Guards Polo Club Official Yearbook 2017 Official Yearbook 2017 | Page 205

tournament report
M AJOR GENER AL’S CUP
i
SU a
LOS ALQUIMISTAS
STORM TO VICTORY
A
nthony Donovan’s Los
Alquimistas team dominated the
final of the Major General’s Cup,
defeating the Mathias family’s Clarita team
(rec ½ goal) 8-2½. Although it must be
said that the final score did not reflect the
pace and competitiveness of this match,
with both sides producing a wonderfully
flowing and fast-paced game of polo, with
some great runs up the Queen’s Ground.
The recently appointed Major General to
the Household Division, Benjamin Bathurst,
watched the final from the Royal Box,
accompanied by many military members
of the Club. He later presented Donovan, a
former Surgeon Lieutenant Commander of
the Royal Navy, with the trophy.
In addition, Donovan’s teammate
Martin Brown was named Most Valuable
Player in recognition of a strong
performance throughout all four chukkas.
Seb Hancock, another Los Alquimistas
player, received the Best Playing Pony
prize for the 16-year-old grey Mr T, whom
he had played in the first chukka.
The Major General’s Cup was first
presented to the Club in 1986 and
continues to celebrate the Club’s military
links. It is open to both Club and military
teams and in 2016 attracted nine entries.
The Hackett Army team reached the sub
final, which was played earlier in the day,
but they went down 5-3 to the more senior
(in age) Dad’s Army team, a squad put
together just for this tournament.
An additional military match is played
on this day, featuring Past Grenadiers
versus Present Grenadier. In recent
years, it has been the senior players
who have won the day, but this year the
trophy was presented to the younger
generation by the Major General. The
Present Grenadiers won the match 7½-5.
This match is organised by Life Playing
Member Colonel Howard Flood and
raises funds for The Colonel’s Fund