Double Eagle easy prey for Parklane by Diane Hensley.
Parklane defeats Double Eagle 6-2 amid sideline chatter of “Go Honey” in the fabled Eldorado Polo Club tournament commemorating the encouragement and support for competitors given by members of polo’s many playing families and couples.
INDIO – Double Eagle slid to a 6-2 loss Sunday in the Go Honey at Eldorado Polo Club on a series of mistakes and missed opportunities Parklane handily turned into advantage.
Parklane’s middle men No. 2 Doug Blumenthal and No. 3 Rolando Obregon held Double Eagle scoreless for three chukkers on a bread-and-butter defense. Double Eagle’s No. 3 Erik Wright pelted in the team’s pair of goals on penalty conversions in the last four minutes. Wright made three shots on goal in the match, and converted two of five penalty shots attempted.
Double Eagle was undefeated heading into the finals of the two-week three-goal event and had easily beaten Parklane 4-2 to win the club’s season opener, The Roadrunner on Nov. 12. Both teams kept the same line-up.
“They were a good team, but didn’t present us with any big challenge,” said Christian Moon, Parklane’s No. 4. “They gave us no reason to step up our play so we didn’t really feel threatened. If Eric would have made those penalty shots we’d have had to step up to keep ahead of the game but they never put any pressure on us.”
Obregon put Parklane on top with two goals in the first chukker. Moon knocked in a long ball to No. 2 Doug Blumenthal. Double Eagle’s Wright rode in and hooked his second shot, but without a Double Eagle following for backup, Obregon rode in for a short tap-in. With 3:40 remaining, Wright’s penalty four conversion went wide of goal, and Moon again knocked in to Blumenthal. Out front, Wright fired a back shot deep into the pack, but Obregon was there again for the retrieval and sent a bullet through the posts for a two-goal lead.
Parklane’s lead doubled to 4-0 at the end of the third.
“They just seemed to get into a pattern of self-destruction,” Moon said.
No. 2 Zhenya Kireushkin said Double Eagle had no expectations to win the Roadrunner. The Go Honey tournament was just the second serious tournament in Indio for Vladimir Rivkin, who played back, and forward Nick Morrison, he said.
“Vlad looked for a team that liked playing together.”
Rivkin, who was born in St. Petersburg, imperial Russia’s traditional capital, named his team for the city’s standard, the double eagle.
PARKLANE 6, DOUBLE EAGLE 2
GOALS SCORED
Parklane: Doug Blumenthal 3, Rolando Obregon 2, Christian Moon 1, Bill Garlock.
Double Eagle: Erik Wright 2, Zhenya Kireushkin, Nick Morrison, Vladimir Rivkin.