Sunday, 14th June marked the third annual Amer Randhawa Cup Final on Ambersham 1, with The Legacy of AKSR/Farrington taking on SafeRock. The Amer Randhawa Cup was founded in memory of Amer Randhawa, the young polo player who tragically passed away alongside his father in 2023.
Representing The Legacy of AKSR/Farrington (Farrington) was Louisa Watt (0) at 1, Evan Power (3) at 2, Ollie Cork (4) at 3, and Ed Hitchman (3) at Back. Lining up for SafeRock in the white and green shirts were Duncan Hotston (1) at 1, Australian Ashley Glennie (1) at 2, Jimbo Fewster (4) at 3, and Matt Evetts (4) at Back.
The opening chukka was evenly contested. Farrington opened the scoring through a well-taken penalty from Hitchman, but Fewster quickly responded, accurately converting a 60-yard penalty to level the scores at 1-1 heading into the second chukka.
The second period saw plenty of action from both sides. Hitchman successfully converted both a 60-yard and a 30-yard penalty for Farrington, but costly fouls allowed SafeRock to capitalise with successful 30-yard and 40-yard penalties of their own. A brilliant team move, finished by Hotston, gave SafeRock a narrow 4-3 advantage at half-time.
Following the break, both teams returned to the field determined to gain the upper hand. The third chukka remained tightly fought, with each side adding a penalty goal to the scoreboard, leaving SafeRock to maintain their slim lead and enter the final chukka ahead 5-4.
Farrington threw everything into the final chukka. Cork produced a breakaway goal in the opening minute to draw the scores level, but another Farrington foul handed Fewster the opportunity to convert a 60-yard penalty and restore SafeRock’s advantage. With time running out, a late foul gave Hitchman a 30-yard penalty, which he confidently converted to make it 6-6 and force an extra chukka.
With spectators on the edge of their seats, the teams lined up for the throw-in to begin overtime. Fewster seized possession from the line-out and ran to goal to shoot the winning shot and secure a dramatic 7-6 victory for SafeRock.
Following the match, Duncan Hotston stepped forward to receive the Amer Randhawa Cup from Shon Randhawa, Amer’s mother. The Most Valuable Player award was presented to Jimbo Fewster for his outstanding goal-scoring efforts, while the Best Playing Pony Rug was awarded to Metric, bred, owned, and played by Ed Hitchman.
