[<<] [>>] by Dave Maugham
12th July 2004 (AC - Championships)

British Open Singles

RI Fulford beat PC Trimmer +26tp -26tp -18tp +16 +26tp

British Open Doubles

CD Clarke & RI Fulford beat RL Bamford & SN Mulliner +25tp +20tp

Association Plate

Draw

PJ Kirby beat HK Rosenberry +25

Process

SR Patel beat KMH Aiton +17qp

Play-Off

PJ Kirby beat SR Patel +24tp

Y Doubles

JD Hector & D Mundy beat HK Rosenberry & J Soo +22

Consolation Event

JF Death beat JC Williams +16tp

The Men's Final

Robert described the final on the Nottingham list:

Cheltenham Lawn 8 - Slow paced, relatively easy hoops, significant hills in front of some of the hoops particularly hoop 5.

Game 1

I win the toss and choose to go first. Pete chooses black (K) and blue (U)

• R lays supershot ball, such that a shot from the end of A-baulk is 13 yards and would miss to 7 yards from the end of B-baulk.
• U shoots at R gently from C1 just missing and leaving a 17 yard perfect double from roughly the same spot.
• Y shoots hard at the double. Hits gets going, over approaches 5 badly down well known hill, but runs difficult hoop, goes to 4b leaving R a rush on U from the maximum length position on E boundary to Y on W boundary. 4 K misses 19 yarder down E boundary. 5 R finishes.

Fulford +26TP

Game 2

Pete chooses to go first, I choose R and Y

• U supershot, roughly 1 yard NW of 5.
• R to 9 inches S of C2
• K misses R badly on left from the end of B-baulk not leaving a double. 4 Y misses 10 yard shot at supershot ball from A-baulk. 5 U goes to 4b with diagonal spread laying up slightly south of hoop 5. 6 R lifts from the West boundary and misses short lift shot from A-baulk. 7 K starts standard TP. After making 5, Pete doesn't have a rush and plays a split shot sending a ball to 1b going to U which has been peeled a yard

through 4b, K hits 4b and ends up wired from U. Hits 7 yarder at hoop 6
pioneer centre ball rushing it 6 yards, makes 6 off U with 1 yard 40 degree
hoop stroke. Finishes with delayed double.

Trimmer +26TP

Game 3

I win the toss and choose to go first. Pete chooses U and K

• R lays supershot ball, such that a shot from the end of A-baulk is 13

yards and would miss to 10 yards from the end of B-baulk.

• U hits R shooting hard from end of A-baulk. Croquets R to 1 yard SSE of C2. Goes off 1 yard N of C4.
• Y misses 35 yarder at U from end of B baulk, finishing a foot W of C4. 4 K hits Y. Rushes U to 2 yards roughly S of R such that it is on the line between R and 1. Ends up with difficult cut rush to 1 and fails angled hoop bouncing off a couple of feet.
• R hits K from 8 yards N of 1 turning down 23 yard shot joining up shot into corner 4. Goes to 1b with standard sextuple leave.
• K hits tea-lady from 1 to C3 area. Goes to 4b peeling Y to 3 and making NSL with R just off hoop 4 and Y near W boundary.
• Y misses 21 yard long lift into C4.
• U finishes

Trimmer +18TP

Game 4

Pete chooses to go first, I choose R and Y

• U supershot between 5 and peg.
• R to 9 inches S of C2
• K misses R badly on left not leaving a double.
• Y hits 13 yard shot at supershot ball from A-baulk. Goes to 1b peeling both U and K to 2 and making standard leave.
• U jumps hoop 1 from about 8 feet landing short of K on line but clearing it on the first bounce and ends up in the middle of the W boundary. (The balls were too close to the hoop for an attempted jump in game 3)
• R embarks on sextuple. Lucky rushing peelee to make 2 and put peelee in front of 1b, when peelee finished in the jaws rather than sitting on the front of 2. From there progressed OK until failing to knock peelee into

position to peel 3b going to 1b, recovered with good split peel going to 2b. 4b peel attempt before 3b from 5 foot straight sat on right hand wire. STP starts well with tight cannon and then good 4 foot rush to 9 inches straight in front of penult. Irish peels penult to a yard passed and 3 yards W of rover. Gets 3 foot straight rover peel. Fails peel badly, plays poor jump shot failing to clear peelee, neither ball running rover.

• U hits K. Taking croquet six yards S of rover, Pete starts lining up croquet stroke putting K to 2 when he realises he is for 2 rather than 1. Pete feels he may have been prompted by excited murmuring from the crowd and is concerned this may be advice but the referee's interpretation was as Pete had not actually heard what the issue was causing the murmurs but had worked it out for himself this did not constitute advice. Pete goes to 4b with diagonal spread.
• R shots at Y by the peg from B-baulk with a chance of missing on the right and running rover. Hits rushing the ball passed rover. Sends K towards 4 getting rush to rover, which is taken poorly. Approaches to 4 foot straight sending U deep and fails rover hard bouncing a foot to the side. 9 K misses 6 yarder at Y (with the title in touching distance), leaving Y joined up with U.
• Y now has easy starting for straight rover peel. Gets cut rush on K to R but rushes into the front of the jaws on hoop 5. Impossible to send K S obtaining rush on R to peeling position and tricky to get K completely out of the way N. Y sends K six inches through and then rushes R into K so K is promoted 9 inches east and R finishes in easy peeling position.

Fulford +16

Game 5

I win the toss and choose to go first. Pete chooses U and K

• R lays supershot ball, such that a shot from the end of A-baulk is 13

yards and would miss to 8 yards from the end of B-baulk.

• U shoots hard at R from the end of A-baulk hitting the right hand wire of 2 and finishing only 5 yards from B-baulk.
• Y hits U. Goes to 4b leaving R a rush on U from the maximum length position on E boundary to Y on W boundary.
• K misses 19 yarder down E boundary.
• R finishes.

Fulford +26TP