Three-time winners Ghantoot overcame a two-goal deficit to pip defending champions Adnoc Distribution when James Harper scored the tie-breaking golden goal in the extra chukka for a 7-6 win in the sixth His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Polo championship at the Ghantoot and Racing Polo Club (GRPC) on Saturday.
The teams were level at 6-6 after four chukkas of thrilling polo and then Harper scored from close range after Abdullah Al Mahmoud had done the spadework.
Earlier, Ghantoot had forged ahead to a 3-1 lead but trailed the Adnoc side in the third and fourth chukka by two goals.
However, Harper's pro teammate Carlos Alberto Solari came up with two good goals late in the fourth chukka to take the match to the extra chukka.
For Adnoc, Fernando Bourdieu Quinto, their 6-goal pro from Argentina had spurred their rally when he scored a hat-trick. Along with Gonzalo Azumendi's goal, Quinto helped Adnoc overturn a 1-3 deficit to a 5-3 lead.
Ghantoot's initial goals came from Solari and Harper in the first chukka and later Nasser Al Shamsi made it 3-1.
Nasser scored again in the third chukka to reduce Adnoc's lead from 3-5 to 4-5 before Abdullah Bin Desmal made it 6-4 for Adnoc.
Then came Solari's double strike and Harper's golden goal to give Ghantoot a winning start in the four-team championship.
"It was a good comeback for us," said Harper. "It was anybody's game and it could have gone either way but we did well after being two goals down in the final chukka," he added.
Ghantoot's skipper Nasser Al Shamsi said the weather also had a say in the quality of play as it was quite hot.
Teams
Ghantoot: Nasser Al Shamsi (2), Abdullah Al Mahmoud (0), Carlos Solari (6), James Harper (6)
Adnoc Distribution: Abdullah Bin Desmal (2), Yousef Bin Desmal (1), Gonzalo Azumendi (6), Fernando Quinto (6).
For Adnoc, Fernando Bourdieu Quinto, their six-goal pro from Argentina, spurred their rally when he scored a hat-trick...
