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Palm Beach International Polo Club Joe Barry Memorial Cup - 2005 Finals Lechuza Caracas wins from Millarville 13-10

By Y.A. Tietlebaum
Jan. 23, 2005

WELLINGTON, FL – Six-goaler Ignacio Toccalino continued his outstanding play, scoring five goals, to lead Lechuza Caracas over Millarville 13-10 in the 22-goal Joe Barry Memorial Cup championship game Sunday at International Polo Club Palm Beach.

Toccalino finished with a team-high 28 goals for Lechuza (5-0), which came into the final as the second-highest scoring team in the tournament with 53 goals.

Lechuza took control early, scoring six consecutive goals to take a 7-2 lead at the end of the second chukker. Millarville, on two penalty shots by Fred Mannix Jr., rallied to cut the margin to 7-4, but could not get closer than three goals the rest of the game.

Millarville (3-2), which came into the final as the third-highest scoring team with 47 goals, had at least five scoring opportunities turned away by either Toccalino or 4-goaler Gaston Urturi. Based on his defensive effort and his four goals, Urturi was named the game’s Most Valuable Player.

“We played great defense,” said 10-goaler Pite Merlos, Lechuza’s captain. “This is his (Urturi) fourth year working with me. It was his day of glory.”

Merlos added four goals, three in the first half, and finished with 20 goals. He was much more involved offensively than in past tournament games.

“They (Millarville) surprised me,” said Merlos. “They gave me a little more room in the middle than I expected. By the time they realized it, we were ahead three or four goals.”

Mannix Jr. led Millarville with six goals, finishing with a team-high 30, which was second in the tournament behind Agustin Merlos’ 42 goals. Veteran 7-goaler Luis Escobar added two goals while 19-year-old Nicolas Intriago and Daniel Roenisch scored one goal each for Millarville.

The Joe Barry Memorial Cup is named after American polo legend Joe Barry, who died on May 18, 2002 at the age of 58. Born and raised in Texas, he achieved a 9-goal rating and dominated polo in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s. Barry won six U.S. Open championships, three Gold Cups, three Silver Cups as well as the Coronation and Camacho Cup trophies. One of the greatest No. 4s in polo history, Joe Barry was elected to the Polo Hall of Fame in 1999.

Barry occasionally played for Fish Creek, whose patron is Fred Mannix Sr., and as coach of Isla Carroll, traveled to Calgary, home base for Millarville.

“Joe Barry was a great man and a great polo player,” said Millarville captain Fred Mannix Jr. “It was an honor to play in this tournament.”

The high-goal polo season continues with the 22-goal Ylvisaker Cup as 16 teams, the largest field of the season, have entered. The final is Sunday, February 20 at 3 p.m.

Tickets for the Sunday games at the International Polo Club Palm Beach are available at the gate, beginning at $10 each. For ticket information, call (561) 204-5687 or visit the club website at www.internationalpoloclub.com. For information about the upcoming 2005 high-goal season, including the Stanford Financial Group U.S. Open, call the club at (561) 204-5687. International Polo Club Palm Beach is located at 3667 120th Avenue South, between Pierson Road and Lake Worth Road, in Wellington.
 

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