By Alex Webbe

Powered by ten goals from team captain Tommy Biddle, Cornell Weill (Biddle, Rob Yackley and Nick Stieg) scored a comfortable 17-11 win over Nacho Figueras and his Black Watch team (Figueras, Kareem Rosser and Kris Kampsen) Saturday night at the Country Farms Polo Club in Medford, New York.  The 2012 USPA Arena Open Championship marked the first time in 79 years that the tournament took place, and resurrected competition for the highest-rated tournament in the arena game.

“The highest-rated team we had in the Arena Open this was only 16-goals, said Biddle, “but we’re hoping to create future interest and participation that will return the tournament to its earlier glory days.”

The cup was created in 1926 when Charles E. Danforth donated the cup to the Indoor Polo Association of America for Open play.  The Yale team of C. R. Barrett, Winston Guest and W. K. Muir won the first Arena Open.  Guest won the trophy three more times before competition for the cup was suspended after the 1933 season.  Walter Hayden, John Pflug and Robert Eisner revived the Arena Open for the 1940 season before putting the cup in mothballs for over 70 years.

Affirming his dedication to return the arena game to the popularity it once received, Tommy Biddle, only the third 10-goaler in the history of the arena game faced off against a determined Black Watch team in a fast-paced, hard hitting match that had spectators on the edges of their seats.

Biddle opened the scoring with a goal from the field followed by a goal from teammate Rob Yackley for a 2-0 lead.  Figueras scored the first Black Watch of the game, and the team’s second goal came when a well-defended Biddle miscued a clearing shot that went into his own goal to even it up at 2-2.

“I was all over him,” offered Kris Kampsen, who received credit for the goal.  “He was trying to hit the ball down the field when the ball bounced off of his horse.  A goal’s a goal,” smiled Kampsen.

Nick Stieg closed out the first chukker scoring with his first goal of the game for an early 3-2 advantage.

Biddle Cornell Weill got on track in the second chukker as the 10-goaler scored four goals from the field and once on a penalty shot.  Black Watch picked up a goal on a Penalty 1 and on a penalty conversion from Kampsen.  At the end of the first half, Cornell Weill led by four goals, 8-4.

A five goals third period put Cornell Weill team on top of a 13-7 lead, with Biddle and Yackley scoring two goals apiece while Stieg added his second goal of the game.  Kampsen converted another penalty shot for a goal and added a goal from the field.  Figueras scored a single goal, but after three chukkers of play, Cornell Weill had extended its lead to six goals, 13-7.

“I think our teamwork and arena polo experience proved to be the difference,” said Biddle.  “Black Watch didn’t roll over, and continued to press it until the very end,” he added.

Yackley opened the final chukker with a goal to put Cornell Weill on top, 14-7, but Black Watch battled back.  Consecutive goals from Kampsen and Figueras cut the Cornell Weill lead back to five goals, 14-9.  Biddle and Kampsen exchanged single goals as Cornell Weill continued to lead, 15-10.  Biddle’s tenth goal of the game had Black Watch trailing by six goals, 16-10.  Kampsen converted a penalty shot, but Stieg scored the final goal of the game as Cornell Weill rode off with the 17-11 victory.

Biddle led all scoring with ten goals.  Yackley scored four times and Stieg was credited with three goals.

Kampsen set the pace for Black Watch with seven goals.  Figueras scored three times and the team received one goal by penalty.

Stieg was rewarded for his efforts with MVP honors while Biddle’s 23-year-old chestnut gelding, Mufasa, was named Best Playing Pony.

Concurrent scores were being kept for both the Arena Open and the Arena Handicap with Cornell Weill taking both trophies in this historic revival of American arena polo.