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@tomasito
What an incredible weekend! The organisation and location were both faultless. 3 perfect courts + free food + free bed + the lake = polo paradise. And having the group stages organised so that we played all our games within a short space of time led to exciting mini-leagues which were relaxed and yet still fiercly contested. Geneva set the bar high for next year's hosts.
There are so many memories popping in and out of my head from on and off the court. Bright times spent swimming in the lake, Toddy shampooing his beard, then beer, pizza and throw-ins back up at the courts. Night time at the bunker; morning patisserie en route to Avenue Blanc.
Groups annouced: Cosmic draw Apologie, 24 hr Party People (Barca), Tough Shit (Munich), Wiener Blut (Vienna) and Catania (Sicily). We win four and tie the fifth with Tough Shit in a 1-1 draw - the same result as our Karlsruhe encounter. Jono had a great time playing with Marc and Edouard on Apologie, and they played some very slick polo together, Jono always leaving the court with a big grin on his face. Done by 4pm and late afternoon spent cheering for the Ponies and other London teams, the spectre of Dr V stumbling around all the while. Late night swims in the lake, then back to the bunker.
On Sunday all 3 Cosmics played out of their skins - I think it is the best we have ever played, both as individuals and collectively as a team. We stayed up in the winners bracket for 4 games, which included a bitter-sweet victory over the Rotten Apples, before losing 4-3 to El Club in a frantic, violent game. Cosmic emerged battered from the encounter - Todd sporting cuts all over his arms and legs, Mat's rear brake falling apart and twin gashes opened in my ankle from a big crash.
Regroup and regather, and a tense 4-3 win over Polosynthese meaning a rematch against the Apples. This turned into a somewhat joyless victory. Due to the dimishing light we were moved to a different court, and whereas on Central Court the position of the sun was neutral for both teams, on Paquis Court there was a clear disadvantage to the team playing towards the sun. We tossed for it, and Apples ended up playing into the sun. Cosmic won 4-0 but it didn't feel fair, and it felt like a side-show from the main tourney, with few of the crowd realising such an important game was being played away from Central Court. There were brief rumours of a rematch but with light fading the games pressed onwards.
Rematch against El Club for a place in the final. This time we played at our own speed, breaking down their rapid game and maintaining possession ourselves, playing 3 out in attack and strong defence when we lost possession. Cosmic through to the finals.
The final is a blur. 1-0 Cosmic. 2-0 Cosmic, then a l'Equipe tidal wave to go 2-4 ahead. Another surge from Cosmic to bring it to 4-4. Half an hour gone and it's down to next goal wins, and it's Mario who slots a shot through my BB which I can do nothing about. Losing has never felt better.
Our good friend Alex Schindel of Shark Attack (who put on a really strong performance in the elimination) sent through these pics:
Sorry for the brain dump. Thank you Geneva, and Clement in particular, and special thanks and love go to Bianca and Terese - all weekend long they gave us support and cheers, new mallets and fresh water, high-5s and lots of laughter, and so much more besides. Big Cosmic love to you two lovely ladies x