Dubai and Gaston are through the final of the St. Regis Cowdray Gold Cup, the most significant tournament of the season in England, following the semifinals that took place on Wednesday July 15, at Cowdray Park Polo Club, in Midhurst, West Sussex. Dubai and Gaston were victorious over Ferne Park and La Hechicera, respectively.

The first semifinal saw Dubai and Ferne Park, with the latter featuring Vere Harmsworth and Javier Guerrero subbing in for Jonathan Rothermere and Chris Mackenzie. Dubai, a six times winner of the St. Regis Gold Cup – the last was in 2024, when they claimed an impressive 11-3 win over La Dolfina Great Oaks. Dubai dominated throughout the six chukkas of play, earning a quick 4-2 advantage in the first chukka, which extended to 9-5 by half time. The remaining three chukkas were like a walk in the park for Tariq Albwardy’s team; led by a remarkable performance by the three professional players (Santos Merlos, Bartolomé Castagnola Jr. and Antonio Heguy), Dubai seized the reins to secure control of the match, while Ferne Park struggled to stay in the game. Camilo Catagnola and Antonio Heguy were the top scorers, with six goals each, while Santos Merlos adding three more which gave Dubai the 15-12 victory and the first ticket to the final.

Up next, in the afternoon, Gaston met up with La Hechicera, in a match that was a completely different story. La Hechicera had already the 18-goal Trippetts Challenge under the name of Balanz Capital La Hechicera and the Queen’s Cup, with their current name, so their aim was to win the most important one.

Although La Hechicera managed to stay in the lead thoroghout the whole contest, Gaston always remained on their tail. La Hechicera only widened their advantage to three goals by half time (8-5), but Gaston presented a very tough battle; the gap between the two of them was never more than one or two goals, and that’s what happened in the three remaining chukkas. While Lorenzo Chavanne and Camilo Castagnola produced crucial goals for La Hechicera, Gaston relied on those scored by Cruz Heguy and Beltrán Laulhe. By the fifth and penultimate chukka, La Hechicera was 11-10 up, so that meant that a very intense last chukka would follow; it was anyone’s game.

And it was anyone’s game indeed! Because a determined Gaston delivered their best polo in the last chukka to leave La Hechicera scoreless, and produced two goals to claim the 12-11 win, that earned them the second ticket to the final at Cowdray Park Polo Club.

THE ST. REGIS BRITISH OPEN POLO FOR THE COWDRAY GOLD IS STREAMED LIVE ON COWDRAY TV WITH THE PRODUCTION OF POLOLINE TV.

DUBAI AND GASTON WILL PLAY THE CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH OF THE ST. REGIS BRITISH OPEN POLO FOR THE COWDRAY GOLD CUP WILL TAKE PLACE ON SUNDAY JULY 19. 

New rules to qualify to quarter finals, CLICK HERE

70 YEARS OF HISTORY, TRADITION AND LEGACY OF THE ST. REGIS BRITISH OPEN POLO CHAMPIONSHIP FOR THE COWDRAY GOLD CUP, CLICK HERE

ST. REGIS BRITISH OPEN POLO FOR THE COWDRAY GOLD CUP – Teams & Fixture  

Cover photo by Mark Beaumont.