England put on strong show
Following on from their win earlier in the weekend in The Churchill-Roosevelt Cup at New Bridge Polo & Country Club in Aiken, South Carolina, the USA’s dominance over England continued in The Townsend Cup on Sunday 10 October, adding their country’s name to the title for the eighth year. The pressure was on for the home team, as defending champions and with seven wins under their belt to England’s one, there was a lot resting on the outcome of the international match. USA Team Captain Pelon Escapite opened the scoring, with England’s Ormerod brothers swiftly replying with goals of their own, they continued to work in tandem throughout the match, however by half-time USA had gained a two goal advantage, 10-8.
For the second half, USA team coach, Tiger Kneece, implemented a new strategy to alter the pace of play, but England were unwilling to backdown and continued to battle on and by the start of the final chukka, the home team led by just one goal. However, time was not on the visitors’ side and USA ran out the winners, 18-15, to chants of “U-S-A”. Geronimo Obregon commented post-match, “Man, they’re rough! England is always rough. My experience playing against them is always intense. It’s tough to go around them and you’ve got to go through them, it’s hard. They’re competitive.” Pelon Escapite was named Most Valuable Player, scoring a total of eight goals and Best Playing Pony was awarded to Samurai, a 13-year-old Mexican Thoroughbred played by Eden Ormerod and owned by Liv Berube. A full report will follow in the November issue of Polo Times.
The Townsend Cup Teams:
USA (17): Pelon Escapite (8), Geronimo Obregon (7) & Winston Painter (2)
England (17): Julian Daniels (6), Eden Ormond (6) & Robin Ormond (5)
Photograph: The USA defeated England 18-15 to retain the title. By Larry Johnson