Valiente defeats reigning champ in C.V. Whitney Cup
WELLINGTON — Va l i e n t e began its quest for polo’s Triple Crown at Engel & Volkers Field Sunday at windswept International Polo Club Palm Beach.
Led by 10-goaler Adolfo C a m b i a s o , t h e w o r l d ’ s top polo player, Valiente defeated defending champion Orchard Hill 14-11 in the final of the C.V. Whitney Cup, the first jewel of America’s Triple Crown.
Valiente took a 6-5 halftime lead and never let Orchard Hill, led by 10-goalers Facundo and Polito Pieres, back in the game.
Valiente’s new additions of Diego Cavanagh and Matias Torres Zavaleta combined with patron Robert Jornayvaz and Cambiaso, and their large string of lightning-fast polo ponies, to overpower Orchard Hill.
Zavaleta, outstanding on both sides of the field, was named Most Valuable Player. Sugar, played by Cambiaso and owned by Valiente, was named Best Playing Pony.
The much- a nt i c i pa t e d matchup between Cambiaso and Facundo Pieres never really materialized. The focus was more on Valiente’s total team effort and Zavaleta playing heads-above his 6-goal rating.
Valiente turned it on in the fifth chukker scoring five goals, including three from Zavaleta, to take a 12-8 lead. Orchard Hill could never find its offensive firepower.
Valiente converted 12 of 15 shots from the field while Orchard Hill was 5 of 7. Valiente converted 2 of 3 penalties and Orchard Hill 6 of 9. Orc ha rd Hi l l neve r t o o k advantage of its 18-13 dominance in throw-ins or capitalized on Valiente’s 11 fouls.
Cambiaso scored a gamehigh seven goals. Zavaleta h a d f o u r a n d C av a n a g h added three. Facundo Pieres led Orchard Hill with six goals and cousin Polito Pieres had four.
Jornayvaz was playing with the lingering effects of a broken leg suffered while playing in England. It is nearly healed but still causes some discomfort on impact.
“We are a very disciplined t e a m wit h s t ro ng hors e - power,” Jornayvaz said. “We have a very basic system with a few variations. We don’t try to make it really complicated. Throughout the game we decide what we need to adapt to.”
Valiente was just as relentless in its C.V. Whitney Cup opener, defeating Coca-Cola, 12-3. With only three teams in the field, the tournament was held in round-robin format. It is the fewest teams in the prestigious tournament since 1997 when four teams entered the Gold Cup at the now-defunct Royal Palm Polo Sports Club in Boca Raton.
Orchard Hi l l wore re d game jerseys after retiring its black jerseys in honor of Donovan Strateman, 17, the son of Orchard Hill manager Chris Strateman. The teenager always wore the Orchard Hill black jersey. He died Feb. 16 after a polo accident at Santa Clara Polo Club.
The second 26-goal tournament of the season begins Friday with four teams competing in the USPA Gold Cup. Audi joins the C.V. Whitney three-team field of Valiente, Orchard Hill and Coca-Cola.