Elite Polo Players to Compete on Cable Beach, Australia in May

Some of the world’s most elite polo players will descend on Broome in Western Australia this May to compete in the 2017 Airnorth Cable Beach Polo.

Professionals from Australia, New Zealand and Argentina will clash and collide on the stunning Cable Beach sands on 20-21 May as they battle for glory in the two-day tournament.

This year’s event will see four 10-goal teams compete with a star-studded line-up featuring players of the highest calibre, including Australian professionals Luke Reid (hdc +3) and Jack Archibald (hdc +5), who have both been selected for the Australian team to compete in the Federation of International Polo (FIP) World Polo Championship, which will be held in Sydney later this year.

Reid will play in the Airnorth Cable Beach Polo tournament as part of an exciting trio made up of WA Polo Association’s President, esteemed businessman and team patron Adil Bux and Argentinian five-goaler Daniel Otamendi.

Meanwhile, Archibald will play for Clinton Wheatley and alongside Matt Welsh.

Reid, who hails from country WA, is a third generation polo player who has made a career out of the sport over the past 12 years.

His father, Derek Reid, is a former professional polo player who captained Australia in polo tournaments in the 1980s.

Now swiftly making his own mark in the international polo scene, the 25-year-old said he was delighted to have been selected for the World Cup.

“Making an Australian side is always very special to anyone that plays a sport,” he said. “I’ve been lucky enough to play for Australia a couple of times in a few under-21s...it’s a great feeling to really pull on the green and gold and represent your country.”

Before taking part in the championship, Reid will bring his A-game to Broome in May.

No stranger to the glitzy sporting event, Reid proudly competed in a memorable match against an Indian team in 2013.

He was given the opportunity to return to Broome after being invited by Bux.

“I’ve been playing polo with him for five or six years now and he asked me if I wanted to go...I was like, yeah, I’d love to go, I love going up there, I love the atmosphere and everything about it, it’s great.”

Meanwhile, Bux, who will make his beach polo debut in this year’s event, said he was looking forward to taking part in the tournament.

“I’ll be taking up a team and it should be quite exciting,” he said. “I’ve got some great players playing and it will be my first time playing on the sand so it should be an interesting challenge.”

Bux said competing in the Airnorth Cable Beach Polo was an exciting opportunity, given the event’s remarkable reputation.

“I think it’s one of the first proper beach polo tournaments,” he said. “It’s given rise to many more around Australia and around the world, and it has been a trailblazer.”

Bux, who has visited Broome on a few occasions, said hosting Airnorth Cable Beach Polo in the tourist town would provide a unique event for spectators to enjoy.

“It utilises the landscape of the north west of WA very well in the sense that it’s one of the few places in the world where good beach polo can be played – remote yet still a very busy town, and I think it’s a great addition to the West Australian polo calendar,” Bux said.

Cable Beach Polo was officially appointed the Australian Affiliate to the International Beach Polo Association in 2013.

See also: Pictures of 2017 King’s Cup Elephant Polo in Bangkok, Thailand (8 Pages).

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