DESERT HONOURS
FOR HAM Desert Palm UAE Nations Cup in Dubai
Article by Dara Williams
Two well-known figures at Ham Polo Club were in the lime- light during the third edition of the UAE Nations Cup, held in January at Desert Palm Polo Club by Per AQUUM in Dubai, which is owned by former Ham President, Ali Albwardy.
Muhammed Asif Hafiz, patron of the Pakistan team and Ham’s polo ambassador to Pakistan, received the Royal Salute Shield, after his team defeated Great Britain in the subsidiary final; and our very own player Shane Younger, together with Hungary’s Andras Tomboll, was recognized as an official ‘polo ambassador’ for polo in the UAE and the Middle East, by Jaeger-LeCoultre.
It was a 60-yard penalty conversion from young Rashid Albwardy in extra time that enabled the UAE home team to complete a hat-trick and capture the prestigious trophy for the Nations Cup, defeating Hungary 6-5.
The tournament, held from 10 to 15 January, attracted four international teams – UAE, Hungary, Pakistan and Great Britain. Sponsors were Desert Palm Retreat, Royal Salute Whisky, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Land Rover and EFG Group, with Equestrio magazine and Quintessentially as supporting partners. It was organized by Ali Albwardy and Pete McCor- mack of the Equus Club.
Rashid Albwardy captained UAE in the final, and Thomas Ciaesen led Hungary for their inaugural appearance in Dubai. It was a fast game, with teams evenly matched, and Hungary’s Matias Machado scored twice in the first two minutes. Albwardy opened the home side’s account but Hungary were leading by a narrow 3-2 at half-time. During the third chukka, Hungary galloped into an apparently invincible lead, 5-2.
But in the fourth, and what should have been final, chukka, Martin Valent, polo manager for Desert Palm, sent through three goals, supported brilliantly by Najeeb Khoory. The chukka ended in a 5-5 draw, resulting in extra time and Rashid’s golden goal.
Earlier, Pakistan achieved an 8-4 win over Great Britain, four of the winning goals coming from 15-year-old Hamza Muwaz Khan, who is the fourth generation of a leading Pakistan polo family.
The Nations Cup was presented to UAE by the Duke of Argyll, ambassador for Royal Salute, and Ali Albwardy. Lucy Monro, publisher and editor-in-chief of Equestrio, presented the prize for Best Playing Pony to Almera, ridden by Hun- gary’s Matias Machado in the third chukka.
Afterwards, guests enjoyed a party hosted by the Duke of Argyll. This included a charity auction in aid of Riding for the Disabled in Dubai, led by Peter Prentice. There was lively bidding for the helmet worn by Adolfo Cambiaso dur- ing the 2009 Nations Cup, with racehorse trainer Satish See- mar taking telephone bids from polo patron Alan Meeker in Texas. The helmet was knocked down to Shahina Asif Hafiz, wife of Muhammed Asif Hafiz, patron of the Pakistan team, for $35,000.
During the tournament there was also an exhibition of polo art, ‘Into the Gold’, by Eugenia Laprida.
UAE
Rashid Albwardy 2 Martin Valent Najeeb Khoory
HUNGARY
Matias Machado 3 Gabriel Iglesias
2
Andras Tomboll 2 Thomas Ciaesen 0 7
5 0
Mutaf Alwardawi 0 7
PAKISTAN Mohammed Bin Drai 1 Hamza Muwaz Khan 1 Tariq Khan
1 Nico Petracchi
GREAT BRITAIN Rudolfo Ducos Robert Mehm Shane Younger Wilf Laugher
4 7
6 1
0
0 7
The London Polo Club
37
Desert Palm Per Aquum
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