Goldin U18 International Tournament, China
his team were good value for the win and praised their temperament in the second half. He said: “After getting through the semi-finals I knew that we could win. “As a team, I felt we were organised on our set plays. Even though the boys changed it up during the game, we had a game plan. “After the second chukka I reminded them to play for fun, I did not put any undue pressure on them. The desire to win and perform to the best of their abilities was already a given. One main aspect of polo is to be able to get back into the game after a mistake. Although we made some key mistakes we were able to recover quickly.” The US and England booked their place in the final with wins over Argentina and South Africa respectively on the first day of the tournament. In the opening game Argentina looked to have the edge over the Americans in the early exchanges, making the most of their physical power and prowess in the Most valuable player
Max Hutchinson ride-offs. But the Americans grew in strength as the game went on and eventually booked their passage into the final with a 5½-5 win that included three goals by Philadelphiabased 18-year-old Rosser. South Africa were by far the youngest team in the tournament with two 15-year-
olds (the prodigious Dirk van Reenan and Byron Watson) in their squad. They may have finished in last place, but they won many fans with their expansive play and they showed enough talent to suggest that, but for an unfortunate accident in their opening game against England, things could well have been very different.
Youth polo
How the final unfolded...
"Although we made mistakes, we always recovered quickly" – USA coach Harley Stimmel With South Africa leading by 3-0 in the first chukka, Watson fell from his pony and suffered concussion, which ruled him out of the rest of the tournament. Argentina’s Silvestre Hunter sportingly filled in for him as South Africa maintained their three-goal lead until the final chukka when England staged a remarkable comeback. Trailing 5-2, a quick-fire hat-trick by Berner, who finished the tournament with six goals, brought England level, setting the scene for Barney Wilson to score the most dramatic goal of the tournament. The 17-year-old from Beaufort Polo Club sprinted the length of the field, crossing half way with only 23 seconds left on the clock before slotting the ball home as the final bell sounded to seal an unlikely 6-5 win. Despite the disappointing finish, South African coach Greg Caine was full of praise for the u Visiting polo teams are given five-star accommodation in the luxurious Goldin Metropolitan Hotel in Tianjin
First chukka
The Americans started with a half-goal lead on handicap and Matt Coppola almost extended their advantage in the opening minute, but he dragged his shot wide. Will Berner showed tremendous horsemanship and great control as he burst clear to put England in front 1-½. Max Hutchinson went close before a close-range spot-penalty by Charlie Scott gave England a 2-½ lead. USA ½, England 2
Second chukka Having missed several chances in the first chukka, Matt Coppola scored a goal to move the US within half a goal of England early in the second chukka. Will Berner soon restored England's one and a half goal lead with a 30-yard penalty to make the score 3-1½. An explosive goal by Kareem Rosser, with an assist by Tony Uretz, put the US back in touch before half time. USA 2½, England 3
Third chukka The USA started the third chukka with a renewed energy. Coppola had a penalty deflected wide and Rosser went close before two quick goals by Coppola – the second of which was a 30-yard penalty – put the Americans in charge, 4½-3. Russell Stimmel created two chances to extend the lead even further, but both slipped wide. USA 4½, England 3
Fourth chukka England sensed they still had a chance to force the win, but were given a mountain to climb when Coppola galloped clear to collect a great Stimmel pass to score America's fifth goal of the final. An accurate long-range shot by Barney Wilson gave England hope with three minutes to play, but Hutchinson, Berner and Scott all missed chances as the US saw out the win. Final score – USA 5½, England 4
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