Sport
1 May, 2025
Eagers Shield delivers polo action
Polo returned to the Clifton Showgrounds over the weekend as teams battled it out for the prestigious Eagers Shield.
The Eagers Shield has been contested on the Darling Downs for almost 70 years, being first commissioned in 1958 by Eagers Retail Pty Ltd Toowoomba & Country and named the Associate Dealers Trophy before becoming more commonly known as the Eagers Shield over the years.
The trophy itself is quite the masterpiece, centred around a hand carved sketch of polo players on the field, the shield bares eight horse heads over two mallets and a ball.
This year local and visiting players gathered at the Clifton grounds for a great weekend of polo, with the weather holding, conditions proved perfect for the game.
The finals of the B grade competition on Sunday saw local side Downs Hooper Accountants, made up of players Mark Adamson, Emilio Novillio and father and son duo Jack and Jim Rawlings, take on visiting side Brinks (Erin O’Rourke, Bianca Coventry, Steve van den Brink and Nick Keyte).
It would be local side, Downs Hooper Accountants that would take the win upon the final whistle.
Next up was the Colliers A Grade final and the battle for the Eagers Shield which saw local side Downs Pursehouse Rural, made up of players Dan O’Leary, Jack Mantova, Gary Hoey and Katie Porteous, go head-to-head with visiting side AEC (Curtis Winwood, Steve Urquhart, James Reid and Nick Keyte).
A thrilling final ensued with AEC taking an early lead before the Downs Pursehouse Rural side looked to make a late comeback in the second half. But it would be AEC that would take the win on the final whistle, putting in a strong performance to lift the Eagers Shield.
Polo will return to the Clifton Showgrounds on Saturday 7th and Sunday 8th June for the Cooke O’Leary Cup.
In the meantime, keep up to date with the Clifton-based club via its social media @downspoloclub.
- Jessica Rea
