
The final two teams to play their third-round game in the Cartier Queen’s Cup, Monterosso joined UAE as the only undefeated team after capturing the 12-8 victory over BP Polo on the Queen’s Ground at Guards Polo Club.
Beginning the game on a 6-1 run, Monterosso built a large lead and effectively managed it throughout, in large part due to the penalty shooting of Ignacio Toccalino. Shooting 100% from the penalty line on seven attempts, including a remarkable 5 for 5 from the 60-yard line, Toccalino pushed Monterosso to their third victory of the tournament. Despite Juan Martin Nero converting all five penalties for BP Polo, their struggles from the field early, scoring just one field goal over the first four chukkas, allowed Monterosso to gain an advantage they would never give up in the 12-8 win.
A crucial opening chukka set the tone for the match with Monterosso overwhelming BP Polo to score the first four goals of the match. A balanced attack produced two penalty conversions for Toccalino, along with one field goal each from Alessandro Bazzoni and David Stirling with Mackenzie Weisz contributing with an assist. Continuing their momentum, Monterosso extended the lead further as BP Polo had yet to record a shot attempt through two chukkas. Finally breaking through in the third chukka, BP Polo generated offense on two penalty conversions from Nero and one field goal from James Beh but faced a 7-4 deficit at halftime.
Resetting during the halftime break, Monterosso prevented BP Polo from closing the deficit any further by relying on the penalty accuracy of Toccalino. Accounting for all three goals in the fourth chukka, Toccalino added two penalty conversions to quickly restore Monterosso’s five-goal lead and leaving BP Polo facing a difficult task with two chukkas remaining. One final push from Nero resulted in two goals and an assist as part of a three-goal fifth chukka, however Monterosso withstood the pressure in the final stages of the game, holding BP Polo scoreless in the last chukka to claim the 12-8 victory.