The first ever Area Cup was hosted on the 19th and 20th of July at Priors Norton in Gloucestershire, in collaboration with Cotswold Polocrosse Club. It saw some amazing action on the pitch as diffeent Area teams from around the UK battled it out to see who wa the best in each age group and also who would take home the overall prize of the Shearing Cup for the best overall Area!
Seven different Pony Club Areas were represented on the pitch, ranging from Area 2 in the north of England to Areas 10 and 18 in South Wales. Areas were invited to send open teams to compete at three different age groups; Minis, Juniors and Seniors, and there were also mixed teams for players who did not have a complete Area sections to compete in. There were some great prizes up for grabs, with the winners of each grade going home with a special edition Bennett Polocrosse Racquet, kindly sponsored by Bennett Polocrosse and Polocrosse Extreme. As well as the individual prizes there were overall Best Player and Best Horse for each grade and in each match there was a “Player of the Match” award, presented immediately after the game took place.
As well as giving players from around the country another chance to compete the competition was designed to try and encourage existing players and parents within each Area to help develop and grow polocrosse in their own Area, so that they will have strong Area teams to compete in. The competition used a slightly different team format, with teams being allowed to chose between having 3 or 4 players. If they chose to have 4 players then they could rotate their players over the weekend, whereas if they choise 3 players they were allowed one spare horse which could be played in rotation as well, to help even the playing field.
In the Minis grade there was a very close final between the Area 8 team, which featured three members of the Walpole and District Branch, and a Mixed team made up of members from Areas 5, 6 and 8. It was the Mixed team who came out on top in the end by one goal after a thrilling final chukka.
In the Juniors it was a win for Area 6, again after a close final against Area 8. The match stayed very level throughout but Area 6 crept away towards the end to emerge victorious.
In the Seniors, which saw six teams competing, it was a win for Area 2. They won their pool on the Saturday and set up a final against a strong Area 10 team, who also won their pool. However, in the final it was Area 2 who got the win. They got ahead early on and though Area 10 threatened a comeback in the middle of the match, Area 2 held on and then extended their lead towards the end.
However, it was Area 7 who won the Shearing Cup for best overall Area. This was awarded based on how Areas placed across the three grades, with additional points for how many members they sent and how many grades they were represented in. The total points were then divided by the number of grades they played in to give a “points per grade” score that could be compared fairly. Area 7 played in all three grades and overall scored the most points per grade meaning they are the first name to go on the trophy!
The trophy was named after Tony Shearing, who was instrumental in setting up polocrosse in the UK and the Pony Club in the late 1980’s. Tony had three children in the Pony Club, initially in the Essex Hunt North Branch and then later in the Ludlow Branch. He established and coached polocrosse in both those branches and also travelled the country helping grow polocrosse in other branches. He helped set up the sport as a official Pony Club sport in the 1990’s, as well as helping create the UKPA and carried out a huge number of different roles over the years to help the sport grow to where it is today. So it seemed very appropriate to name this new trophy in his memory.
The Shearing Cup for best overall Area:
1st) Area 7 – 21 points per grade
2nd) Area 2 – 18 points per grade
3rd) Area 8 – 17.11 points per grade
4th) Area 10 – 16 points per grade
5th) Area 6 – 14.65 points per grade
6th) Area 5 – 11.65 points per grade
7th) Area 18 – 7 points per grade
Minis:
1st) Dragons – Lottie Jones (Tantaside – Area 5), Georgina Cheetham (Grove Hunt – Area 6), Katarina Westerling (Essex and Suffolk – Area 8)
2nd) Area 8 – Mia Freegard, Daisy King, Izzie Hardy (All Walpole and District)
3rd) Area 7 Boys – Jim Leeke, Harry Beadles, Jack Cherriman (All South Shropshire), Freddie Oliver Byrne (North Warwickshire)
4th) Area 7 Girls – Millie Jenkinson (Worcestershire), Matilda Bull (West Warwickshire), Suzie Houston Mulaney (North Warwickshire), Gracie Rawbone (North Warwickshire)
Best Horse: One Cool Benny (Lottie Jones)
Best Player: Lottie Jones
Juniors:
1st) Area 6 – Morvah Luke (Belvoir), Olivia Sharp (Belvoir), Perdy Gale (Burghley), Oliver Winter (Burton
2nd) Area 8 – Sammy Westerling (Essex and Suffolk), Lola Flower (Essex Hunt North), Maggie Flower (Essex Hunt North), Abi Robbins (East Essex)
3rd) Area 7 Tigers – Maggie Clark (South Shropshire), Isla Oliver Byrne (North Warwickshire), Lily Leeke (South Shropshire)
4th) Area 7 Lions – Grace Hockley, Tallulah Buy, Abigail Boswell, (All South Shropshire), Millie Taylor (Warwickshire Hunt)
Best Horse: Rev (Sammy Westerling)
Best Player: Perdy Gale
Seniors:
1st) Area 2 – Millie Da Costa Evans (South Northumberland), ama Mason (North Northumberland). Talula Mason (North Northumberland)
2nd) Area 10 – Keegan Jacobs (Dinas Powys), Malkiia Beadle (Llangeinor), Alfie Vollans (Llangeinor)
3rd) Area 8 – Ollie Rowbotham (Essex and Suffolk), Olivia Kirkham (Essex and Suffolk), Kiki Flower (Essex Hunt North)
4th) Area 5 – Katie Davies, Isabelle Stone, Daisy Stone (All Flint and Denbigh)
5th) Area 7 North – Jess Clark, Alice Leeke, Charlotte Gee (All South Shropshire)
6th) Area 7 South – Masha Humphreys (Amman Valley – Area 18), Katinka Frassoni (North Warwickshire), Sophie Taylor (Warwickshire Hunt)
Best Horse: Batman – Ama Mason
Best Player – Millie Da Costa Evans