Thu 16th Jul 2026To the Final Dubai and Gaston to battle it out for The St. Regis Cowdray Gold Cup title
It was all go and all drama at Cowdray Park Polo Club on Wednesday 16 July as the four remaining teams in The St. Regis British Open Polo Championship for the Cowdray Gold Cup battled it out for that all important spot in Sunday’s Final.
Two blistering matches took place and crowds were treated to a true showcase of high goal talent and excitement as first up Ferne Park took on Dubai Polo team. With four Gold Cup titles under their belts (the last as recently as 2024) Dubai entered the field with all the confidence of a team already prepping their horse lists for Sunday’s match. They took control early and despite some great plays from Facundo Pieres and Joaquin Pittaluga, which showed flashes of how they had reached this far in the tournament, Ferne Park were unable to make great impact on the consistent attacking force of the green machines Barto Castagnola, Santos Merlos, Antonio Heguy and Tariq Albwardy. Six goals apiece to Castagnola and Heguy plus three off the stick of Merlos saw the team steamroll their way to a 15-12 victory and the first spot in the Final.
Next up, team of the season and winners of both The Trippets Challenge and The Cartier Queen’s Cup, La Hechicera (formerly Balanz Capital) took on Gaston Polo Team and many felt they could anticipate the result and were ready to watch a rerun of The Queen’s Cup Semi between Dubai and Balanz. But in the upset of the season, a determined Gaston side came out all guns blazing. While La Hechicera started strong, their customary attacking strategy of moving the ball seamlessly between Jeta Castagnola and Lorenzo Chavanne seeing them take an early lead and move into halftime three goals up, Gaston had other ideas. Never more than a few goals behind, Gaston battled hard throughout, leaving the best until last when they pulled out all the stops in the final chukka. Neutralising any Hechicera attack they switched on their offensive strategy, coming from 11-10 down at the end of the fifth to equalise before Cruz Heguy scored an incredible under the neck off the counter attack in the final 30 seconds of the game to snatch the victory.
In the upset of the season, it will be Gaston that take on Gold Cup giants, Dubai in the long-awaited Final on Sunday 19 July.
The St. Regis British Open Polo Championship for the Cowdray Gold Cup Final teams:
Dubai (22): Tariq Albwardy (0), Bartolomé ‘Barto’ Castagnola (9), Santos Merlos (6) & Antonio Heguy (7)
Gaston (22): Jean Paul Luksic (0), Beltrán Laulhé (7), Gonzalo Ferrari (8) & Cruz Heguy (7)
Photograph: Barto Castagnola plucks the ball out of the air for Dubai. By Mark Beaumont
Mon 13th Jul 2026The Gold Cup Semis Are Set Dubai, Ferne Park, Gaston and La Hechicera to battle for their spot in the Final
Blistering heat, blistering speed. The Quarter Finals of The St. Regis British Open Polo Championship for the Cowdray Gold Cup took place over the weekend and four thrilling matches kept the crowds gathered at Cowdray Park Polo Club on the edge of their car boot seats. With everything at stake for the eight teams that made it through the knockout stages, the play was fast and furious.
First up, La Dolfina Marques de Riscal (who reached the Quarter Finals after defeating UAE and Kazak in a penalty shootout on Thursday 9 July) vs Dubai. After a dominating performance, Dubai won 11-6 to earn the first Semi Final spot. La Dolfina Marques de Riscal struggled to stay in the game with 50 percent of their original line up out with injury and subs in for Alejandro Aznar and Simon Prado. Dubai pressed home their advantage to take a comfortable win.
The second match of Saturday 11 July saw Ferne Park and Sujan Indian Tigers battle it out in a much closer and more evenly contested match. Sujan Indian Tigers took an early lead and were ahead 7-4 after four chukkas, but with a herculean effort, Ferne Park fought back in the closing stages to level the scores 8-8 and force extra time, where Facundo Pieres converted a penalty to seal a dramatic 9-8 victory for Ferne Park and a place in the Semi Finals.
Sunday started with Black Bears vs Gaston. While the game was predicted to be even, Cruz Heguy from Gaston was having none of it, scoring an impressive nine goals to send his team through to the Semi Finals after a commanding performance saw them take a comfortable 12-7 win.
Lastly, it was Queen’s Cup winners La Hechicera up against Queen’s Cup Subsidiary winners, Akasha. Akasha started with a one goal advantage, La Hechicera fielding a 23 goal team due to Lorenzo Chavanne’s mid-season handicap raise, but it wasn’t enough to neutralise the team of the season who blistered through with an emphatic 15-8 victory over Akasha. Eighteen-year-old Lorenzo Chavanne was again outstanding, scoring eight goals as La Hechicera comfortably secured their Semi Final place.
The Semi Finals will take place on Wednesday 15 July with the following programme:
12pm: Dubai vs Ferne Park (Ellerston Cup)
4pm: Gaston vs La Hechicera (Tramontana Cup)
The St. Regis British Open Polo Championship for the Cowdray Gold Cup Semi Final teams:
Dubai (22): Tariq Albwardy (0), Bartolomé ‘Barto’ Castagnola (9), Santos Merlos (6) & Antonio Heguy (7)
Ferne Park (22): Jonathan Rothermere (0), Chris Mackenzie (6), Joaquin Pittaluga (7) & Facundo Pieres (9)
Gaston (22): Jean Paul Luksic (0), Beltrán Laulhé (7), David ‘Pelón’ Stirling (8) & Cruz Heguy (7)
La Hechicera (23): Pablo Galante (0), Camilo ‘Jeta’ Castagnola (10), Ned Hine (5) & Lorenzo Chavanne (8)
Photograph: Gaston through to the Semi Finals after beating Black Bears. By Mark Beaumont
Thu 9th Jul 2026Polo Times July Out Now! It’s a busy time and a busy mag landing on your doorstep
With the UK season at its busiest point we can guarantee your head will be spinning from all the action in the latest edition of Polo Times which has landed with subscribers this week. Action, action, action! Reports from all the high, medium and low goal including the Queen’s Cup, Warwickshire Cup and all the HPA Victor Ludorum and Victrix Ludorum tournaments from across the country at every level.
Feel like you’re out of the loop or just want to keep abreast with all the latest in the high goal? Our Updated High Goal Guide revisits those 19 incredible 22 goal teams, checking in to see how they have got on in the season so far and looking forward to their biggest challenge yet, The St. Regis British Open Polo Championship for the Cowdray Gold Cup.
Need a relax from all the high-octane sporting drama? Kick back and relax with some Sidelines gossip. Check out the who’s who and take a sneak peek at the finest outfits and fashion from Polo in the Park, The Beaufort International and Finals Day at Guards Polo Club.
Feeling the need to nerd? Our Knowledge section is chock-a-block this month with PoloDoc making you strong at the knees; India Parker-Smith talking all things polo nutrition and teaching you how to fuel yourself for polo; Paul Stalker teaching us the importance of valuing and managing your behind-the-scenes team and brand-new contributor Teá Carr-Hartley, talking preventative treatments for muscular imbalances in horses. So much to swat up on.
It’s a big’un and it’s stuffed from cover to cover with all things, polo so don’t miss out. Subscribe here to be in time to receive the next issue.
Photograph: So much high goal action to read up on. Front cover image by The Art of Polo
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