There are few sports that are wholeheartedly Australian bred. Trugo is one of them.
Almost 100 years old, Trugo originated in the western suburbs of Melbourne, when railway workers used leftover rubber from worn out train carriages as rings and fashioned makeshift into mallets. On a grass field, players would strike the rings with the mallets through a set of goal posts. It’s considered a unique combination of croquet, lawn bowls, and wood chopping.
Four men in Sydney, after being introduced to the game by Melbournian teams, decided to come together and start Northshore Trugo. After weeks of Thursday evening practice on borrowed patches of grass, the four headed to Canberra to compete in the Australian Masters Games. To their delight, Northshore Trugo took home the bronze medal.
‘This is a sport that deserves to survive,’ said Phil Newman, a founder of Northshore Trugo. ‘Our dream is to form more teams across Sydney… men’s, women’s, mixed, and multigenerational… so we can host local matches and eventually an annual Sydney vs Melbourne showdown.’
Northshore Trugo have no home ground, so practices and games are held wherever a suitable field can be found. The team has played at Ruddock Park, Naremburn Park, and are scheduling demonstration games monthly to attract interest.
Northshore Trugo’s founders say they don’t just want to win more medals, but they want to build a community.
