The Countess of Dudley Cup & Hector King Trophy 5-15 October
NSW Polo Association, warmly invites you attend this years Prestigious Countess of Dudley Cup, with teams playing from the 5 October to the 15 October. Finals will be held at Windsor Polo Club on the 15 October, with free entry for spectators.
The NSW Championshpi Trophy, The Countess of Dudley Cup has been played for over 110 years and has become arguably one of the most coveted trophies in Australian Club Polo, with Larapinta taking home the Trophy in 2022.
Teams list can be found HERE
Draw can be found HERE
Tournament Rules:
- 3 pool games across the draw - Pool A will play Pool D. Pool B will play Pool C.
- 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw 0 points for a loss.
- The top 6 teams will advance to The Countess of Dudley Cup. The bottom 6 teams will play for the Hector King Trophy.
- A penalty shootout may occur on Sunday 8 October if teams are tied on points to decide the top 6 and bottom 6.
- The tournament will then change to a knockout format for the quarters, semis and finals.
- A suitable umpire pony must be provided from both teams tacked up and ready 10 minutes before at the centre table. Failure to do so will incur a $200 fine.
The Windsor Polo Clubhouse will be open for food and refreshments on all playing days, with the following social events happening during the tournament.
Thursday 5 October from 6:30pm: Welcome drinks and dinner at The Royal Richmond Hotel. Everyone is warmly invited.
Saturday 7 October from 6:00pm: Cook your own BBQ on the grill and e-wheel competition at Windsor Polo Club. All invited.
Finally a big thank you to our sponsors Ainsley Saddlery, The Royal Richmond Hotel, Hugh Bloore Saddlery, Buttery Horse Co and Bombers Bits.
History of the Countess of Dudley Cup
The trophy was named after the wife of William Ward, second Earl of Dudley who was the Governor General from 1908 to 1911. The catalyst for the Countess of Dudley lending her name to the trophy was probably “Banjo” Patterson. Having a deep personal interest in developing nursing services in the outback, the Countess enlisted Patterson (by then a national figure) in support of her cause. Prominent in Sydney polo, Patterson was ideally placed to ask a favour of her in return.
The Countess of Dudley presented the silver cup at the inaugural tournament in 1910. It was to be a perpetual challenge trophy open to all member clubs of the New South Wales Polo Association and to ‘clubs which are members of the kindred associations in other states’.
The Earl of Dudley served in the Boer War and had been Lord Lieutenant of Ireland before his posting to Australia. He and his wife dissolved their marriage in 1912.
The Countess of Dudley set up a military hospital in France for Australian soldiers on the Western Front and dies whilst sea bathing off the coast of Ireland in 1920. Her great-granddaughter is the actress Rachel Ward. The Earl of Dudley died in England in 1932.
Until the mid 1930’s the Countess of Dudley was played at the Kensington Pony Racecourse, which now forms part of the campus of the University of New South Wales. It was played at Kyeemagh and after the war, resumed in 1952 at Warwick Farm racecourse and occasionally at country