The Australian polocrosse community is lucky Charlie Brook isn’t a natural tennis player. Charlie played his first polocrosse match in 1978 (in tennis whites), for Wyaga Polocrosse club at the age of 18, on the back of a loss on the tennis court. And he has been living and breathing polocrosse ever since.
Those who know Charlie Brook well, all agree, a day wouldn’t go by without him thinking about polocrosse or regaling those around him with a story from a lifetime of involvement as a player, coach, committee and board member at club, state and national level.
Charlie recently stepped down as Polocrosse Australia Board member, after a six-year stint. And prior to his role on the PA Board Charlie has committed and contributed to the sport in almost every possible capacity during the past 40 odd years.
Unlike most polocrosse players, Charlie’s entry to sport didn’t come through a traditional pathway of intergenerational polocrosse— it was a stroke of fate.
“To be honest I wanted to pursue polo, but I didn’t have the horsepower or the finances,” Charlie admitted. “I’d been campdrafting and playing community tennis — unsuccessfully — and my cousin thought we ought to give polocrosse a go. So we did.
“If I’d been a winner that day on the tennis court, I probably would have stuck to tennis and campdrafting. And I would’ve won the Warwick Gold Cup by now.”
But the sport of polocrosse got under Charlie’s skin and since his first game of polocrosse with the Wyaga club, on a little grey horse he borrowed from his grandfather, Charlie has travelled the world with the sport as a player and coach.
One of the things about polocrosse Charlie loves most (and is a seemingly endless source of campfire stories) is the opportunity the sport offers for travel and new friendships. The sport has taken him across Australia (although he admits he has never played in Tasmania) and as far afield as New Zealand, Uruguay, the United States and Papua New Guinea.
For Charlie the attraction of polocrosse is a combination of intense competition and rivalry — he is well known for his competitive spirit — a lifelong love of horses and the strong sense of community.
Community values drive lifelong commitment
In those early days polocrosse stalwart and Warwick Polocrosse Club President, Les Fraser, saw something in Charlie he liked and lured Charlie to the Warwick-based club where Charlie still remains an active member.
Les has volunteered his services to polocrosse alongside many great club members for decades now to build a club that he believes goes well beyond a game.
“Charlie started with Wyaga, he had a great horse and soon realised the Warwick Club was the place to be to better his polocrosse,” Les recalled.
“And from that moment on, he’s made a huge contribution to the Club, and the sport at a State and National level. He is currently Warwick Club Vice-President and Club Selector and was previously the Queensland State President.
“Every moment of enjoyment Charlie’s had with the sport, he’s given back two-fold, and the sport is so much richer because of him. Going forward, the more polocrosse can get people to give back to the sport, the better off our game will be.”
“If there is one thing we can learn from Charlie Brook’s decades-long dedication to polocrosse, let it be that.
Son Callum wholeheartedly agrees with Les: “Dad’s always been involved in polocrosse, simply because of his love for the sport. What he puts in, is what he’s got out.”
A combination of camaraderie, commitment and competitive spirit
High-performance committee Chair and long-time mate, Kent Wells, recalls many of Charlie’s bachelor days, as well as the late nights and foggy mornings in the polocrosse camp.
“I remember the first time I met Charlie,” Kent chuckled. “I was about 17 and playing polocrosse for Cunningham.
“We went to Blackall State Champs and Charlie took all our money playing poker around a fire one night. He was just swindling all of us young fellas. We’ve been best mates ever since.”
According to Kent, Charlie’s commitment to winning isn’t limited to campfire poker matches.
“As a player Charlie would play any position — but he hated losing,” Kent recalled. “He always wanted to win — he still does. If he didn’t make a team, he’d just make himself better. There was never any sooking, he’d just pin his ears back and work to get better. He’d put in the work to be ahead of the pack.”
Kent supported Les’ sentiments regarding Charlie’s commitment to the sport and community of polocrosse.
“Charlie just shows-up, puts his hand up, his commitment to the sport at every level is phenomenal — I think because he understands what it takes to play,” Kent said.
If Charlie’s not thinking about polocrosse, he’s practising his next ‘Dad joke’, he’s famous for them — known for playing little jokes on those around him. So, it’s satisfying for mates like Kent when opportunities present themselves to get their own back.
“Back in 1990s, we’d played at the Brisbane EKKA. Charlie was our umpire, and as the day was drawing to an end we were all heading back to my place at Karana Downs, but Charlie decided he’d stay at the Cattleman’s Bar at the EKKA for the afternoon with the supporters,” Kent said.
“As we were leaving, Charlie asked if I’d grab his umpire’s whistle out of his bag. Of course I obliged. On my way home I decided to fill the whistle with cayenne pepper and soak it in hot English mustard for the trip.
“Long story short, Charlie blew the whistle at the first line-up of the next day’s game, cayenne pepper exploded up his nose and he hardly blew his whistle for the rest of the game. At the end of the game he told me he thought he might need a new whistle as his was stale.”
“Might I say, it was probably the best umpiring job he’s ever done.”
Thanks from the top
In his tenure as the President of the Polocrosse Australia Board, Mick Templeton has not only valued Charlie’s unquestionable commitment and passion for the sport, but has valued his understanding of the game and, when the hard decisions are being made, his ability to remind the Board what the sport is about — community involvement, friendships, mateships and the opportunities to enrich our lives through travel, which Charlie has actively immersed himself in.
“While Charlie will tell you his number one reason for being involved with the sport is the horse, his actions and the feedback from the community demonstrate that polocrosse means much more than horses to Charlie,” Mick said. “And the sport is much better for his involvement.
“It has been a privilege to work beside you Charlie and you will be missed.”
Stepping down, but not out...
Charlie Brook may be stepping down from his responsibilities as a director on the Polocrosse Australia Board but this is definitely not the last we will see, or hear, of him. He and Trish have booked their accommodation for the 2027 Australian Polocrosse National Championships in Darwin and Charlie will keep a close eye on proceedings.
“I will probably miss it, but I am not going anywhere. If they step out of line they will hear from me.”
