This month in Polo Players' Edition

DOUBLE TAKE
Zacara repels Valiente to win second consecutive Open.

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When Adolfo Cambiaso broke his hand in the 2012 Gold Cup and was unable to play in the U.S. Open, it was inevitable that whoever won the Open would be measured against the question of whether the outcome would be different had Cambiaso played. So when Zacara beat a highly competitive Lechuza Caracas in 2012, many still had their doubts how the team would fare against the seemingly flawless 10-goaler. But when Zacara came out victorious in a pitched battle against Cambiaso and Bob Jornayvaz's Valiente team in the 2013 USPA Maserati U.S. Open Polo Championship final at International Polo Club, there was no longer any room for doubt.

Not long after the USPA 109th Maserati U.S. Open Polo Championship began on Thursday, March 28, it became apparent Zacara and Valiente were bound for the top.

Last year, patrón Bob Jornayvaz formed Valiente I while his son Robert led Valiente II, which featured 10-goalers Cambiaso and Pelon Stirling. After Cambiaso's injury, Valiente I had beaten Valiente II in the quarterfinal. But this year, the senior Jornayvaz took Cambiaso and Stirling for his own team, adding 6-goal hotshot Santi Torres to complete the lineup.

Meanwhile, Zacara's patrón Lyndon Lea was hesitant to ruin a winning formula, keeping his 2012 lineup of current 10-goaler Facundo Pieres, 8-goaler Christian "Magoo" Laprida and former 10-goaler (now 7) Mike Azzaro. "We knew the team chemistry worked, so that is an advantage," Lea said. "The biggest differences were that in the final, we were the clear underdogs as Adolfo was at full strength this year, whereas he had been injured last year."

Neither team had its 2013 Open debut until March 31, when Valiente took on Coca-Cola. Although Coca-Cola was looking strong coming off its win against Audi on the opening day, Valiente controlled the game from back to front, taking the game 15-7. Zacara's debut against Orchard Hill later that day was by a closer margin, 12-10, but saw some amazing play as Laprida and Pieres took back the game after a three-goal deficit in the first half.

Later that week, Cambiaso and Stirling found themselves opposite Argentine Open rivals Gonzalito Pieres and his brother Nico as Valiente defeated Marc Ganzi's Audi team 12-9.

Zacara played Faraway two days later on Saturday, April 6, but the game was more like target practice for Zacara, the final score 15-7 in favor of Lea's quartet.

Valiente encountered its first roadbump in Zorzal, the tournament's only all-pro team. Despite an early lead for Valiente, Zorzal's tight-knit defense kept the 10 goalers busy as Mannix and Mariano Gonzalez kept the point gap close. Valiente finally squeaked by 13-12 in overtime on a golden goal by Cambiaso.

After Valiente defeated ERG 10-8 and Zacara defeated Piaget 9-7, the teams would each move on to the quarterfinal on Sunday, April 14. Zacara was first up against Audi, whose Piereses seemed to know exactly where their brother Facundo would be. Audi came away with a 5-3 lead at the half, but an astonishing second half saw Zacara working together more effectively to bounce back, eventually winning 12-8.

Valiente's quarterfinal debut was several hours later, this time against Orchard Hill. Although Matias MacDonough and Rodrigo Andrade galloped to an early 4-2 lead in the second chukker, it took just 15 minutes for Santi Torres to reverse the tide, leading to Valiente's impressive 15-12 victory by the final horn.

In the semifinals, Valiente would take on Coca-Cola, who nosed by the 2012 runner-up Lechuza Caracas 11- 10 in the quarterfinal, while Zacara would face Scott Wood's ERG team, coming off its tight 10-9 quarterfinal win over Alegria.

In the first of the semifinal games, Valiente broke the game wide open in the first chukker as Cambiaso and Stirling racked up three goals while Julio Arellano scored Coca-Cola's only goal that chukker. Coca-Cola would not score a goal from the field again until the final chukker, with a majority of its goals by Arellano from the penalty line.

Meanwhile, Cambiaso and Stirling tore up and down the field, scoring again and again to gain a total of 12 goals by the final chukker. A valiant last-minute push by Sebastian Merlos and Julio Arellano secured three goals, but the effort fell short as Torres and Cambiaso negated two of those. The game ended a blowout, with Valiente beating Coca-Cola 14-8.

In contrast with the lopsided competition between Valiente and Coca-Cola, Zacara's match was much closer. The team began the day on a high note as Pieres scored the first goal of the game from nearly 60 yards out. Eduardo Novillo Astrada was not far behind with a goal to tie it up for ERG, but Pieres and Laprida quickly put away three goals to extend the lead for Zacara to 4-1. After a scoreless second chukker, Zacara still lead 5-2 by the half after Pieres and Tincho Merlos traded penalty shots in the third.

After the break, ERG came remarkably close to resuscitating the game, beginning in the fourth chukker with precision playmaking by Merlos and Novillo Astrada. By the sixth chukker, the team had cut Zacara's lead to two goals, and Novillo Astrada quickly made that one. A one-two punch of goals by Merlos and Paco de Narvaez finally put ERG in the lead for the first time in the game. Pieres scored on a Penalty 6, pulling Zacara from the fire. But the game ended in anticlimax, with the golden goal in overtime going to Pieres not from the field but the penalty line. Ahead 11-10 after the final goal, there was no longer any doubt the final would see Valiente against Zacara, in a rematch of the Gold Cup final played the previous month and won by Valiente 13-9. In the interim between the semifinal games and the final, Faraway played Piaget to win 11-10 in overtime of the Hall of Fame Cup subsidiary.

Although forecasters had predicted heavy rains for Sunday, April 21, on the afternoon of the U.S. Open final, the rolling like target practice for Zacara, the final score 15-7 in favor of Lea's quartet.

Although forecasters had predicted heavy rains for Sunday, April 21, on the afternoon of the U.S. Open final, the rolling gray clouds had passed the field by without so much as a drop. "We studied a lot of video for the final," Zacara's Lyndon Lea told Polo Players' Edition, "Facundo and I spent two days just watching tapes."

The plan was all about what was happening off the ball: to take away the options of the player with the ball, to make them run with it or shoot," Lea continued. "Polo is all about having space and time. Take away those and it becomes much more difficult."

As the game began, the fruits of Lea's strategy were quickly evident. Shortly after the knock-in, Pieres sent a long ball downfield, landing about 20 yards short of the goalmouth. Pelon Stirling was there to turn the play around, but as he backed the ball to clear it Magoo Laprida was there to intercept the shot. Laprida backed the ball through a tight grouping of horses, completing a pass to Pieres, who hit a high, sailing neckshot from 30 yards out to score the first goal of the game.

Seconds out of the subsequent throw-in, Laprida batted the ball downfield. Hustled all the way by Stirling, Laprida took a hard bump, fumbling the ball and allowing Santi Torres an opportunity to reverse the direction of play. Picking up Torres' pass, Stirling took a mad dash downfield. As Lea and Laprida began racing in to close the distance, Stirling smashed the ball up to a waiting Jornayvaz, who ran the ball full throttle through the left edge of the goal.

Zacara took the lead again after Torres fouled Pieres at the sideboards, allowing Pieres a goal on a Penalty 4. But the team held the lead for under a minute as Stirling took the ball from the following knock in, swiping it through the legs of ponies as Cambiaso raced around the outside to complete the pass. Pieres attempted a pursuit but could not close the distance before Cambiaso split the uprights.

A series of whistles cut into the game's intensity, leaving the ball near Zacara's goal as Torres drew the whistle on a crossing foul. Azzaro hit from the point of foul to Pieres, waiting near the right sideline; as Torres and Stirling rushed to Pieres, he hit the ball across Torres' front, taking him by surprise as Azzaro rushed around the outside to complete the pass, hitting a high ball through the posts from 40 yards out to regain the lead 3-2. But fouls on Zacara's own part cost it several goals. A high-speed crossing the knock-in, Pieres sent a long ball downfield, landing about 20 yards short of the goalmouth.

Pelon Stirling was there to turn the play around, but as he backed the ball to clear it Magoo Laprida was there to intercept the shot. Laprida backed the ball through a tight grouping of horses, completing a pass to Pieres, who hit a high, sailing neckshot from 30 yards out to score the first goal of the game.

But fouls on Zacara's own part cost it several goals. A high-speed crossingviolation on the part of Azzaro gave Torres an easy shot on an open goal. About a minute later, an overeager bump put Pieres in Cambiaso's right of way, giving Torres another easy goal from the penalty line.

With Valiente leading 4-3, both teams significantly improved their defensive play as the second chukker began. Zacara had its first shot on goal in the first 20 seconds of play, but Cambiaso was there first to turn the ball around. Azzaro intercepted it but Torres stole the ball out from under him and galloped nearly 200 yards to score.

With Valiente ahead 5-3, Zacara finally began to bounce back after Jornayvaz crossed the line amid a dense, confusing scrimmage, giving Pieres an undefended goal from the 30-yard line. Excellent defense on the part of Pieres and Laprida shut down several close calls, with at least one instance where Laprida deflected a sure shot by Stirling within inches of the goal mouth.

Laprida and Pieres shut down another run later in the chukker when Stirling fumbled a ball, which Pieres grabbed and ushered up the right-hand side. As Cambiaso closed in, Pieres fired the ball across his nose to an undefended Laprida, who tapped the ball in to tie the game at 5.

The third chukker started with an unsuccessful penalty shot for Zacara on an appealed foul, after which Valiente quickly took possession. As Stirling neared the Zacara goal, he took a hard hook from Pieres, who turned the ball, booted his horse and did not stop until he put the ball through the posts, covering nearly three quarters of the field length.

Zacara ahead 6-5, Cambiaso took control of the ball seconds out of the next lineup, beating Azzaro to an incomplete pass from Pieres. Cambiaso turned the ball, raced downfield and shook off Azzaro and Laprida in turn. His maneuvering past the defenders cost him ideal positioning, however, putting him at the end of the field but dozens of yards perpendicular to goal. Perhaps impossible for anybody but Cambiaso, his spectacular shot split the posts in spite of the extreme angle. Stirling and Torres each followed suit with goals, bringing the score to 8-6 by the end of the chukker and making Zacara look very uneasy. But Laprida kept Zacara in the game, taking a pass from Pieres to score in the dying seconds of the half.

It was less than a minute before the first goal of the fourth was scored. After a foul left the ball on the midfield line Cambiaso sent the ball up to Torres. Torres lost the ball as Azzaro bumped him hard just yards from the goal line, but Stirling was there to make the save and put Valiente ahead 9-7.

Zacara was back in position to score after a crossing violation by Stirling drew the umpire's whistle. Pieres took the Penalty 4 from the 60, hitting a high sailing ball through the posts. Stirling again got the umpire's attention minutes later, crossing Azzaro and once again allowing Pieres a goal from the penalty line. Zacara recaptured the lead with Pieres' seventh goal of the game, the last of the chukker: swatting a pass by Cambiaso right out of the air, Pieres turned on the ball and swung from a standstill. From nearly midfield, the ball roared over Valiente and fell squarely between the posts.

As the game neared its end, passions flared, with the result that every goal in the fifth chukker was made from the penalty line. First, Stirling was whistled as he tboned his horse into Laprida near the sideboards, giving Pieres his fifth goal from the penalty line. Zacara led 11-9 until another whistle blew, this time on Azzaro. Torres took the shot, earning his fifth goal of the game, but a foul by Cambiaso seconds later let Pieres neutralize the goal from the 60-yard line.

Erupting from the next knock-in, Cambiaso hit a long drive up to Stirling, alone in front and waiting for the pass. Stirling ran through the posts, carrying the ball for what should have been an easy goal. But Pieres ripped the ball away an inch from the goal mouth, backing it straight into the air and over his own line. Cambiaso took the subsequent penalty hit, arcing a forceful shot over the goal's edge.

Pieres showed his amazing defensive skills once again near the 3:00 minute mark, when Cambiaso hit a mean shot, perfectly aligned to score. But Pieres helicoptered his mallet, striking Cambiaso's ball midair and knocking it over the backline. Cambiaso took the free hit awarded on the safety, hitting a tall, powerful shot that arced a foot wide of the goal and lost an easy chance for a comeback. Cambiaso redeemed himself a few minutes later after another safety, and Torres captured the lead for Valiente once again after Pieres fouled defending against Cambiaso, the chukker ending 13-12 for Jornayvaz's squad.

Despite Valiente's substantial gains in the fifth chukker, the sixth chukker wholly belonged to Zacara. Within the first three minutes of play, Pieres converted a pair of penalties. Up 14-13 with just over three minutes remaining, a foul on the part of Laprida gave Valiente a chance to tie it up from the 40-yard line. With Cambiaso taking it, everyone assumed it would be a free goal. But the 10-goaler stopped the play with a timeout, his face contorted after a bad bounce on the pommel of his saddle. After a short break, Cambiaso fired a shot high into the air, as onlookers—as well as the 10-goaler himself, no doubt—were shocked as the ball soared several feet wide of the goal.

Cambiaso got another chance at goal, taking a deep neckshot that gained nothing. From the knock-in, Facundo fired a shot out to Laprida who completed the pass near the midfield mark. With Stirling in hot pursuit and Torres closing in from the side, Laprida tapped towards goal but the ball stopped just short; neither Stirling nor Torres could slow in time to stop on the ball, and Torres' pony kicked the ball through. With a minute left and ahead 15- 13, play halted seconds out of the throw-in as Laprida crossed Torres.

As the umpires rode back to the center line to place the ball for a Valiente free hit, Cambiaso was visibly displeased, disputing positioning of the ball with professional umpire Dale Schwetz. But before the umpires called play, a frustrated Cambiaso took his feelings out on the ball, hitting it from the center line and drawing a red flag from the umpires. Apparently feeling that the game was over—at least for him—despite the 59 seconds on the clock, Cambiaso began shaking hands as he departed the field.

"He was frustrated," said Lea after the game, "I am sorry to see it happen, but it does underscore the desire he had to win. He wanted to win that game with every part of his being and he felt it slip away. It must have been incredibly frustrating."

Pieres took the final goal of the game, an open goal awarded on the technical. After the last seconds wore down, Zacara had won the U.S Open 16-13. MVP was awarded to Facundo Pieres, who scored 12 of his team's 16 goals and made several incredible saves near the goalmouth. Bob Jornayvaz's Medallion, played by Stirling, was named Best Playing Pony.

Lea attributed his success to his team's intense preparation, his cohesive team and, of course, his horses. "We have invested in horses over a decade. The depth of our horses is very strong. Mexicana [Lea's second chukker bay mare] stands out. However, my entire string this year was incredible," Lea remarked. "We played as a team and had a tremendous will to win. I am very happy with what we've accomplished.

–– By Steven Rizzo / Photos by Alex Pacheco

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