Playnation are the Masters during weekend of arena polo at Hickstead

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Title sponsors Playnation rode out the winners of the second Playnation Arena Polo Masters, which took place last weekend at the All England Polo Club, Hickstead.

Four teams took part in the two-day tournament, with Astra defeating Gamestec 15-8 and Playnation narrowly beating Bell Fruit Games 9-8 on the opening day of competition. Sunday’s play kicked off with the subsidiary final between Gamestec and Bell Fruit, which finished with another close 9-8 finish in favour of Gamestec.

The final saw Playnation take an early lead, and by the end of half time the score read 9-3. In the second half, team Astra scored four quick goals in succession, taking the score 11-8 in favour of Playnation at the end of the third chukka. But Astra ran out of time to close the gap further and the final score 15-12 saw Playnation lift the trophy.

This nine-goal ‘arena polo with a twist’ tournament was played under snow polo rules, with ‘no turning’ – which opened up the run of play and made for some very fast, open arena polo and a lot less whistle.

Playnation invited all teams to stay for the weekend at the nearby Alexander House Hotel, creating a fun two days of competitive polo as well as a hugely sociable weekend.

AEPC Chairman John Bunn said: “The final was hard fought and a great conclusion to the end of a couple of days of exciting polo. This is the second year that Playnation has supported the Arena Polo Masters here at Hickstead, and it’s an event that is going from strength to strength.”