Al Naboodah trounced Black Horse 10-3 in a one-sided match to win the First Ghantoot Golden Polo Championship, organised and hosted by Ghantoot Racing and Polo Club.

Early in the six-chukka match, it was evident that it was not Black Horse' day with their players squandering chances after chances that came their way. Although Al Naboodah took an early lead through a goal scored by Miguel Dellia, Black Horse took command of the game in the first chukka with some fast breaks initiated by their professionals Jose Araya and Guillermo Villanueva.

However, Al Naboodah, the least ranked team in the fray with only 10 goals, defended solidly with Rodolfo Ducos, Dellia, Abdulla Al Naboodah and Tariq bin Desmal excelling in defence. While Black Horse were pressing for the equaliser in the second chukka, Ducos scored Al Naboodah's second goal from a penalty to give his team a 2-0 lead.

As Black Horse kept on missing sitters, it had a demoralising effect on the players. And when Ducos of Al Naboodah converted a stroke to give his team a 3-0 lead, the Black Horse players meekly surrendered to their opponents. Dellia consolidated the lead by scoring the fourth goal and within minutes added another one. At the end of the third chukka, Al Naboodah led 5-0.

Black Horse reduced the margin in the fourth chukka when Araya tapped in a ball shot by Villanueva. However, their joy was shortlived as Tarig bin Desmal banged home Al Naboodah sixth goal. Villanueva then pulled one back for Black Horse but bin Desmal once again found the target for Al Naboodah in the dying minutes of the the fourth chukka.

At the start of the fifth chukka, Villanueva twice missed a retaken penalty, only for Dellia to add Al Naboodah's eight goal. He then added the ninth with a beautiful

back hand and sending Abdulla Al Naboodah clear to add the 10th and last goal for his namesake team.

The sixth and final chukka produced a solitary goal, scored by Villanueva to salvage some pride for Black Horse.

"The win came as a surprise to me," Al Naboodah said after the match. "It is a pleasant feeling for us because we won the match which we thought would be very tough. To our amazement, Black Horse made it easier for us," he added.

Araya of Black Horse was full of praise for Tariq "Tariq (bin Desmal) was superb today and played a big role in Al Naboodah's victory." He lamented that it was not their day. "I think we played better as a team than our opponents. It was one of those days when everything goes wrong," he remarked. "That is sports, you win some you lose some. We hope lady luck will smile on us in the IDEX Cup next month."

Saeed bom Hoffan Al Mansouri and Nasir Al Derie, members of the Board of Directors of GRPC, presented the trophies and cups to the winners.