Interstate teams face mammoth trek to Polocrosse Nationals

Interstate teams have a mammoth trek ahead of them to attend the 2012 Barastoc Polocrosse Nationals, being held in Warwick in April, and none more so than the teams from Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
The Western Australian contingent, consisting of 100 horses and eight teams, as well as their families, coaches and supporters, will travel to the Rose City to compete against the best polocrosse players in Australia from April 23 to 29.
They will leave home at the end of March and could take up to two weeks to travel to Warwick.
All the horses will be trucked and transported by the players themselves, along with all the supplies needed to ensure the horses arrive safe and sound the week prior to the nationals so they can get as much rest time before play begins.
It is a trip that has to be made by these committed players from Western Australia every two years with the nationals held on a rotational basis between the states so it is only once every 14 years that they only have to ‘drive down the road’.
Western Australian manager Pip Crook said players and horses were in preparation for the nationals, with two state training weekends scheduled before the horses and players left for Queensland.
“After traversing the Nullarbor, the horses will travel through Broken Hill and Cobar, heading up to Narrabri and Goondiwindi before heading into Warwick. Some people will stay for a few days with friends in New South Wales allowing the horses some time in open paddocks to freshen up before heading into Queensland,” she said.
“Horses will be let down before the trip, and lightly worked during the time they are on the road, with feeding regimes altered for this time.
“Once in Warwick, the horses will have their feeding and exercise regimes increased back to full capacity.
“Those in charge of the horses during the trip have to monitor them for signs of soreness or illness and deal with any incidents that may arise on the road.”
Crook said once home again, the horses, and some players, would have completed close to a 9000km round trip, earning them some well-deserved time in the spelling paddock before their own season kicked off in late July.
The Northern Territory teams face a similar journey with 39 players and about 52 horses travelling some 3381kms to Warwick for the nationals.
With the lead up to the event being the wet season in Darwin, and an average of 1700mm of rainfall and 80 per cent humidity, it brings with it many complications for horses with the most prevalent being hoof abscesses and rain scald.
The five Northern Territory teams have drawn upon and utilised the experience and expertise of their coaches Ray Cook, Brenton Ascoli, Brendan Beck and Shane Mayne, and veterinarian Suzanna Smith.
Northern Territory manager Vicki Mayne said players had been advised to flavour their horse’s water at home, with electrolytes or molasses, prior to travelling.
“This will ensure the horses are accustomed to drinking water that is strange or different to what they normally consume when they are on the road to and from the nationals,” she said.
Several of the Territory players have chosen to send their horses to Victoria. For these horses it will mean they have travelled close to 5200km by the time they reach the fields of Warwick.
“For horses travelling from Darwin, they will leave late March. The route taken will be down the Stuart Highway to the Three Ways then they head across the Barkley Tablelands to Cloncurry,” Mayne said.
“From Cloncurry they will travel to Warwick via Longreach, Roma and on to Cunningham, where the teams will play at the Easter Multi Horse Carnival on April 7-8.They will then travel to Guyra in New South Wales to play in their April 14-15 carnival before heading back to Warwick in readiness for the nationals.”
For more details on the 2012 nationals contact Les Fraser on 0419 714 545 or visit www.warwickpolox.com.au