When Clare played Polo
Updated: Aug 27, 2021
Polo was in a flourishing state at Clare between the wars
– Northern Polo Team (1895) – Lord Denman's Team (1912) – History of Polo – Polo at Clare (1920) – Adelaide Vs Clare (1920) – The Melrose Cup (1923) – Clare Polo Week (1923) –Clare Polo Week (1924) – Flourishing at Clare (1925) – Clare Polo Club (1926) – Polo at Clare (1928) – Polo in the West (1929) – Polo Trials at Clare (1930) – Polo in the Vines (2021) –
Left: Edmund Bowman, junior, riding his pony 'Powder' for polo at Strathalbyn, 1905
Above: 'The Northern polo team'. Approximately 1895 - Studio view of the three Bowman brothers and W. Murray dressed for polo. Left-right: C.W. Bowman; H. Bowman; W. Murray; E. Bowman (captain).
Polo in South Australia was first conceived in 1874 when a young graduate from Cambridge University returned home to South Australia carrying with him some polo sticks and balls.
The first polo match was played in South Australia on Montefiore Hill in 1876.
Robert Barr Smith, W. Gilbert, W.H. Horn, Major Godwin and Stirling were listed as the initial participants.
So it was that in 1879 the Adelaide Polo Club was officially formed, seemingly at the instigation of W.H. Horn.
Martindale Hall was built in 1879 – 1880 for Edmund Bowman Jr. who surrounded the home with a polo ground, a racecourse, a boating lake and a cricket pitch where the English 11 played at least once.
Express and Telegraph (Adelaide, SA), Tuesday 10 December 1912, page 2 POLO.
VISIT OF LORD DENMAN'S TEAM.
His Excellency, since his arrival in Australia, has been creating a lot of interest in the polo world.
His side of players showed the Sydney public at Easter time some very dashing polo—his team won the final in brilliant style. As a horseman. Lord Denman excels amongst a team of dashing riders.
Lord Denman's 1912 Team:
G.C.S. Stephen, H.E Gov-Gen Lord Denman, Capt H.S. Nutting, ADC, Capt.G.LeR.Burnham,ADC.
Played for and won THE COUNTESS OF DUDLEY CUP 1912, Presented to the Polo Association of NSW by the Countess of Dudley, 1910 (illustrated at right)
Army Origins
Most of the best English and Indian teams learn the game in the army.
Polo is comparatively a young game, as far as it is connected with the English-speaking race.
Colonel Henry Lloyd Howard, C.B., recently had a word or two to say regarding the starting of polo by his Lancer regiment in India in 1874.
Below: A Polo Match played at Albert Park, Melbourne, 8th Nov. 1875
Colonel Henry Lloyd Howard says of the first polo games in India:
The play was of a primitive character,
Balls were slightly smaller than those now in service were used;
the sticks were shorter, and the heads were made out of old artillery wheel felloes, a dark red wood and very tough.
His Excellency, Lord Denman, generally "follows," that is, plays No. 2, is a fast galloper and a hard hitter, being responsible for most of the goals scored by his side.
The value of hard hitting, combined with a due control of the ball, is exemplified in the American team which in 1909 beat All England at Hurlingham
and last year proved victorious in America against the Britishers.
The game has become, on the whole, much faster. Not, perhaps, that men gallop from one end of the ground to the other in a run more rapidly than before, but the pace is more continuous, more sustained.
Below: Lord and Lady Denman: The Denmans (front row, centre) arrived in Melbourne with their entourage in 1911.
Above: Thomas Denman (1874–1954) was a Boer War veteran and Australia's first non-Tory
Governor-General; his wife Gertrude, or Trudie, (1884–1954) was an outdoor-loving feminist who supported women's suffrage.
On March 12, 1913, the vice-regal couple presided over the laying of the national capital's foundation stones.
Lady Denman revealed Canberra's name at the foundation ceremony, March 12, 1913.
Above right): Lady Denman read out the name of the fledgling city from a bit of paper in a gold cigarette case made especially for her which she kept for the rest of her life.
Mail (Adelaide, SA : 1912 - 1954), Saturday 18 December 1920, page 22 POLO.
Polo at Clare
Polo is beginning to recover from the break caused by the war.
At several country centres in South Australia signs are visible of an increasing interest.
Clare is the latest. Here a body of kindred spirits are getting together what might soon be the strongest club in the State.
This happy state of affairs is largely due to Mr. Neville Colley, assisted by his brother Lister, the genial Mr. 'Billy' Wood, and Mr. Sidney Ayers.
They have already had several practice frames, and have secured a nice ground on the Stanley Flat Racecourse.
Clare will be farther strengthened by the fact that Major Gilbert Lewis— a son of the Hon. John Lewis— will play for them. Major Lewis has done a lot of polo in India, and is well up in the handicap list there.
Blyth Agriculturist (SA : 1908 - 1954), Friday 24 December 1920, page 2 Polo.
ADELAIDE vs. CLARE.
On Saturday last a polo match was played on the Stanley Flat racecourse between a team of visitors from Adelaide and members of the newly formed Clare Club.
This being the first match played at Clare, much interest was taken in it, and a representative gathering assembled to watch the play.
Adelaide was represented by C T Bray (capt). C L Colley, H C Downer, and M J Noonan;
and Clare by Major Lewis, N L Colley, K L Colley, and E Melrose.
Both teams were well mounted, and towards the end the play was of an exciting nature. The visitors had the best of matters up to the end of the third quarter, but in the last quarter the Clare men rallied, and put up three goals to one.
The results were :—
Adelaide—1, 1, 3, 1; total, 6. Clare—0, 0, 0, 3; total 3.
The goals for Adelaide were hit by Noonan 2, H C Downer 2, CL Colley 1, and C T Bray 1; and for Clare by Neville Colley, and Major Lewis, one each.
Register (Adelaide, SA), Friday 30 March 1923, page 5
The Melrose Cup
The semi-final for the Melrose Cup took place at Birkalla on Thursday afternoon.
The second match — for the Consolation Stakes— was between
Clare A— O. V. Roberts, I. B. Roberts, Nev. and Lister Colley,
and
Clare B— C. L. Colley, G. T. Hawker, S. H. Ayers, and F. F. Chomley.
They started off with the scoring board reading thus, taking handicaps in: —
Clare A, 9 goals; Clare B, 14 goals.
In the first chukker neither side scored, but in No. 2 Nev. Colley added one for A's, while Ayers did some rather good defence work for B's.
In the next chukker the A's took another, which made the tally at half-time 11 to 14— B's leading.
The A's managed to get ahead in the fourth chukker, and apparently chukker 5 was not very good polo, if I do not misread the somewhat illegible notes in my friend.
In the final bout, the A captain lifted a ball, and it landed on his No. 2 helmet, who 'took the count,' and fell upon the sword. A jug of ice water righted matters sufficiently for the game to be finished.
Clare A therefore will fight Adelaide B on Saturday for the consolation prize, while Victoria and Adelaide A will struggle for the Melrose Cup.
The Mail (Adelaide, SA) Sat 3 Feb 1923 Page 17
Clare Polo Week, 1923
Clare's Polo Week, lasting from January 22 to 27, had its every minute taken up with festivities of some kind.
As the genial and enthusiastic secretary (Mr. Sidney Ayers) said, 'It was a wonderful week, and everything went off with a bang. The weather was ideal.'
Polo matches, dances, joyous house parties, and the culminating event, the great polo ball on the Thursday evening, were part of the daily and nightly programme.
The stage management, so to speak, was excellent, and everyone did the right thing, even to Miss Gypsy Good, winning a race on Sir, Pat Colley's pony!
All the leading hosts and hostesses filled their homes with cheery parties, the hotels accommodated many more, and still more squeezed in wherever there was a corner big enough to sleep in.
The Polo Club Ball was held on Thursday, January 25, and it was the most
successful and cheery dance ever given in Clare. The hall and marquee were decorated in black-and-white — the Clare Polo Club colours— and polo sticks were arranged round the room. Hundreds of balloons were suspended from the ceiling, and at midnight they were lowered, and caused much fun.
The programmes struck a note of originality— they were circular— representing a polo ball, and the dances were called 'chukkers'.
The names of the various homesteads and places associated with polo were used to describe the chukkers, and guests booked partners for the Bungaree waltz, the Cappeedee flutter, The Shack's dream, Collingrove step, GeeBung's chance, Hurlingham glide, Birkalla step, Warenda waltz, &c.
A legend at the bottom read, 'Dance and be merry, for tomorrow we' — then you looked on the other side, expecting to see the word 'die,' but instead there was a picture of two mounted men and the legend concluded, 'play polo.'
Dancing continued until 5 in the morning, so that it was not surprising that many of the polo players found three chukkers quite enough on Friday!
Everybody wore fantastic paper caps, and streamers were ubiquitous. The supper table looked charming with its bowls of pink carnations and larkspurs, and pink candle-shades lent a soft glow.
Above: Staying with Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Ayers at Warenda were Mr. and Mrs. Fred Porter, Miss Phyllis Bray, Miss Hopewell (England), Miss Toohey (Sydney), and Mr. Andrew Tennant.
Observer (Adelaide, SA : 1905 - 1931), Saturday 2 February 1924, page 34
CLARE HOLDS POLO WEEK IN DELIGHTFUL CONDITIONS.
Above: Winning Team (L-R), Lister Colley, F.F. Chomley, Neville Colley and G.S. Hawker.
Below: Exciting incident during important contest
Register (Adelaide, SA ), Tuesday 8 December 1925, page 3 POLO. By Pavilion.
Polo appears to be in a flourishing state at Clare,
where they were found out for play on Saturday; notwithstanding the adverse weather conditions, which, at times, were most trying.
A new player, Clifford Reid, made his first appearance for the season, and he will be out regularly in future.
W. J. Naish, who has been out of action for some time, had his first game of the year. The following comprised the Red team -
G. S. Hawker, Peter Armstrong, O.V. Roberts, W. J. Naish, and K. L. Colley, and they, with a score, of 4, more than held their own against the Whites.
These latter were: - C. L. Colley, C. A. Reid, F. F. Chomley, S. H. Ayers. and A. J. Melrose, and their score, was 1.
The games, however; were not such walk-overs as the scores might appear to indicate, and in some chukkers the play was most even.
The members are very grateful to the President (Mr. E. W. Hawker) for his kindness in allowing them to play for several weeks on his property;
which they are now leaving for their customary playing field on the racecourse.
The first match on the old ground this season will be played next Saturday, and the occasion will be used to mark the formal opening for this year.
A triangular match will be played on this day, for which the teams are as follow:—
Red— C. L. Colley, O. V. Roberts. R. V. Glover, and A. J. Melrose;
White— G. S. Hawker, C. A. Reid, F. F. Chomley, and W. J. Naish;
Blue— Peter Armstrong; F. C. C. Fetherstonhaugh, S. H. Ayers, and K. L. Colley.
This club is in the fortunate position of being able to play 12 members; that is, three teams, in addition to having reserves.
Scarcity of players is some what of a bugbear to polo clubs, and as Clare is well favoured in this respect it should hare a very successful season.
Blyth Agriculturist (SA) Fri 24 Sep 1926 Page 3
Clare Polo Club.
The thanks and appreciation of the club are due to the president, E. W. Hawker, Esq., and his son G. S. Hawker, Esq., for their kindness in allowing the club to use the ground on East Bungaree that we played on for five Saturdays, and to the work provided for by them in getting the ground in playable order.
The thanks of the club are also extended to our patron, Alex Maitland, Esq., for his kindness in presenting cups for competition on the opening day, when a triangular match amongst members took place.
W. A. Wood, Esq., also kindly presented two cups for competition amongst the junior players of the club for a polo ball race.
It was satisfying to-the club to see the keenness and enthusiasm displayed by the young beginners during their holidays, and it is hoped that the playing members will encourage the boys to still keep that enthusiasm going.
We shall again look forward to seeing them playing this season. - The attendance of playing members was most satisfactory during the past season, very few missing a day's play.
During the past year inter-club matches were played between Mid-North teams and Clare, while two teams took part in the Adelaide tournament.
Clare Polo officials:
Patron, Mr. Alex Maitland; president, Mr. E. W. Hawker (Illustrated right);
captain, Mr. A. J. Melrose; vice-captain, Mr. F. F. Chomley ;
committee, the captain, Messrs. F. F. Chomley, P. ,B. Armstrong, G. S. Hawker, C. L. Colley, W. J. Naish ;
association delegates, Messrs. Melrose and Ayers; auditor, Mr J R McGillivray
treasurer and secretary, Mr. S. H. Ayers.
It was resolved that Mr. K. L. Colley he appointed registrar of the club, and Messrs; A. J. Melrose and O. V. Roberts assistant registrars.
Saturday Journal (Adelaide), Saturday 4 February 1928, page 9 [PHOTOS]
POLO AT CLARE.
Good polo and much social cheer made a particularly hospitable week-end at Clare. In this group at the polo grounds is seen {left to right)—Mrs. S. H. Ayers, Mr. Lister Colley, Master John Ayers, Mr. S. H. Ayers, Miss Phyllis Bray, Mr. Alex. Maitland.
Members of the ladies' Committee and girls assisting them at the afternoon tea-table (left to right)—Miss Audrey Morphett, Mrs. F. F. Chomley, Mrs. Alex. Maitland, Mrs. Harry Prockter, Mrs. P. B. Armstrong, Mrs. S. H. Ayers, and Miss Muriel Moses. Photos, L. G. Sladdin, Clare
Northern Argus (Clare, SA : 1869 - 1954), Friday 3 May 1929, page 7
POLO IN THE WEST.
By S. H. Ayers.
With the return of the South Australian Polo Teams from Perth, one brings with them memories of a most successful trip.
The polo was of a high standard as regards the visiting teams, and the hospitality of the Western Australian hosts was such that will live in the minds of those who were fortunate enough to make the trip.
The third cup won by South Australia was the Gordon Gooch Cup presented for an open handicap match, and was won by the Clare Polo Club, who will hold same for twelve months.
The donor of this beautifully designed trophy is Mr. Gordon Gooch, another wonderful enthusiastic and energetic supporter of polo westwards.
The collection of trophies played for was a revelation to those connected with the various polo associations throughout Australia, and they stood alone as regards anything yet presented in the polo world down south.
The Adelaide and Clare teams hold a creditable record. The former team played in six matches in nine days, and won them all, while the local players were successful in three out of four games.
Chronicle (Adelaide, SA : 1895 - 1954), Thursday 16 January 1930, page 19
Polo Trials at Clare
POLO NOTES By EXTRA CHUKKA.
Seventeen senior and Junior members took part in the Trials at Clare on Saturday, and two teams of ladies also took the field.
The latter match probably accounted for many strangers visiting the district, and the large crowd that watched a very fair exhibition of polo, which reflected the utmost credit on the girls, as well as calling for enthusiastic remarks from the barrackers.
Teams competing in the senior grade were
Reds— Peter :Armstrong, C. L. Colley, A. J. Meadows, and K. L. Colley.
Blue— G. S. Hawker, P. C. C. Fetherstonhaugh, A. C. Wylie, and John Maitland.
Six chukkas were played, and the result was the same as last week, 6 goals each, the teams being very evenly matched.
The idea of splitting the A and B teams has proved sound.
Numbers 1 and 2 of the A team play in those positions In the Blue team, which gives them the opportunity of having their two other team mates as opponents.
The exhibitions at Clare this season have provided very fine polo, the best seen for many years in the game.
A. J. Melrose, captain of the Clare Club, hit some fine shots, coming along on his perfect runs, and Fetherstonhaugh also shone.
Junior players have Improved out of all recognition since a season or two ago, thanks to Lister Colley's patient handling.
John Ayers, the youthful son of the secretary of the club, Sidney Ayers, had a great day on Saturday, displaying fine judgment and confidence at both riding and hitting.
Angas Maitland, who Is a student at St. Mark's College, and does not get much practice, has a pretty seat on a horse, and gave a good exhibition.
The first match of the season will be against Burra on Saturday week. Clare are confident that the team they will field will be one of the strongest the northern town has ever been represented by.
‘Polo in the Vines’
Country Events SA present the inaugural Ray White/Clare Country Club ‘Polo in the Vines’.
This exhilarating event part of the urban polo national series, is the world's largest & most successful polo series & it's coming to Clare
Sat, October 09, 2021 : 11:30 am - 8:30 pm