The New Zealand Polo Association was formed in 1890, one year after Captain Savile (aide-de-camp to the Governor-General) presented a trophy to be “played for annually by the Polo clubs in New Zealand”. Still played for as the national club championship, the Savile Cup is one of the oldest sporting trophies in New Zealand.
There are approximately 20 polo clubs throughout the country and more than 300 handicapped players, including many women and youth players. Each polo club is part of one of the three Regional Associations: Northern, Central and South Island.
Most clubs have one or two polo grounds and play two or three times a week from November to the end of March. The majority of higher goal matches are six chukkas and the lower grades are four chukkas.
Apart from the Savile Tournament which is hosted by different clubs throughout the country, the other main tournaments in the different areas are as follows:
Northern area - Auckland Polo Club host the New Zealand Open Tournament which is held each year in February and is the high-goal championships. This tournament usually includes several overseas players and patrons. The Kihikihi Polo Club hold a test match annually, Cambridge holds a Womens test match and the Northern Provincial tournament is a club championship.
Central District have the Dewar Cup at Hawkes Bay.
South Island - Port Hills host a test match annually, and other clubs share the South Island League and also the Gould Cup. The South Island has a strong youth club called SUPA, they are based predominatly around North Canterbury. Amuri holds a successful Women's tournament annually.
Trophies - The Savile Cup is one of the oldest sporting trophy in New Zealand and played for annually. The Australasian Gold Cup was first presented in 1925 to formalise a tournament between teams representing the various states of Australia and New Zealand, the Hayward Silver Rose Bowl was presented by E.W. Hayward in 1951 for the handicap division of teams competing in the Australasian Gold Cup. The Skene Cup is played for annually and has special rules and conditions pertaining to how this cup is contested (see rules section).
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