NEW South Wales and Queensland claimed the first spoils of the Australian Polocrosse Nationals in Ballarat yesterday.

The interstate raiders secured respective victories in the masters men’s and masters mixed competition finals.

New South Wales capped off an unbeaten campaign with a 22-19 win over Western Australia in the masters men’s decider, while Queensland secured a three-point win in the masters mixed competition against New South Wales.

The senior mixed team scored Victoria’s best win of the day, with a thumping 30-6 victory against Tasmania, while the under-24 women won by one point against Queensland, 16-15.

The host state lost the other five of its matches across all competitions.

Victoria’s senior men fell to a 27-19 defeat at the hands of Western Australia, while the senior women were outclassed by New South Wales, 19-9.

Day five starts at 8am today, but will not feature any finals.

Finals for the junior mixed, under-24 women and under-21 men will be played tomorrow, with the under-21 mixed, junior open, senior mixed, senior men and senior women decided on Sunday.

RESULTS

Senior men: NSW 21 d Queensland 16, WA 27 d Victoria 19, NSW 21 d Queensland 16

Senior women: WA 17 d Queensland 11, NSW 19 d Victoria 9

Senior mixed: Victoria 30 d Tasmania 6, Queensland 25 d SA 8, WA 16 d NSW 15

Masters 50+: NSW 22 d WA 19

Masters mixed: Queensland 20 d NSW 17

Women under-24: NSW 20 d WA 10 Victoria 16 d Queensland 15

Under-21 men: Queensland 19 d NSW 12, WA 18 d Victoria 16

Under-21 mixed: NSW 18 d SA 12, Northern Territory 18 d Victoria 14

Junior open: Northern Territory 16 d WA 12, NSW 18 d Queensland 14

Junior mixed: Queensland 21 d Victoria 6, SA 12 d WA 10

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS

8am: Victoria v Queensland (senior women)

10am: New South Wales v Victoria (senior mixed)

1pm: Victoria v Queensland (junior open)

3pm: Victoria v Queensland (senior men)

Web Site

Thanks to Polocrosse-international.orgInterstate teams claim the day in polocrosse

CHARGE! Horses and riders hit the Ballarat polocrosse fields for the first time yesterday but, while it was a memorable start for spectators at the Australian Polocrosse Nationals, it was a day to forget for the home state.

Victoria was one of the first to take on the field in a masters’ mixed match against NSW, at the same time Queensland and WA clashed in the junior mixed competition on an adjacent pitch. And the Vics’ 7-27 loss to their arch-rival set the tone of the day.

The junior mixed saw NSW beat Victoria 25-6, while the Victorians were pipped at the post by Queensland in the senior mixed (19-18) and under-21 mixed (14-12).

“It was disappointing because it would have been nice to walk away with a win on the first day,” said Vicky Semmens, 34, who played defence for the Victorian senior mixed team.

“We expected the masters mixed to be closer than that. We were fairly happy with our game, and that could have gone either way. And the 21-mixed were leading most of the game and lost it in the last chukka.

“Victoria’s had a tough start but we will regroup.”

Semmens said competitors were very impressed by the championship venue.

“The fields were fantastic. We used to play at Ballarat a lot and they’ve done a terrific job and the venue is first class. We’d love to bring them a Victorian win,” she said.

RESULTS

Senior Mixed: Queensland 19 d Victoria 18; NSW 25 d Tasmania 5

Masters Mixed: NSW 27 d Victoria 7; Queensland 17 d SA 9

Masters Men: NSW 19 d WA 16; Queensland 12 d Victoria 9

Under-21 Mixed: Queensland 14 d Victoria 12; NSW 25 d Tasmania 25

Junior Mixed: Queensland 18 d WA 3; NSW 25 d Victoria 6

Under-12: NSW1 21 d Victoria 5, Queensland 11 d NSW2 4

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHTS

9am: Grand Parade and Official Opening

10am: Junior Open – Victoria v Northern Territory

11am: Masters Men: Victoria v NSW

Noon: Senior Men: NT v NSW

3pm: Under-21 Men: Victoria v NSW

4pm: Senior Men: WA v Queensland

Web Site

Thanks to Polocrosse-international.orgAustralian Nationals