The Annual Jugiong Polocrosse Carnival was held last weekend in glorious weather. After a wet and dismally cold week the clouds opened and allowed the sun to shine brilliantly on the competition.Twenty Three teams from as far away as Albury, Wagga, Lake George, Yass, Tumut, Tumbarumba, Bungendore, Burradore, Young, Harden and of course Jugiong competed.
Charlie Hufton, the president said, “We were down about ten teams on the weekend, possibly because of the previous week’s weather but we had a very successful weekend.” Jugiong again showed that they are a force in polocrosse when they lined up against each other in the Mixed Final. In A grade the Jugiong men lined up against strong outfit from Lake George but it didn’t take long for Jugiong’s class to shine through. Charlie said,” It was great thrill for both Jugiong 2 and 3 to play in the final and to actually win our own carnival. It was fantastic to have Will Weston back from the World Cup, he was on fire.”
Best Male Player was Will Weston and Best Female Player was Sandra Weston with the couple both at the top of their powers in the sport. The William Fitzgerald Memorial Trophy was won by Taylor Horan for the Best Horse and Rider Combination. The Phil Mc Intyre Trophy was won by Best No.2 player John Girdler of the Jugiong Club. Will made it back in time to play for his home club after representing Australia at the World Cup in South Africa. Will has represented Australia over the last 5 years and the 36 year old is at the peak of his talents.
Whilst Australia have come third in the last 2 World Cups Will says there is no reason that he can’t make the next World Cup as long as he is selected to play. “ There are a lot of up and coming players that need to be watched but they have to beat me first,” said Will. The Zone competition will be held in a fortnight near Coolah located close to Wellington in the states north, where they will pick a state side. The Nationals will be in April where selectors will pick another Australian side. Unfortunately, Australia lost their Semi Final to eventual winners Zambia going down 28-24. However, Will was named player of the match when Australia beat the United Kindom in the 3 versus 4 play off.
Will and Sandra Weston will both be competing at the Zone competition at Coolah. Will said “Our whole family enjoys playing Polocrosse. We pack up the truck and head off together.” It’s not your usual truck either, with a 10 horse trailer and prime mover, the Weston family have a lot of equipment and horses to take with them. It is made easier by the fact they camp in the trailer with a kitchen and shower. If you would like to see more of the action from the Jugiong carnival, head to The Twin Town Times Facebook page and scroll down. We have action from the Mixed match and the Men’s Final.
