Marques de Riscal/La Dolfina 14 – 11 Kazak

Aureus 9 -8 Gaston in extra time

Balanz Capital 13 – 8 Ferne Park

Dubai 13 – 6 Akasha

After two days of thrilling quarter-final action in the Cartier Queen’s Cup, 19 teams are now down to just four. This quartet - Marques de Riscal/La Dolfina, Aureus, Balanz Capital and Dubai - continue their Queen’s Cup journey this Wednesday in the semi-finals.

Marques de Riscal/La Dolfina secured the first semi-final ticket but had to contend with a competitive Kazak team to get through. Both squads had to contend with cold, windy and damp weather too. Kazak had a slight advantage in the first half, narrowly leading 6-5 at half-time. Their goals had come off the sticks of Nico Pieres, Leon Donoso and patron Sebastian Aguettant. Meanwhile, Simon Prado and Marques de Riscal/La Dolfina’s captain Poroto Cambiaso kept their team in contention but neither side was really dominant. The second half was all about Marques de Riscal/La Dolfina. Cambiaso and Prado fired through four field goals in the fourth, to only one in reply off the stick of Donoso. Surprisingly, there was only one penalty in this chukka, a spot hit to Kazak. Suddenly Marques de Riscal/La Dolfina were in the lead (9-7). Fran Elizalde fired through two to level the scores in the fifth only for Prado to convert a penalty and find a field goal to regain the advantage. It was a similar story in the sixth and when Alexandre Aznar fired through a 30-yard penalty with little time left on the clock i Marques de Riscal/La Dolfina victory was assured.

Next up was an emotional game on The Duke’s Ground between Aureus and Gaston. Both sides had moments which could have won the game, but it took a seventh chukka and a golden goal to confirm Aureus as victors. This win was particularly pertinent to Aureus as it was on this field almost 12 months earlier that their patron, Sunjay Kapur, had collapsed and died during a Queen’s Cup game. His widow, Priya Sachdev Kapur, was at the club to cheer her team on and it was she who received the Platinum Jubilee Trophy from the Club’s Chairman Lt Col Sean O’Dwyer.  This had been such a close game with the teams only ever being separated by a goal. Some spectacular saves, including an impressive clearance on the line by Beltran Laulhe in the final chukka made it even more memorable. Mark Tomlinson scored the winner but it was his team-mate Jake Coventry that got the ball free and passed it up to his captain. Aureus will now play Marques de Riscal/La Dolfina in the first semi-final on Wednesday – for The Kerry Packer Trophy.

Two more games on Sunday delivered some outstanding 22-goal sport, even though the summer weather seems to have abandoned the UK. First up was Balanz Capital against Ferne Park. The latter was fielding their patron, Jonathan Rothermere, in place of his son Vere Harmsworth who had played all of the team’s league matches.  Ferne Park had a narrow, 2-1 lead after the first chukka but Balanz Capital, who have impressed throughout the tournament, got back level 3-3 in the second. Then it was just a question of how far ahead Balanz Capital would go. The partnership between Jeta Castagnola and Lorenzo Chavanne continued to impress. They seem almost telepathic in their play, correctly second-guessing the other’s moves and putting themselves in the right place to pick up or pass balls. Chavanne is only 18 but plays like someone with years of top-level experience. Ferne Park’s Facundo Pieres does have a huge amount of experience and used every ounce of it in this game to keep Ferne Park in contention. But even he, a four-time winner of the Queen’s Cup, had no answer to the Chavanne/Castagnola double act and Balanz Capital comfortably won this game 13-8.

The last quarter-final was a remarkable game because there were only five fouls in the entire match. The game was fast and flowing and was a pleasure to watch. Dubai, no stranger to Queen’s Cup success having lifted the trophy six times previously, won this game 13-6, enabling their patron, Tariq Albwardy to receive the Gerard Leigh Cup. Dubai’s  Santos Merlos was the first to find the flags in this game and Dubai never looked back from that moment. Akasha, a new team into the mix in 2026, tried to contain Dubai and had moments of success but luck was often against them, with goals going wide by the narrowest of margins. This win will pitch brother against brother in Wednesday’s second semi-final as Dubai will play Balanz Capital for the Hubert Perrodo Trophy. Maybe Barto Castagnola, scorer of eight of Dubai’s 13 goals today, can find the key to unlock the  Chavanne/Jeta Castagnola partnership?

Cartier Queen’s Cup Semi-Finals – Wednesday 10 June

• 12noon: Marques de Riscal/La Dolfina v Aureus for the Kerry Packer Trophy
• 4pm: Balanz Capital v Dubai for the Hubert Perrodo Trophy

Images copyright Art of Polo