I came across an article dated 1874 which described the playing of Polo, for the first time in Castlebar. It was played on the square of the Infantry Barracks, where a dozen men of the detachment of the 17th Regiment, played a match. Large crowds of people from Castlebar gathered to watch. Instead of ponies, the men were mounted on donkeys who didn’t take kindly to the antics & there was frequent” spills”, much to the delight of the onlookers. It was described as “playing hurling on horseback (donkeyback)”.
The ‘sport’ continued only for a short period afterwards, as complaints were made officially as to the increase in gambling in the Town.