Announcement of the 2026 edition of the GC European Clubs League

by James Death [Admin] [^]
28th October (International)

The ERC have announced the launch of the 2026 GC European Club Leagues.

They are looking for expressions of interest to host a heat or the final. To inform the ERC that your club is interested in hosting a heat (2 lawns required), please contact Ian Burridge (eclorganiser2026#gmail.com) before November 28th.

To apply to enter one of the heats, await instructions early next year once the hosting venues are sorted.

Hurlingham beat High Wycombe to win the Mary Rose 6-1

by Hurlingham at Hurlingham [^]
19 Oct (AC - Mary Rose)

Guy Hewitt & Andrew Wise beat Richard Peperell & David Cotton +7
Martin Read beat Gabriel Furse +8
Ludolph van Hasselt beat Ed Olhausen +1
Andrew Wise beat Richard Peperell +16
Guy Hewitt beat David Cotton +18
Martin Read beat Ed Olhausen +16
Ludolph van Hasselt lost to Gabriel Furse -21

Roehampton won the European Club League Grand Final

by Ian Burridge at Sussex County [^]
14th October (GC)

The Grand Final of the 3rd European Club League took place at Sussex County Croquet Club (England), 10-12th October. The hosts were joined by 11 teams that had won their way through to the final from heats spread across Europe from Vigo in the West of Spain to Ikskile in Latvia.

The teams of 4 players were divided into two blocks of six for the initial phase of the competition, with a match between the teams consisting of two doubles and four singles games. Block A was dominated by Roehampton (England), who went unbeaten but were held to a draw by Vigo (Spain). All the teams in the block secured at least a draw and the last of the four qualification places was determined in the final round when Vigo managed to secure the draw they needed at the expense of their opponent's Broadwas (England). Balgreen (Scotland) progressed to the Quarter- Finals in second place with Phyllis Court (England) third. In contrast Block B was far more clear cut with it being clear from a long way out that Sussex County (England), Cheltenham (England), Carrickmines (Ireland) and defending champions Real Club de la Puerta de Hierro (Spain), were going to take the quarter-final places. It was therefore rather surprising when in the Quarter-Finals, following a standard A1v B4, A3vB2 etc draw that all the teams from block A ran out victorious, Roehampton without dropping a game. This was a sign of things to come as they convincingly beat Phyllis Court in the Semi-Final 6-1 before securing the title with a 7-1 win over Balgreen, who had equally convincingly seen off Vigo in the other semi-final. The unsung star of the Roehampton team, with the best individual record over the course of the event, was Nick Yates losing only his opening doubles game and ending with a record of 8/8 singles and 8/9 doubles.

As a consequence of their early exit from the Championship the Bowl was contested by the four qualifiers from block B, with Carrickmines who had only managed 3rd place in the block coming out victorious. The Plate, contested by the four teams that did not qualify for the championship knock-out, was won by Ikskile (Latvia).

Final Standings

Winners: Roehampton (England)

Runners-Up: Balgreen (Scotland)

3rd: Phyllis Court (England)

4th: Club de Campo de Vigo (Spain)

Bowl Winners: Carrickmines (Ireland)

6th: Cheltenham (England)

7th: Sussex County (England)

8th: Real Club de la Puerta de Hierro (Spain)

Plate Winners: Ikskile (Latvia)

10th: Real Club de Golf Vista Hermosa (Spain)

11th: Broadwas (England)

12th: Real Club de Golf Novo Sancti Petri (Spain)

Full results available at https://croquetscores.com/2025/gc/european-club-league-grand-final-1

Brian Jamieson won the Hurlingham Handicap One Ball

by Tony Bingham at Hurlingham [^]
13th October (AC - Handicap)

Close to the end of Hurlingham's main croquet lawns season, a record entry of 24 played for the Bingham Bowl. 9 were home players, 5 from Blewbury, 2 each from Ealing, Guildford, Roehampton and Surbiton and one each from Bowdon and Old Brentwoods. The day started grey but turned out beautifully sunny and surprisingly warm; advised to come prepared for all weathers many were discarding layers from mid-morning onwards. One-Ball handicaps ranged from 4.5 to three players on 20 (handicaps calculated using the recommended CE method). As ever success depended on tactical nous, knowing when to attack and when to defend, how best to use bisques as well as the more obvious skills of roqueting the opponent, taking good positions and running hoops reliably. With matches of different duration, some finishing 7, others 8 or even 9, the flexible Swiss format allowed the winner to be judged on percentage of wins.

At lunch with either 4 or 5 games completed, winners vs winners and losers vs losers as far as possible, four players vied for supremacy. Howard Railton (Roehampton, 10), Brian Jamieson (Blewbury, 10) and David Horlock (Hurlingham, 12.5) were unbeaten; Janie Thomson-Moore (Hurlingham, 17.5) was 4 from 5. After lunch the manager arranged for those in contention to play each other as far as practicable to help ensure a fair result. The last three rounds saw twists and turns. Brian Jamieson (Blewbury, 10) reached 6 from 6 by beating both Horlock and Railton; Thomson-Moore could not progress. Others climbed the ladder: David Beddy (Bowdon, 9), David Long (Blewbury, 14) and Carol Jamieson (Blewbury, 17.5). In the final round Horlock beat Railton (at one point also 6 from 6) in a very close match, and Brian Jamieson lost for the first time …. to spouse Carol (the Blewbury contingent were not surprised "she normally beats him!").

But this loss didn't matter: Brian Jamieson was declared winner and David Horlock 2nd; both were 6 from 7 but Brian had beaten David earlier. In equal third on 6 from 8 were David Long, Carol Jamieson and Howard Railton. On 5 out of 8 and in equal 6th place were: David Beddy, Tim Gibbons (Hurlingham, 17.5) and Mark Green (Roehampton, 12.5). Thanks go to Tony Elliott for acting as RoT.

Richard Andrews, Hurlingham's Croquet Chair, presented the Bingham Bowl and Hurlingham whisky tumblers to the winner; the runner-up also received a tumbler (David was also runner-up in 2024, his first appearance in the event time; third time lucky next year perhaps?). All matches were played in a very good spirit and Tony was thanked for making it a very well run and most enjoyable tournament. The international standard lawns played brilliantly as ever. As Brian said in his closing remarks, he had expected to play on the cricket pitch so it was a pleasure to play in such a brilliant environment in front of the magnificent Hurlingham portico.

Following the Association Croquet World Championship

Reg Bamford: 2025 AC World Champion

27 October 2025

Reg Bamford is the 2025 Association Croquet World Champion

Defeating England's Mark Avery, Reg Bamford, Representing South Africa, Took the Title with a Quick Three Wins in the Final Best of Five Match

Bamford finished the event with an impressive 14 triple peel turns in the knockout, showing a clean display of precision croquet which was clearly a step above the rest of the field. Without dropping a single game, Bamford sailed through the championship knockout beating Spain, New Zealand and England favourites along the way.

Reg is a member of Surbiton Croquet Club where he is often seen practising before major events. He started playing croquet as a young child in South Africa, where he was born, and in his winning interview he referenced to having played for over 50 years, indicating croquet to be the sport which has no limitations or discriminations.

The next Association Croquet World Championship will be held in Wellington, New Zealand, where Reg will be back to defend his World Championship title. Only he and England's Robert Fulford have won the tournament six times, all eyes will be on whether he can make it to seven first.

25 October 2025

Mark Avery is a 2025 World Championship Finalist

In his Third Straight Five Game Match in a Row, Mark Has Secured his Place in the Association Croquet World Championship 2025 Final

Mark said in his post-match interview, following his Semi-Final against World number one ranked Robert Fletcher, that he knew he needed to re-hydrate and re-focus. We saw his impressive tactics and accurate break play, and the interview highlighted his focus and determination which led to his triumphant success.

Mark will face Reg Bamford (South Africa) who won his semi-final in three straight games. Keith Aiton, the England's Team Coach commented "I've known Mark since 1981. He's had many great performances in that time. That's one of his best. His many friends and fans in croquet will be delighted for him. He's a top bloke."

The livestream will show the final of the Association Croquet World Team Championship tomorrow (Sunday 26 October 2025).

25 October 2025

England's Mark Avery is a World Championship Semi-Finalist

Mark Avery Progresses Through the Croquet World Championship by Winning Against USA Number 1 Player, Matthew Essick, in a Gripping Five Game Quarter-Final Battle

The four players remaining in the tournament are Robert Fletcher (Australia), who will now play Mark Avery (England) in one semi-final, whilst Reg Bamford (South Africa) will play Logan McCorkindale (New Zealand) in the other semi-final. The four players are all ranked in the top five in the world and have shown the viewers exactly what they are made of.

Mark is supported by his friends and family at home in England, alongside the Croquet England team who are looking forward to watching the livestream of the semi-finals.

Croquet England's CEO, Andy Dalby-Welsh, says "It's not just me that's been gripped by the drama of the World Championship, my two daughters have been watching alongside me, and we are all wishing Mark the best of luck for his next match. I must also congratulate the US Croquet Association for what is clearly an immaculately run tournament with spectacular livestream for the croquet community, and the public, to enjoy."

Mark is a loyal member of the Suffolk County Team, having played for the team since 1993, his fellow teammate Paul Hetherington is looking forward to playing alongside a World Champion next year. He confidently says "Mark's got this, everyone knows he is the most natural born Croquet player to have lived, this is his year!"

23 October 2025

2025 World Association Croquet Championship - The Last 16

16 Players Remain in the World Championship being Played in Florida. The Event Started with 72 Hopeful Players From 15 Different Countries

We are all watching the WCF Association Croquet World Championship and supporting our favourites, our friends, club mates and family members. Messages of support for the players are coming from far and wide to encourage all the players in the tournament.

A special message of encouragement comes from Mark Atkinson, Investor Relations Manager for Alliance Witan, who has been following the progress of some of the England players, having met them at the recent MacRobertson Squad Training event.

Mark says "It has been enlightening to see the players in action at a World Championship. Their expert precision and tactics are clear to see and of course helped by the welcome commentary from the livestream team. Good luck to the England players, especially those who are hoping their performances will secure their places in the England MacRobertson Shield Team 2026."

The World Championship is their last opportunity to show the selectors their skills and determination ahead of the team selection, set to be announced in November 2025.

England players in the last 16 of the knockout stages are:

Alain Giraud (Croquet England)
Robert Fulford (Tunbridge Wells Croquet Club)
Mark Avery (Croquet England)
James Death (Cheltenham Croquet Club)

21 October 2025

27 Players Have Secured their Places in the Association Croquet World Championship Knockout, Whilst Playoffs are Required to Determine the Final Five

From the qualifying event right through to the final stages of the blocks, the AC World Championship has already proved to be an exciting ride for many players.

We now reach the 'pointy end' of the block stages. 2019 Golf Croquet World Champion, Ben Rothman (USA) will be competing in a playoff match against Lachlan Berryman (AUS) to qualify for a place from Block C. The Block E playoff will see Edmund Fordyce (NZ) and Gabrielle Higgins (ENG) competing, whilst in Block G, Debbie Lines (ENG), Jordan Waters (ENG) and Callum Hyland (AUS) have a three-way battle to progress. Finally in blocks B and D there are still results to be confirmed and additional playoffs may be required here too.

The entire event is being livestreamed and accompanied by expert commentators from around the world. With viewing figures now in the thousands, croquet is proving to be an exciting spectator sport.

The contenders safely through to the knock-out stages are:

Robert Fletcher AUS
Samir Patel ENG
Alain Giraud ENG
Kyle Maloof USA
Robert Fulford ENG
Jenny Clarke NZL
Stephen Mulliner ENG
Reg Bamford ZAF
Jack Good ENG
Euan Burridge ENG
Logan McCorkindale NZL
Andrew Johnston IRL
Greg Hill AUS
Matthew Essick USA
Greg Fletcher AUS
Ian Lines ENG
Mark Avery ENG
Stephen Morgan USA
Brian Cumming CAN
Jarrod Coutts NZL
Zack Watson USA
Jose Riva ESP
Reece McCorkindale NZL
James Death ENG
Thomas Balding USA
Marcus Evans ENG
Stephen Forster AUS

17 October 2025

News From the Qualifier

By Stephen Allen

16 October 2025

Stephen Allen Qualifies for the Association Croquet World Championship 2025

Croquet England's newly appointed CEO, Andy Dalby-Welsh, has been following the action closely. He says "I have always been a sports fan, but this is my first time following a Croquet World Championship. I congratulate Stephen on qualifying for his first World Championship and send best wishes for a fantastic tournament to him and all his fellow players. I look forward to enjoying the livestream alongside the Croquet community from around the world."

Link to article >> https://www.croquetengland.org.uk/news_and_media/stephen-allen-qualifies-for-the-association-croquet-world-championship-2025/

14 October 2025

Wishing Stephen Allen a successful and enjoyable tournament as he competes in the qualifying event for the 2025 Association Croquet World Championship.

We are so proud to be supporting Stephen in his bid to qualify for the World Championship. His dedication to the sport is not just as a player, but as a volunteer who has been running the Croquet England livestreams for the past few years.

Good luck Stephen, we hope to see you in the main event on the other side of the camera.

Read more >> https://www.croquetengland.org.uk/news_and_media/following-the-association-croquet-world-championship-2025/

Qualifying event 14-16 October
Follow the results >> https://croquetscores.com/2025/ac/usca-world-championship-qualifier/competition/quallifier

Useful links:
Full Programme
Livestream 18-26 October

Dee McKibbin won the GC C-Level (+7hcp) series final

Dee McKibbin receiving the trophy from Jonathan Isaacs

After a fiercely contested season in the GC 'C' level (+7handicap) national series, 16 qualifiers met in the national final held at Compton (Eastbourne) on Saturday 27-Sunday 28 September.

The hot weather throughout the year has made life difficult for all clubs' lawn managers, but Compton's John Crisford and Kevin Weeks brought our lawns into prime condition for the weekend, albeit they were a little slower than some might have liked.

The 'All Play All' format saw several players set off strongly on the first day, during which eight games were played. In fact, play went on until well into the evening, with one game having to be suspended as it had become too dark for the players to continue, and was completed first thing the following day.

But Dee McKibbin of Phyllis Court, with her accurate hooping and tactical inventiveness, was well out in front at the end of the first day, taking eight straight wins. Three players - Cheam's Alan Dickerson, Carol Huntington, also of Phyllis Court, and Leicester's Gillian Baverstock - were jostling for second place with five wins each.

Over the second day Dee consolidated her lead, winning six out her seven games to give her an unassailable lead, only losing to High Wycombe's Ian Prince. Meanwhile, other players came into contention for second place, notably Andrew Maclay, also of High Wycombe, and Eynsham's Liza Furnival; however this finally went to Carol Huntington, with ten wins and five losses, and +18 net hoops.

But Dee McKibbin ran out the unchallenged overall winner, with 14 wins, a single loss and an extraordinary +36 hoops.

Thanks go to Jason Carley, for refereeing the tournament; and to Jonathan Isaacs, Croquet England's president elect, for presenting the prizes.

Croquet England Treasurer

Due to changes in outside pressures, Robert Fulford has informed me that he would like to stand down as treasurer. We have agreed that he will continue until February to close out 2025 accounts, and to provide some handover and training to a new treasurer.

A process to identify a new treasurer will commence in the coming weeks.

For now, thank you Robert for two years as Croquet England's treasurer and successfully navigating our finances through the initiation of operations as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation.

Surbiton beat Bowdon to win the 2025 AC Inter-Club Championship 5-2

by Stephen Mulliner at Letchworth [^]
4th October (AC - Inter-Club)

Surbiton beat Bowdon 5-2 in the Inter-Club Championship Final at a windy but dry Letchworth Croquet Club today. The players were very appreciative of the Club's efforts to produce good courts despite the weather earlier in the week.

The best finish was undoubtedly Nick Parish's TP against Angharrad Walters which required the rover peel to be jawsed, jumped and then bombarded through with a pass roll to give Nick a rush to the peg!

Morning session

Stephen Mulliner & Nick Parish (ASD) beat Jack Good & Angharrad Walters +17

Philip Eardley beat Nigel Matthews +7

Tim Wilkins lost to Andrew Winn -12

Afternoon session

Mulliner beat Good +4tp

Parish beat Walters +17tp

Eardley beat Winn +8

Wilkins lost to Matthews -5

Chris Martin won the ARK

by Martin Burger at Surbiton [^]
3rd October (AC)

The dry conditions prevailing this summer meant the courts were unusually challenging for late September and almost half the games went to time. Four games were pegged down after the first day with five unbeaten players. By 3pm on Sunday this had been reduced to 2 leaving an effective final. The previous day had seen a traditional Surbiton v Edinburgh fixture and several of the Scottish players took the opportunity for more play. The final was between Chris Martin and Stefan Colling - two of them. A period of moderate drizzle on Sunday afternoon meant conditions had eased with the less grassy areas becoming more grippy. Chris won by 9.

The Andy spreadsheet for flexible Swiss again proved effective with a little fine control to ensure a final . The results were transcribed to croquetscores.

The cooks' contribution was again appreciated.

Winner : Chris Martin (hcp -1) (6/6) runner up : Stefan Colling (hcp 0.5) (4/5)

Steve Leonard won the GC A Series Final

by Roy Tillcock at Ryde [^]
3rd October (GC - Tournaments)

Steve Leonard (East Dorset) is no stranger to tournament finals but needed all his skill and experience to reach this one and snatch the trophy from lesser ranked opposition. With just 3 wins out of 6 and 5-6 down to Debbie Hayns (Ryde) in the final block game a shock early exit for top seed Steve was on the cards. He had other ideas, and after some entertaining deeming manoeuvres with his ball jawsed in hoop 12, a missed shot at the 13th from Debbie, Steve finally picked up the fourth win he needed to reach the knockout.

The block stage, on a cool overcast but dry day, gave few clues to the likely finalists. All players achieved at least two wins with Ron Carter (Ealing) leading the way in block A with 5 and Les Heard (Wrest Park) with 6 in block B. Unlucky losers who just missed the knockout stage on net hoops were Greg Vaughn (East Dorset), Chris Higgins (Bishop Monkton) and Nick O'Connor (East Dorset) such were the finest of margins.

Joining Steve, Ron and Les in the knockout on Sunday were David Dickins (Sussex County), Richard Brooks (Sussex County), Peter Haydon (Dulwich), Mike Bilton (Gainsborough) and Phil Davies (Reigate Priory).

With best-of-three matches ahead the players made an early start, the forecast drizzle did nothing to dampen spirits and with every quarter and semi-final match going to three games the format was fully justified - it also had the manager biting his fingernails!

David, beating Richard with two tie breaks, was first to reach the final, whilst Steve took a bit longer after losing the first game to Phil. It meant the Plate Final was moved to lawn 4 and most of the spectators missed an exciting double 13th hoop victory by the under dog, Martin Read (Hurlingham) against Chris.

So it was that, each with eight wins and five losses behind them, David and Steve began a deciding match. Despite the drizzle returning for much of the match the packed patio spectators were treated to a superbly skilful final from both players. Positioning, clearing and jumping were consistently accurate although hoop running with the solid Davidson hoops not always so.

Although David had beaten Steve in the block it was clear that Steve was now firing on all cylinders taking the first game at hoop 12. David refused to succumb but Steve, enjoying the returning sunshine, simply got better and better, finishing the match with a confident 2 yard jump at hoop 10.

Ryde club are especially grateful to the sixteen players who made the long and expensive trip across the water for providing us with two days of skilful and exciting croquet and, for me, probably the most competitive event on the Island I have had the pleasure to manage.