ISLAMABAD: Islamabad Club Polo Juniors (ICPJ) staved off a late comeback challenge from Dubai Polo and Equestrian Club to get a 6-5 victory in the second exhibition fixture of the 2-match series at Polo Ground of Islamabad Club on Sunday.
Islamabad Club Juniors took a flying start as Abdullah scored their first goal at the commencement of the opening chukker. But moments later, Charlie Matthews of Dubai hit a fantastic goal to equalize the contest.
The match was tied at 1-1 at the end of the first chukker.
Islamabad Club’s promising young players displayed incredible horsemanship and aggression in the 2nd chukker.
It was Saad Mirza who first chipped in with a superb goal to make it 2-1 and then Saim Abbas hammered a 3rd goal for them to make it 3-1.
Islamabad continued their thrilling game as Saad Mirza and Saim Abbas scored one goal apiece in the 3rd chukker to take the lead to 5-1.
Dubai Club’s comeback
Dubai Club made a sensational comeback in the 4th chukker when Ayden Al Ahmed Aiden converted 2 back-to-back undefended thirty-yard penalties into goals to reduce the lead to 5-3. But Hashim Waheed hammered another goal for Islamabad, taking it to 6-3.
In the last moments of the match, Dubai scored 2 more goals to end the thriller 6-5.
United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ambassador to Pakistan Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salim Al-Zaabi, who participated as the chief guest at the prize distribution ceremony, awarded trophies and awards to the players of both teams.
The visiting team players included Ayden Al Ahmed, Charlie Matthews, Hassan Al Abbar, and Harmes Werle. They were accompanied by Jan Azam (Team Coach) and Lisa Mathews (Team Manager).
The Islamabad Club Polo team players comprised Chengiz Khan Leghari, Abdullah, Saad Mirza, Akbar Aurangzeb, Hashim Waheed, and Muhammad Ali Malik.
The Islamabad Club, for the first time, hosted a series of exhibition contests between the junior teams of the Dubai Polo & Equestrian Club and Islamabad Club.
