The Qualification For The Hublot Gold Cup Finals

The semifinals started on a high and were full of suspense till the end. The teams had given their everything in the matches. In both games, a minute and a half from the end, it was impossible to know who was going to win. The suspense was perfect for the 2000 spectators who had gathered along the 275 metres of the field under the sun, who was the afternoon’s guest disputing all the weather forecasts. Although the two teams qualified for the finals, but the matches were toe to toe leaving no margin for victory.



The first semi-final was between the tournament favourites, Hublot and the Banque Eric Sturdza. Hublot started the game with a half goal advance because of its weaker handicap. Nico Lopez Fuentes scored the first goal of the match for Banque Eric Sturdza and indeed the team of Cedric Schweri was not too worried during the second and third chukkers. But it was not counting on Hublot's burst and the energy of Julio Novillo Astrada who scored three goals allowing his team to narrow the gap by one and a half goals just minutes from the end, but Marcelo Pascual annihilated the last hopes of Hublot scoring a decisive goal.

“The game was very tight, admits the Argentinean 5-goaler, Marcelo Pascual, even tighter than the score shows. They came back very strong at the end of the game but fortunately we were able to regain control at the right moment. “The advantage of this team was perhaps due to the fact that it counts three professional players in its ranks whereas their opponents only have two: “Of course that makes a difference, but today we could build a strong team game because we know each other better. We really played together”.

Clinique La Praire had even more trouble getting a ticket to the final. The battle fought against Gstaad Palace was even harder, especially in the last two chukkers. Hugo Barabucci, the back of Clinique La Prairie, opened the score in the first period but Gstaad Palace always stayed close. Although Clinique La Prairie took a small lead in the second period, Gstaad Palacenever gave up, even taking the lead in the third chukker. At 90 seconds from the end of the game, everything was still possible for the latter especially as a 30 yards’ penalty hit by Pedro Llorente allowed them to get the advantage at 5 ½ to 5! A minute and a half in which Agustin Canale was also transforming a 30 yards and where captain Faris Al Yabhouni scored his second goal of the game in the ultimate second! For his first participation in the Hublot Gold Cup in Gstaad, the captain from the United Arab Emirates will play his first Swiss final.

Progression Banque Eric Sturdza: 2/2 ½ - 4/2 ½ - 7/3 ½ - 9/6 ½

Progression Clinique La Prairie: 2/2 ½ - 4/2 ½ - 4/4 ½ - 7/5 ½