The ressumption of the 86th Tortugas Open, saw Hiper and La Irenita victorious

Here we go again! After a delay of more than a week due to rains and unfavourable weather forecasts, the 86th. Tortugas Open resumed on Wednesday October 15, with the second matchdate, and the two league B matches. However, the day showcased a significant change – action was moved from the Tortugas Country Club to the Argentine Association of Polo (AAP) Headquarters, in Pilar. The first leg of the Triple Crown in Argentina sees ten teams up to 40 goals, in participation.

 

Hiper and La Aguada opened fire; La Aguada had a very good start, which saw them improving a great deal after the last time they were able to play (on September 25, the semifinal of the Hurlingham Open Subsidiary Drysdale Cup). They closed the first chukka 2-0 up with goals by Alfredo Bigatti and Bautista Bayugar, and the second, was an extraordinary display of fantastic, fast-paced polo, with several goals from both sides; however, La Aguada remained in the lead, 5-3.

Probably, it was expected to be a balanced contest, but Hiper had another ideas in mind, and things started to change in the two following chukkas, when Hiper made a fantastic comeback – they outscored La Aguada 4-0 in the third and extended their advantage to 10-7 by half time, with goals by Gonzalo Ferrari and Teo Lacau (2). Everything remained the same in the second part – what started so promising for La Aguada, dissappeared in a blink of an eye. A merciless Hiper, Fran Elizalde’s team, led by the lethal Torito Ruiz (the top scorer, 10), Gonzalo Ferrari and, especially, Teo Lacau, who probably played one of his best matches of the season up-to-date, overwhelmed a somewhat lost La Aguada. To give an idea of Hiper’s impressive dominance, at the end of the sixth chukka they had the deal almost said an done, with a heavy ten goal advantage (18-8). And that was it; in the last chukka, Torito Ruiz added three more goals to seal a remarkable 21-10 win, in their debut at the Tortugas Open.

 

The second match was beyond remarkable – La Irenita vs. Las Monjitas, with the former making their debut in the current Triple Crown, after earning their spot in the Qualification Tournbament. The latter, as we all know, is back to high goal in Argentina, after a six years absence.

The contest was a very balanced, tight one, that started tied at 2-all at the end of the first chukka. In the second, all seemed to work in Las Monjitas’s favour when they reached a 5-2 lead, but La Irenita bounced back, and with goals from the mallets of Pablo MacDonough and his nephew, the young Matías MacDonough Jr, “Vizcacha”, they closed the gap to just one goal (4-3). Following a 6-6 tie in the third, the polo field became a battlefield, that saw several ties as well as an constant exchange of the leadership. However, it was La Irenita who had the last laugh, because Vizcacha scored in the last minute of the fourth chukka, to secure them a 9-8 advantage by half time.

Both La Irenita and Las Monjitas were playing a very good match, very tight, neat and tidy; they remained on each other’s tail, with no space to breathe – it was definetly anyone’s game, as expected. It’s worth noting the outstanding performances delivered by the two remarkable backs who also scored several goals, the young Vizcacha MacDonough and the seasoned, Juan Martín Nero.
The second half was as close as the first, with consecutive ties in the fourth and fifth chukka, until Vizcacha broke the equaliser to put La Irenita 11-10 up in the sixth chukka. Still, there wasn’t a dominant force, so it was all about to see who would make it first… or perhaps, and given the circumstances, an extra chukka was not that impossible…
But the momentum for La Irenita came up in the seventh chukka – they managed to escape Las Monjitas’ tedious pressure, and with goals by Vizcacha and Polito Pieres, La Irenita earned the largest gap of the contest – they went from 11-10 to 13-10. Las Monjitas had only one chukka to overcome the result. Impossible? Let’s give a look…
Las Monjitas were not about to give up that easily – with two and a half minutes left in regulation time a field goal by Lukin Monteverde and a penalty conversion by Rufino Bensadon, closed the gap to just one goal (12-13). What seemed impossible, became possible – during the last minute of the game, Las Monjitas maintained the pressure over La Irenita, who struggled to avoid every attempt of attack from their contenders. But the drama came to an end, when La Irenita, who stepped into the Tortugas Open through the Qualification tournament, made a fantastic debut and won 14-12, in a terrific match, and very well played by the two lineups.

THE 86th. TORTUGAS OPEN WILL CONTINUE ON FRIDAY OCTOBER 16, WITH THE FOLLOWING ORDER OF PLAY, AT THE ARGENTINE ASSOCIATION OF POLO HEADQUARTERS, IN PILAR:  

1pm: Ellerstina Indios Chapaleufu vs. La Ensenada

4pm: La Natividad La Dolfina vs. La Zeta Kazak

 

THE FINAL OF THE 86th. TORTUGAS OPEN IS SET TO BE PLAYED ON SATURDAY NOVEMBER 7.

 

86th. TORTUGAS OPEN – Teams & Fixture

 

Cover photo by Prensa AAP.