible and Facundo [Pieres] is not too different either!”

HH: “Playing in the International was – and still is – difficult, as the event comes right at the end of the UK’s main high-goal tournaments and both players and horses are tired.

“However, the chance to captain your team on International Day is the biggest honour that you are ever likely to have. It is a huge accolade. My regret now is that I retired as early as I did – I definitely went too soon.

“My favourite Cartier International Day memories are winning the Westchester in 1997 [against the USA] and, on a separate occasion, being presented with the Pegasus Trophy for the most valuable player.

“To have achieved those landmarks in your playing career is a great achievement. I hope this year’s Coronation Cup will be a good game, as the event is still one of English polo’s greatest showcases.”

HH: “The power of the string was just as important in our day. We had match-winning ponies, but finding enough generally was a monumental problem for us. International Day has always been only a week after the Gold Cup and so it was hard to keep the horses going for another big game – often an even bigger one.

“It did help when we could go to people with decent money to hire out horses, because asking them to put up a good horse just for fun was a very big ask. Having some money tipped the balance. This funding was a huge help, but it was hard to persuade the HPA to provide it.

“Part of the problem for us was that the team was thrown together. Just because we were the four highest-handicapped players didn’t mean that we constituted the best team – others may have blended together better and been more effective. There was also huge rivalry between my brother Julian and myself, which also made it really hard. Although,

12 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

Howard Hipwood in action as England captain

How hard is it to conjure up pony power on the day?

LT: “The key is to get the right horses for the day – horses that will make a difference.

Andrew Hine [England coach] helps find horses for us but it is also up to the players to horse themselves. However, it is not about numbers but quality, so if each of us comes to

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Facts and stats ◗ The first Coronation Cup match sponsored by

Cartier was in 1984 and saw a Rest of the World team (Cody Forsyth, Carlos Gracida, Silvio Novaes and Owen Rinehart) defeat the home team (Alan Kent, Julian Hipwood, Howard Hipwood and Charles Beresford), 8-7 ◗ England have won the Coronation Cup 12

times in the 25 matches since 1984 ◗ England have only played the USA for the

Westchester Cup at Smith’s Lawn once in the past 25 years. England won that game, 12-7.

The other USA matches were for the Coronation Cup ◗ Only 22 players have represented England in

the Coronation Cup since 1984 ◗ Cody Forsyth wins the award for representing

the most teams. He has played for England, Rest of the World, Australasia and New Zealand ◗ Chile and the USA have played the most on

Cartier International Day since 1984, with four games apiece ◗ The 2001 Coronation Cup match was played at

Cowdray Park, as Foot and Mouth Disease had cancelled all polo at Smith’s Lawn ◗ Bringing in a car in 1984 cost £4. Today it

costs £15 ◗ The winning team is not allowed to take the

Coronation Cup out of the country ◗ The Coronation Cup was first presented on the

Coronation of King George V in 1911, when it was won by the Indian Polo Association

having said that, it might have been this rivalry that took us to nine goals.”

How essential is team practice?

LT: “It helps that we get to play as a team and it is also crucial that we have high-goal experience. We always have a Test Match before the Cartier – at the Beaufort – and we have a practice before that game too, so we will have played three or four times together.

“This year we also played together in Buenos Aires before the start of the UK season, playing three full-on games. That was invaluable – we probably played more together in those two weeks [at the Four Nations Cup at Palermo] than in the previous two years combined.”

HH: “If we were lucky we got one practice in the seven days between the Gold Cup and International Day. However, I don’t think it contributed anything, as players mainly used that time to try horses. Other teams were more

Luke Tomlinson, lifts the Coronation Cup after last summer’s victory over Australia, a moment he describes as the highlight of his England career

cohesive though. The Argentines knew each other well and the USA, featuring Tommy Wayman and Red Armour, played together in other teams and so the central part of their national side was already in a pretty healthy state.

“We, however, always played in different teams. The other problem was that once a player went up in handicap they gravitated to the number three or four position. But somebody had to play at number one.

It was good when Alan [Kent] joined, as he worked very well at one because he was fast, but the England number two shirt was always a hole. We didn’t have the team infrastructure they do today either, although Argentina’s Hector Barrantes was our manager for a couple of years, which helped.” F

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Comment Letter from Clare Sheikh is a group director for insurance bigwigs RSA and plays out of Burningfold in Surrey

Letter from

Pakistan

Clare Sheikh reports from Lahore, where she confounded the bookies, won an eight-goal title, drew friendly, curious stares and wed a local player

Photograph courtesy of Claire Sheikh

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Action at Lahore Polo Club, which welcomes foreign teams and players

is strikingly good. Tuition is also good. On my last visit, I took lessons with Amir-udin (aka “Iggy”), formerly a four-goal pro and the most gifted instructor I’ve encountered. As a foreign patron, and a female one, I was something of a novelty at first and, it is said, gave the bookies a headache. What odds do you give on the

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Not everyone will want to make their polo trip quite such a romantic one but for plenty of other reasons, Lahore is an extraordinary city. Its backdrop is a spectacular fort and mosque of sensational beauty, the world’s second largest.

Contrary to expectations created by the media, I was greeted by curious but friendly stares everywhere and frequent requests from people to have my photo taken with them.

The Pakistani culture is a generous and trusting one and I was welcomed with gifts and invitations. There are good hotels and restaurants and you quickly get used to the absence of alcohol – at the least, it serves as a tonic for the liver and encourages you to stay focused on the sport!

Pakistan is also an excellent place to buy leather polo gear: an expert hand-made me two pairs of boots for £40 each and some

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was delighted to see the 14-goal Pakistan Open in Lahore covered in the April issue of Polo Times (page 42).

Following my own adventures there, the question I am most frequently asked when I talk about playing there is: ‘Is it dangerous?’ It is an enquiry that makes me smile, given that riding 400kg of horse at 35mph amid a scrum of others, whilst wielding a stick, is inherently highly risky.

This is not what most of my enquirers have in mind. They refer, of course, to Pakistan’s security situation. Having been to play in Lahore at least five times in the last nine months, I can honestly say the most dangerous thing I have yet to see was during the Muslim festival Eid, which marks the end of Ramadan, when I witnessed an improbably large goat riding on a motorcycle with his owner!

Lahore Polo Club has a long tradition of welcoming foreign professionals for its season, which runs from November to April.

When I visited in March, Gaston Moore, John Fisher and Lindor Novillo Corvalan were playing for local patrons in the lead up to the National Open and the polo was fiercely competitive. The club comprises three grounds, a riding arena, a track and a wooden horse. It is home to 200 horses and provides a wonderfully genteel setting in the middle of Lahore.

Lahore Polo Club’s weekly tournaments are not just watched by players and their families but by a bevy of bookies and fans who watch intently and knowledgeably. The polo itself is in stark contrast to the attimes stuffy atmosphere in the UK and could best be described as passionate and compelling. Fancy technical moves are less a feature than stirring acts of bravado and occasional ferocious exchanges with the umpires in Urdu.

The ponies include Argentine and Thoroughbred stock and the quality of care

Fancy technical moves are less a feature than stirring acts of bravado and ferocious exchanges in Urdu club’s first female patron?! But I was quickly made to feel welcome and was lent some excellent ponies from local patrons Haris Sufi and Amir Sufi.

On my next visit, my team Freshwater won an eight-goal tournament, despite being two goals down at the start of the last chukka. The large crowd certainly created a sense of occasion, which was reinforced later when we found ourselves featured in the Pakistani national press.

And what of the entertainment off the field? Well, I should confess now that I married a Pakistani player, Ayyaz Sheikh, two hours before the tournament began – providing onlookers with limitless opportunities for puns about the bride wearing whites forever more.

excellent saddles. My husband and I have also bought four Pakistani polo ponies which we will keep there, and we will be back regularly in winter.

It’s true that visitors will notice young men festooned with carbines and carrying machine guns at the entrance to their hotel, but I’ve found these displays of strength are little more than a decorative feature. Rather, it is my hope that Pakistan – and Lahore in particular – will be seen by an increasingly broad audience as a treat for those seeking a polo break. It offers players good horses, super tuition and plenty of play.

There is also polo to watch – whether children’s chukkas – featuring alarmingly proficient eight-year-olds – or a 12-goal final. I’m addicted. F

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Comment Umpire’s corner With Arthur Douglas-Nugent, deputy chief umpire for the HPA

Taps, tweaks and a totally different atmosphere fine if change is spelt out in the schedule, but discontent will follow if it is not.

A

WORKING OUT WHO’S WINNING We have had a lot of fun recently with determining the order of merit between leagues and groups. The one thing that is certain is that Murphy’s Law will invariably apply to come up with the answer you don’t want.

For example, in a recent tournament of two leagues, the schedule stated that the two best teams would be in the final. Well, the order of merit, as laid out in Annex E to the rules, gave the first and second position to two teams in the same league, which is not what the tournament organisers had in mind.

In another tournament, which gave a tweak to the system as laid down, the order of merit was calculated overall, for good reasons, rather than taking the order from the league and group winners. It’s

16 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

RED COLLAR GREEN COLLAR The A and B groups have now been launched (see June issue) with two wellattended meetings and an encouraging level of enthusiasm. All Victor Ludorum matches at the 15-goal level and the semi-finals and finals of all 12- and 8goal polo are to be covered by the professional body. A set level of fees has been laid down for the teams and for the payment of the umpires.

A point that can’t be overemphasised is that the umpires have a direct obligation to the teams to do the best job they can. They now umpire in a totally

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further sanction, pay will be docked for an umpiring mistake which involves his or her knowledge of the rules, and exposes a lack of it! Thus, the umpires who fail to continue play until the second bell in the last chukka of a tied match or who throw the ball in the wrong way on a penalty one will find themselves the poorer.

CAUGHT AT THIRD MAN The HPA’s new chairman has expressed his desire to see the referee on the sidelines more involved in the decision-making on the field.

A good idea in theory, but in practice it will depend on the experience and dedication of the third man on the sidelines and, of course, on his ability to

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lthough there are fewer teams and players in many of this year’s main tournaments, as we might have expected, the quality of the play in my view is well up.

There seems to be a general awareness that the ball is there to be hit in the direction of the goal, rather than to be pursued round in circles. This is due, in part, to acceptance of the “one tap” rule and stricter umpiring thereof. We know that the top pros don’t like it, as it restricts their game, but by golly it certainly seems to work in speeding up play and thereby making umpiring that much easier.

On this subject, it is worth highlighting the rule in the positive, which states that a player being ridden off may tap the ball as he wishes and that, if he is obstructed or blocked by an opponent in his right of way, that opponent should be blown for a foul before the player with the ball makes a second tap.

Should the player with the ball hit it with force into another pony he runs the risk of being penalised. It must remain as a judgement to be made by the umpires.

Pay will be docked for an umpiring mistake that exposes a lack of knowledge of the rules different atmosphere from the time when, after losing a close fought match, a player would simply have to don the striped shirt and go out again.

Members of the Pro Umpire Group can be distinguished by a red collar on their umpire shirt, and the A and B groups by a green. These green collars will not be given out indiscriminately but earned by passing a rules test and umpiring at least one game to the required standard. As a

FOUL FOR THOUGHT Last month’s conundrum Is the striker allowed to hit away the stick of an opponent who is attempting to hook him before he strikes the ball?

No. The rule states that that you may only hook an opponent if he is in the act of striking the ball. Nevertheless, even though the player is not in the act of striking the ball in this case, it is a fairly common play at the highgoal level and often goes unpunished.

This month’s puzzle Can you umpire on a pony that is blind in one eye?

attract the attention of the umpires midchukka! Radios, which are slowly being introduced, provide a valuable tool – particularly if the referee spots rough or dangerous play off the ball – but the basic principle that the umpires have paramount authority on the field must remain.

The final point about referees is to say that when a decision is referred, they should feel confident to make a decision, even when they are not 100 per cent sure what actually happened. The referee can make an educated judgment on the basis of high-probabilities.

For instance, for the decision to come up to the referee, one of the two on-field umpires must be certain a foul has been committed. So long as one is fair to both sides in the course of a game, while it is unlikely that he too will be 100 per cent sure what happened, the referee who invariably rules “No foul” is in danger of doing himself out of a job. F

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Players’ forum Comment With John Horswell, the outspoken sultan of swing

Trouble abounds, but what came first – the chicken or the egg?

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TRAILING PLAYER FOULS There has always been a concerted effort to block and baulk higherhandicapped players from getting to plays by lower handicapped ones but it seems to be more prevalent now than ever – and is going apparently unseen.

Is it that the umpires are too busy counting the number of times the baulked player’s team-mate is tapping the ball? Have they suddenly lost their peripheral vision? Or is it in some way being condoned, with fair play being sacrificed on the altar of “old school open polo”? I will have to study this phenomenon further.

CHICKEN AND EGG Did the player in front block the tapper, thereby forcing him to tap, or did the tapper just choose to check up and display his close control skills to the tedium of all concerned? This is today’s million-dollar question.

To my casual viewing eye, I would say that the balance has shifted and that between five and 10 times more whistle is blown against the man with

the ball than against the man waiting in front. Again, my research has hardly begun and so I cannot tell you exactly what the ratio is in this year’s highgoal, but the point I wish to make is that the man blocking – being the instigator – is more guilty than the man who checks up with the ball.

The blocker is the one slowing play down and making the game unattractive

is being conducted will do anything but make the situation worse. It then washes down the line to all other levels of the game, where the style and tempo is increasingly consistent with my complaints at the top level.

THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES I am a conservative – I love old school, four-man polo and encourage it as

‘Polo is going through an ugly stage – players are being discouraged from showing off their skills – thus his action should be treated more severely as an infringement.

This did not happen at Guards in last month’s high-goal so far as I could see and, as a result, there were large passages of play that were, in my view, rather unsightly.

ET TU BRUTO! Bruto is a Spanish word for thug. Call me old-fashioned but, when I was young, players practised and played to hone their skills and go up in handicap.

Nowadays, it seems, talented successive generations of polo players are being taught that it is good to stay on the same or even go down in handicap. What is more, they are actively discouraged from showing off their skills or even using them at all.

“The ball is not your friend” is a phrase that even I, to my eternal shame, have used when drilling some young player as to his duties.

Careers have been blighted and stunted on many occasions over the last dozen or so years and, whilst blame lies at many doors, I cannot see that the current manner in which high-goal polo

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watched some of the final stages of the season’s first high-goal tournament last month and came away somewhat perplexed. What should on paper have been a very exciting pair of semi-finals and final in the Queen’s Cup actually left me somewhat cold.

Having given up coaching high-goal teams for Lent, until the semi-finals I had not really been in the loop and had only watched a few chukkas of Dubai against someone not very good. But, the games I watched raised a number of issues that I didn’t like, and talking to a general cross section of patrons, professionals and seasoned spectators made me realise these were not isolated problems. Read on.

much as I can. However, the freaky super-skills of the modern high-goal players have rendered it obsolete. I have stated before in this column that, despite my views, I delight and am in awe of their talent. I am now, however, watching something that does not satisfy my viewing criteria.

You cannot return to the past and you can only slow down evolution. We are at the moment going through an ugly stage of polo that I hope will end soon. Even my hero Juanma has been looking a bit ordinary at times, normally the kind of genius who can impress us with his exciting skill whilst also letting his team-mates play and develop. I hope that we can fix the problem before we squeeze the life out of his talent. In the meantime I have my video collection for consolation. Thanks for the memories.

DISAGREE? HAVE YOUR OWN SAY This article has been posted on dedicated polo blog www.polopages.com.

Please enter the debate and I will make your views known in the next issue. All entries to the debate are welcomed but must not be abusive, particularly of me! F

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Comment Your views

Letter of the month Goodbye to a trusted friend

Letters letters@polotimes.co.uk Giving thanks for international support Guards Polo Club is delighted to be hosting the 25th Cartier International Day on Sunday 26 July. The sport in general, as well as the club in particular, is deeply indebted to the support shown by Cartier over the years, turning the International Day from a great domestic day out into a world renowned sporting occasion.

I can still recall my first “Cartier event” in 1989 – when England defeated Australasia – and have thoroughly enjoyed being part of the team that has helped expand the format into this internationally recognised fixture.

This year especially we can all take pride in the fact that even though Argentina is on the card the outcome of the Coronation Cup is not assured. The England team set-up has developed alongside the expansion of Cartier International Day and the HPA will be fielding a talented home team that will guarantee an exciting match.

Congratulations to Arnaud Bamberger and his team at Cartier on this great anniversary and may the best team win.

Charles Stisted, CEO Guards Polo Club Windsor Great Park, Surrey Coordinating polo from the front line Thank you for sending my June copy of Polo Times to me in Afghanistan.

I'm serving with The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland in Kandahar. Providing admin and accountancy support to the 500strong Battlegroup is no mean feat, especially when the troops are conducting intense operations.

The men and women of the Battlegroup are inspirational in their spirit, professionalism and bravery - they face significant dangers and it is fascinating to hear their stories. I am compiling a photo-led account, Red Hackles in Afghanistan, which we hope this year to get published as a book. It is about the “Jocks” serving here. An army photographer is taking the pictures and I’m interviewing with a dictaphone.

With the aid of a laptop and Wifi, I’m continuing to organise the Adjutant

20 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

Words cannot describe how I felt when I saw my fantastic 14-year-old grey mare’s shattered leg in the field one morning last month.

This fantastic horse had played polo to 18 goal, jumped five-bar gates out hunting and refused nothing I put in her way. Ali was amazing, and I’m certain I will never be able to replace her.

She was a real character who regularly showed up the prancing and plaited Irish and Warmblood prima donnas out hunting. She led the way over the wire, ditches and walls, instilling in me a confidence and enthusiasm for jumping I had never had before. Nothing fazed her; she was the matriarch of all matriarchs with courage and attitude to spare! The irony and tragedy is that she should meet her end on her day off after winning the final of the Ben Johnson Trophy at Kirtlington with my son Elliot the day before.

She played 18-goal with her previous owners at Chester Racecourse Polo Club, where I bought her from patron Simon Taylor. I like to remember her flat out and full stretch in the sun; dead to the world, bottom lip wobbling; a sea of whiteness with her brown (and lesser...) “subjects” around her!

Last October she paid me the highest compliment of all by acting as the best display stand for my wedding dress that you could ever wish for. God bless you Ali, I will never forget you.

Nicola Hodges High Wycombe

The writer of the letter of the month wins a bottle of La Chamiza Argentine red wine General's Corps polo at Tidworth. We have played there for five years and have over 25 players of all ranks. We are the largest growing group of players in the military and this year will hold the AGC Polo Cup at Tidworth on 31 August in support of the charity SSAFA.

We hope Polo Times subscribers will join us there and we welcome everyone.

The AGC would like to thank the magazine for its continued support.

Major Gillian Shaw Kandahar, Afghanistan ◗ Where do you read your Polo Times?

Send us a picture in an exotic location and we’ll print the good ones!

Afghanistan-based subscriber Major Gillian Shaw gets Polo Times monthly

The City boy has pulled it off Back in March Daniel Fox-Davies and Jack Kidd presented Polo in the Park to an invited audience at the Hurlingham Club. Daniel's vision was relatively straightforward. Six or more all-pro teams; a few strings of ponies; the glamorous location of a field adjacent to the Hurlingham Club, which hosted the 1908 Olympic Games polo final won by England. He also wanted plenty of cameras.

Daniel’s enthusiastic and persuasive presentation left me with no doubt that this was going to be an event of epic proportions. But later, as I walked to my car, I couldn’t help but wonder if this City whiz-kid could really pull off this larger-than-life project.

On 6 June I was there. He pulled it off magnificently; his dream was realised. There were no shortcuts,

nothing was rushed, the event was organised to a high standard.

And the polo? Simply the most exciting I have seen for a long time.

As for Daniel Fox-Davies: his dream to bring polo to the masses started to become reality this June.

If you missed it this year, make sure you don’t in 2010.

John Alexander Santos Otterbourne, Hampshire Why do grooms always go hungry?

I went to Polo in the Park: amazing, well made and like a mini-Cartier Day. The players were treated like idols, with a masseur in the marquee! The pony lines, made by Nick Mandersfield, were better than the ones at a certain Berkshire club, and had water, hoses and buckets.

But no drinks and food for grooms – the place to buy was so far from the pony lines, and expensive! Why do people with money have no consideration? Everything is done for players, patrons and horses, but nothing for grooms. Polo can’t do anything without grooms – it needs to do more for them!

Atilio Degrossi England

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Report Harcourt Developments Queen’s Cup

Brett Badham, Charlie Hanbury, Mark Tomlinson, Sir Charles Williams, Juan Gris Zavaleta, Luke Tomlinson and Juan Martín Zavaleta lift the trophy they fought so hard for

Antje Derks witnesses an all-pro side scoop the summer’s first 22-goal title after 18 teams fight it out in an action-packed tournament at Guards hree British players and a young Argentine, who came together just a few months ago as the reformed Apes Hill Club Barbados, triumphed in the Queen’s Cup last month after a riveting showdown against Sumaya. The final at Guards was a treat for spectators, featuring outstanding four-man teamwork on both sides, as well as two minutes of extra time.

The close scoreline and participation of a British-dominated side meant shouts of support from friends, family and fans from the stands were unusually noisy and passionate.

The Apes Hill side was formed three years ago by non-playing patron Sir Charles “Cow” Williams, who aimed to propel four professional English players to high-goal success. In 2007 and 2008 Luke and Mark Tomlinson, Tom Morley and Ed Hitchman were the chosen ones.

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24 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

This year, after handicap changes, a new line-up was called for: gone were Morley and Hitchman, and in came Charlie Hanbury and a 22-year-old Argentine six-goaler, Juan Gris Zavaleta.

Fair enough, some might say, but what happened to the all-English dream? There are

finals, Apes Hill outsmarted Victor Vargas’s Lechuza Caracas, securing their place in the final with a 9-6 victory.

However, according to Luke, the odds were very much against them doing well: “I’d played a bit with Charlie Hanbury last summer, and against Juan Gris Zavaleta. We were a new team, and

‘We were a new team, and tried to forge a team spirit and a strategy.We saw ourselves as underdogs’ – Luke Tomlinson several well-mounted English six-goalers on the circuit, but apparently an all-English team was no longer on the cards. Controversial perhaps, but it proved a successful move.

Apes Hill sailed through their league stages unbeaten and in the quarter-finals overcame La Bamba de Areco (featuring two Pieres brothers) 13-10, in torrential rain and hail. In the semi-

only started playing together in earnest in March in Argentina.

“There we tried to forge a team spirit and come up with the best playing strategy. To be honest, we thought of ourselves as underdogs.”

Sumaya, on the other hand, were runners-up in last year’s tournament after losing by a goal to Ellerston. Though unbeaten in their run to

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Clockwise from top: Milo Fernandez Araujo (yellow hat) leads the attack for Sumaya; Luke Tomlinson (in blue and orange) and Nachi du Plessis; Hilario Ulloa was briefly on the ground, moments into extra-time; the Queen congratulates Sir Charles Williams on the win for his team, which he has backed for three years

the final this year, their passage was rockier than Apes Hill’s – they recorded several narrower victories.

Their 14-11 quarter-final win against Habtoor was convincing, then they faced Dubai – with a Cambiaso who has shown recent fine form – in the semis. In one of the tournament’s most exciting matches Sumaya dominated the first half only for Dubai to come back strongly in the second.

Dubai went into the final chukka a goal up, then Sumaya put in two penalties to get ahead again. With two minutes to go the umpires awarded a technical against Cambiaso for disputing a call, from which Hilario Ulloa made it 14-12. Dubai scored once more and in the dying seconds Cambiaso had possession, but the final bell sounded and Sumaya could breathe again.

The table was set and, despite their opponents’ nail-biting route to the final, Apes Hill knew Sumaya would not be easy adversaries.

Indeed, according to Mark Tomlinson the team had already discussed the prospect of extra time: “We had a chat about the possibility of a seventh or even an eighth chukka. We had to think about X

The patrons who took to 22-goal in 2009 JEROME WIRTH (right), who is originally from Paris, grew up in a horsey family, writes Yolanda Carslaw. He learnt to ride aged four but stopped aged 15 when other sports, such as rugby, took over from dressage and jumping. Then seven years ago a friend invited him to Chantilly Polo Club. “I rode a polo pony there, with a mallet in my hand, and that was it,” says the 40-year-old. “For four years I played low-goal in France, going back and forth every weekend. Then I decided to settle in England, where my business is based, and keep my horses at Cowdray.”

Since then he has played 12, 15 and 18goal. “A few years ago I had no idea I'd end up playing high-goal,” says Wirth. “I knew nobody in the polo world. I didn't want to go to highgoal too quickly because I wanted to improve first. We played two 22-goal tournaments in Argentina but the level in England is in another league – it's tougher and more competitive, and the horses are better. The rhythm and pace is different to lower levels.“I find it quite physical. We train all winter, doing running, gym, Pilates and stretching. The main thing is

that I'm playing with people I like – there's a good vibe. Andrew Hine coaches our team. He's there at games, does video sessions and helps fix our strategy.

Todham is one of the best spots in England for a polo yard. It's between Ambersham and the Lawns, and is surrounded by nature. We're making a barn into a clubhouse and plan to have a gym, too.

“I run my own investment businesses [in areas such as online gaming and virtual racing] so I can arrange my own time, which makes it easier than for some other patrons. I'm not in polo for the social scene: my main interest is in the horses: I love going to the stables to ride and talk to the grooms. I'm not flashy!”

Wirth has played at Plettenberg in South Africa, and would like one day to play in Brazil, and at Ellerston in Australia.

◗ Next month: new in 22 goal: Rashid Al-Habtoor

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Report Harcourt Developments Queen’s Cup

Clockwise from top left: Milo Fernandez Araujo (yellow hat) and Dubai’s Cristian Laprida on semi-finals day; Luke Tomlinson (blue hat) and Lechuza’s Juan Carlos Harriott the same day; the Argentine Eduardo Heguy and two of his team-mates from Les Lions I during a league game; Sumaya’s Nachi du Plessis takes a break

X it from a horse point of view and make sure we

had a pony or two in reserve.”

The value of their preparation was eventually proved, but Sumaya’s protagonists demonstrated their own value with some excellent performances: young South African Ignatius “Nachi” du Plessis looked cheap off his six-goal

handicap. The 20-year-old plays a cool game, attempting and often converting remarkable goals with the poise of a seasoned pro.

Hilario Ulloa proved himself once again to be another force to be reckoned with and the older player Milo Fernandez Araujo’s experience and expertise held the team together superbly. It also

Photographs by Tony Ramirez and Andrew Tobin

The patrons who took to 22-goal in 2009 NICK CLARKE (right), who grew up riding in Cheshire, took up polo 15 years ago after a friend got him started with John Horswell. He began taking polo more seriously after teaming up with José Donoso.

Significant wins include the Royal Windsor and the Duke of Sutherland. Clarke has made one previous high-goal foray, in 2005, with Gabriel Donoso, Andrea Vianini and Jamie Le Hardy, in the Gold and Warwickshire Cups, but this is his first year tackling the “big two”.

He discovered Cowdray through David Jamison, whom he knew through business – Clarke’s area is oil, gas and renewable energy: he is CEO of Carbon Resource Management, which has offices in London, Geneva and Beijing. He and his Italian wife live in London

26 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

and at their Midhurst property, Brackenwood, next-door to Madams Farm.

“I’ve been building my infrastructure and horses gradually,” he says. So why Salkeld?

“It’s my grandmother’s name, and means willow by a brook in Scandinavian,” says Clarke. “It’s also the name of a place in the Lake District.”

At times his team has been called Costa Careyes after the Mexican polo resort where he has owned a place since 1997.

His 22-goal team-mates now are José Donoso, Marcos di Paola and Rob Archibald.

“We’re having a great time,” he says. “I’m seeing a difference in high-goal compared to lower levels, in terms of keeping fit, for instance, and in terms of infrastructure. It’s early days but so far we’ve been doing respectably.”

He adds that there must be some ability in the family – his daughter, Hannah, is a leading young dressage rider who looks like going to the top of her game.

helped that their patron, Ahmad Aboughazale, is very handy off his one-goal handicap.

However, he remarked afterwards: “It was hard for me to get away today because our opponents latched on to me so quickly!”

Spectators were certainly treated to genuine four-man team polo.

The match itself was very even for the first couple of chukkas. Apes Hill scored the opener but Ulloa equalised immediately. After a beautiful

“It was hard for me to get away today because our opponents latched onto me so quickly” – Ahmad Aboughazale nearside backhand goal by Juan Gris Zavaleta, it was 2-2 going into the third.

However, some great team play by Apes Hill and a couple of runs by Zavaleta and Hanbury followed, and by halfway through the third they were 7-4 up, with a 60 to convert. In the event Luke missed the 60 and moments later Sumaya closed the gap by putting in a 30. A brilliant Sumaya field goal followed and by half-time Apes Hill were just a goal ahead.

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What else happened? ◗ IN AN ANTAGONISTIC league match between Talandracas and Les Lions II on 23 May, Alejandro Agote was sent off for the entire fourth chukka after he was seen to spit in the direction of Les Lions II’s Chris MacKenzie. Agote, who is generally regarded as of good character, faced the Guards Disciplinary Committee, where, after the board examined video evidence of the match, he was fined £10,000 and banned from his next Queen’s Cup match.

From top left: Azzurra’s George Meyrick; Milo Fernandez Araujo and Nacho Gonzalez; the Queen’s Ground

In the fourth Sumaya pulled ahead – just as Andy Murray won the tennis at Queen’s – and it was neck and neck until the final bell. Then, two minutes into the seventh chukka, after Ulloa briefly came off his horse, Hanbury kept his head to put in the golden goal after some great work

by Luke Tomlinson and Zavaleta set things up.

The Beaufort/Longdole contingent at the sidelines went wild; Luke sent his mallet whistling high in the air and Cow Williams could finally celebrate the result he had dreamed of for his Apes Hill polo team.

Both Cow and Osama Aboughazale, father of Ahmad and patron of Sumaya, as keen players themselves, expressed regret they couldn’t be out there in the thick of it.

Cow said, “It’s sometimes even tougher watching – especially when there’s an extra chukka,” while Osama declared: “We have to invent a time-machine!” He added: “I’m disappointed we didn’t win, but pleased for Apes Hill, because they’re our friends, we respect them and they’re nice to play against. However, we will make sure we beat them the Gold Cup!” F ◗ To read more about Apes Hill’s young Argentine player Juan Gris Zavaleta, turn to the inside back page, “A week in the life of”.

Queen’s Cup, 19 May-14 June 2009; Guards Polo Club, Surrey Result: Apes Hill Club Barbados beat Sumaya, 12-11 Principal sponsor: Harcourt Developments Handicap level: 17-22 goal Number of team entries: 18 Chukka scores (Apes Hill): 2-2; 4-3; 7-6; 8-8; 9-9; 11-11; 12-11 Most valuable player: South African Ignatius “Nachi” du Plessis Best playing pony: Russian, played by Sumaya’s Ignatius Du Plessis (see Pony Power, page 54, to find out more) ROR award for best retrained racehorse: Garnet, 13-year-old bay mare owned and played

by Luke Tomlinson, produced by Anthony Fanshawe; formerly in training with Tim Easterby Final teams: Apes Hill Club Barbados (22): Charlie Hanbury 3; Mark Tomlinson 6; Juan Gris Zavaleta 6; Luke Tomlinson 7 Sumaya (22): Ahmad Aboughazale 1; Hilario Ulloa 7; Milo Fernandez Araujo 8; Ignatius du Plessis 6 Losing semi-finalists: Dubai (22): Tariq Albwardy 1; Martin Valent 4; Cristian Laprida 7; Adolfo Cambiaso 10 Lechuza Caracas (22): Victor Vargas 1; Guillermo Caset 8; Miguel Novillo Astrada 9; Juan Carlos Harriott 4

◗ ADOLFO CAMBIASO, the world number one, failed to play in Dubai’s first league match against Zacara due to an injured riding muscle. His expertise was missed and Dubai lost.

He recovered and reappeared for his team’s next league match and the quarter-finals but was forced out of the quarter-final in the fifth chukka by the same injury. This time he was controversially replaced by Loro Piana’s Juan Martin Nero (see Herbert Spencer’s Global View, page 11).

Cambiaso returned to the field for Dubai during the semi-finals, where they went down by a goal to Sumaya. ◗ MARCOS HEGUY was injured and carted off in an ambulance during Azzurra’s match against Talandracas.

After a lengthy search for a substitute, David “Pelon” Stirling was allowed to play. Heguy’s horses worked well for him, but an unfortunate incident with the ball meant that Stirling too was injured. For a brief time it looked as though a sub would be needed to replace the sub, but Pelon battled on to complete the game. ◗ PLAYER OF THE TOURNAMENT was Sumaya’s young South African, Ignatius du Plessis, who played sensational polo throughout the Queen’s Cup. The 20-year old six-goaler impressed players and spectators alike with his ability and cool demeanour and he won the coveted most valuable player award in the final, walking off with a Jeroboam of Pommery. He is certainly one to watch – and it can’t be long before he goes to seven. ◗ THE LOCALISED NATURE of England’s climate demonstrated itself all too clearly at the quarter-finals, when hail delayed play on several occasions during the match between Apes Hill and La Bamba de Areco at Guards. The quarter-final, played simultaneously at Cowdray, was played in bright sunshine.

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Report Polo in the Park

Photographs by Andrew Tobin and courtesy of Polo in the Park

James Mullan reports on the launch of Daniel Fox-Davies’s much anticipated polo project, which returned the game to central London for the first time in 70 years with a considerable twist

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n the day the ICC World Twenty20 cricket tournament got underway in London, polo’s own newest form of the game made its debut in the capital in Fulham’s Hurlingham Park. However, whilst England fell to an ignominious defeat to cricketing minnows the Netherlands at Lords, the home crowd got the result they wanted at the polo in SW6, as Team London toppled New York in Saturday’s final to win the inaugural World Polo Series trophy.

London triumphed via consecutive 9-8 victories, making the best use of the new rules and adapting quickest to see off the challenge of a misfiring Team Moscow in Friday’s semi-final and a big-screen-friendly New York side – featuring polo-playing model Nacho Figueras and British lookers Kirsty Craig and Roddy Williams – on Saturday afternoon.

The fourth side, Team Buenos Aires, who were beaten by New York in the other Friday semi-final, took third place in the competition with a convincing victory over Moscow earlier on Saturday.

The sides fought it out in front of as many as 10,000 fans a day, playing according to a series of drastic new rules, with imaginative innovations designed to make the game faster, more accessible and more exciting to uninitiated spectators.

Jamie Morrison struck London’s winning goal in the final, after Figueras had capitalised on one of these new rules to force extra time at the end of the final chukka, scoring a long-range goal worth two points to bring New York level and tie the scores at 8-8.

A 45-yard “D” cocooning each goal, marked on the ground rather like a hockey field or basketball court, served as the marker for all the tournament’s non-onthe-spot penalties and, crucially, determined how much successful strikes at goal from open play would be worth. Goals scored inside the D were worth one on the scoreboard, as normal, but those scored from long range – outside the area marked by the D – were worth two.

A big-hitting extravaganza resulted, forming a platform for polo’s beefier players to shine. Moscow’s Ollie Taylor and Andrea Vianini slogged away at will, peppering shots from anywhere whenever they had even the slightest sniff inside their opponents’ halves.

Buenos Aires’s Argentine playmakers couldn’t quite shrug off their seemingly inbuilt tendencies always to take an extra tap, scoring almost twice as many X

O

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Report Polo in the Park Previous page: Jack Kidd celebrates with the crowd after firing in a goal from outside the new “D” area, as Nina Clarkin looks on This page (clockwise from left): Umpires Tim Bown and Tony Keyte each got the chance to give spectators an umpire’s perspective, thanks to helmet cams powered by a rucksack on their backs; the match for third place, between Buenos Aires and Moscow, is tracked by the mobile overhead camera high in the sky; Polo in the Park’s creator and principal financer, Daniel Fox-Davies; and Nacho Figueras gets released from the “sin-bin” in front of the stands, having served his 30-second penalty for two yellow flags

Photographs by Andrew Tobin

X singles as any other team in the tournament (15

in total – the three other sides each scored eight).

But, unsurprisingly, it was the two sides that most consistently scored their strikes worth two from long range that made the final.

New York’s Nacho Figueras and London’s Jack Kidd (who helped devise many of the new rules) were the two finest exponents of the long-range strike, capitalising on the new rules to propel themselves into a palate-whetting gung-ho dual in Saturday’s final.

However, it was clever play from Henry Brett and two double goals from Jamie Morrison that ultimately won London the first ever World Polo Association crown.

“But was it any good?” I hear you cry. Indeed, few polo people can remember any other new venture that has created the same levels of intrigue, or divided opinion so successfully, as the launch of Daniel Fox-Davies’s enormously ambitious “Polo World Series”.

And, while many will have expected it to fall on its face – and, no doubt, some will have hoped it would – the simple answer is that it didn’t.

Broadly, for an inaugural outing, it was a slick and well-polished affair.

30 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

Fox-Davies’s execution matched his ambition and, love it or hate it, there can be little doubt that his innovative version of the game is a watchable spectacle, made even more so with the generous help of technology. Television replays and on-screen statistics provided an

Rather like some of the recent boat race crews, it didn’t matter that Moscow’s line-up wasn’t remotely Russian instant opportunity to emphasise and explain all the best of the action on the smaller, reshaped octagonal ground.

The relentless tempo of the game, and the introduction of the rule that rewards shots from long range in particular, meant there was plenty of action for the team in the production lorry to get to grips with.

And spectators genuinely seemed to get behind their chosen sides, too. Calling teams after

well-known geographical locations, rather than some of the tongue-twisters in this year’s highgoal, certainly helped to encourage most of those with no knowledge of or familiarity with any of the players to form an artificial connection.

Rather like some of the recent boat race crews, it didn’t matter one bit to most Londoners that Moscow’s line-up bore no relationship to anywhere remotely Russian.

The games were fun. The new rules prevent lengthy stoppages and discourage the continual tapping that can blight a poor match in polo’s normal form. These, and the less approachable standard rules, are the factors which have stifled the expansion of polo on television.

But that is where Polo in the Park can succeed. Marketing it as polo’s Twenty20 cricket is a fairly accurate analogy. Like the MCC faithful, it will upset many purists as some of the harder-to-recognise nuances of the traditional game are undoubtedly lost. But that doesn’t seem to be the point. Organisers claim they are not trying to reinvent the game as it is, only to create a spin-off form that will appeal to a new generation of action-obsessed X urbanites, used to Playstations and instant

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Rewriting the rules ◗ The field was a three-quarter size octagonal ground, with the corners removed and high side-walls like an arena, which aimed to keep the ball in play as much as possible.

◗ The ground incorporated a “sin-bin” area off the main playing field, in front of the grandstands. Players who picked up two yellow flags for the more serious infringements in a game were dispatched to the bin for 30 seconds from the start of the resultant penalty.

◗ Games began with a 30-second countdown on the big screen, with the spectators encouraged to count the start of the game down from 10.

One member of each team – assembled at the top of their respective “D” rings at either end of the ground – then made a one-on-one “suicide dash” to the ball in the middle of the ground.

◗ A 45-yard “D” ring around the goal mouths reminded spectators of a hockey or a basketball ground. Rather like in basketball, successful shots from outside the ring were rewarded with more points. At Polo in the Park, a goal inside the 45-yard “D” was worth one, while a goal from outside was worth two.

◗ All non-on-the-spot penalties were taken from the top of the “D”, 45 yards out, and could be defended by one opponent riding in front and trying to block.

◗ Players didn’t change ends after each goal,

Schedule and teams Friday First semi-final (3pm) London

9 – 8

Moscow

Second semi-final (4.45pm) New York 12 – 11 Buenos Aires

Saturday Third/fourth place play-off (3pm) Moscow 8 – 12 Buenos Aires Polo in the Park Final 2009 (4.45pm) London 9 – 8 New York

London (16): Nina Clarkin 3; Jamie Morrison 4; Henry Brett 5; Jack Kidd 4

New York (16): Kirsty Craig 1; Nacho Figueras 6; Roddy Williams 6; Sasha Pictet 3

Buenos Aires (16): Fabien Pictet 2; Lucas Talamoni 5; Oscar Mancini 4; Nico Talamoni 5

Moscow (16): Tamara Vestey 2; James Glasson 4; Andrea Vianini 6; Oliver Taylor 4

as in traditional polo. Rather, more akin to other ball sports, the sides switched ends only once, at half-time, between the second and third chukkas.

Other innovations ◗ Video technology allowed the team in the production lorry to review difficult umpiring decisions and, where necessary, this team was able to have another look at something and advise the two umpires on the ground. For example, Jack Kidd had a goal retrospectively chalked off at the beginning of the crucial fourth chukka in the final when it was revealed that it had actually gone wide of the post.

◗ Camera angles included the traditional “tele cam” view from above the commentary position, but also saw the debut of a mobile overhead camera on a wire (like in the NFL).

Even “umpire cams” featured, as Tim Bown and Tony Keyte officiated with rucksacks on their backs carrying the equipment for a shoulder camera that captured all the action.

◗ Like in Twenty20 cricket, teams took to the ground in entirely colour-co-ordinated uniforms, right down to their helmets and jeans.

◗ There was no changing of uninjured ponies during chukkas. Players only got the chance between chukkas.

◗ A female player featured on all four sides, except for Team Buenos Aires.

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Report Polo in the Park Fragments from Fulham ◗ ON TERRESTRIAL UK television last month, on 24 June, ITV1 showed highlights of the action and the weekend’s other activities at Polo in the Park in a 45-minute show. Typical viewing figures for this time and this channel are 1.4 million.

Coverage was also shown during peak viewing hours in the early evening on Freeview on ITV4 the day before, bringing the game to members of the British public previously unable to see polo coverage unless they had Sky television. FoxDavies’s long-term aim, he has said, is to create a form of the game workable on live television.

◗ MORE THAN 20,000 spectators came out in less-thanperfect weather during the three days of the event, making attendances competitive with the UK’s two biggest days out on the traditional polo calendar, the Gold Cup and Cartier International Day.

◗ THE CROWD was mainly made up of Londoners, as was intended. Polo Times noticed fewer polo people than might have been expected, though of course many would have had playing commitments on the Saturday. The Tomlinsons were spotted having a look around on the Friday, John Paul Clarkin and the Vestey parents were on hand on both days to support the girls, Lucy Northmore and Jan-Erik Franck seem to be everywhere, Charlotte Christodoulou was looking as glamorous as ever, and high-goal patron Rashid Al Habtoor and Argentina’s Piki Diaz Alberdi were seen enjoying action from the stands.

◗ CELEBRITIES included Princess Beatrice, England rugby wingers Paul Sackey and Tom Voyce, Ashes cricket hero Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff, Strictly Come Dancing’s Kiwi professional Brendan Cole, footwear designer Jimmy Choo, TV sports presenter Alex Payne, former Miss World Rosanna Davison, former reality TV judge Nicki Chapman, model Sophie Anderton, EastEnders’ Christopher Parker and, of course, the Kidd sisters.

◗ INSTANT REPLAYS of the action appeared on Europe’s largest plasma television screen (100 square metres), visible on the far side of the ground from the grandstands. As well as frequent and immediately reproduced replays, producers were also able to show various live camera angles during the games, and display the score, graphics, close-ups and team and player information throughout.

◗ THE WEATHER was actually not as bad as some forecasts predicted. Sure, there was no sun, and it was mighty cold at times, but at least there was very little rain when it counted.

The rain picked its moments well, given that we might have spent the day camped out under brollies. It rained overnight and between the games, producing only drizzle when everyone was out in the open. It affected the ground slightly, particularly on the second day where there were two falls and the grass visibly cut up worse than on Friday, but the success of the event in such inclement conditions must have been thoroughly encouraging to organisers.

Photographs by Andrew Tobin

◗ TICKETS started at £15 per head a day for general entry, with grandstand tickets (including entry) priced at £35 and £40. Hospitality prices ranged from £180 to £450. A third day, featuring exhibition games between low-goal sides, was free to local residents on the Sunday, as Fox-Davies and his team sought to keep Fulham on side for what is hoped will become an annual fixture.

◗ £350,000 has been invested in regenerating Hurlingham Park itself, replacing a disused athletics ground and longjump pit, an uneven football pitch and an under-sized rugby field. The new surface was laid by the firm that re-turfed Wembley, which is also sure to have impressed the locals.

32 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

New York’s Nacho Figueras (left) and Roddy Williams nearly did enough to capture the inaugural World Polo Series crown, but were undone by an extra-time goal from London’s Jamie Morrison

X

gratification – the kind of people who would never usually watch polo at all.

“Do we want them?” you might legitimately ask. Well, giving them their own event, like it or not, allows the purists to reclaim events such as Cartier Day, which some believe has become something of a circus. And the increased interest certainly can’t be bad for struggling polo businesses or those seeking sponsorship.

Friday’s commentator, the Australian sevengoaler Glen Gilmore, was full of praise for the enterprise and spectacle of the event. “I thought the whole thing was a fantastic idea and really well done,” he said. “There were some great novelty ideas that I liked and, just as shorter versions of the game in cricket and rugby have given us some of the rules and technological advances that have been incorporated into the main traditions of those sports, it’s important to have innovative projects that ask these sorts of questions.”

Glen thinks the event has given an opportunity to the regulators at the top of the game. “I’m not saying this is how polo should go forward, only that it provides polo people with an example of how novel ideas could freshen the

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London’s Jack Kidd, Henry Brett, Jamie Morrison and Nina Clarkin enjoy the moment at the presentation ceremony after a hard-fought final against New York. Polo in the Park’s ambassador Jodie Kidd (right), who presented the trophy to her brother’s team, leads the applause on the stage beside the ground.

game up a bit,” he said. “For example, if polo is going to expand to attract bigger and broader audiences, it needs to be easier to understand quickly. Polo in the Park made things a lot simpler for the newcomer. That has to be good.”

Nina Clarkin, who played on the winning London side, agrees it was a success but doesn’t think the rule changes should influence the wider game: “The changes worked well and were simple for newcomers to understand but, in my view, they would be too radical to incorporate into the normal game,” she said. “It worked in fitting that particular mould – as a good exhibition to introduce people to the exhilaration of the sport – but many of the changes were obviously designed more for the interest of the spectators than for the players. For example, the quick restarts from the goal-line after a goal made for a good spectacle and kept the game moving, but gave the advantage back to the team that had just scored, rather than moving the ball back to a neutral area in the middle of the ground.”

Another point Nina made from a player’s perspective was that the only place the score was displayed was on the big screen during the live

feed. So players often had little idea who was winning and by how much, especially given the confusion that some goals worth two undoubtedly caused.

But there is no reason to suspect improvements won’t be made, especially seeing

Some of the protracted over-acting was about as credible as an MP’s expense claims as the organisers impressively rectified many of the teething problems from the first day in time for the second.

One feature many felt should be jettisoned in time for next year is the theatrical bouts of squabbling between the teams, featuring Jack Kidd and Roddy Williams in particular, which at times bore all the hallmarks of WWF wrestling.

Not only were they so badly over-acted as to be about as credible as a British MP’s expense claims, but they were also entirely unnecessary

and patronised the spectators (especially the seasoned polo-goers). The pantomime undermined the otherwise generally believable competitive edge and only served to give rise to suspicions that everything was just slightly too orchestrated.

Indeed, there can be little doubt that FoxDavies and his World Polo Association crew got the final they would have wanted. London and New York were the obvious pin-up teams and, while it was never made clear how the semifinalists were chosen, it was perhaps at best a convenient coincidence that these two sides were separated on opposite sides of the draw.

However, organisers clearly thought it was important to get the first year of the tournament off to a favourable start and, all in all, they have deemed their launch event a great success. The fact that there will be a next year at all, and possible spin-off franchises of the tournament worldwide, shows that the idea undoubtedly has its niche. Perhaps, if Fox-Davies can pull it off again and again, in time it might become that elusive lucrative version of the game that others have attempted – as popular with spectators, players and sponsors as Twenty20 cricket. F www.polotimes.co.uk July 2009 33

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Report Arthur Lucas Cup

Lovelocks ride off into the sunset Miles Underwood watches a pair of prominent Gloucestershire medium-goal sides battle it out for a holiday to the Seychelles The winning side of George Hanbury, Manolo Fernandez-Llorente, Will Lucas and Ollie Cudmore, with footballing legend Bob Wilson. Below: Sam Hopkinson (in green and red) and Ollie Cudmore

t the Beaufort’s first big final of 2009 the home team Los Locos took on local raiders Lovelocks in pursuit of one of polo’s most desirable tournament prizes. Apart from the silverware, in memory of Claire Tomlinson’s polopioneer father Arthur Lucas, the teams were chasing two holidays for two, each worth about £10,000, to Cousine Island in the Seychelles. Six teams – just one fewer than last year – had been in the fray, and both finalists overcame defeats during the group stages to make it to the Saturday afternoon showdown.

The day was held in aid of The Willow Foundation – a charity set up by former England goalkeeper and Arsenal legend Bob Wilson after the death of his daughter aged 31 from cancer. The foundation provides days out for seriously ill 16- to 40-year-olds.

As players took to the field Lovelocks were the narrow favourites, with the strong pairing of Will Lucas and Manolo Fernandez-Llorente in the middle

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awarded a spot hit just inside the boards from 80 yards out. The Los Locos hearts were about to be broken. Fernandez-Llorente threaded the ball to goal, ducking opponents like Maradona through the England defence to make the final score 6-4.

“George [Hanbury] and Ollie [Cudmore] really stood up to the mark on the big occasion,” observed Will Lucas. “On a personal note I am thrilled to win the trophy bearing the name of my grandfather.”

The subsidiary final for the Metropolitan Cup was won by Corovest, who beat Beaufort 7-5. F

Photographs by Nicky Randall

‘On a personal note I’m thrilled to win the trophy bearing the name of my grandfather – Will Lucas and Hanbury and Cudmore youngsters at front and back respectively. In the event, however, the action proved tight throughout.

After an attack by Ollie Cudmore from an early line-out Los Locos swiftly regained composure, with Diego Cavanagh slowing the tempo and New Zealander Sam Hopkinson finding space that led to a wonderful solo goal to open the scoring. Cavanagh and Hopkinson combined well, with the two female Tomlinsons at front and back, but Lovelocks turned defence to attack time and again and soon equalised.

Play started scrappily in the second chukka but momentum returned as Cavanagh found Hopkinson with a magnificent long pass that landed feet from his stick for him to make it 2-1 to Los Locos. Tenacious work by Lucas yielded another equaliser for Lovelocks, but the home team looked cool under pressure.

Stalemate ensued in the third as FernandezLlorente grafted hard as pivot for Lovelocks, but he couldn’t find his man in attack and there were

34 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

missed chances at both ends. Lovelocks looked on the ascendancy but still lacked fluency.

Lovelocks captain Will Lucas said afterwards: “We felt we were playing well enough at half time not to change anything and to stick to our game plan.”

After half-time, however, an inspired Hopkinson approach shot from the standside boards set Claire Tomlinson loose to put her team up 4-2. Cudmore then shone for Lovelocks to make it 4-3, and with momentum on their side Lovelocks equalised.

In the final chukka Lovelocks dominated the midfield, forcing Los Locos mistakes. Play then opened up and Cudmore went clear again to put his team ahead for the first time. With the home team’s goal now under sustained attack, Lovelocks were

Arthur Lucas Cup; 26 May to 6 June; Beaufort Polo Club Result: Lovelocks beat Los Locos 6-4 Principal sponsor: Cousine Island Handicap level: 12-15 Number of team entries: six Chukka scores (Lovelocks): 1-1; 2-2; 2-2; 4-4; 6-4 Best playing pony: Lapa La La, played by Ollie Cudmore Teams: Lovelocks (15): George Hanbury 1, Manolo Fernandez-Llorente 6, Will Lucas 6, Ollie Cudmore 2 Los Locos (15): Emma Tomlinson 2, Sam Hopkinson 6, Diego Cavanagh 6, Claire Tomlinson 1

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Advertorial

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ffluence was once the preserve of a relatively small number of people, particularly members of the landed aristocracy. However, the population of today's wealthy largely comprises entrepreneurs, professionals, executives and of course successful sporting superstars. This is demonstrative of the fact that there are a number of different ways in which people can become millionaires in their lifetime such as building a successful business, realising investment gains, having a wonderful idea which transforms into a viable commercial venture or of course being an exceptional polo player.

For leading Private Bank Coutts & Co and its internationally positioned sister company RBS Coutts, this diversity of wealthy individuals is reflected in their broad range of clients. Different people who have attained their wealth through different means can have very diverse financial priorities and requirements both financially and personally. One of the challenges these private banks face is the requirement to provide a high level of expertise to meet these needs. Coutts has been managing the assets of some of the wealthiest people in the UK since 1692, however in more modern times, in recognition of the fact that Coutts clients are so diverse, private bankers have been trained and have built up expertise in dealing with clients from specific sectors. These include the world of sports and entertainment, professionals, entrepreneurs, landowners and executives, to name a few.

Martin Thurnham, Managing Partner, Sports and Entertainment Client Group at Coutts, explains: “This focus on specific client groups helps the private banker to better understand the needs and ambitions of our clients.

Professionals in certain Martin Thurnham sports, such as footballers, tend to have a very high earning potential, but have a limited career duration and need to ensure their wealth is protected and allowed to grow in order to provide for their later years. Polo professionals, on the other hand, are an exception to most sports as they can play at a professional level for a much longer period of time and as a result their wealth management requirements are quite different.”

Coutts’ history with the polo dates back to 1925, when the Jodhpur polo team, which had swept all before it in India, visited England and all team members opened accounts with Coutts. They won many matches, beating the US army and winning the Hurlingham Champion Cup and the Roehampton Open Cup. Since this time Coutts has lent its support to many other polo matches. The Coutts Cup was first awarded in 1986 for the match between Lloyd's of London and the Stock Exchange. The Stock Exchange won this first

match, with the two teams playing for The Cup until 1992. One of the events held to mark the opening of the RBS Coutts Dubai office in 1999 was a match in Abu Dhabi when a Coutts Cup was presented.

Last year, Coutts worked closely with the Yorkshire Nations Polo Club to sponsor the Yorkshire Nations Cup reaffirming its support in connecting players from around the world.

2007 and 2008 also saw Coutts sponsor the 12 goal Coutts International Polo Weekend at Chester Racecourse Polo Club, now in its fifth year. The tournament has become the club's flagship tournament, with teams competing to win £10,000 in prize money. For the polo set, this is a chance to watch some of the UK’s best names in the sport, as a host of national and international players compete in the two day event.

Martin continues: “What really strikes me are the Clubs’ commitment in providing a personal service to their members and guests which, together with their eye for detail, mirrors the philosophy we adopt at Coutts when dealing with our clients. I have rarely during my time in private banking at Coutts, come across two businesses with such common fundamentals.”

By Martin Thurnham, Managing Partner, Sports and Entertainment Client Group at Coutts

To find out whether Coutts or RBS Coutts may have a part to play in your life or business, call Martin Thurnham on 0207 753 1823 (calls may be recorded) or visit website www.coutts.com www.polotimes.co.uk July 2009 35

PTJuly 2009 p36-37 Dollar Balding YC MB

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Report Dollar Cup Bautista Sorzana leads the action for Jaeger-LeCoultre

Team familiarity, an on-form Argentine, a descendent of Sinclair Hill and ponies with stamina clinched victory for Jaeger-LeCoultre, reveals Clare Milford Haven, the side’s number one ighteen teams entered the Dollar Cup at Cowdray this May in spite of inevitable talk of cutbacks, credit crunch and recession. The gloomy financial atmosphere did not seem to pervade the enthusiasm on the field as this highly competitive 12-goal tournament got underway, with six divisions of three teams fighting it out in 35 matches over a 10-day period.

Starseed Omega Nuts, with Henry Brett on top form, were the unbeaten favourites – until, that is, they met our team (Jaeger-LeCoultre) in the semi-finals. We won 8-41/2 and it was then down to us to battle with the commanding presence of Emlor in the final.

Even before we rode onto the ground, I felt somewhat intimidated by the well-regimented warm-up routine of the opposition. Watching them stretching and perfecting the art of “high knees” – whilst we sat glued to our director’s

Photograph by Tony Ramirez

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36 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

chairs exercising our jaws – made me feel a tad inadequate. But I had been here before. Back in 2004, we entered the Dollar as one of the least fancied teams and somehow pulled off a win. I felt we could do it again.

In our favour was the fact that half of our team had played together for a few years.

Bautista Sorzana, Gareth Evans and myself, all based at Great Trippetts Farm, have joined forces for the past three years and had now added to the team the one-goal Australian, George Hill, whose polo heritage alone was promising – his grandfather, Sinclair, remains Australia’s only 10goal player since the war.

The final, played out on Lawns Two on a blissful bank holiday Monday afternoon, proved suitably intense. Bauti seemed to dominate and have control of the game throughout, with Gareth working tirelessly at his side.

The only thing that let us down were our

penalties, whereas Emlor, with Nacho Gonzalez consistently accurate, had a 100 per cent success rate. The game was tough and tight and could have gone either way, but the stamina of our horses helped considerably, and thankfully we managed to keep our lead throughout. We ran out the winners 8-61/2. F Dollar Cup, 15-25 May, Cowdray Park Result: Jaeger-LeCoultre beat Emlor, 8-61/2 Handicap level: 12-goal Number of team entries: 18 Chukka scores (Jaeger-LeCoultre): 2-11/2; 4-21/2; 7-51/2; 8-61/2 Most valuable player: Bautista Sorzana Final teams: Jaeger-LeCoultre: Clare Milford Haven 0; Gareth Evans 5; Bautista Sorzana 6; George Hill 1 Emlor: Clinton McCarthy 0; Ali Hissam Hyder 4; Nacho Gonzalez 6; Spencer McCarthy 1

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Gerald Balding Cup Report

Save the best for last May’s last day brought glorious weather and two exhilarating games at Ivy Lodge that were won with late, great goals says Jo Brooks ewer teams entered this year’s Gerald Balding Cup than in previous years, down from 19 teams in 2008 and 24 in 2007 to just 10 sides. However, several of the most successful patrons of recent years were still in the hunt and brought competitive teams, including Guy Schwarzenbach’s Black Bears, Martin Ephson’s Poulton (both former finalists) and, most notably of all, the history-making winners from 2007, England’s top ladies’ side of Nina Clarkin, Tamara Vestey, Emma Tomlinson and Lucy Taylor (this year playing as Foxy Ladies Catering).

But, come finals day on Sunday 31 May, it was two surprise success stories that would contest the day’s major prize, Team Halcyon Gallery and Team Stobart. Halcyon Gallery (three of whose number formed an unsuccessful Pizza

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Photographs courtesy of Cirencester Park and by Rupert Harlow

Oliver Taylor and Charlie Hanbury’s contrasting styles made for an intriguing sub-plot Hut side last year) had bulldozed their way to the final, racking up some decisive victories and incurring just one loss along the way. Stobart, meanwhile, succeeded with a newly-formed side featuring two four-goalers with experience playing together in Barbados, Oliver Taylor and Nico San Roman.

It proved to be a riveting battle that kept spectators guessing throughout and continued into the excitement of an extra chukka. In particular, Stobart’s Oliver Taylor and Halcyon Gallery’s Charlie Hanbury – described by commentator Peter Morris as the two sides’ playmakers – provided a persistent head-to-head, in which their contrasting styles made for an intriguing sub-plot.

Eventually, although the Hanbury brothers and their regular team-mate Ollie Cudmore had proved to be a dangerously potent combination earlier in the game, it was their newest teammate, Jamie Dundas, who fired home the “golden goal” in the fifth chukka to give Halcyon Gallery the title.

Above: Ollie Cumore, Charlie Hanbury, George Hanbury, Jamie Dundas. Left: goal-mouth action

Taylor struck the killer blow with less than two minutes left to play, riding Dublin, the same iron grey gelding on which she scored the winner in the Holden White Trophy in 2008. The girls then held on to take home the Sweethills subsidiary trophy, 6-5.

It was a dedicated effort from the Foxy Ladies, and in particular from Emma Tomlinson, who had been in New York the previous day playing with Prince Harry in the Veuve Clicquot Manhattan Polo Classic on Governor’s Island. F

The Gerald Balding Cup was presented to Charlie Hanbury by Judith Balding and Serena Geake, amid scenes of jubilation for the Halcyon Gallery entourage, who sprayed each other with champagne in the sunshine before heading on to a 1980s-themed party at the winning team’s base, Longdole.

The subsidiary final followed, in which the allfemale side Foxy Ladies Catering beat returning subsidiary finalists from 2008, Montana, in another nail-biting battle. With nothing to choose between the sides throughout, Lucy

Gerald Balding Cup; 12-31 May 2009; Cirencester Park Polo Club Result: Halcyon Gallery beat Stobart, 6-5 Handicap level: 8 goal Number of team entries: 10 Chukka scores (Halcyon Gallery): 1-2; 2-2; 4-3; 5-5; 6-5 Best playing pony: Beaker, owned and played

by Ollie Taylor Final teams: Halcyon Gallery (8): Jamie Dundas 2; George Hanbury 1; Charlie Hanbury 3; Ollie Cudmore 2 Stobart (8): Dominic Heywood 0; Oliver Taylor 4; Nico San Roman 4; David Irlam 0

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Report Belvedere Arms Ladies Challenge Cup

Ladies have lift-off as talent shines at Coworth Aurora Eastwood, co-organiser of Coworth Park’s first all-female fixture, reports on standout performances and suberb team-play oworth Park Polo Club hosted its first ladies tournament last month after player, organisers and polo photographer Alice Gipps convinced the powers that be at the club that an all-female polo tournament was the missing component that would complete the club’s already varied fixture list.

With Coworth Park’s polo manager Roddy Wood – “the patron saint of polo”, as we call him – keeping a watchful eye, Alice and I successfully assembled an all-star cast of England’s best lady players for the chance to play on Coworth’s laser levelled grounds, which was no easy task considering everyone is perennially double booked. A last minute team entry from Texan players Katherine Campos and Roxy Fauver brought the number of entries to five.

Several players that stood out were not perhaps the ones many would have expected.

This is what makes all-female tournaments so important: they provide a platform for those

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Photographs by Alice Gipps

The power came from Charlotte Sweeney, who hit it like Tiger Woods girls coming through the ranks to show their mettle with the best of England’s female talent, the players who represent us abroad and in some of the biggest mixed tournaments.

Particular mentions must go to Heloise Lorentzen of Dragonfly Lodge, whose powerful hits were astonishing, and to Charlotte Sweeney and Anuschka Bahlsen, whose handicaps of 0 and -2 respectively were laughable, given the strength of the performances they both turned in.

Lia Salvo, daughter of Hector Salvo, a wellknown high-goal breeder in Argentina, playing in England for the first time, showed excellent flowing horsemanship. Meanwhile Katherine and

38 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

Roxy from Texas, though they had little success on the field, brought some hilarious American effervescence and plenty of good humour.

Jaeger-LeCoultre toppled Dell Park in the final, thanks to what proved to be the unstoppable combination of power, teamwork and some excellent finishing. Nina Clarkin played simple polo, knocking the ball up to Claire Milford Haven to score with clinical precision, while the power came from Charlotte Sweeney in particular, who was hitting the ball like Tiger Woods and produced a superbly effective performance. Dell Park, despite the best efforts of Lucy Taylor and Lou Tosh (who played out of her skin), simply couldn’t stop the relentless Jaeger-LeCoultre attacks, and conceded the inaugural title, 7-2.

Lucy’s lovely grey, Dublin – one of Polo Times’s “Pony power” subjects in 2007 – continued his form to win best playing pony. He is proving a worthy mount already this season, as Lucy scored the winning goal in the Gerald Balding subsidiary final on him just a week earlier (see page 37).

The Belvedere Arms side, named after the fixture’s main sponsors, won the subsidiary, as the effective duo of Rosie Ross and Sarah Wiseman narrowly gave them the edge in a far more open and tightly-fought game than the final itself.

Rosie and Sarah’s team-mate Alex Jacobs was named as the most valuable player. F

The winners: Lulu Hutley, Clare Milford Haven, Charlotte Sweeney and Nina Clarkin. Above left: action from the final in early June

Belvedere Arms Ladies Challenge Cup, 1-7 June 2009, Coworth Park Polo Club Result: Jaeger-LeCoultre beat Dell Park, 7-5 Principal sponsor: Belvedere Arms Handicap level: 2-goal Number of team entries: five Most valuable player: Charlotte Sweeney Best playing pony: Dublin, owned and played

by Lucy Taylor Final teams: Jaeger-LeCoultre (2): Lulu Hutley -1; Claire Milford Haven 0; Charlotte Sweeney 0; Nina Clarkin 3 Dell Park (2): Anuschka Bahlsen -2; Lou Tosh 1; Lucy Taylor 1; Emma Tomlinson 2 Subsidiary final teams: Belvedere Arms (2): Laura Richmond -1; Alex Jacobs 0; Sarah Wiseman 1; Rosie Ross 2 Coworth Park (2): Clare McNamara 0; Alice Gipps 0; Aurora Eastwood 0; Lia Salvo 2

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Promotional prices for booking before the season!

Facilities at La Tarde: • 4 polo fields • Stick and ball cages.

• Excellent self contained cottages for our guests to stay in with living rooms and satellite TV. • A brand new clubhouse with bar and restaurant • Swimming pools, gym, football ground, tennis and volley courts Only 45mins from down town Buenos Aires.

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Reports Around the clubs

Kirtlington

It’s 53-all after Oxford’s triumph he annual Varsity match, between Oxford and Cambridge, returned to Kirtlington on 7 June after an absence of 15 years, writes Cameron WaltonMasters. A decent crowd, made up largely of students from the two premier universities, were entertained to a fast, flowing match. However, the lowerhandicapped Cambridge side suffered for playing the match open, rather than according to handicap, and were eventually beaten comfortably by the dark blues, 6-2. Excellent performances from Oxford’s captain, Tarquin Wethered, and from Tom Mayou in particular proved to be the difference.

Oxford were sponsored by Whittawer Clothing and Cambridge by EFG Private Bank. Victories in the Varsity match are now tied at 53 each for the two institutions. A record three Etonians were in the Oxford team and another, Toby Edun, played for Cambridge. Eton College has provided more players to both the Oxford and Cambridge teams than any other school.

T Oxford (-1): Will Spray; Tom Mayou; Henrietta Seligman; Tarquin Wethered Cambridge (-4): Max Kirchhoff; Jamie Hepburn; Tobi Edun; Sam Outtridge

Knepp Castle

Underdogs triumph after a mid-fixture rest even teams entered the Ponylines two-goal tournament, held over the weekend of 13-14 June. Fighting for the four semi-final positions, Silver Fox/Novate beat Bakers Farm, 0-goal side Bad Company produced a great performance to shock Complete Music and Tony Lorenz’s TLC Polo side beat the inform Jendens team, 8-7, with a goal in the last 30 seconds. Newcomers SciurusPilará received a bye to the semi-finals, filling the fourth slot. Capitalising on their day off, Sciurus-Pilará then produced a strong performance in their first-ever semi-final at Knepp, sending Bad Company crashing out, 9-61/2. Meanwhile, in the other semi-final, Tony Lorenz’s form continued and he scored three of TLC’s eight goals as they convincingly beat Silver Fox/Novate, 8-5.

The final was an exciting affair with falls and goals coming from all possible angles. Sciurus-Pilará took the lead early on and refused to give in to the considerably more experienced TLC team, running out deserving winners, 7-6.

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Finalists TLC Polo and Sciurus-Pilará, plus a four-legged friend, line-up following the Ponylines trophy presentation at Knepp Castle

Royal County of Berkshire

Fiery finish for Prince of Wales Trophy douard Carmignac’s Talandracas came from behind to defeat Jerome Wirth’s Enigma 12-11 in extra time and take the Prince of Wales Trophy at the Royal County of Berkshire Polo Club on 13 June, writes Herbert Spencer. Argentine Lucas Monteverdi scored the golden goal in the seventh chukka of the Asprey-sponsored tournament, featuring the second best eight teams from the Queen’s Cup at Guards Polo Club. Enigma had dominated the match, with chukka scores progressing 4-1, 5-3, 7-5 and 9-7 until the fifth period, when Talandracas held their opponents scoreless, equalised and then took the lead for the first time, 10-9.

In the sixth chukka Talandracas increased their lead before Enigma rallied when Edouard Carmignac was controversially yellow carded for abuse of another player. One of his opponents on the Enigma team is said to have called him off the ball in front of goal and took the ball to score, and this, reportedly, is what upset him.

Then, just 30 seconds before the final bell, Enigma’s James Beim equalised with a spot penalty to send the game into extra time and the dramatic conclusion of a Talandracas vicotry. Talandracas’s Alejandro Agote, putting his own disciplinary incident behind him (see Queen’s Cup report, p22), was named most valuable player. Best playing pony blanket went to Beim’s Australian mare Emily, a pony purchased from the Packers’ Ellerston string.

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Enigma (wearing black) and Talandracas in the Prince of Wales final

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Ranksboro

First fixtures get off to a flying start anksboro Polo Club’s first summer fixtures of the 2009 season attracted 14 team entries for the weekend of 30-31 May. The sides divided to compete for either the -2-2-goal Challenge Trophy or the -8 to -2-goal Victory Bowl.

Glorious weather helped ensure both tournaments were well supported by Rutland locals and also attracted bigger entourages than normal from the travelling teams.

All in all, the conditions and impressive support made for a terrific setting to the weekend’s polo, and huge numbers enjoyed an asado at the club on the Saturday night. Rugby clashed with the Crystal Polo team in the final of the Neale Commercials Challenge Trophy on Sunday and, after a tense encounter, it was Rugby that narrowly emerged victorious to lift the trophy, 7-6.

It was an equally tight contest in the -8 to -2-goal Neales Commercials Victory Bowl final, in which Piranhas fought back in the final chukka to claim the spoils over Sworders, 51/2-5.

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Team Piranhas, winners of the Neale Commercials Victory Bowl (l-r: Nick Winterton, Panda Tucker, Tom Abel-Smith, and Louis Hutchins)

Lacey Green

Revelling in a revolution he Revolution Cup – so called as it is played on the anniversary of the 1810 Revolution in Argentina – took place at Lacey Green Polo Club on the weekend of 23-24 May. It welcomed 10 teams, who converged in glorious sunshine to compete in two handicap sections on Lacey Green’s three newly completed, boarded, sanded and verti-drained grounds.

The 0-goal final was battled out between La Mariposa and visiting side, Tiny Badgers. Tiny Badgers featured the beautiful Kirsty Craig and the gaudy Angus Piper, but neither was able to put La Mariposa off their stride and the hosts ran out to a convincing victory, 6-21/2. New player Tom Swirling, on the La Mariposa side, played like a seasoned campaigner and did much to ensure their triumph.

Another La Mariposa side took part in the hotly contested 2-goal final, but couldn’t celebrate another victory as Malmaison, also a Lacey Green-based side, produced some excellent team polo to sneak a narrow victory in the final chukka to take the title, 5-4.

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Malmaison, HAPPY winners of the 2-goal section (l-r: Deborah Stead, Rick Aspland-Robinson, Tony Nuñez and Tommy Elliot)

White Rose

Onwards and upwards in promising Yorkshire year embership at White Rose Polo Club rose to over 40 for the first time ahead of the 2009 season, forcing the club’s officials to take on an extra ground and stabling at the nearby Houghton Hall Estate. Increased numbers and the expert guidance of the club’s professional, Tony Wesche, has improved the standard of polo at the club, making its players a competitive force in the Yorkshire area and beyond. Recent proof of this came in the victory of White Rose-based side, Barracuda, in the 6-goal Weymouth Trophy at RLS Polo Club in May. New resident professionals at the club this season are Nico Taberna and Sebastian Funes.

The club’s premier tournament, the Summit Cup, took place over the weekend of 13-14 June, with Team Summit winning 7-1 over their local rivals, Beverley Polo Club.

As Polo Times went to press, the club was gearing up for the annual 4-goal Castle Howard Cup and the Gough Trophy in the spectacular setting of Castle Howard on the weekend of 27-28 June.

M Team Summit recorded a convincing win over Beverley PC

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Feature Pony Club polo turns 50

As Pony Club polo’s 50th anniversary approaches, Yolanda Carslaw talks to three players who took part in the first championships – and examines reports and archives from 1959 kept safely for years by her grandmother n a hot Tuesday afternoon in September 1959, 29 children gathered at Aldershot Polo Club, which had been restarted that summer after a wartime lapse, for the first Pony Club Inter-branch Paddock Polo Tournament. Five teams, plus one or two reserves for each, arrived at the Hampshire club – to rather a din from nearby Farnborough Air Show.

They were aged 11 to 19, all but one or two with hunting and gymkhana ponies, their trailers and boxes driven by helpful parents.

Surprisingly, given how much the children enjoyed it, all but a handful of them appear to have vanished from the polo scene. Known

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‘Playing an open game and backing each other up, the HH shot remarkably straight’ – Brig Jack Gannon exceptions are Lavinia Black (nee Roberts), who plays and umpires to this day, and my father, Kay Carslaw, who played into his 30s: both reached two goals. My grandmother – thankfully a resolute hoarder – carefully kept the original programme, the Pony Club’s first polo booklet, printed the following year, one photo and press cuttings from Horse & Hound, The Times and The Field. I also consulted the H&H archives. This has all proved supremely useful, although in the absence of Christian names on the programme, it has been hard to find others who played in 1959.

Two siblings I did contact, from the winning HH team, were Nicholas and Sally Dimbleby, siblings to the household names of Jonathan and

42 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

David. They played their first competitive polo at Aldershot and loved it – but neither has picked up a stick since.

The fixture had been 10 months in the planning, with the British Horse Society, the HPA and a Pony Club Polo Sub-Committee joining forces. Six teams entered by the closing date of 24 July, each paying 10/-, but the Garth scratched on 27 August – “owing to prospective players going away for holidays”, so one posttournament report related. Press notices were sent to Horse & Hound, Light Horse, Riding and Pony, Country Life, Tatler, Farm and Country, The Times and the Daily Telegraph.

The ground was 190x100 yards, with penalty lines at half the standard distances. There were loo tents, public address equipment and ropes between trees for pony lines – all provided by Mons Officer Cadet School. The New Forest branch DC provided a water trough, flag and megaphone, while PC HQ send rosettes, three white leather balls – softer and larger than a wooden one – and a loud-hailer.

The tournament was run American-style, with each side playing all the others – a total of 10 eight-minute chukkas. Play stopped on the bell to save ponies, and any extra-time “goal”, scored by hitting over the back line, was worth half a point.

“This excellent rule always produced a quick result in the four ties,” wrote Brig Jack Gannon, who refereed, in his report for Horse & Hound. He added: “The enthusiasm and enjoyment of the players was delightful to see; also their quick acceptance of rulings by the umpires.”

The winners, with three victories and 71/2 goals, were the HH – Nicholas and Sally Dimbleby, Derek Lance and Jill Jones. Their win was secured on total goals, which they built up

after a 5-0 win over Staff College. “Playing an open game and backing each other up,” wrote Brig Jack Gannon, “they shot remarkably straight.” Ironically their only defeat was to the New Forest team, which ended up fifth.

My father Kay was on the second-placed team, the Old Berkeley East branch, along with Colin X

1959 teams (in result order) HH (Team B; white with royal blue sash): Jill Jones, Sally Dimbleby, Nicholas Dimbleby and Derek Lance; also S Dabek and P Lewis. Three wins; 71/2 goals Old Berkeley East (Team C; white): Kay Carslaw, P Lewis, H Higgens and Colin Matheson; also B Power. Three wins; 31/2 goals.

Staff College & RMA Sandhurst (Team D; red): S Pratt, E Whiting, T Wilson and N Howard-Jones; also J Dill and E Tukes.

Two wins; 11/2 goals Bisley (Team E; blue): Lavinia Roberts, A Reuss, J Collins and J Parfitt; also J Mason and E Holloway. 1 win, 2 goals – both scored in a winning game New Forest (Team A; buckhound green): J Howard, T Curtis, P Parsons and P Davidson; also A Syzling and P Methuen.

1 win, 2 goals – not both scored in a winning game Referee: Brig JRC Gannon Umpires: Col JP Archer-Shee; Col B Wilson

◗ Were you at Aldershot in 1959? Do you know anyone who played, apart from Kay Carslaw, Nicholas Dimbleby, Sally Christensen (nee Dimbleby) and Lavinia Black (nee Roberts)? If so please call the Polo Times office on 01993 886885 or email letters@polotimes.co.uk

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Top: a picture of the winning HH side that appeared in The Field on 17 September 1959. Sally Dimbleby is on the right and Nicholas second from left Right: the front cover of the Pony Club’s first booklet, published in 1960, with a photo of Kay Carslaw in action at the 1959 championships riding Silver Shales Above: the programme for Aldershot 1959

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Feature Pony Club polo turns 50

The second-placed Old Berkeley East, which won best turned out. Kay Carslaw is on the left, and a caption in The Field suggests the others are (l-r) H Higgens, Colin Matheson and P Lewis.

Right: the fifth-placed New Forest – the only polo photo from 1959 in the PCHQ’s archives

X Matheson, H Higgens and P Lewis. The high point

for him was a run to goal from a hit-out, described by Brig Gannon as follows: “The Old Berkeley joined the HH and the Staff College at two wins each when they, thanks to a splendid effort by K. Carslaw, who carried through his hit-

went on or were selected. We used our gymkhana and hunting ponies.”

Nicholas recalls “some sort of trial at Cowdray”, but says the team was “pretty untutored”. “We had a practice beforehand with some sense of tactics, and I

Photographs and Illustrations courtesy of Kay Carslaw and the Pony Club

‘We took it quite seriously – I practised standing on a wall, and especially liked the backhand’ – Nicholas Dimbleby out from behind to shoot a goal, won by that goal to 0.” A shot of him hitting in featured on the cover of the booklet Polo for the Pony Club and on programmes for years.

Like my father and many participants, both the Dimbleby children hunted and did Pony Club activities. Nicholas, now a sculptor living in Devon, recalls watching polo at Cowdray while growing up at nearby Linchmere, and being introduced to the game at Pony Club camp.

“We were dutiful Pony Clubbers, and when I was 13 everyone tried polo. Those who were keen

44 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

remember it being a question of learning the basic skills and not getting the sticks tangled up,” he says. “At that age you become a fanatic about things and we took it quite seriously. I practised at home standing on a wall – I particularly liked the backhand. We thought we were useless and that the other teams sounded rather good.”

Nicholas puts the team’s success down to Derek Lance. “Derek was a brilliant horseman and had a pony that moved like grease lightning,” he says. “The Lances never had much money but they won all the Pony Club competitions and Derek

was always the best in the HH. I'm sure he was the key to our success.”

The older Dimbleby children didn’t take part.

“Jonathan was the great horseman, and he was show jumping or eventing,” says Nicholas. “David was eight years older, so it was Sally and me.”

Nicholas still longs to ride a polo pony. “Even though it had been fantastically good fun, I didn't play again. I suspect it was because later I didn't have a suitable pony – and it was deemed a rich man’s game. At Cowdray we’d seen polo ponies and it was frustrating because we didn't have them. We felt ours weren't up to polo – I was up to it, but I felt I could almost have run faster.”

Nick’s sister Sally (now Christensen), who was 11 in 1959, recalls enjoying the whole thing immensely. “We were excited, and amazed to be asked,” she remembers. “We were both very confident riders, but we were nervous because we

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The Old Berkeley East team at the prize-giving (left), and a group picture. Left: press cuttings from Horse & Hound and The Times

What organisers learnt in 1959 In Appendix D of 1960’s official booklet Polo for the Pony Club, Col B Wilson, chairman of Aldershot Polo Club, offers comments about 1959’s launch event.

These included that…

The day clashed with Farnborough Air Show, causing “some inconvenience” – but it fitted in well with the end of school holidays and was two days clear of the inter-branch one-day event final. Brig Gannon wrote in H&H: “Maj Davenport was in control with a loud-speaker, which, however, was drowned by the shrieks and booming of the aeroplanes continually passing over the ground.”

Refreshments were “too far away to be used by players between matches”. The van packed up and went home – leaving those that hadn’t packed a Thermos gasping for a cuppa.

“The paddock polo ball bounces too much.”

On a proper polo ground, he suggests, it is probably best to use normal wooden balls.

The “matter of dress” needed addressing after someone questioned whether long boots and white polo helmets should be allowed. “Jodhpurs and black velvet riding hats it is suggested are more in the tradition of the Pony Club,” wrote Wilson. But he added: “If associates are allowed to play, there may be some young men who no longer possess velvet hats. Furthermore children in future may wish to wear leather ‘chaps’, which give protection to their legs in riding off.”

Had there been six teams, as first planned, and an American-style tournament, the day would have been “too long for all concerned”, with 15 chukkas instead of 10 – PT thinks some Pony Club parents might long for gentler days such as these!

The local extra-time rule was deemed a success – three chukkas would have tied had it not been applied, and the extratime played provided “considerable excitement”.

However, the public address apparatus and loud-hailer weren’t working effectively and were “useless for controlling the preparation of teams or commenting on play.”

thought everyone would be brilliant. I think I was the youngest there.

We’d watched at Midhurst, so polo was part of our childhood. I remember practising, but finding it jolly tricky.

“I went as reserve but for some reason I played. I took Tudor Star, a quick little pony with a mouth like iron. Once, hunting with the Quantock, we did the unforgivable and went past the master, who shouted, ‘Hold bloody hard!’ I circled to stop and Nick and I swapped ponies.”

Sally and Nicholas were in their late teens when their father, Richard, died, and the family farm was sold two years later. “I lived abroad for 20 years, and stopped riding,” says Sally, who lives in Devon. “But now I sometimes ride from David’s house, on the Downs with the skylarks.”

By contrast my father, who was probably the oldest participant, continued polo at university, settled at Cowdray and played until my sister and I were toddlers. He first swung a stick at the Hertfordshire club Woolmers Park thanks to Arthur Lucas, Claire Tomlinson’s father.

“The Pony Clubs in the area were offered games and coaching by Arthur Lucas, with his horsemaster, Bob Rudkin, doing the teaching,” says Kay. “I went aged 16 after getting bored with other sorts of equitation. Polo felt like take-off – it was mind-blowing, and I felt I'd have to play for the rest of my life. We were coached partially in an indoor school, but played outdoors.

“My brother, Donald, and I would take our gymkhana ponies – mine was Kittiwake, a good bending pony. We did this for two summers.

“We didn’t have much preparation for Aldershot. It was a year after I’d left school and I was working as a farm student – we were in the middle of the harvest. But I was lucky in that I had help with horses. Our family was friends with a keen horsewoman called Elizabeth Colquhoun, who had three-day eventers. She played at Kirtlington off one goal and lived at Finmere, next to Stowe school, where I was boarding. I used to cycle over at weekends and ride.

“Elizabeth lent me two greys for Aldershot, Silver Shales, a 14.1hh stallion, and Secret, a 14.2hh gelding. They were super – Elizabeth had

‘We had the best ponies and the best set-up, but we hashed it!’ –Kay Carslaw played both of them. My polo got going because of the Lucas establishment and Elizabeth.”

The Old Berkeley East, on three greys and a dun, won best turned out. “My mother, who had spent time in India, made us Indian martingales – called pugris – and we all wore white hats,” he says. “Mine was pre-war and probably useless – but we didn't worry about that then.”

Kay can remember little about his team-mates, but thinks C Matheson was the son of the branch DC, who remarried a Williams-Wynn from Wales.

His hunch was confirmed by some online digging – but I didn’t manage to contact Colin.

What my father does remember is that expectations were high. “We were the most professionally set-up team on the best ponies and we should have won – but we hashed it!” he says.

He adds: “As far as I know, only Lavinia and I carried on.” I tried to contact Lavinia to find out her story from 1959 – if you’re reading, Lavinia, please call the office on 01993 886885, as we can add your memories next month! F

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Feature Behind the scenes at Great Trippetts

Herbert Spencer discovers how one of polo’s keenest patrons transformed a dairy farm into a major high-goal hub, where grooms are as comfy as ponies

n a sharp bend in the road outside the West Sussex village of Milland (population 700) you can easily miss a small, weathered sign nailed to a tree, with the words “Great Trippetts Farm”. No fancy entrance here, no high-tech security gates, nothing to indicate that you have arrived at one of the most impressive and best run private polo facilities in Europe.

Until recently it’s unlikely that many folk outside the Milland Valley, a governmentdesignated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty 15 minutes’ drive from Cowdray Park Polo Club,

O

46 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

had ever heard of Great Trippetts. It was just another sleepy dairy farm with some 200 head of cows that, with the UK milk industry in trouble, had become increasingly run-down.

George Mountbatten, the 4th Marquess of Milford Haven, first took a lease on Great Trippetts Farmhouse and its stables in 1998 when the dairy was still in operation. Then in April 2005 he bought the 1,000-acre farm, the cows went and George obtained change-of-use planning permission to agriculture-polo equine.

That was the year before the sale of George’s uSwitch.com website to the American media giant EW Scripps. Polo is 48-year-old George’s passion. He comes from one of the world’s oldest continuous polo dynasties, the Battenberg/Mountbatten family. He has been playing for 27 years and his Broncos team is the oldest competing high-goal side in the UK, dating back to 1987 (although it was absent for a few

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Below: grooms and estate staff in the cantina; Ravensbourne grooms by their ‘Bunkabin’. Main picture: the two-tiered bank by the number one ground

years in the 1990s). So what better way to spend his summers than to realise his dream of creating an equine centre par excellence?

“Great Trippetts is first and foremost our family home when we’re in the country,” says George, now a resident of Switzerland. “Five of us play polo: my wife Clare, my son Harry and stepchildren Harry and Louisa. My daughter Tatiana doesn’t play, but she does dressage. Between us we’ve got almost 50 horses stabled here.

“This is not a commercial operation, but I also wanted the farm to be a first-class facility for friends who have polo teams in the Cowdray area.

High-goal polo in England has become highly

“It’s not about how much I’ve spent but how I’ve spent it” – George Milford Haven competitive, teams need a place to stable and practise and I saw a chance to provide that.”

George declines to discuss how much money he has invested in Great Trippetts Polo Ltd over the past four years, but from what I could see during my visits it’s a multi-million pound operation. “It’s not about how much I’ve spent but how I’ve spent it,” George says. “I’ve played polo all over the world and picked up ideas from a number of places, including the Packers’ Ellerston in Australia. It was Ellerston’s facilities for grooms that led me to do something similar.”

This season four high-goal outfits are based at Great Trippetts: George’s Broncos; Italian Alfio Marchini’s Loro Piana, and players from Adrian

Kirby’s Ravensbourne and Nick Clarke’s Salkeld.

Others based there include the Jaeger-LeCoultre team, Nick Dann’s Flying Tigers, Ray Fine’s Las Estrellas and Paul Monohan’s El Nino.

Altogether there are some 350 ponies under the care of around 70 grooms. As far as I know, it is the largest polo yard in the UK.

Turn in where you see the modest sign “Great Trippetts Farm”, down a short, hedge-lined drive and you are greeted first with the stylishly renovated old stable block beside Great Trippetts Farmhouse. Three wings surround a large, cobblestone courtyard with its open well-house surrounded by pony tie lines. One wing houses a residential annex to the farmhouse. The second provides stables for Clare’s polo ponies and Tatiana’s dressage horses. The third wing has a large players’ bar and lounge (more on this later) and George’s office on the first floor.

To the right of the main stable block, the old milking shed and other farm buildings have been transformed into the polo office, run by George’s manager and friend Charles Beresford, some permanent stalls, temporary ones during the season and a vast shed for the estate’s machinery.

Aside from its magnificent Milland Valley scenery two outstanding elements set Great X

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Feature Behind the scenes at Great Trippetts

Great Trippetts at a glance ◗ Acreage: 1,000 ◗ Grounds: 3 plus stick-and-ball areas ◗ Grounds’ irrigation: 6 water cannons; water piped from three large reservoirs

◗ All-weather arena: 1 (subject to current planning permission appeal) All photographs by Herbert Spencer

◗ Ponies in stalls: about 350 ◗ High-goal teams: 4 ◗ Corrals: 70 ◗ Paddocks: 26 ◗ Exercise tracks: 2 (800 and 400 metres) ◗ Grooms accommodated: about 70 ◗ Players’ lounge, grooms’ cantina and lounge

X Trippetts apart from private polo facilities I’ve

seen elsewhere.

First, I’d be surprised if any polo farm treats its grooms better. Accommodation for the visiting Argentine and Chilean grooms is provided by more than 30 “Deluxe Bunkabins”, each 9x14 feet and sleeping two grooms, with a desk, microwave, mini-fridge and ensuite loo and shower. The cabins are designed as temporary housing for workers on construction sites.

A permanent grooms’ cantina houses a restaurant-style kitchen and dining room. The food is excellent. I lunched there on spicy breaded chicken breasts, rice, fresh salad and chocolate cake. Adjoining the dining room is a large lounge with pool tables, table football, big TV screen, leather sofas and chairs, and computers with internet connection for emailing home.

Second, the number one ground, George’s pride and joy, must now be one of the best in England.

George brought in the industry expert Nick Hallam, who had built Kerry Packer’s famous grounds at nearby Stedham and Lawns One and Two at Cowdray Park.

“The Great Trippetts main ground was a massive job,” says Hallam. “The site was part of the Milland Marshes, so we had to deal with the

48 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

From top: José Donoso uses a Wifi laptop; Broncos pony manager Martin Glue; Loro Piana grooms play pool.

Below: Clare Milford Haven’s ponies return from chukkas

ground water throughout the project. Now there are some 10 miles of drains under the ground and the adjacent areas.” Many tons of earth were shifted to build the ground, with a high, twotiered bank along one side giving spectators a bird’s-eye view of the action.

George also installed a state-of-the-art, allweather outdoor polo arena with a view to

continuing the game throughout winter, but planners objected to its location and ordered it to be removed.

He has launched an appeal in the High Court, due to be heard this summer. Watch this space for the outcome – and you can bet that George will put up a determined fight.

Meanwhile, this season sees the likes of 10goalers Pablo MacDonough of Broncos and Juan Martin Nero of Loro Piana and a host of other leading pros as well as amateur players benefitting from practising together and enjoying the camaraderie of polo and the fantastic facilities at Great Trippetts, a very special place in the West Sussex countryside. F

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The knowledge Duty vet Mark Emerson MRCVS of Thames Valley Equine Clinic is a three-goal, fifth-generation polo player and equine vet

Can oral supplements help polo ponies’ joints?

Numerous oral joint supplements are available for horses – all are heavily marketed and many make fantastic claims. But is there real evidence that any of them actually work? wing to the athletic demands placed on polo ponies, their joints are subjected to significant stresses that result in the wear and tear of cartilage and associated joint structures.

Such wear and tear is referred to as osteoarthritis or degenerative joint disease and is encountered to varying degrees in polo ponies of all ages. It can develop secondary to acute trauma, such as a sprain, or as the result of repetitive trauma such as road-work or playing on hard grounds.

O

Photographs courtesy of Mark Emerson and James Wildman

How the supplements work Most oral joint supplements claim to contain either Chondroitin sulphate or Glucosamine (commonly in the form of Glucosamine hydrochloride).

Chondroitin sulphate is an important component of joint cartilage and Glucosamine is a complex sugar molecule from which cartilage components such as Chondroitin sulphate itself are made.

As chemical preparations, test tube studies have shown Chondroitin sulphate to inhibit cartilage degradation and Glucosamine to stimulate the production of important cartilage components.

Both have been shown to have antiinflammatory properties.

However, there is a difference between test tube studies and what actually happens in the joints of living horses.

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Above: the athletic demands placed on polo ponies subject their joints to significant stresses that result in cartilage wear and tear

Furthermore, in order to have any beneficial effects, the components of oral joint supplements have to be absorbed across the gut wall and reach the joints via the bloodstream. Glucosamine has been shown to readily pass from the gut into the bloodstream. However, there has been much debate as to whether Chondroitin sulphate, a relatively large molecule, is also able to pass across the gut wall. Recent clinical evidence in horses and studies using radio-labelled

molecules in other species provide strong evidence that it does. There is also evidence that oral Chondroitin sulphate and Glucosamine supplements act together to enhance the clinical response.

Some joint supplements contain other so-called active ingredients such MSM, Devil’s Claw and green-lipped mussel extract. These may offer some degree of pain relief as a result of their mild antiinflammatory properties but do not protect or assist in the maintenance of

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Clockwise from top left: an X-ray image of a polo pony's hock with bony changes (arrows) associated with osteoarthritis of the small hock joints (bone spavin); otherwise sound horses that trot up lame immediately after a flexion test may well benefit from oral joint supplements; a fetlock joint showing signs of osteoarthritis – a common finding in polo ponies that play regularly on hard grounds; and an X-ray image of a polo pony's fetlock with bony changes (arrow) associated with advanced osteoarthritis

demonstrate safety and effectiveness for their intended use before being allowed to enter the market.

Due to the lack of legislation governing nutriceuticals, there is significant variation in the quality and quantity of the ingredients of oral joint supplements. Researchers have found that many oral Glucosamine or Chondroitin sulphate products do not have the amounts of active ingredients that their labels claim. The actual contents can even vary from month to month as different batches of product are released. As such, it is advisable to consult your vet before purchasing any oral joint supplements.

How to use the supplements

cartilage in the same way as Chondroitin sulphate and Glucosamine do.

Evidence that supplements work For a while there has been substantial anecdotal evidence that oral joint supplements with Chondroitin sulphate or Glucosamine relieve the symptoms of osteoarthritis in horses and possibly slow the rate of cartilage degradation. A limited number of scientific studies using oral Chondroitin sulphate and Glucosamine now

support this. However, few manufacturers of oral joint supplements have undertaken clinical trials to demonstrate the effectiveness of their products.

Variation in quality Oral joint supplements are generally classified as “nutriceuticals” and, as such, are not governed by either feed or drug legislation. Feedstuffs are required to have nutritive values and are accountable, via labelling, for these values. Drugs must

I would only recommend the use of oral Glucosamine or Chondroitin sulphate products made by manufacturers that can genuinely demonstrate the purity and quality of their product, and have scientifically acceptable evidence to support its effectiveness.

It is generally considered that oral Glucosamine or Chondroitin sulphate products are most beneficial in treating horses with early stage degenerative joint disease. Horses that demonstrate significant lameness due to osteoarthritis will likely require more hard-hitting veterinary treatment such as antiinflammatory joint injections, although simultaneous use of oral joint supplements may help. F ◗ Mark Emerson is based at Thames

Valley Equine Clinic, Sheephouse Farm, Reading Road, Henley-on-Thames, Oxon RG9 4HF. Tel: 01491 414007; email: tvec@btconnect.com

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52 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

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Horsemanship The knowledge Horse expert Andrew Seavill shares his trade secrets

How can I ask my pony to be braver in the ride off? everal years ago, I remember asking Bautista Heguy after he had just won the Gold Cup how he got his ponies to go so well. He replied: “I never put my ponies into a ride off unless they are going to win!”

In the herd there’s always an “alpha” horse who calls the shots and who all the other horses look to for direction and comfort. If there’s a sudden noise or movement it’s natural and important for a prey animal to react and prepare for flight. But if the alpha horse remains unconcerned, the other will settle quickly or not even react at all.

You need to become the “alpha horse” to your horse and help him become calmer, smarter and braver. He needs to become more trusting and confident in your leadership.

So set it up and don’t put him into a ride off unless he is going to win that ride off.

S

Don’t go in unless you’ll win: ride-offs at Palermo and Brooksfield (inset)

ASKING TO GO SIDEWAYS To practise lateral movement, use your fingers to move your horse sideways on the ground before you ask for sideways movement in the saddle. Press your fingers on his head and neck and then his hindquarters in an alternating fashion. In effect, your fingers are acting like spurs. You’re teaching the horse to move away from pressure. Do this enough and soon the horse should yield sideways completely at the suggestion of your hand movements.

When you want to ride sideways, make sure you focus on going in that direction. Also remember that your legs do what your hands do.

To move sideways to the left, first go from a casual to a concentrated rein (see Jan/Feb issue of Polo Times).

Focus to the left at about 90 degrees at eye level. Open your left arm and

leg. Use a right supporting rein and push from the right side.

These techniques in riding are exaggerated. You exaggerate to teach

and refine as you go along. Someday, your horse will listen to your body language and require only slight suggestions to perform. F

Ask Andrew...

How can I practise slowing and stopping?

You slow a horse down and stop him in the same way you back him (see June issue). You hold. Here’s an exercise to get that concept across.

1. Pick a focus and ride forward.

2. Pick up your rein and go from a casual to a concentrated rein (see Jan/Feb issue of Polo Times).

3. Hold the reins until the horse stops moving and backs away from the pressure.

4. Release the hold.

5. Start on these exercises going from a walk to a back up, a trot to a back up, and a canter to a back up.

Do you have a question you’d like to ask Andrew? If so write to letters@polotimes.co.uk

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The knowledge Pony power

Russian Sumaya’s Nachi du Plessis tells Tony Ramirez about his favourite mount in the Queen’s Cup final, best playing pony Russian – a filmstar as well as an easy, agile ride

Vital statistics Name: Russian Height: 15.2hh Colour: Chestnut Age: 9 years old Sex: Mare Breed: South African Thoroughbred

Who does Russian belong to?

Another South African, Buster Mackenzie, has owned her for three years. I have been playing her for the last two seasons in the UK, where she has played the Queen’s Cup, Gold Cup and some medium-goal.

Where does Russian come from?

She was trained in South Africa by well-known horse maker and polocrosse player James Hackland, who owned her when she was young. But she is also quite a famous mare in her own right, having starred in 2005 Hollywood film Racing Stripes, the story of an abandoned talking zebra who grows up believing he is a racehorse. The film stars Heroes actress, Hayden Panettiere. Russian runs in a race with the zebra. It was filmed in South Africa and they needed a quick horse.

She happened to be around and fitted the bill!

What are her main strengths?

To be honest, she can do anything. She is very easy, comfortable and extremely fast. She is really agile and is just an excellent pony.

Photograph by Tony Ramirez

Does she have any weaknesses?

Not really. Her only slight drawback is that she isn’t the toughest mare out there. But, even then, she is still tougher than average. As far as I am concerned, she is one of the best horses I have ever played.

What did it mean to you when she won BPP in the Queen’s Cup final?

BPP is always a really nice prize to win. It is a tribute more than anything to the grooms, because it means they have done a good job. I have a wonderful groom called Cesar Tula who looks after Russian: he does a

fantastic job and keeps her in top form. It is satisfying for one of your mounts to be recognised, especially when so many wonderful creatures were playing on the day.

Which chukkas did you play her in?

In the final of the Queen’s Cup I played her in the second chukka and brought her back in the sixth. She is my best mare, so I often use her in the last chukka, especially if the scores are as close as they were in this year’s final. I also particularly rely on her because the other mare that is almost as good as Russian has temporarily been out of action so far this season.

What is her temperament like?

She has a very good temperament and can be quite cheeky at times.

What do you feed her?

At the moment she is on plenty of oats, because she is in training. In general she’s very healthy and her diet is pretty normal.

What regime do you follow to keep her in good shape?

She is a very easy horse to keep light. Usually I ride her the day before the game and my groom Cesar does all the trotting work.

Does Buster intend to breed from her?

Buster will definitely breed from her, and will possibly do so here in the UK. Would he ever sell her?

No. We have recently been offered a considerable sum of money for her but have refused. We will not sell her. F

Experts in polo nutrition Tel: +44 (0)1371 850247 www.baileyshorsefeeds.co.uk 54 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

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SYDNEY POLO COUNTRY CLUB Richmond New South Wales Australia

Sydney International Polo Pony Auction Sydney, Australia Friday 2nd October 2009

Register your interest now to buy or sell Sydney Polo Country Club 100 Ridges Lane Richmond NSW 2753, Australia Tel: 02 4588 5000 Fax: 02 4588 5444

www.sydneypolo.com www.sydneypolocountryclub.com

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Feeding The knowledge Lorna Jowett, specialist equine nutritionist, gives expert advice on all things edible

Will oats perk up my ponies in the middle of the season?

Well, the short answer is yes – oats will “perk up” your ponies.

But – and it’s a big but – it is a myth that oats are the only source of energy available that will make a polo pony run fast.

La respuesta directa es si, pero – y es un gran pero – ya que es un mito que la avena es la única fuente de energía para que un caballo corra mas rápido.

Oats only provide “quick-release energy”, a short burst that is available for approximately three minutes of a chukka. This might be great for a racehorse, but isn’t ideal for a polo pony that usually needs to keep running for another four minutes!

La avena provee energía de liberación rápida que dura en promedio los primeros tres minutos de competición, siendo útil para caballos de carrera pero no para caballos de polo que necesitan correr durante otros cuatro minutes.

Oats are deficient in quality proteins, some vitamins and many minerals such as calcium and magnesium, all of which help with the metabolism and synthesis of energy. Adding oats to cubes or mixes actually serves to dilute the nutrients from deficiencies in the oats, unbalancing the diet and leading to reduced speed, energy and stamina, a loss in condition and muscle tone and an increased risk of tying-up. Feeding oats on their own has the same effect.

Therefore, it is better to feed a highenergy cube or mix which contains a blend of cereals for quick-release energy. And many will have oil and good quality fibre for stamina, too.

Feeding lots of oats is similar to a human athlete bingeing on a diet of Red Bull and Mars bars. It may well give the recipient an injection of quick-release energy but will not provide any assistance to his stamina, and is likely to be detrimental to his long-term health! Remember your “five a day”. The same principle applies to your ponies!

Protein quality is essential for athletes (equine or human) for growth and the repairing of body tissues such as the muscles, blood, skin, hair and hooves. F

La avena es deficiente en proteína de calidad, algunas vitaminas y varios minerales como el calcium y el magnesio, todos elementos que ayudan al metabolismo y al proceso de síntesis en la generación de energía. Agregar avena a la ración diluye las deficiencias de la avena en el resto del alimento ocasionando una dieta desbalanceada y provocando una reducción en la velocidad, energía y resistencia, pérdida de musculatura y tonisidad e incremento en el riesgo de embaramientos. Dar avena sola produce los mismos efectos.

Por lo tanto es preferible dar un alimento balanceado alto en energía, en forma de cubos o mix, que contenga una variedad de cereales que provean energía de liberación rápida, pero que también contengan aceite y fibra de buena calidad para incrementar al mismo tiempo la resistencia.

Una ración a base de avena equivale a darle a un atleta una dieta a Red Bull y barras de chocolate Mars, generando una inyección de energía de liberación rápida pero sin resistencia y siendo una dieta poco saludable! La regla de cinco frutas/vegetales por día que seguimos los seres humanos, también es applicable a los caballos!

Proteína de calidad es escencial para cualquier atleta, equinos y humanos, para el crecimiento y la recuperación de tejidos, músculos, sangre, piel, pelo y vasos. F

Mars Bars and Red Bull are oats for humans: a footballer wouldn’t last 90 minutes on them, and lots of oats won’t help your pony’s stamina

Tip of the month Very often those ponies lacking energy mid season are not being fed enough hard feed to support their workload. So, check your feeding quantities BEFORE relying on oats to perk up your ponies.

A menudo los caballos a los que les falta energía a mitad de temporada no están comiendo suficiente cantidad de alimento balanceado para mantener el nivel de exigencia requerido. Analizá este aspecto ANTES de agregar avena para reavivarlos.

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The knowledge Travel

The main house, in Cotswold stone. Right, clockwise from top: the children’s playzone, where you can leave children for two hours; bedrooms for adults and children

Where play meets pleasure Does Calcot Manor, a high-end country house hotel a stone’s throw from the Beaufort and a long-time backer of polo, live up to its family-friendly reputation? James Wildman checks in with his wife and two young children The neighbourhood Calcot Manor lies three miles west of Tetbury in Gloucestershire, just off the A46 and less than 10 minutes’ drive from the Beaufort Polo Club at Westonbirt. It sits in its own 220 acres of gardens and grounds, with its own walking or running tracks through the bucolic Cotswold countryside.

Cirencester Park is less than half an hour away, and if you’re tired of polo you can explore ancient Tetbury, admire the trees at Westonbirt Arboretum, see the lions at Longleat or go to Bath or Cheltenham, both 20 miles away.

On arrival it isn’t immediately obvious where to park – at the end of the drive you’re confronted with barns to the left and the hotel on the right. Park at the centre, then walk to reception – but leave your luggage in the car, as your room may not be in the main house.

Character and layout The main building is a 14th-century Cotswold stone former farmhouse, originally built by monks, with an assortment of barns, stables and

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cottages housing more rooms and the spa. The layout gives the place a villagey feel, and you can walk easily between buildings – although we struggled a bit with our pushchair crossing the gravelled parts.

The property was converted into a hotel in 1984, and the decorative style is “countrymodern” with mellow colours and an attractive combination of classic and fresh. The grounds are beautifully kept and the gardens wonderful: there’s a lawn fit for croquet to one side of the main house and paths wend their way among grass and greenery.

Sleeping arrangements There are 12 bedrooms in the main house and another 22 dotted around – some specially arranged for families (see box). We stayed in the Woodchester family suite, a portion of a converted barn, which has its own entrance and private, fenced garden. My wife, Jo, and I had the master bedroom, and there was a separate bedroom for Emily, 5, and Henry, 1, with bunks,

plus a small sitting area with flatscreen TV. Luxurious beige and cream décor was brightened by colourful striped upholstery, and our bed was extremely comfy. Upstairs was a truly colossal bathroom, with two baths, two sinks, a separate shower and another television.

Where to eat You can eat indoors or out at the Gumstool “gastro-pub”, which is open all day and evening.

Emily had a good “high tea” here at 5.30pm – three courses, with choices in each.

I had supper at the Conservatory, an airy, modern space with plenty of light, a wroughtiron chandelier and wooden floors. Although the in-room information stipulates no children there, apart from at breakfast, staff told me they can cater for them. There’s no dress code, and diners can see into the open kitchen.

On the weekday night of my visit it was busy but not crowded, and about half the diners were non-residents. Perhaps it was because I was alone – Jo had room service because the children took

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Calcot for children

time to settle – but the waiting staff were attentive and chatty. I only had to look up for someone to appear at my side, and hot rolls (with butter or olive oil) were offered repeatedly.

No salt or pepper was on the table, but the food turned out to be so good I didn’t need it.

My starter of baked buffalo mozzarella and Parma ham and grilled courgette (£8.35) was excellent, while the marinated beef fillet (£23) was juicy and tasty and the Bearnaise sauce spot on.

Vegetables proved thin on the ground, though – a few green beans and an underwhelming potato concoction.

Dessert of egg custard tart with poached rhubarb, one of the Conservatory’s signature dishes, was divine. I had a couple of glasses of Pinot Grigio, but you could go to town with wine from all around the world, as the list is varied and comprehensive.

Who stays there Guests come from around the UK and abroad.

Interestingly plenty of local people check in for short breaks, too. During our stay residents included various family parties large and small, a pair of grandparents with grandchildren, a UK businessman, several couples and a family of Americans.

Full marks for…

Nine suites and four L-shaped rooms have been designed and decorated for young families. There’s also the new Tetbury Deluxe family suite – on two floors and with a private garden. Family suites come with a video TV (plus tapes), bathtime toys and a fridge stocked with child-friendly drinks and snacks. You can ask for high chairs, booster seats, cots, bibs and bottles.

Parents can leave children with a qualified nanny in the Ofsted-accredited “Playzone” for up to two hours at a time – just long enough to nip to the Beaufort to catch a few chukkas. It’s essential to book, due to Ofsted’s required ratio of carers to children. The website does mention this, but I didn’t look at the detail, and we weren’t made aware of the need to book on arrival – so we missed out. Our daughter, however, loved the outdoor play area, which features, among other things, a ship and train.

The rooms have useful child listening services, so my wife and I could have eaten together while Reception kept an ear on our room. This didn’t happen because our children took a while to settle, and Jo had room service while I went to the restaurant. As far as I knew we hadn’t activated the listening device, so I was surprised during my meal when reception told me our son was crying.

The call left me reassured, but do watch what you say in your room in case the device is inadvertently on – someone might be listening!

There’s a supplement per child (0-12 £30; 13+ £35) to cover breakfast and high tea from the special children’s menu for children, use of the Playzone and swimming at the spa’s indoor pool during specially allocated periods

We especially liked the relaxed atmosphere and the staff, who were unfailingly helpful. Though it’s a large hotel, it feels more like a friendly little village, and the family room and children’s facilities were outstanding. Overall this is an extremely pleasant hotel and given some preplanning a relaxing break is assured.

Could do better…

Carry your room key at all times – my daughter managed to lock us out of our room within 10 minutes of our arrival as the doors close and lock at the same time.

Though staff were brilliant in general, we did become invisible once. We wanted a late lunch, and were told we could sit on the terrace and that a member of staff would be right out.

Twenty minutes later I went to see what the delay was only to be told we’d been forgotten – out of sight, out of mind!

The damage and the details Rooms cost from £115 per person per night including breakfast (based on two people sharing). A family room starts at £285 including breakfast. Visit www.calcotmanor.co.uk or call 01666 890391. F

Away from the kids…

In June 2003, Calcot opened its spa and fitness centre (above), behind the main building, both for hotel guests and non-residents. It has an excellent reputation, and was this year ranked in the top 10 under “UK Hotel Spas” in Condé Nast Traveller magazine’s Reader Spa Awards.

It has indoor and outdoor pools, a gym, two tennis courts, a yoga/Pilates studio, a relaxation room, steam room, sauna, sunbed and dry flotation bed, seven treatment rooms, beauty facilities and, best of all, an eight-seater outdoor hot tub, with a blazing fire by its side when it’s chilly.

I had a thoroughly relaxing massage – which went some way towards taking my mind off the worries of taking both children to stay in a hotel for the first time!

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The knowledge Travel Travel news in brief

My travels with Pablo MacDonough

Coworth’s Georgian façade will be retained

◗ WORK HAS STARTED at Coworth Park Polo Club on a new luxury hotel that is being developed by the Dorchester Collection. The hotel will feature 70 rooms, 30 in the main house and the rest in cottages and converted stables – currently home to polo ponies. Some stabling won’t be converted, so there will still be plenty of room for members’ horses.

The main house is a rambling Georgian mansion, most of which will be completely rebuilt, but the plan is to keep the handsome façade. A spa, a bar and two restaurants will also be part of the complex, which will sit within the 200 acres of parkland that are also home to Coworth Park’s two polo grounds. Activities such as pitch-and-putt golf will be available for guests as well as polo.

Designers’ have aimed to make the hotel “green” by installing a biomass boiler fuelled from willow grown on the estate and a cooling system provided by a ground-source water circulation system within the grounds. The hotel, due to open in June 2010, will be the ninth in the Dorchester collection. ◗ AUCKLAND POLO CLUB in New Zealand has a new polo manager – and she’s British. Hannah Marshall, who will join the club for its 2009/10 season, has worked for two seasons at Cirencester Park and two at John P Smail’s Yallambi in Australia. She also spent three years grooming for six-goaler Sam Hopkinson.

The club, which was founded in 1890, hopes to welcome an increasing number of overseas visitors. It lies in Clevedon Village, 25 minutes from both the city and the airport. Its 80 playing members, who range from beginners to professionals, have at their disposal four grounds, a clubhouse, tuition, a wooden horse and tournaments and polo lessons for all ages and abilities. For more information, contact Hannah Marshall at hannah__lou@hotmail.com or see www.aucklandpolo.co.nz

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runs with Richard Le Poer and that was enough to last me a lifetime!

Yes, we heard there was an accident at the wedding?

It’s a bit embarrassing but my grooms got a bit overexcited when carrying me during the celebrations and dropped me, injuring my knee. I damaged my cruciate ligament, which would have been pretty serious if I was a tennis or a football player. But it’s not a problem for polo and so I only missed one match, the first game of the Trippetts Challenge, George Milford Haven’s home tournament in West Sussex.

I’m feeling good now and I’m playing for George again in all this season’s high-goal, alongside Max Routledge and Santiago Chavanne. We were beaten in the quarter-final of the Queen’s Cup by Dubai, who lost to Sumaya in the semis.

Which is your favourite hotel?

The Fettuccine Mario in Pilar is a very nice hotel.

It has everything you need.

I heard that, through George, you have been learning to ski?

Yes, I’ve been out to Verbier now twice with the Milford Havens, and we got some skiing in this year in Davos, Klosters and St Moritz too. It’s really fun, but I’m a bit crazy and usually go much faster than I should. It didn’t take me long to get on the black runs, but the problem is I end up getting out of control and just keep going!

Hopefully my knee will be alright to ski on by the time the snow returns this winter. I love it.

Photograph by Tony Ramirez

◗ THE SLEEK ITALIAN LINES of the Alfa Brera S V6 will be touring polo clubs this summer with Henry Brett at the wheel. Alfa Romeo, known for its elegant and sporty designs, is part of the Fiat Group, which also owns the desirable Italian supercar brands, Ferrari and Maserati.

Though the Brera S is compact, polo equipment reportedly fits neatly inside

Give us an idea of your year so far.

Where have you been?

My first main trip of 2009 outside Argentina was to the 22-goal Cartier Polo World Cup on Snow in St Moritz, where I won the tournament on George Milford Haven’s Julius Baer side. It was my first snow polo experience and I really enjoyed it.

From there I went straight to Palm Beach for the 26-goal season at International Polo Club. It was my sixth season over there and I was playing for Steve van Andel’s Orchard Hill team. We had some mixed results, culminating in reaching the semi-finals of the US Open, but I always enjoy playing there as it’s the highest quality polo you will find outside Argentina. The fields are good and there’s always an excellent atmosphere.

Before coming to England in May, I returned to Argentina for my wedding on the last day in April.

Aren’t you worried about doing yourself an injury when you ski?

Well, I think the skiing is usually OK, but we also did the Cresta Run this winter in St Moritz and that is far more dangerous and scary. I did three

So you’ll give most things a try?

I love all sports and I’m happiest when I’m outside doing something. It doesn’t always have to be polo. There’s only so much polo your body can take in any given week before you are left aching all over. So I like to play other sports too, particularly golf. I have a golf handicap of four.

Where is your favourite polo destination outside Argentina?

I think England is a very special place for polo but I’d have to say Sotogrande, because the polo isn’t interrupted with rain like it can be in the UK. It can get pretty boring and frustrating when games are constantly being rescheduled because of the weather. And less rain in Spain also means I can find the time for plenty of golf when the day’s polo is finished.

What is the first thing that goes in your suitcase on a polo trip?

My passport – you wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve forgotten it!

Any bad experiences on a polo trip?

I missed a flight to Argentina the day after losing the semi-final of the Sotogrande Gold Cup in 2005. I woke up, still in Sotogrande, at the exact time my plane was supposed to be leaving from Malaga!

Where would you still like to go for polo that you haven’t been yet?

I’d love to go to Ellerston in Australia. I’ve heard so much about the quality of their grounds and am curious to see if they are really as good as other players tell me.

What about just for a holiday?

I like the idea of Thailand and some of the Indian Ocean islands. Aside from the beautiful sandy beaches and the scenery, I always enjoy the opportunity to experience a different culture. I think the culture over there is very different from South America’s.

Where should every polo player visit?

That’s easy. It has to be Palermo. You can’t talk about polo anywhere else until you’ve experienced Palermo. ◗ Interview by James Mullan

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Property The knowledge

Welcome to the club As Pony Club action hots up this month, Josephine Brooks tracks down homes with paddocks, stables and a polo-playing branch nearby he start of the summer holidays signals the launch of this year's Pony Club polo preliminaries, with teams nationwide vying for their places at the 50th-anniversary championships (see also page 42) at Cowdray in August. With this in mind we have rounded up a batch of properties suitable for Pony Club polo devotees – with a family house, stabling and grazing, a polo-playing branch reasonably locally and a sensible price tag.

From the village of Goodrich, just south of Ross-on-Wye in Herefordshire, you can access Gloucestershire and the Berkeley Hunt branch, yet avoid paying Gloucestershire prices. Rocklands Farm, an attractive four-bedroom converted barn with stabling and 36 acres, is on the market for £875,000 through Jackson International (www.bill-jackson.co.uk; 01432 344779). The property has an annexe, ideal for guests or a groom, and is close to the A40. Seven stables and a feed and tack room sit around a traditional courtyard and a further 11 stables are in a nearby American barn.

Further south, in Wiltshire, the buyer of Roward Farm near Chippenham would have access to the Avon Vale and Beaufort Hunt branches – the Beaufort has won Surtees Division One in the past. A covered walkway from the four-bedroom house leads to an attached stable block containing four loose boxes, and a further four loose boxes are next door in the barn. There's an arena and 10 acres of grazing, with some

T

This converted barn in Herefordshire, priced at £875,000, has good access to Gloucestershire polo branches

paddocks flat enough for stick and balling.

Roward Farm is priced at £799,950 from Rural Scene (www.ruralscene.co.uk; 01264 850700).

The other side of London, at Boxted in Essex, near the Newmarket & Thurlow branch, a fourbedroom house with just over six acres is on the market for £675,000 through Emily Cooper-Reade (www.ecrproperties.com; 0845 000 0327).

Parents can keep an eye on the yard from the master bedroom, which overlooks the eight stables. The three paddocks provide a good flat surface for stick and balling, and there's a floodlight arena too, so that in winter a bit of after-school practice isn’t out of the question.

Nearby in Suffolk, also near the Newmarket & Thurlow Pony Club, a single-storey four-bedroom property with 13 acres and enough stabling for

13 horses is available for £699,000 through Emily Cooper-Reade (as above). The property has underfloor heating and is decorated to a high standard. Outside, just off the main drive is the stable block, newly built as a quadrangle.

Further north in East Yorkshire, where polo is booming, a single-storey four-bedroom property is on the market for £724, 995, through Rural and Equestrian (www.ruralandequestrian.com; 0845 127 9919). Fenland Lodge, near Broomfleet Brough, has five stables, a barn, and a house that's particularly horse-orientated, with the kitchen and sitting room overlooking the paddocks to the stables and arena. The Bedale and the West of Yore Hunts branch covers this district, and White Rose, Vale of York and Beverley polo clubs are all within reach. F

Three Pony Club polo pads

£985,000 – Four-bedroom Oaktree Cottage near Horsham in Sussex has a garden, pool, stables, paddocks and 23 acres.

Near Cowdray and Surrey Union. Through Monkhouse and Bannisters: www.monkhouse.co.uk; tel: 01798 872081

£565,000 – Cruck Cottage at Rockbourne in Hampshire is a three-bedroom bedroom cottage with 7.2 acres and four loose boxes. The New Forest Hunt branch is close by. Through Wolley and Wallis www.w-w.co.uk; tel: 01425 655900

£499,950 – Crossways Farm near Trowbridge, Wiltshire, is a pretty detached four-bedroom property with three stables, an arena and flat grazing. Near the Avon Vale. Through Rural Scene www.ruralscene.co.uk; tel: 01264 850700

For further information with regard to equestrian property sales contracts, please contact Mark Charter at Blake Lapthorn directly: on 023 8085 7116; via email, at mark.charter@bllaw.co.uk; or write to Mark Charter, Partner, Real Estate, Blake Lapthorn, New Kings Court, Tollgate, Chandlers Ford, Eastleigh, SO53 3LG

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Property The knowledge

‘It just has a great atmosphere’ Greta Morrison tells Yolanda Carslaw about a family house near the Berkshire that has lived and breathed polo for more than half a century hen Greta and Bryan Morrison were invited to a dinner at Guards in 1980, little did they know that a chance meeting would lead to the purchase of a property that would become their family home for 28 years. “I was sitting beside [Col] Gerard Leigh at a dinner in the old Guards clubhouse, and he asked where I lived,” recalls Greta. “We were in a rented house at the time and were looking for a house in the area – a big family house with stables. He listened but didn’t say much.”

What ‘G’ didn’t say was that he was putting his own property – Bartlett House at Holyport – on the market after many happy years there. He was retiring from his 25-year tenure as Guards chairman and he his wife Jean wanted to move further into the countryside.

“A couple of days later Ronald Ferguson [Guards polo manager] contacted me and said Gerard Leigh thought we might be interested in looking at his house,” says Greta. “We fell in love with it, bought it in April 1981 and moved there in November.”

G and Jean moved to Kintbury, 40 miles to the west, while Bryan and Greta made Bartlett House their family home – bringing up their children Jamie and Karina there and relishing the house’s happy, polo-steeped history.

“The Leighs had been very social and there were always lots of polo people passing through,” says Greta. “It was a great party house, and both we and the Leighs had wonderful parties there. The previous owner to the Leighs also loved the house and still comes to visit. It just has a great atmosphere.”

Indeed, Polo Times gathers that the Morrison parties were legendary and lavish – one colleague of ours was impressed some years ago by the instructions for parking on one invitation – for helicopters.

The seven-bedroom, three-storey typically English Georgian house is handsome and luxurious inside and out. Its interior highlights include a 40ft drawing room with three bow windows, a magnificent entrance hall with elegant stone staircase and limestone floor with underfloor heating (refurbished by the Morrisons using reclaimed materials), a master bedroom suite with dressing room, sauna and clockroom; and a 24ft

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The property and its owners for the past half century, Bryan and Greta Morrison (left) and Col Gerard Leigh (below)

kitchen/breakfast room with vaulted ceiling, rustic flagstone floor and hand-made oak units.

Rooms have high ceilings, sash windows and elegant period features such as cornicing and fireplaces. There’s also a separate detached twobedroom cottage.

The 17.2 acres of grounds accommodate wonderful gardens with a lime tree driveway, swathes of pristine level lawns, an outdoor pool, a south-facing sun terrace, majestic mature trees, garaging, 10 stables, a grooms’ flat, a stick and ball field, an exercise track and paddocks. It lies at the edge of the village of Holyport, 10 minutes from RCBPC and 15 from Guards.

In a poignant coincidence Bryan died last September within days of Col Gerard Leigh (both their obituaries appeared in the Nov/Dec issue of Polo Times). F ◗ Price on application. Bartlett House is for sale through Lucy Blythe at Savills Country Department (www.savills.co.uk; 020 7499 8644)

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The knowledge Gear – summer special

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FROM TOP OF PICTURE Multicoloured trousers Both pairs from Loud Mouth Golf (www.loudmouthgolf.com; +1 707 996 8184) You won’t go unnoticed in these statement trousers. For the supremely confident; as worn extensively on the European Tour this year The damage: $89.95 (£55.02)

Worn with striped trousers: Classic alpargatas in dark red

By Confortable, from SATS (www.satsfaction. com; 01285 841542) So comfy and practical that many polo folk live, work and, we suspect, sleep in them. They are the footwear of choice in the saddle for some, but unless you're as lithe as a gaucho, and live in a hot place, we don't suggest riding in them The damage: £9.50 Worn with yellow trousers: Men’s striped espidrilles From Love Espidrilles (www.love espadrilles.com; 07530 592157) A colourful departure from the one-tone type.

Perhaps better for Sotogrande than Sussex – go well on the beach, but suffer in a downpour The damage: £20 PICNIC RUGS – LEFT TO RIGHT Traditional tartan From Picnic Shop (www.picnicshop.co.uk; 0845 867 4196) Luxurious merino wool; great for wrapping up in; feels too good to spread on anything but dry, clean grass. Decently sized at 180cm long The damage: £37.65 Summer stripe From Heals (www.heals.co.uk; 0870 024 0780) Bright, cheerful and fleecy with waterproof backing and a carry-handle The damage: £20 Safari fleece From Fur Feather and Fin (www.furfeather andfin.com; 01730 812445) Practical and fleecy with waterproof backing and an integral carry-wrap The damage: £29.99

Spread on the ground: Versailles pattern rug From The Garden House (www.thegarden house.net; 01749 813011) Waterproof yet stylish; handmade in Somerset The damage: £40 BAGS & PACKS – TOP LEFT Versailles pattern bag From The Garden House (as above) Strong and capacious enough to transport your tupperware, sarnies and cakes in style The damage: £40 Wine cooler for three bottles From Fur Feather and Fin (as above) Sophisticated canvas and leather cooler that positively encourages you to get sozzled – it has room for champers, Chablis and chasers The damage: £29.99 Tea or coffee hot pack From Fur Feather and Fin (as above) With a flask, mugs, spoons and sugar or milk tin this is just the ticket for a cuppa while less resourceful types are jostling in the tea tent The damage: £38.50 UMBRELLAS – LEFT TO RIGHT Floral Edwardian From DotCom Gift Shop (www.dotcom giftshop.com; 020 8746 2473) Curvy old-fashioned shape with a quirky tassel The damage: £14.95 Large traditional striped From Fur Feather and Fin (as above).

Sturdy; decorated with pheasants; equipped to

take on a serious English downpour The damage: £19.99 Child’s strawberry dream umbrella From Dotcom Gift Shop (as above) Cute and affordable child’s size brolly that opens with a satisfying ping The damage: £7.95 PAPER NAPKINS & CUPS – LEFT TO RIGHT Bumblebees From Quality Napkins (www.quality napkins.co.uk; 01466 780099) Bright bee design, great for children The damage: £2.75 for 20 Strawberries on turquoise background From Dotcom Gift Shop (as above) Perfect for a summery day The damage: £1.95 for 20 Dogs From Quality Napkins (as above) Fun little “best in show” napkins The damage: £2.75 for 20 English roses From Atelier designer napkins available from Wimmel (www.craft-supplies-wimmel.co.uk; +49 5523 303170) Quaint napkins with fun polka-dot and English rose design The damage: £2.53 for 20 Vibrant stripes From Atelier designer napkins available from Wimmel (as above) Vibrant and stylish striped design The damage: £2.51 for 20 Plastic tumblers From Fur Feather and Fin (as above) Sturdy and steady, in several attractive designs The damage: £15.99 for 6 Posie paper cups From Dotcom Gift Shop (as above) Practical throwaway option for minimum effort The damage: £1.75 for 6 FOOTWEAR – CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Alpargatas in white, yellow and pink

By Las Maneas, from Roxtons (www.roxtons.co.uk; 0845 260 6118) Easy slip on and off lightweight shoes in gorgeous bright feminine colours The damage: £11.50 Nomad slipper shoes From Nomad Ideas (www.nomad-shop. co.uk; 01666 500224) Turkish-made in wool and leather. Great for a mildly eccentric “armchair” look The damage: £99 Stoppers for high heels From Clean Heels (www.clean heels.co.uk; 01329 317390) Prevents that sinking feeling for high-heeled ladies – attach to the heel and you can hardly see them, apart from the pretty twinkling jewel on some designs. In various styles and colours The damage: from £4.99 per pair Men’s lace-ups From La Martina store at Guards Polo Club (01784 437962; becky@lamartina.com) For the style-conscious, these elegant embroidered men's shoes would go down well at Cartier Day. Just don't spill red wine on them The damage: £250 Ladies' lace-ups From La Martina Guards (as above) Robust yet slinky Italian-made lace-ups.The textured sole handles a mean divot The damage: £275 Women’s striped espidrilles From Love Espidrilles (as above) Girly, fun and great for divots The damage: £20

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The knowledge Gear – summer special

What to eat …if you like a nice takeaway

The Sussex Field picnic – This is ideal choice for a quarter- or semi-final. For each person it contains: a Sussex bap with slices of Olde Sussex cheddar and shredded lettuce; a little pot of home-made apple chutney; a vegetable box of seasonal fare with fresh herb mayonnaise for dipping; a slice of zingy lemon drizzle cake (gluten-free if required); a bag of ripe cherries with cherry shortbread finger or strawberries with chocolate dipping saue and plain shortbread finger; an organic chocolate truffle and a 250cl bottle of sparkling or still mineral water. From £25.50 per person.

IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD to be true, but you can have a thoroughly tasty, beautifully presented, locally sourced picnic delivered to your rug, gazebo or car boot at polo – leaving you with no shopping to do, no fiddly preparation and no hampers to lug around.

Picnic Anywhere, set up by food-lover Sarah Saunders severn years ago, assembles mouthwatering feasts and brings them to polo-, concertand racegoers all over the country – and they’re official picnic suppliers at Cowdray. There’s no washing up; just a few boxes – recyclable where possible, of course – and the firm even supplies napkins, finger-wipes and cutlery for each picnicker.

You can choose between four menus, or have one tailor-made. And if it arrives before your guests join you at the ground, there’s nothing to stop you passing off the whole delicious spread as your own...

Ripe for delivery, direct to your car, rug or gazebo: a spread from Picnic Anywhere

The Champagne picnic – One for a bigger occasion, such as a

final or an international match – unless of course you eat like a king at any excuse! Picnickers choose between main courses of lobster salad with mild chilli, lime and palm sugar dressing, on salad leaves, or skewers of rare roast Sussex beef on watercress and cos lettuce, with a Sussex beer mustard dressing. Each person also receives a tartlet of asparagus and Sussex ham; baby new potato salad with minted dressing; roasted vegetable salad with lemon thyme and mustard dressing; baby tomato salad with flat-leaf parsley and balsamic dressing and a baked bread roll with butter. To follow is a selection of Sussex cheeses and a cluster of red and white grapes; strawberry and Cointreau mousse with home-made shortbread and a handmade organic chocolate truffle. A 37.5cl bottle of Champagne each, and a 330ml bottle of mineral water are also included. From £75 per person.

To order from Picnic Anywhere, telephone 01892 862300, and to see more picnic menus, visit www.picnicanywhere.com

…if you’re a DIY fan Yorkshire polo player and chef Stephi Harper, who is writing a recipe book, reveals her three favourite polo concoctions

Cheese and olive empanadas (makes about 25) 3oz / 85g firm cheese, chopped into 1/4-in cubes 3oz / 85g pitted green and black olives, chopped 2oz / 55g sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped (retain oil) 2oz / 55g anchovies, drained and chopped 1oz / 30g pine nuts 2 garlic cloves, chopped 1 red pepper, chopped 2 tbsp sundried tomato paste 500g puff pastry 1 beaten egg plain 8in pastry cutter

A delicious summery alternative to the beef empanada. Preheat oven to 425F / 220C / gas 7.

Heat 1 tsp of oil from sun-dried tomatoes in a small pan. Add red pepper and fry until just brown; add garlic and cook for 2min more. Remove from heat.

Put all chopped ingredients into a bowl, with red pepper and garlic. Season with salt and black pepper. Stir in tomato paste. On a floured surface, thinly roll out pastry and cut into rounds. Gather up trimmings and roll again. Brush edges of rounds with egg, and put 1 generous heaped tsp of the mixture in the middle of each. Bring sides up to cover filling and pinch together to seal.

Place empanadas onto a greased baking sheet and brush with beaten egg. With the tip of a sharp knife, put a tiny slit in the top of each pastry. Bake in centre of oven for 15min, or until golden brown.

Cool on wire rack and eat at room temperature.

...and to wash it all down WELL, THERE’S BUBBLY and Pimm’s, but as polo this year has gone to town on new events, how about changing the rules of the glass? We like this cocktail, devised by those party-lovers at Ivan the Terrible…

Summer breeze 50ml Ivan the Terrible Vodka 10ml elderflower cordial 4 strawberries 2 lemon wedges Fill with peach juice Muddle strawberries and lemons, fill with ice and add vodka, elderflower cordial and peach juice

66 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

Mediterranean baguette 6 mini baguettes 1 tbsp olive oil 3 garlic cloves, chopped 1lb / 500g lean minced beef or lamb 1 large onion, chopped 1 large courgette, coarsely grated 6 black olives, chopped 15 capers, drained 1 tbsp mixed fresh herbs, chopped, or 1 tsp mixed dried herbs 2 tbsp red pesto salt and black pepper

Cut each baguette along one side, leaving other side intact. Pull out the middle and chop into crumbs.

Heat oil in a large pan, and fry onion until just brown. Add beef or lamb and fry until browned. Add garlic and courgette and cook 5min more, then add olives, capers, herbs and sun-dried tomatoes. Season with salt and black pepper. Leave to cool and stir in breadcrumbs.

Stuff the baguette shells, packing the mixture firmly in, and close the loaves, completely enclosing the filling. Wrap each one tightly in foil and chill for a few hours or overnight. Slice into nice fat rounds just before serving.

Little lemon curd cakes 12 muffin cases 6oz / 175g selfraising flour 6oz / 175g golden castor sugar 3oz / 75g butter 3 fl oz sunflower oil 3 large eggs 2 tbsp lemon juice Jar of lemon curd For the topping: Icing sugar lemon juice lemon extract

Preheat oven to 350F / 180C / gas 4. Place all ingredients, except lemon curd, in a large bowl.

Whisk for 3min or until smooth and creamy.

Place the muffin cases on a baking sheet and fill them 3/4 full. Gently stir 1/2 tsp of lemon curd into the top of the top of each mixture. Cook in middle of oven for 15-20min, until firm to the touch. Do not overcook. Cool on a wire rack.

When cakes are cool, put 1 heaped tbsp icing sugar in a small bowl, add a few drops of lemon juice and a drop or two of lemon extract and stir.

Don’t make the mixture too runny; it should sit nicely on the cakes without running off.

Spread the lemon topping thinly on the cakes, and allow to set. Wrap loosely in cling film to transport to the picnic.

From top: Stephi Harper’s stuffed baguette, empanadas and lemon curd cakes

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Page 5

LA MARIPOSA POLO FARM

Polo School for beginners and experienced polo players The place where you can breath and live polo

ENGLAND ARGENTINA Argentina October to April

England May to September

25 de Mayo - Pcia de Buenos Aires 2 hours from Airport.

Polo Clinics – School Groups – Gap Year trips.

Horses for sale.

Mob +54 9 11 5180 1759

Bradenham – Buckinghamshire 40 minutes from London.

Polo lessons – Clinics – Pony Hire – Livery – Tournaments Horses for sale Mob – +44 7947 725 305

Come and join us for the 2009 Season mfdarritchon@fibertel.com.ar

www.lamariposapolo.com.ar

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The knowledge Dates for the diary

What’s on in July

For comprehensive tournament listings and results, visit www.polotimes.co.uk

Principal fixtures at home and abroad UK highlights Test Matches Guards – Cartier International Coronation Cup (Open): 26 July Special events Sandbanks, Poole – British Beach Polo Championships: 10 and 11 July High-goal Cowdray – Gold Cup final (20-22 goal): 19 July Cirencester – Warwickshire Cup starts (18-20 goal): 21 July to 9 August 18-goal Beaufort – The Duke of Beaufort’s Cup (15-18 goal): 30 June to 12 July 15-goal Coworth – Coworth Park Challenge (12-15 goal): 7 to 25 July Cowdray – Harrison Cup (12-15 goal): 20 July to 2 August

USA

Pakistan

Santa Barbara Polo Club – Mayor’s Trophy (20-goal): 9 to 19 July

Shandur Plateau Chitral (played on the world’s highest polo ground in the mountains of the Hindukush, Chitral) – Shandur Polo Festival: 7 to 9 July

France Saint-Tropez Polo Club – International Saint-Tropez Cup (12-15 goal): 2 to 12 July Saint-Tropez Polo Club – Open de Garssin Tournament (12-15 goal): 16 to 26 July

Singapore Royal Pahang Polo Club – South East Asian Polo Championships: 28 July to 2 August

Germany Munchen – Berenberg High-Goal Trophy: 10 to 19 July Sportpark Mungersdorf, Cologne – Segway Polo Woz Challenge Cup 2009: 10 to 19 July

Italy Argentario Polo Club, Monte Argentario – Polo Grand Slam (FISE) 2009: 29 July to 9 August

Other dates for the diary 5 July – Party at Club 1 Ascot with DJ Ebe Sievwright; from 8 till late; South American music 6 July – Retraining of Racehorses (RoR) seminar at HPA HQ, Oxon (see also news page) Until mid-July – exhibition of Nic Fiddian-Green’s horse sculptures at the Sladmore Gallery, W1 19 July – Gold Cup after-party, Cowdray Park 23 July – HPA dinner, by invitation only

Fixtures Test Matches

Beaufort The Duke of Beaufort's Cup 30 June-12 July

Hertfordshire The MorrCo Cup Hurtwood 6 Goal Challenge Kirtlington Barlow Trophy* RLS The San Antonio Tournament* RLS The Arthingworth Cup* Rutland The Assam Cup

Medium 15 Goal

Low 4 Goal

Guards Cartier International

26 July

High 20 Goal Cirencester Warwickshire Cup

21 July-9 August

High 18 Goal

Cowdray Harrison Cup Coworth Coworth Park Challenge Fifield Invitational RCBPC The Eduardo Moore

20 July-2 August 7-25 July 17-21 June 23 June-5 July

Intermediate 12 Goal Beaufort The Prince of Wales’ Cup Cirencester Queen Mother Guards Phoenician Cup* Guards Duke of Wellington Trophy Ham Dubai Trophy Kirtlington Kirtlington Summer Cup*

11-25 July 16 June-5 July 26 June-12 July 28 July-16 August 28 July-2 August 14-25 July

Intermediate 10 Goal RCBPC Polo Festival* RLS The Ladies Day Gold Cup

27 July-9 August 15-19 July

Low 8 Goal Binfield Heath Summer Festival Cheshire National 8 Goal Champ Cowdray Holden White Challenge Cup Fifield Challenge Cup Guards Town & County Inglesham Foxcote Cup and Audi Kirtlington Secretarys Cup* RCBPC Julian and Howard Hipwood Rugby The Warwickshire 8 Goal

25 July 30 June-5 July 17 July-1 August 28 July-2 August 31 July-15 August 30 June-12 July 14-19 July 4-18 July 18-19 July

Low 6 Goal Druids Lodge Druids Polo Week Fifield La Brava Polo Cup*

68 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

18-25 July 16-19 July

Beaufort 2 to 4 Goal Beaufort The Henderson Rosebowl* Beaufort Livingstone Learmonth Beaufort The Beaufort Junior Cup Beverley Summer Tournament Cambridge Countryside Alliance Cheshire Cheshire Champion Cup* Chester Chester Plate Druids Lodge Gorgeous Weekend Edgeworth The 4 Goal Cup Fifield Challenge Cup* Haggis Farm Granchester Cup Hertfordshire The Crystal Cup Hurtwood Jay's Trophy Inglesham Baileys Horse Feeds Kirtlington August Chukka Cup* Kirtlington The Groundsmans Trophy* Kirtlington Gibbs Cup* Knepp Midsummer Trophy Knepp Shotter and Byers Lacey Green The Bucks Trophy Longdole Kaimira Wine Challenge RLS The Australian Cup* Silver Leys Charity Tournament Taunton Vale Aden Visit Cup* Vaux Park Mains Trophy Wicklow Bally henry International

4-5 July 15-25 July 1-12 July 2-5 July 29 July-2 August 9-12 July 11-12 July 18 July-2 August 20 June-12 July 13-18 July 18-19 July 4-5 July 10-12 July 25 July 4-5 July 11-12 July 11-12 July 11-12 July 18-19 July 7-12 July 18-19 July 29 July-2 August 30 June-5 July 21-25 July 9-12 July 30 July-2 August 11-12 July 11-12 July 9-12 July 11-12 July 11-12 July 4-5 July 9-12 July

Low 2 Goal Ascot Becky James Memorial* Ascot Mattinson Memorial Trophy Beaufort The Novices Cup Brightling Estancia el Colibri Trophy Burningfold Plaistow Plate Burningfold Alfold Bowl Dedham Vale Othello of Brodie Trophy Dundee The 1894 Dilnogh Cup Dundee The 1991 Whitbread Cup Edgeworth Midsummer Plate Epsom Bastille Day Cup Fifield Challenge Cup Haggis Farm Granchester Cup Ham Godbold Intra Club Challenge* Hertfordshire The MorrCo Cup Hurtwood The Swallow Cup Hurtwood Erin's Plate Kirtlington Colqhoun Cup* Knepp International 2 Goal Lacey Green The Widmer Trophy Lacey Green Sponsor Cup Longdole Longdole 2 Goal Moyne Patrons Trophy New Forest Clitherow Cup: RCBPC Polo Festival* RLS The July Cup* RLS The Gentlemens Tournament* RLS The Jordan Trophy* RLS The Champagne Trophy* Rugby La Casa Loco Cup Rutland The Bronze Horse Suffolk Candesic Tournament Sussex The Champagne Jaquart

11-12 July 18-19 July 20 June-5 July 11-12 July 2-5 July 22-25 July 18-19 July 5 July 26 July 18-19 July 11 July 25-26 July 11-12 July 7-12 July 4-5 July 1-5 July 28 July-2 August 7-12 July 22-25 July 4-5 July 18-19 July 4-5 July 25-26 July 18 July 27 July-9 August 2-5 July 9-12 July 24-25 July 30 July-2 August 4-5 July 24-25 July 18-19 July 11-12 July

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Tidworth Douglas Nugent Cup

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Low 0 Goal Binfield Heath BHPC 0 Goal Cambridge Countryside Alliance Hertfordshire The Criolla Cup Hurtwood Ewhurst Plate Inglesham Roxtons Polo 0 Goal Kirtlington Mid Summer Cup* Kirtlington Kirtlington Fisheries Kirtlington Blenheim Trophy* Knepp Dragons Stud Trophy Lacey Green The Widmer Trophy Lacey Green The Bucks Trophy Lacey Green Sponsor Cup Longdole Emerging Tournament Moyne Patrons Trophy New Forest Rudkin Cup* New Forest Ellisdawe Cup* New Forest Parkinson Cup RLS The Lord Oxendon Challenge Rugby The Ranksborough Cup Rugby The BB Challenge Rutland Findlay Trophy Silver Leys Colorado Cup Silver Leys Charity Tournament Taunton Vale The Pollard Cup* Taunton Vale The Wychanger Barton Tidworth Manlein Cup Vaux Park Chairman's Cup W Somerset Chairman's Cup Waterford Jurys Cup & Dawnay Cup

18-19 July 4-5 July 18-19 July 17-18 July 4-5 July 29 July-2 August 30 June-5 July 14-19 July 15-18 July 4-5 July 11-12 July 18-19 July 17-18 July 25-26 July 4-5 July 11-12 July 25 July 16-19 July 4-5 July 18-19 July 9-12 July 24-25 July 11-12 July 4-5 July 18-19 July 12 July 18-19 July 18-19 July 4-5 July

Low Below 0 Goal Asthall Farm Tessa Trophy Dedham Vale Othello of Brodie Trophy FHM Mid Season Challenge Offchurch Bury Bob Fenton Memorial Sussex The Champagne Jaquart Tidworth Douglas Nugent Cup Vale of York York Against Cancer Cup Vale of York Burton Constable Fair Vale of York Institute for Blind

5 July 18-19 July 25 July 4-5 July 11-12 July 4-5 July 4-5 July 11-12 July 25 July

Young England Cowdray John Cowdray Trophy

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Combined Services Ascot Cornwell Affiliates Cup Guards Finals Inter Regimental Sandhurst RMAS Charity Polo Day Tidworth Rundle Cup (RN v ARMY) Tidworth Captains and Subalterns Tidworth Duke of York Cup

4 July 12 July 9 July 11 July 18 July 25 July

Schools & Universities Cirencester Britain v W Indies 11 July Cirencester England v South Africa 11 July Cirencester British v England Schools 11 July Cirencester Roxton v La Martina Ladies 11 July Dundee SUPA Scottish Schools Throughout July Edinburgh SUPA Scottish Schools Throughout July Guards Britain v West Indies 7 July Guards SUPA International Polo 7-13 July Kirtlington KPPC v Young Britain 5 July RCBPC RCBPC v Young Britain 4 July

Pony Club Bedale Pony Club Tournament Cambridge Pony Club Tournament Cirencester Pony Club Tournament Dulverton Dulverton Epsom Pony Club Tournament Frampton Pony Club Tournament Hertfordshire Pony Club Tournament Hurtwood Pony Club Tournament Kirtlington Qualifying Pony Club Knepp Pony Club Tournament Pytchley Pony Club Tournament Rutland Pony Club Tournament Vaux Park Vaux Park

11 July 23 July 30-31 July 16 July 5 July 23 July 25 July 21 July 28-29 July 18 July 21 July 18 July 14 July

Ladies Binfield Heath Sexy Kaftans & Vinyl Donaghadee Ladies Tournament RLS The Ladies Tournament Rutland Ladies Trophy W Somerset Summersgill Cup

4-5 July 25 July 9-12 July 25 July 4-5 July

Open Knepp Knepp Castle Open Tourn Poole British Beach Polo Champs W Wycombe Ladies & Gentlemen*

2-5 July 10-11 July 11-12 July

Picture of the month The polo-playing officer cadets of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst Polo Club form up in front of La Martina’s new shop at Guards Polo Club, on Saturday 6 June, during their visit to their sponsor’s new facilities.

Photograph by Tony Ramirez – www.imagesofpolo.com

Club

contacts (UK and Ireland)

AEPC – Hickstead 01273 834315 All Ireland – +353 (1) 6896732 Apsley End – 01462 712444 Ascot Park – 01276 858545 Ash Farm – 01932 872521 Asthall Farm – 01367 860207 Beaufort – 01666 880510 Belmont, Mill Hill – 01344 829955 Beverley – 01964 544455 Binfield Heath – 01491 411969 Brannockstown – +353 45483708 Brightling – 01435 810017 Bunclody – +353 876605917 Burningfold – 01483 200722 Cambridge & Newmarket – 07769 976781 Carlton House – 01986 892231 Cheshire – 01270 611100 Chester Racecourse – 01244 304602 Cirencester Park – 01285 653225 Cowdray Park – 01730 813257 Coworth Park – 01344 875155 Curraghmore – +353 51387102 Dedham Vale – 01473 280900 Donaghadee – 02891 882521 Druids Lodge – 01722 782597 Dundee & Perth – 07831 365194 Edgeworth – 07879 825660 Edinburgh – 0131 449 6696 Epsom – 01372 748200 FHM – 07778 436468 Fifield – 01628 620061 Foxhill – 0115 9651790 Frolic Farm – 01223 812922 Guards – 01784 434212 Haggis Farm – 01223 460353 Ham – 020 8334 0000 Herbertstown – +353 872552331 Hertfordshire – 01707 256023 Hurtwood Park – 01483 272828 Inglesham – 01367 253939 Kinross – 07831 365194 Kirtlington – 01869 650138 Knepp Castle – 01403 741007 Lacey Green – 07947 725305 Ladyswood – 01666 840880 Limerick – +353 872373903 Little Bentley – 01206 250435 Longdole – 01452 864544 Maywood – 01962 885500 Moyne – +353 851313224 New Forest – 02380 811818 Offchurch Bury – 07785 223383 Orchard – 01258 471000 Park Lane – 01491 411969 Ranksboro – 01572 720046 RMAS – 01276 412276 Royal County of Berkshire – 01344 890060 RLS – 01926 812409 Rugby – 01788 817724 Rutland – 01572 724568 Silver Leys – 01279 652652 St Albans – 07710 262435 Stewarton – 01560 483411 Suffolk Polo – 07990 576974 Sussex Polo – 01342 714920 Taunton – 01823 480460 Tidworth – 01980 846705 Toulston – 01422 372529 Vale of York – 07788 426968 Vaux Park – 01460 242684 West Somerset – 01884 820432 West Wycombe – 01865 858475 White Rose – 01430 875750 Wicklow – +353 (0) 404 67164 ◗ To contact the HPA, tel: 01367 242828 ◗ To contact SUPA, tel: 01344 625124

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Out and about Ivan the Terrible Twilight Polo Challenge 30 May, Guards Polo Club

Bona fide Russian leaves Guards team with nothin’ Celebrities, Russian royalty and visitors from the Moscow Polo Club flocked to Smith’s Lawn on a balmy summer’s evening to watch the fifth annual Ivan the Terrible Twilight Polo Challenge, in which hosts Guards Polo Club fielded a 10goal team to take on Russia.

The visitors – including an Argentine contingent with Russian connections – trailed in the first half, but it was the one bona fide Russian, Mischa Rodzianko, who saved his team’s bacon. With his team trailing 4-2 in the third chukka he slotted in a lovely goal, and team-mate Alejandro Traverso followed with another to level the scores. It was all square in the last until just before the bell, when Mischa scored again, clinching the match for Russia. The 20-year-old from Moscow also walked away with the most valuable player award, presented to him by HH Princess Olga of Russia, who watched the proceedings from the Royal Box.

Moscow Polo Club’s Alejandro Traverso, Adolfo Casabal, David Giovannis and Mischa Rodzianko lift the Twilight Polo trophy

Vivienne Westwood and Jay Kay from Jamiroquai joined some 200 guests in the newly built clubhouse for a three-course sit-down dinner. The event’s sponsors ensured vodka flowed all evening and guests learnt to do shots “Russian style”. After an auction, the tables were re-arranged on the terrace and a DJ provided entertainment late into the night.

Russia (10): David Geovanis 0; Mischa Rodzianko 1; Alejandro Traverso 5; Adolfo Casabal 4 Guards Polo Club (10): Guy Schwarzenbach 1; Ed Hitchman 4; Peter Webb 5; Clive Reid 0

Designer Vivienne Westwood and Andreas Kronthaler

Princess Olga presents the BPP award to Guards PC’s Clive Reid

Nineties’ pop sensation, Jay Kay

Photographs by Alec Whitby, of Centaur Photographic

David Giovannis (standing) enjoys lunch in the new clubhouse with British and Moscow-based guests of the Russian team

Natalia Chubin and Jules Wright 70 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

Charles Stisted (right) with Guards PC guests

Max Pokrovsky

Azad and Natalia Cola, Dimitr Chebotarev and Princess Olga of Russia

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Ivan Rubinich and a friend eat lunch before the game

Page 3

Moscow’s playmaker Alejandro Traverso sends his pony into top gear after the ball

How polo is flowing in vodka country

Guy Schwarzenbach and Mischa Rodzianko

Alexis Rodzianko and Dimitri Chebotarev

Captain Misha Rodzianko accepts his MVP award from Princess Olga of Russia

Alexis Rodzianko, who owns the Moscow Polo Club, one of two in Russia, fell in love with the sport – as did his family – six or seven years ago. “I started taking my youngest daughter to a municipal riding school in Moscow, where the instructor asked if I wanted to have a go. I was hooked,” he says. Alexis’s employer at the time, Deutsche Bank, sponsored polo around the world, and he was introduced to Victor Huaco, who now runs the Russian Polo Club. Alexis graduated from riding to polo, as did his daughter and two of his sons.

Alexis says there is a lot of interest in polo in Russia at present, and several young players are receiving lessons in return for helping out with the ponies. The Argentine pro Bernado Cormick is among those who have been sharing their expertise with club members.

Mischa, the fifth of six children and now a one-goal player, was born in New York but has lived for more than half his life in Moscow. Now 20, he is studying business administration at Moscow’s Touro University.

“The first time I played polo, six years ago, was also the first time I sat on a horse. I was handed a mallet and just fell in love,” he says. “During the season I try to practise three times a week. I spend half of October, November and December in Argentina, playing 15-goal tournaments with Miguel Novillo Astrada, which has made a big difference to my game.”

It is partly thanks to his Argentine contacts that Mischa organised all his team’s ponies for the Ivan the Terrible game himself this year rather than, as in previous years, renting through John Horswell – described by Alexis as “the Avis of polo ponies”.

Mischa puts his love of polo down to his father. “Dad has put a lot of time, money and effort into polo in Russia, and I have a lot to thank him for.” He adds that he hopes to play the odd tournament in the UK, but will continue to live in Moscow because he likes his way of life there.

Mr and Mrs Gerald Blazevic

David Giovannis before the game

Peter Webb gets in the zone

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Out and about Rutland season opener and ball – 16 May 2009

Polo, revelry and rain: the British season is underway!

Rutland Polo Club’s opening weekend of the season in late May welcomed 16 teams in two tournaments, and played host to the club’s annual start-ofseason ball on the Saturday evening.

The first day’s play was contested in bright conditions, with few showers, and the grounds held up excellently for their first polo of the year and looked to have wintered really well. However, ferocious winds brought in black clouds and several inches of rain on Sunday, leading to the postponement of the final stages of the two opening tournaments, due to be played that day.

Rutland and Beverley went head-to-head in Saturday’s top tournament

Yet this might have proved to be a blessed relief for some members and their guests, who no doubt welcomed the chance to relax on Sunday following the success of Saturday night’s ball. The ball had sold out a week in advance and so filled the club’s marquee to bursting point with old and new friends, each of whom enjoyed a sumptuous dinner and the usual auction, compèred by the evergreen Thomas Clayton. New club chairman Rupert Heggs wished everyone a great evening and then club president John Tinsley made a presentation to the retiring chairman, Edwin de Lisle.

George Culverhouse

John Tinsley at the ball

Charlie Gordon Watson

A visiting Beverley player winds up for a strike up field Rupert Heggs, chairman of Rutland Polo Club

Photographs by Nico Morgan: www.nicomorgan.com

Ellie Uppa, in need of an urgent refill

Ed Winterton displays some expert stickwork to take the ball to goal 72 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

James van Oppen enjoys the evening

Chloe de Rothschild

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Akuma Bath Polo, Bath, 23 May 2009

Making the dream of polo in Bath a reality Former England rugby player Victor Ubogu’s dream of bringing polo to Bath finally became reality this spring, with the help of Longdole Polo Club and Bath Racecourse. The aim of the day was, in Victor’s words, “to have a jolly good time”. He asked spectators to dig deep into their pockets and support the work of Breast Cancer Care. A large play area with bouncy castles, face painting and children’s entertainers made it an appealing day out for all the family.

Events kicked off with the Varsity Cup Challenge followed by the Tarpan Vodka Challenge, both of which were low-goal matches, but which gave the growing crowd a taste for the main event, the Battle of the Sexes exhibition match. The 8-goal clash between the Ladies Diamonds International team and Longdole Polo Club’s men provided visitors with an excellent showpiece, and female guests went home happy as the ladies recorded a convincing win. The 2010 event is going to be held on 22 May and will definitely be one for the diary if you live in the UK’s south west.

The winning ladies celebrate with Victor Ubogu and Thomas Aldersley

Battle of the Sexes teams: Ladies Diamonds International (8): Lucy Taylor 1; Emma Tomlinson 2; Nina Clarkin 3; Tamara Vestey 2 Longdole (8): Ross Severn 0; Dan Banks 1; Tom Beim 3; Dave Miller 4

BBC TV pundit Jeremy Guscott, who lives in Bathampton, was there to support his former rugby team-mate at Bath, Victor

Diamonds International’s Lucy Taylor takes the ball on against the men

Sugary treats in the VIP marquee

Who needs to watch the polo?!

Photographs by Rachel Luckhurst: www.rlphotography.co.uk

Guests of all ages assembled in the tent at lunch

Anneka and Isabel Dawkins enjoy the children’s tent

2-goal side VU Ltd won the Tarpan Vodka game

Rugby-turned-polo-playing pro, Tom Beim – brother of James www.polotimes.co.uk July 2009 73

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Out and about Costa Smeralda Spring Gold Cup, Sardinia

Pity in Italy as rain brings early cup finality The Spring Gold Cup in Costa Smeralda began on 23 May in glorious sunshine, and was due to finish with a big VIP day out for over 200 spectators on Monday 1 June. However, unseasonably heavy rain on finals’ day forced organisers of the Italian tournament to abandon their showpiece finale. The condition of the ground was deemed too dangerous to play on and so, in an unusual move, the two finalists – Cortina Polo Style and Villa a Sesta – were both declared the joint-champions of this year’s 12-goal Spring Gold Cup. The play-off match for third and fourth place, due to take place after the final, was also cancelled and instead a penalty shoot out took place, in which Julius Baer defeated Operae, 5-3.

Team Julius Baer with representatives of their eponymous sponsors

Despite the disappointing end to the tournament, the beautiful weather and competitive polo earlier in the week reminded Polo Times’ two visitors just what fun there is to be had watching the game in this beautiful area.

Italy’s Roberta Marchiorello and Gian Luigi enjoy a fine day out

Joint-winners Villa a Sesta (l-r: Francisco Menendez, Riccardo Tattoni, Gualtiero Giori and Eduard Menendez) at the presentations

Ignacio Novillo Astrada and press officer Caterina Vagnozzi

From Russia with love – Kseria Shatokhina came to support Dmitri Voizianov’s team

Photographs by Tony Ramirez

The other joint-winners Cortina Polo Style (l-r: Goffredo Cutinelli Rendina, Martin Espain Gastaldi, Augusto Gomez Romero and Dmitry Vozianov) lift the beautiful trophy

Action between Julius Baer and Villa a Sesta in the semi-finals on the Saturday 74 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

Organisers Claudio Giorgiutti (also a wellknown commentator) and Maurizio Zuliani

Players examine the field in heavy rain on finals’ day

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Polo in the Park – London, 5-7 June 2009

Capital contests capture fresh audience in Fulham As if the new rules, extensive technology and the smaller, reshaped ground weren’t enough for visitors at Polo in the Park last month, there was plenty of other entertainment to be found within the Hurlingham Park complex too.

Some 25-30 trade-stands, offering everything from socks and earrings to tweed overcoats and luxury yachts occupied prime real estate between the grandstands, the entrance, the bars and the VIP marquees. The carpeted walkways that guided people round the site were also littered with other attractions, including bouncy castles and face-painting for children, smart portable lavatories, a helicopter display, an aircraft simulator, a Formula One car, an army recruitment centre and a large “Dyson Airblade” enclosure, in which visitors were encouraged to wash and dry their hands hygienically.

Those fortunate enough to have tickets for the VIP packages enjoyed lunch in the Hurlingham Club, which adjoins the park, before each day’s play.

They also gained access to exclusive VIP tents and an outdoor seating area alongside the regenerated polo ground itself. There was a limited selection of free drinks and plenty of access to the players, officials and coaches as they unwound after the games.

The other bars within the general Polo in the Park enclosure did a roaring trade, particularly on the Saturday, when the public bar near the entrance and the champagne bar behind the grandstands took a six-figure sum.

Princess Beatrice mingled with Londoners

Jodie Kidd and Daniel Fox-Davies with a VIP guest en route to the sumptuous three-course lunch in the Hurlingham Club adjoining the park

Team Buenos Aires didn’t bring Palermo’s weather with them to London’s own city-based polo event, but showed plenty of South American flair

With new rules on the field allowing players to score “two in one go”, Jamie Morrison boosts his scoring off the field too

New York’s Kirsty Craig was a bright and determined addition. She played the crowds well and, alongside Nacho Figueras, made for excellent eye candy

Team London’s self-titled “gruesome threesome” signed merchandise for numerous new polo-goers

Photographs courtesy of World Polo Association

Support for the home crowd was strong and very vocal at times

Jemma Kidd watched all the weekend’s action www.polotimes.co.uk July 2009 75

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Club information

LONGDOLE POLO CLUB Rob Cudmore England Coach, 2 HPA Instructors

July Fixtures 2-5 9 - 12 15 - 18 18 19 24 25 25 26

Smith and Williamson 0 goal Shotter and Byers Bowl 0-40 goal Dragon Stud 2 goal Pony Club Polo Gold Cup at Cowdray 3 a-side Football Match and BBQ Cartier International

Email polo@knepp.co.uk or call 01403 741007

www.kneppcastlepoloclub.co.uk

International Equitrack Polo Arena Fantastic clubhouse with licensed bar & excellent viewing of the arena Polo Pony Hire, School Ponies Chukkas and Matches - call the office for Info Individual Coaching, Group Lessons, Social & Corporate Events

For information on membership, polo lessons and general enquiries please call: Tel: (office) 01452 864 544 Mobile: 07974 532 841 email: rob@longdolepolo.com Longdole Polo Club, Birdlip, Gloucestershire, GL4 8LH

July Tournaments 4-5 Sexy kaftans Vinyl records Ladies Open 18-19 BHPC -4-0 goal 8-12 goal Charity Day 25 Summer Festival

LOCO 'inner seam free' horse riding jeans and whites

Bridget Hancock on 0797 624 2877 www.binfieldheathpoloclub.co.uk

July Tournaments

JULY 2 & 3

9-12 The Berkeley Insurance Assam Cup (6 goal) The Findlay Trophy (0 goal) 24-25 Bronze Horse (2 goal) Horsefeeds Bowl (-2) The Ladies Tournament (open)

Rutland Polo Club

Further information email info@rutlandpoloclub.co.uk call 01572 724568

76 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

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Classifieds PONIES

TRANSPORT

MERCEDES HORSEBOX 1315 • 1989 RIGID - PARTITIONED FOR 8 • MOT TO END MARCH 2010 • VERY COMFORTABLE CLEAN AND RELIABLE

£7500 ONO

TUFF TRACK MULE NEARLY NEW • FRONT WINCH AND TOW HOOK

£4500 K

GIFTS

WINTER AND SUMMER GRAZING AVAILABLE ON BEAUTIFUL FARM NEAR COWDRAY PARK • FREE DRAINING SANDY SOILS. NEW STUD FENCING • COMPETITIVE RATES AND ON SITE SUPERVISION • 30 YEARS EXPERIENCE OF LOOKING AFTER POLO PONIES. • STABLES ALSO AVAILABLE

PLEASE CALL MARTIN GLUE 07860 706 485 EMAIL: stickyandwendy@hotmail.com

www.polotimes.co.uk July 2009 77

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Classifieds TRANSPORT The New Lightweight body by

TRISTAR★★★ This revolutionary horsebox is designed to achieve a payload of approximately 3 tons – which means you can legally carry: 5 medium weight 16hh horses – around 600kg each, or 6 polo ponies of an average 460kg each – and this also includes all tack!

This innovative body can be produced in any length from 10’ – 30’, with the same variations in specification as any other vehicle in our range.

FITNESS EQUIPMENT

Polo Lorries Made to Order Contact Cris Matthews on 07885 734 282 Polo Lorries built by qualified engineer and polo player who understands your requirements.

• Can adapt to your specifications.

• Any repairs to partitions, ramps, floors, welding of cabs, resprays and M.O.T preparation.

• Or keep your container and we can swap your chassis/cab for a newer one.

• Pick up and delivery service.

email: crispmatthews@hotmail.co.uk

78 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

www.tristarhorsesboxes.co.uk

Tel: 01570 422250 Fax: 01570 423842 Email: sales@tristarhorseboxes.co.uk

PTJuly 2009 p78-79 Classifieds

DESTINATIONS

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EQUIPMENT

GROUND MAINTENANCE

EQUIPMENT

CH GROUNDS MAINTENANCE LTD Specialists in the construction, maintenance and drainage of polo grounds.

CONSTRUCTION SAND SPREADING VERTI-DRAINING OVERSEEDING DRAINAGE & SPRAYING

Verti-Draining

CHESHAM OFFICE Tel: (01494) 758208 Fax: (01494) 758886 Email: mike@chgrounds.com www.chgrounds.com

www.polotimes.co.uk July 2009 79

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Classifieds PONIES HIGH QUALITY PROFESSIONALLY KEPT LOW TO MED-GOAL STRING: 15.1hh, 9yrs £8k; 15.2hh, 9yrs £6k; 15hh, 10yrs £7k; 15hh, 16yrs £5k. Discount on bulk purchase. Fit and ready to go. Can be tried at the RCBPC. Call 07968 875339 SUPER SMART 13-YEAR-OLD GELDING: Eric is currently playing up to 15 goal with a 3 goal player - always sound. Awesome handle, fast and clever.

Will play medium and low goal. £6,000. Call 07939 935076 (Nick Pepper) 15.1HH STUNNING QUARTER HORSE CROSS: 6 year old quality quarter horse cross gelding, kind and easy in all aspects. Would suit beginner to competent player. Great potential. £6,000 ono. Ring: 07816 830888 QUALITY PONIES SENSIBLY PRICED: Selection of top class ex high goal ponies, all sane and lovely, ideal PC/low goal/med goal. From £3,995. Tel 07970 697593 www.eastwoodstud.com LETICIA, 10 YEAR OLD ARGENTINEAN MARE: 15.1hh, dark bay, uncomplicated horse. Stable hitting platform, will take beginner/intermediate to next level. Sold with full tack, as owner giving up.

Available to try in chukkas. £4,000.Call O7971 691160 wendy@richbuild.freeserve.co.uk 15.3HH TB LOW GOAL PONY: 15.3HH TB gelding, 7 yrs. Strong ride-offs, agile with a light mouth, smooth paces, always sound, easy to play/manage.

Playing now with 2 goaler. £6000ono. Call Caroline 07791 277085 or cazzypolox@hotmail.com (Berkshire) 14.2HH ARGENTINE MARE: 10yrs easy, tough, quick responsive mare suit -2 to 1 goal player, 100% to do, £6500. Also 15.1hh TB bay mare 1st season, playing farm chukkas £3000. 07771 852871 (Junct 11 M4)

80 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

WANTED ON LOAN: Easy pony wanted to play club polo as own pony is out of action this season. Have been playing polo for last three years. Essex based.

Simple T&C's only. Contact 07818 412983 15.1HH DARK BAY MARE 10 YEAR OLD: Lovely 15.1hh Argentine bay mare for sale. Grass/arena, suit low goal polo, has played 2 seasons PC polo, suit beginner/PC player, never been lame, open to vet. Sadly for sale as out grown. £5,000 Hertfordshire. Tel 07789 003876 BEAUTIFUL GREY MARE: 15.2hh 10 year old beautiful grey Argentine mare, very easy indeed, plays all levels up to 15 goal. Good in all ways.

Tel 07767 612655 or 07970 697593 ARGENTINE MARE 15HH 8YRS BLACK - £6K: Super little Argentine mare. Very easy in all aspects traffic/shoe/box. Genuine reason for sale. Played up to 8 goal last season. Suit pony club up to 0 goals.

Glos/Warks. annie@odmax.com 07775 645073 MATURE BUT YOUTHFUL BAY GELDING: A charming 18 year old Argentine gelding. Currently at a private yard in Cheshire. A fast and sharp pony but safe to play on. Fit and always double chukkas. Easy to play and manage. Suitable for beginners and club chukkas. £2,500. Contact Muhammad via mobile: 07894 220071 or email:muhammadeffi@gmail.com 15.2HH 13YRS ENGLISH TB: We’ve had Monzie since a 2year old. Reliable, experienced, no vices, always sound, always double chukkas, easy to play/manage. Fit and playing now. £5,000.

Tel 07801 842166, tom.morrison@devec.com 14.3HH ARGENTINE CHESTNUT MARE: 11 years absolute bombproof would suit beginner, played up to 8 goal. Very handy and easy in all ways. £5,500 Tel: 07870 644051 (Cheshire) POLO PONIES AND YOUNG STOCK FOR SALE: We have a selection of polo ponies and young stock for sale to suit all abilities. All home bred out of ex-high

goal mares by our half American Quarter Horse stallion. Please contact Gareth on 07930 991454 or gareth@carlshead.co.uk 3-STRING FOR SALE - SUPER CHEAP: 3 weight carrying ponies, 15.2, 15.2, 15.3 – all imported from Chile. All under 12yrs: 2 geldings, 1 mare, all very pretty, safe, fast, kind, just love the game. All played up to 6-goal polo by -1 Cowdray player. Urgent, sad sale: £12k ono for the lot, plus full wardrobe for each. West Sussex. Tel 07891 815244 andrea7@blackberry.orange.co.uk 15.2HH STRIKING THOROUGHBRED: dark bay mare 6 yrs very easy, played 6 goal. Fast & quick with light mouth, £5,500 Tel: 07870 644051 (Cheshire) 15.2HH LOVELY LOOKING DUN: 3 1/2 years TB mare. Very quiet and easy, playing low goal tournaments. Lots of potential £4,750. Tel: 07870 644051 (Cheshire) REDUCED 15.3HH 14YRS, EX-ALEXANDER DE LISLE: Dark bay Argentine gelding, bred by Pepe Araya. Perfect patron pony/gentleman/ideal pony club £7,000. Contact Edwin de Lisle - 01536 770585 / 07711 075450 or edwindelisle@barnsdaleoffice.co.uk REDUCED 15HH 13YRS, EX-ALEXANDER DE LISLE: Grey Argentine mare purchased from J.P. Smail. £12,000. Contact Edwin de Lisle - 01536 770585 / 07711 075450 or edwindelisle@barnsdaleoffice.co.uk REDUCED 14.3HH 11YRS, IDEAL PONY CLUB PONY: Palamino Argentine mare. Outgrown by Nicholas de Lisle. £4,000. Contact Edwin de Lisle 01536 770585 / 07711 075450 or edwindelisle@barnsdaleoffice.co.uk 15HH DUN ARGENTINE MARE: 9 years old. Has played up to 22 goal. Bought to play pony club, but far too good to play at lower levels. She is an amazing pony. Fast, strong in ride offs, light in the

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mouth and very responsive. She can turn on a sixpence. She is not a novice or pony club type but would be perfect for a lightweight patron or good young player. Wonderful temperament and absolutely beautiful. Fit and playing now. Private caring home required for this lovely pony. £10,000. Tel: 01306 631363 / 07710 305039

HORSE TRANSPORT & FREELANCE CLASS 1 DRIVER FOR HIRE: Horse transport & driver available. Also freelance driver/groom. 25+ years experience working with & transporting horses in the UK & Europe. Class 1/O/CPC licence holder & DEFRA approved. 01794 323195 - 07786 475123 (Hants/Wilts based).

REDUCED 15HH 10YRS, EX-ALEXANDER DE LISLE: Grey Argentine gelding previously played by Mark Tomlinson £7,000. Contact Edwin de Lisle - 01536 770 585 / 07711 075450 or edwindelisle@barnsdaleoffice.co.uk

REDUCED HGV LORRY: Ex Alexander de Lisle.

12.5 Tons 1991 Leyland DAF 160 Turbo, 146,000 miles. Jennings body with automatic back ramp, manual side ramp. Partitioned for six designed for eight. Ex household cavalry. Plated to 31/05/2010 (12 months) £8,000. Contact Edwin de Lisle 01536 770585 / 07711 075450 or edwindelisle@barnsdaleoffice.co.uk

REDUCED 14.2HH 10YRS, IDEAL PONY CLUB PONY: Piebald Argentine mare, therefore cannot play Handley X. Outgrown by Nicholas de Lisle. Has hunted £5,000.

Contact Edwin de Lisle - 01536 770585 / 07711 075450 or edwindelisle@barnsdaleoffice.co.uk SITUATIONS

POLO GROOM - PART TIME: Polo groom needed part time to deliver, tack up and bandage two polo ponies to matches over several days in the summer for 15year-old boy. Based in Hungerford. Contact Georgina on 07860 230730 or pdn@netsend.com TRANSPORT AND MACHINERY DRIVER AVAILABLE: Professional, freelance artic or rigid driver available, with polo pony experience. Clean LGV class C+E licence for 4 years. No accident claims. References available. Oxford/Henley based.

Call Jonathan on 07810 772778 or email pellyfry@aol.com 6 HORSE NON HGV POLO LORRY: 1997(P reg) Ford Iveco 7.5 tonne with sleeper cab, 12 CD multi-change player/radio, air con, sun roof, immobiliser, F.S.H., partitioned for 6 horses. £5,500. Tel: 07971 691160. wendy@richbuild.freeserve.co.uk

VOLVO FL10 MODEL: 10 horse box J reg. 1991.

Excellent condition. New engine Dec 05. MOT £10,000 ono. Telephone 01992 561656 (John Seabrook), mobile 07710 447062 or email johnseabrook@btconnect.com EQUIPMENT WOODEN HORSES FOR SALE: Wooden horses for sale, set up for 52 stick. £500 each. Delivery is available but fuel costs will be incurred. Contact Rob: 07977 970537 or 01606 884217.

SCOREBOARDS AND CLOCKS ESPECIALLY DESIGNED FOR POLO: Outdoor and arena sizes.

Fully electronic, displaying the time counting down, both scores and chukka number. Automatic bell/horn. Controlled wirelessly by a remote control you can even wear on your arm. Visit www.SportingDesigns.co.uk or call +44 (0)7860 303217

Large selection of sticks, saddles, stick & kit bags, knee pads & other polo gear Call or email Jamie Gordon on:

077100 73910 jamiegordon@villamil.co.uk

www.villamil.co.uk

Authorised Dealer

www.polotimes.co.uk July 2009 81

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The last word

A Week

didn’t do any celebrating just yet. We still had a game to go.

in the life of. .

I WAS FIRST APPROACHED about forming this year’s team last August. It was my first summer playing here and I didn’t think I’d had a particularly great season. But I got a chance to play in Deauville against Luke, and though he beat me he must have seen something in my performances because he asked me about Apes Hill. They knew they needed a six and a three-goaler, or a seven and a two – and, once they decided on [three-goaler] Charlie Hanbury, I got the call up for the final slot. I think we were both selected because we are wellmounted and both fitted [patron] Sir Charles Williams’s vision for a team bringing on young talent. We got on brilliantly as a team and that had a lot to do with our success.

Photograph by Tony Ramirez

I GOT UP ON MONDAY [8 June] at 8am and checked my horses. Our Queen’s Cup semi-final was on Wednesday. I always rest the ponies I am playing two days ahead of a big game, so I stick and balled my extras and hung around the barn at the Beaufort, drinking Maté with the grooms and other players. I have 10 horses at the club and, while I was using up to eight in the early stages of the Queen’s Cup, from the quarter-finals onwards I used five or six.

TUESDAY WAS PREPARATION day and, after a fairly relaxed morning of the usual routine checking my ponies, in the afternoon I rode the ones I would be playing in the semi-final. We went out at about 4pm, as that was the time our match was scheduled for and I wanted them to get used to action at that time of day 82 July 2009 www.polotimes.co.uk

Juan Gris Zavaletta Apes Hill’s 22-year-old six-goaler tells James Mullan about his nerves, team preparation and meeting the Queen before I gave them a full 24 hours off. Then we had a team meeting at the Tomlinsons’ house with our coach, Will Lucas, at 6pm.

We watched tapes from some of our previous games and looked at clips from the quarter-final between Lechuza Caracas and Les Lions I. It helps to know what to expect from your opposition and, while we always can’t help but play our natural game in open play, it’s useful to have an idea what they will be doing on set-plays like penalties and throw-ins. Will’s outside perspective was incredibly useful.

WE BEAT LECHUZA in Wednesday’s semifinal, 9-6. It was a great achievement to make the final but, aside from one beer with the grooms to thank them for their hard work, I

I MET WITH MY GROOM Pablo Mansilla at 8am on Thursday morning and we checked the horses. Despite being just 23, Pablo has been my groom for the last four years and it is thanks to his hard work that my horses are so well. I was also very lucky all tournament – none of them were injured at any stage. It meant I was able to play all my own horses throughout, except one that I rented from Benjamin Araya Jr. FRIDAY FOLLOWED a similar pattern to Monday, as the final was on Sunday and I wanted to give my horses as much time to recover as possible. But on Saturday morning we played them in a practice with Tomas Lalor, Lucas di Paola, Andrea Vianini and Jacinto Crotto. We mixed up the teams, as it was mainly a chance to feel how the horses were more than anything, and to see what they needed ahead of the final.

After lunch we sat down with Will Lucas and Sir Charles Williams for a three-hour meeting to prepare ourselves. We were always sure to get all the talking done the day before our matches, so we could sleep well that night and relax on the morning of each game. It was a long meeting, for sure, but a good one. We also have a lot of fun together and the team has a good vibe. This ensured a real team ethic, which meant we never dwelt on individual mistakes, but always rectified things as a group.

I WOKE UP NERVOUS early on Sunday, which is unusual for me. But seeing the horses helped me relax and I lost my nerves and felt focused. I reached the quarter-final of the Gold Cup with Zacara last season, but this was my first UK high-goal final.

The horses left for Guards at 11am, and we set off at 12.30 – arriving at 2pm, an hour after the horses. We had a small pasta lunch as the crowds arrived, but I paid them little attention and turned my thoughts to the game. Sumaya are an excellent side, but I didn’t feel as though the pressure was on us.

We were confident and I actually like not being the favourite in these kinds of games.

WHEN CHARLIE SCORED scored the final goal, I couldn’t believe it. It was a fantastic feeling. Meeting the Queen was also very special, especially as all my team-mates are English. We had a few beers at the club, then motored back to the Beaufort with 60 or 70 others for a party with our grooms.

That was the best part of the week. They do all the hard work and it was great to celebrate with them – they were really happy.

However, since they are up every morning at 5am and it had been a long, tense day, most of us didn’t last long past 1.30am! F

Per Bound Cover Issue 6

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Per Bound Cover Issue 6

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Polo Times July 2009