Canoe Polo

Not heard of canoe polo? Nor had most of us before starting uni... imagine if basketball, touch rugby and (most importantly) kayaking were crossed. It's a wacky game that's great fun and perfect if you're coming to uni without a specific 'speciality' sport. Most of us have started from ground zero so there's really no expectations! If you have been playing for a few years, you should also feel right at home- our BUCS results last year were really not too bad if we say so ourselves ;)

Canoe Polo is a high energy sport that combines paddling, ball skills and tactical play. Not only is it a sociable and fun sport to play but it also helps to improve your paddling skills. We go to loads of fixtures and tournaments throughout the year and run training sessions every week in the STV pool. Check the video below from BUCS polo to see what it's all about. Any questions, feel free to ask our polo captains Tomos and Faith. 

How to get involved

Joining at the start of the year?

1. Turn up to one of our pool session tasters to complete your swim test and get a taste of the polo boats.
2. We will hold a polo taster session a week or two into the semester- come along!
3. After this, you'll need to buy club membership to take part in more sessions, but the £10 membership will give you FREE access to all of our pool sessions for the rest of the year, including polo training.
4. Get involved in our Tuesday training sessions!

Joining mid-year?

1. If you haven't completed a swim test, drop our coaching sec Finn (wmk34) a message and we'll sort a time for you to do your swim test. 
2. Come along to pool sessions. We reccomend you get used to the kayaks a little before going straight into a polo session. 
3. Come along to a Tuesday polo session!
4. From there, hopefully we'll have you hooked and you can get involved in a lot more...

What we do

• General polo training - Tuesday 8-9pm in STV Pool. This is for anyone not on Open or Ladies team. 
• Team training - Tuesday 9-10pm in STV pool. This is for the Open and Ladies team-speak to Tomos or Faith if you would like to be considered for either of these!
• Southwest League - In 2016 Bath initiated the South West Universities Polo league. This is a league-style tournament between six South-West universities held at Bristol Docks across a number of weekends. If you're looking for a cheap, one-day trip, this is ideal.
• Nottingham Polo Tournament - In October, Nottingham organises an inter-university competition aimed at getting freshers and beginners into polo - no experience needed!
• Varsity - In February, we hold a varsity match against Exeter University in our own STV pool.
• Cardiff University Canoe Polo Tournament- After the cold of winter Cardiff University organises CUCP - excellent practise for upcoming BUCS! 
• BUCS Polo - The year concludes with BUCS Polo, the biggest competition in Canoe Polo in which we represent Bath to help win BUCS points.
• Friendlies - Throughout the year, we host and attend friendlies, particularly with Bristol and Exeter. 

Our Regular Teams

      Open Team (Bubble Bath)           

     B Team (Mighty Ducks)

     Ladies Team (Bath Bombs)      

Southwest League

 In 2016, we saw the magnificent creation of the Southwest Universities Canoe Polo Leagues by our then-polo rep. In 2016/17 Bath, Bristol, UWE, Exeter and Swansea competed in the inaugural Open, B and Ladies league and was hugely successful in increasing polo participation and competition.

 The league has since evolved to be held solely at Bristol docks and this year is being competed by Bath, Bristol, Cardiff, Swansea and Exeter. 

      Rules and Tactics

        2019 BCU Rulebook                                 Basic Paddling Skills           

        2019 ICF Rulebook                                    Basic Ball Skills

        2019-20 South West League rules             Defence