Riverina draught horse team ready for 2021 Sydney Royal Easter Show

A Riverina workhorse team is ready to make up for lost time when it arrives in Sydney to give showgoers a glimpse into an era when the animals were the backbone of farm labour.

All roads lead to the Royal Easter Show for the Riverina draught horse team and its long-awaited trip to the Big Smoke. After last year’s Show was cancelled due to COVID, the Bandy and Johnson families will finally bring their 11 draught horses, three teamsters and wool wagon from Barellan to Sydney to provide showgoers a glimpse into a bygone era when horses were the backbone of farm labour.

The Bandy and Johnson families’ draught horses in the lead up to the Royal Easter Show. Pictures: Paul Robbins

“Our horses will be pulling a cart carrying 36 wool bales into the stadium which is how they would have done it in the old days,” team member Paul Bandy said.

Mr Bandy said the Bandy & Johnson Working Draught Horse Team’s turn at the Show has been “a long time coming” after they were left unpacking their bags following last year’s cancellation.

“The show was always something we wanted to do so we were very disappointed last year but I think now it’s only added to the excitement for this year,” Mr Bandy said.

Tending to the draught horses in Barellan.

“We also had one of our drives cancelled last year due to the bushfires and the money we fundraise from our annual drive goes to MS or a local charity, so we have had a couple of setbacks.”

It all started 12 years ago when the Bandy family brought together the first team of horses at the Barellan Working Clydesdales Good Old Days festival, hoping to attract tourists to the town of less than 500 people.

Paul Bandy with one of the horses.

“Hopefully people will see us in Sydney and then they might come to Barellan to the Old Days festival,” he said.

The team will make the 500km trip to Sydney on March 27 to prepare for their first parade on the Show’s opening day on April 1.