England’s Tommy Beresford makes winning debut in Argentine Open

England captain Tommy Beresford made a winning debut in the Argentine Open on 31 October, becoming the first British player since 2008 to play in this prestigious tournament. Substituting for injured Pablo ‘Polito’ Pieres, Tommy played for La Hache La Roca in the opening match of the tournament alongside Sapo Caset (9), Hillario Ulloa (9), and Fran Elizade (9), who together were the recent runners-up of both the Hurlingham Open and the Tortugas Open. La Hache La Roca dominated the match from the outset to overwhelm their opponents La Esquina and win the match 18-7.

Tommy, who became England’s first 8-goal player in 22 years at the end of the 2023 season, played off his Argentine handicap of 7 goals whilst substituting for 9-goaler Polito. Tommy told ESPN that he has has played in other big games, but the Argentine Open is something different and has been close as a substitute for other teams without being called up to play. He also thanked Polito and teammate Fran Elizade for the string he played. Battling unseasonal inclement weather during the final chukkas, Tommy credited his British upbringing with acclimating him to playing in difficult conditions. With an early win under their belts, La Hache La Roca will go through to the next round of the tournament and are next due to play on 11 November; it remains to be seen if Polito will be fit for the next fixture