Fri 26th Jan 2018Snow Polo World Cup St. Moritz Starts Cartier and Maserati champion first matches
The beautiful St. Moritz lake, in the heart of the Engadin Valley, was frozen to a perfect depth of 54cms allowing excellent and pristine playing condition for the first day of the Snow Polo World Cup St. Moritz 2018 - the oldest, biggest and best snow polo tournament in the world. As guests sipped on perfectly prepared Perrier Jouët and huddled under Cartier blankets ready for the action, 200 of the world's press assembled for the first match to unfold. Bathed in bright sunshine, first up it was Cartier and Badrutt's Palace to take to the arena. Expectations were high for the Badrutt's Palace team, as they were fresh from victory in Kitzbühel earlier this month. However, from the first throw-in, the red shirts of Cartier dominated the play, scoring two goals in as many minutes, as the goal-scoring machine Chris 'The Prof' Hyde well and truly unleashed his might. Snow polo newbie Juan Cruz Greguoli showed a solid performance, marking his man and halting any efforts from Badrutt's Palace. Cartier, skilled in defence, capitalised on any mistakes Melissa Ganzi's side made, converting the messy play into goals. As was evident at last year's tournament, Alejandro Novillo Astrada, seems to take a day to find his snow polo legs. Today was no exception, as he was continuously pushed onto the boards, closing his attempted plays down to a walking pace, ultimately leaving Hyde the chance to run away with a goal-scoring opportunity. Despite valiant efforts from the Badrutt's Palace team, the well-seasoned Cartier used all their might to take home the win 5-2. Guests and players were treated to a delicious lunch with local specialties and delectable delights from further afield in the lavish VIP tent. In the second match of the day, Maserati took to the field against this year's new faces, Azerbaijan Land of Fire for the Carlton Hotel Challenge. After a somewhat patchy start, both teams found their stride, fighting tooth and nail for possession. With Azerbaijani flags waving and the crowd on their feet, the boys in white fought with passion. The expert pairing of Laplacette cousins, Adrian and Andrès 'Lala', ably supported by Captain Elchin Jamalli and Baku regular Rashad Hasanov kept Maserati on their toes. Despite the scoreboard being in Maserati's favour, 2-1 ½, at half-time, it looked as though Azerbaijan were gaining traction and might even have been able to take home the win. However, despite field and penalty chances, it just wasn't to be. As the final bell rang out across the Engadin Valley, Maserati narrowly took home the win, with an unchanged score still resting at 2-1½ to secure them the Carlton Hotel Challenge. Tomorrow sees Maserati come up against the might of 2017 winners Cartier for the Maserati Cup at midday, followed by Badrutt's Palace vs Azerbaijan Land of Fire at 2.15pm for the Deutsche Bank Wealth Management Challenge. The Snow Polo World Cup St. Moritz 2018 teams: Cartier (16): Rommy Gianni (1), Juan Cruz Greguoli (4), Dario Musso (6) & Chris Hyde (5) Maserati (17): Zhanna Bandurko (0)/Raya Sidorenko (0), Gerardo Mazzini (6), Hissam Ali Hyder (6) & Robert Strom (5) Badrutt's Palace (16): Melissa Ganzi (0), Juan Bollini (6), Alejandro Novillo Astrada (8) & Tito Gaudenzi (2) Azerbaijan Land of Fire (16): Rashad Hasanov (2), Elchin Jamalli (3), Adrian Laplacette Jr (6) & Lala Laplacette (5) - Reserves Ali Rzayev (0), Amil Namazov (0) & Tarlan Gurbanaliyev (1)
Photograph: Cartier and Maserati championed the first day of play at the Snow Polo World Cup St. Moritz. By Polo Times
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