Tara Murray
Some of the world’s best association croquet players will be hitting Cairnlea as the MacRobertson International Croquet Shield returns to Australia.
The shield, which involves teams from Australia, England, New Zealand and America is one of the world’s premier croquet events.
Australia are the reigning champions having claimed the event in 2017, the first time in 82 years.
The shield began as an association croquet team contest between England and Australia in 1925.
The shield is named after the man who originated the contest, Sir Macpherson Robertson, who is remembered most notably for his confectionary company which created Freddo Frogs.
Robertson was a keen croquet player and vigorously promoted the sport, taking a four-man Australian team to England in 1925, and the competition he initiated has continued for almost 100 years.
Now the competition is, played about every four years, with six-player teams from Australia, England, United States and New Zealand fighting out a series of test matches
The Australian includes brothers Robert and Malcolm Fletcher, with Robert currently the world number one in association croquet.
South Australian Ed Wilson – who won the NZ Open Championship as a teenager, captain Ian Dumergue, coach Steve Forster and Dwayne McCormick.
Current golf croquet world champion Matthew Essick, New Zealand’s Felix Webby, Edmund Fordyce, Greg Bryant and American Jeff Soo are some of the other stars set to compete.
The teams will compete from November 12 to 29 at the Victorian Croquet Centre.
