ONE of the last tournaments of the summer season was played out at Curraghmore Polo Club in Waterford, the zero to two goal higher league aiming for the Eduardo Albaraccin Cup and the lower at -6 to -2 goal for the Dawnay Cup.

The pair of trophies, won in their respective leagues during the last full weekend of August is among the most sought after, the Albaraccin Cup commemorating the deceased professional polo player it is named for while the Dawnay Cup recalls the many contributions by the late Major Hugh Dawnay to Irish polo.

The league standings following earlier qualifiers saw Rits and LHK in the high goal final, relegating Bunclody and Bishopland to the subsidiary.

Meanwhile, the low goal league qualifiers were won by Sixt Rent a Car and Curraghmore, moving Valley Farm and Rocklow down into the Dawnay Cup subsidiary final.

Colm Kelliher, Siobhan Herbst, John Flavin and Brian Thoma entered the high goal final with a half goal advantage against the higher handicapped Rits team of Sean Reynolds, James Connolly, James Kennedy Jnr and Peter Fell.

SUCCESSFUL SEASON

With LHK having a fairly successful season thus far there was little to be surprised about when Colm Kelleher’s team took the early lead to end the first chukka on 1½ goals to one from Rits, but the lethal combination of power-hitting pair James Connolly and James Kennedy Jnr told the tale through the remaining three chukkas.

The pair left plenty of room for team goal-scoring, risking the lead as early as the third chukka opening with four goals to 1½ from LHK but their judgement was correct when Rits won the final on seven goals to just 2½ from LHK.

GOOD PLAY

Speaking to The Irish Field after the final, team captain Sean Reynolds acknowledged the full team effort contributed under the guidance of Kennedy Jnr and Connolly. From there he moved on to the overall success of the lower goal league, particularly commenting on Jennifer Healy’s game with Valley Farm and not forgetting his own teammate Peter Fell, who is probably under-handicapped with a rank of -1 goals as the season wanes.

“Jennifer Healy scored two goals and the two James’s (Connolly and Kennedy Jnr) played really well,” said Sean Reynolds.

“Peter Fell is really good at being stuck on the (opposition’s) man, ‘taking the man’ as they say. They all played really well.”

Sixt Rent a Car has yet to lose a low goal tournament, and the winning formula of the NIPC’s Ian McCulla, John Flavin and brother Paddy along with Keelan McCarthy once again proved successful.

Curraghmore’s Paulo Ronan, Peter Fell, Siobhan Herbst and Ruth Barry earned just three goals to seven from Sixt Rent a Car.

The high goal subsidiary final was won by Bunclody on 4½ goals to two from Bishopland, while Rocklow with eight goals won the low goal subsidiary against nil goals earned by Valley Farm.