The Doubles Championship 2018

by David Maugham at Cheltenham CC [^]
7-15 Jul 2018 (Championships)

last updated at 20:48 on 20/06/18

The Croquet Championship 2018 Swiss Predrawn Rounds

by David Maugham at Cheltenham CC [^]
20th June (Championships)

Compton Summer Tournament

by Hilary Smith at Compton [^]
17 Jun 2018 (Level-Play Tournaments)

We had two blocks of 6 players for this tournament on 16th & 17th June.

In the A block, Chris O'Byrne carried all before him with 5 wins out of 5 to win the Horsburgh Challenge Cup, beating Paul Castell into second place with 4 wins out of 5.

In the B block for Handicap play it was remarkably similar. Anne Bolland, playing in her first fixture list tournament since becoming a CA member, won all 5 games to win the Anstey Cup, beating Hilary Smith into second place with 4 wins.

There is plenty more space for more competitors in future years. The lawn improvements continue and the clubhouse refurbishments are ongoing, with another phase of works due in the autumn.

Tim Smith's lunches were up to his usual high standard, and the teas were equally scrumptious.

East Dorset June Week

by Andrew Gregory at East Dorset [^]
17 Jun 2018 (Mixed AC Tournaments)

Nineteen players gathered at Parkstone for the East Dorset June Week.

The C-Class was somewhat sparse, so that by winning 2 games on Monday John Freeman had secured the trophy. There were the usual mutterings about "too many bisques". Unfortunately a wrist injury meant John failed to maintain his form during the week.

On Tuesday the main handicap knock-out started. This was news to two players. I'm sure most Manglers have conducted this kind of conversation. "Well I guess you two could play your Class game now." "We just did." "But there's an X in the event column on the Order of Play." "No we took lifts and everything." Sigh. "Well I suppose you now have to play your handicap game." To confuse the Mangler further, a triple peel was made in the handicap game.
The handicap system worked well. In the 9 games in the zeroth and first rounds, there were 2 +26s, a +20, and the other 6 games were decided by 4 points or fewer.

The handicap doubles was played as a block of 5 pairs. This was not welcomed by all players. "We have to play again? But we lost." By Friday lunchtime it was clear that there would be a play-off between 2 pairs on 3/4, ("Not more doubles") with one being the winner of the final block game, which took 4 hours on Friday afternoon. Maybe next year the Doubles will be X and Y format.

Friday morning saw decisive games in the A- and B-classes. Jonathan Powe beat Anthony Dix +5, and went on to be undefeated, with 4 TPs in 7 games. Andrew Gregory beat Nigel Parkins in a dour game. Travelling to New Zealand to get a handicap increase paid off with a trophy! (I'm sure my opponents would attest that I am no bandit!)

Saturday morning the doubles play-off saw Richard Stevens go round to the peg. David Harrison-Wood was going to peg him out, but an error allowed Beatrice McGlen to finish with a neat break.
Beatrice was also involved in the X final in the afternoon. Her third cunning local opponent proved too cunning, so well done to Nigel Parkins, whose handicap decreased.

The tournament would welcome more visitors, especially in the B- and C-Classes. Please don't imagine you would be required to play 3 games a day for 6 days (unless that's what you want). A day's leave is certainly OK, more if you don't enter every event. Please email the Manager to request your bespoke schedule!

A-Class
Winner: Jonathan Powe (7/7)
Runners-up: Anthony Dix, David Kendrick (4/7)

B-Class
Winner: Andrew Gregory (4/4)
Runner-up: Nigel Parkins (3/4)

C-Class:
Winner: John Freeman (2/2)
Runner-up: Alan Jones (1/2)

Handicap Singles
X
Winner: Nigel Parkins
Runner-up: Beatrice McGlen
Y
Winner: Jim Field
Runner-up: Anthony Dix

Handicap Doubles
Winners: Beatrice McGlen & Richard Stevens
Runners-up: David Harrison-Wood & John Freeman

Full results at croquetscores.com

Surbiton beat East Dorset 4-3

by Andy Dibben at Unknown - not supplied [^]
19th June (Mary Rose)

In a very close contest Surbiton beat East Dorset 4:3

Results, Surbiton names first:

Andy Dibben & Graham Brightwell beat David Kendrick and Anthony Dix +14
Mary Knapp lost to David Williams -17
Ed Dymock beat Tom Weston +4

Andy Dibben beat David Kendrick + 16
Graham Brightwell lost to Anthony Dix -4
Mary Knapp lost to Tom Weston -11
Ed Dymock beat David Williams +12

Hurlingham beat Surbiton 5-2

by Tony Bingham at Hurlingham [^]
18 Jun 2018 (Longman Cup)

Hurlingham v Surbiton on 18 June 2018 at Hurlingham

Hurlingham won 5-2

Hurlingham names first

Abel Hadden (6) and Jane O'Neill (10) beat Janet Overall (3 .5) and Margaret Hampson (7) 19-10 on time
Tony Bingham (6) beat Christine Osmond ((8) 26-8
Henry Bagwell (10) lost to Jonathan Edwards (16) 10-23 on time

Abel Hadden beat Janet Overall 26-19
Tony Bingham lost to Margaret Hampson 16-26
Henry Bagwell beat Christine Osmond 26-18
Jane O'Neill beat Jonathan Edwards 17-16 on time

Ashby beat Nottingham w/o

by Patricia Duke-Cox [^]
19th June (Golf Croquet Inter-Club Shield)

Liz Wilson won the Cumbria Cup

Club Chair Dave Williamson presents Liz Wilson with the Cumbria Cup

Liz Wilson stormed through five unbeaten games, brushing aside all opposition and water by the hoops, yes folks, it did rain a little, but the lawns were extremely well prepared and fine to play on, they held up well. In contrast, Sunday lived up to its name.

There was trouble at mill for one player, forcing withdrawal, leading to an incomplete block. But with 5/5 Liz was unanimously declared the winner by the manager, Dave Nicholson and all those present.

Bowdon beat Woking 4-3

by Colin Irwin at Bowdon [^]
18th June (Inter-Club)

Ken Cooper & Colin Irwin by Jeff Dawson & Mike Town +16
Jeff beat Ken +26tp
Mike beat Colin + 15
Nick Harvey beat Brian Kerr +17
Martin Granger-Brown beat Alan Edwards +14
Martin beat Nick +8
Brian beat Alan +9

Bowdon 4 Woking 3

Tyneside beat Shrewsbury w/o

by Derek Johnson at NA [^]
15th June (Longman Cup)

Northampton beat Croquet Durham 5-2

by Mike Hills at Brodsworth Hall [^]
13 Jun 2018 (Golf Croquet Inter-Club)

Northampton played Durham at Brodsworth Hall, Doncaster 13th June 2018

Results (Northampton first)

Lionel Tibble (-2) and Mike Hills (0) beat Malcolm Hobbs (2) and Roger Carpenter (1) 7-5, 7-3
Les Heard (0) beat Nigel Martin (2) 7-2, 5-7, 7-6
Stuart Smith (0) lost to Brian Johnson (1) 4-7,7-5,4-7

Lionel Tibble beat Malcolm Hobbs 7-5, 7-6
Mike Hills beat Roger Carpenter 7-5, 7-6
Stuart Smith beat Nigel Martin 7-4,5-7,7-3
Les Heard lost to Brian Johnson 5-7,7-6,4-7

Match Result Northampton 5 Durham 2
Many thanks to Brodsworth Hall and Club for allowing us to play at a neutral venue.

England won the Home Internationals

The teams gather at the start of the Home Internationals (Photo: Alison Jones)

England won the Home Internationals at Bowdon, in fine Cheshire weather.

Some of the lower matches took a long time to resolve, with the dry weather exposing Bowdon's bumpy lawns. Only England completed their three tests, winning all of them.

Scotland's no.1, Jonathan Kirby, on a rare appearance, was the player of the tournament, not dropping a game.

Final Results Table

+ The regulations declare the incomplete Scotland v Wales match as a 2-2 draw.

* The regulations award the incomplete Scotland v Ireland match 2-1 to Scotland

Full results:

croquetscores.com/2018/ac/home-internationals/

Lee Hartley (Fylde CC) Won the David Openshaw Claret Jug

Peter Wilson presents the beautiful David Openshaw Claret Jug to Lee Hartley

We were lucky to have thirteen entries this year. Apart from the opening of play each day, thirteen allowed for very little sitting out. Sunshine, no breeze, tight hoops. Good to see many returning players who have had time out with injury including Dave Nick and Lee Hartley who both added to their TP tallies.

The only problem was how to award three equally weighted trophies at the end of the tournament given the usual demands of flexibility and voracious game Appetites.

Paul Hands to the rescue (CROQUET, January 1990, Issue No. 207, pp 26-27).

So it ran as a KO plus a combined F4 & F5 with the modification that every game was equally weighted. We had the luxury of no time limits which was well received by everyone.Several two and three ball endings were played out which may have otherwise been time affected.

With the favourable conditions everyone took all the games they could get, being 'ready to play' straight away. At least that is until after lunch on Sunday. At that point some players quite correctly took advantage of the 'resting' slot to see how things might unfold (Or had they simply seen the weather forecast?).

However the Jeremy Dyer Trophy Winner Chris Martin (Meadows) took a brave gamble and opted to be ready to play although his next opponent would be a minus player. Winning that game in fine style secured the trophy. Well played.

With only a few final games in play, a sudden and heavy thunder storm brought many of the non critical games to an abandoned end. The Chris Clarke Trophy went to Paul Rigge (Pendle & Craven) this was intended and fulfilled for the best handicap 1 or below performance but fittingly could also double as the KO runner up.

Sidmouth June Tournament

by Julie Horsley at Sidmouth [^]
10 Jun 2018 (Mixed AC Tournaments)

Sidmouth Annual June Tournament started with 2 days of Handicap Play followed by 3 days of Level Advanced Play. We were very fortunate to have the Tournament fully subscribed and a waiting list.

The Handicap event was played to an Egyptian format. At the end of the first day Colin Hemming (Colchester CC) was in the lead followed by Georgeen Hemming (Colchester CC) and Andrew Thomas and Julie Horsley (both from Sidmouth CC). The next day Andrew beat Julie and Colin beat Georgeen effectively making the afternoon game a final between Colin and Andrew which Andrew narrowly won +2t. In the meantime the Chairman of the CA, Brian Shorney had crept up with 2 wins to take joint 2nd place with Colin.

The Class Event started on the Friday and on the first day saw Roger Mills (Sidmouth/Budleigh Salterton CC's) claim 2 scalps - Dave Kibble and Dave Mundy but was then beaten + 26 by Keith Ross.

The winner of Block A for the Challenge Cup was Richard Wood ( Sidmouth CC) with 5/6 wins, runner -up was Dave Kibble (Bristol CC) with 4/6.

Block B for the David Rawkins Cup was won by Nigel Amos (Budleigh Salterton CC) with 5/6 wins
3 Sidmouth players tied for 2nd place with Philip Harris, Andrew Thomas and Colin Walls all the 4/6

Block C for the Fortfield Cup was won by Georgeen Hemming with 6/6 wins runner-up was Ian Friedlander (Sidmouth CC) with 5/6.

Many of the players attended a Tournament Dinner at the Bedford Hotel, where Andrew Thomas was able to celebrate his birthday with fellow players.

Tyneside AC Handicap Tournament

by Derek Johnson at Tyneside [^]
7 Jun 2018 (Handicap Tournaments)

As the last round of games commenced four players were tied on four wins each. With Chris Roberts (Phyllis Court) and Julian Gibson (Middlesbrough) meeting in their final match, one of them was bound to be in the mix. Bill Humphreys (Australia) and Fiona Crompton (York) were the other two in with a chance of featuring in a three-way tie-breaker.

Chris duly triumphed against Julian +11 to be "leader in the club house" and had to wait for Bill and Fiona to finish their games. In the end they both lost +5T, Bill to Frances Colman (Phyllis Court) and Fiona to Andrew Killick (Middlesbrough) leaving Chris as the clear winner.

Nottingham 2018 Peel Memorials Report

by Robert Thompson at Nottingham [^]
13 May 2018 (Handicap Tournaments)

The Peel Memorials tournament, first played in 1898, attracted twenty-six competitors to the Nottingham Croquet Club this year. The handicaps for the eleven ladies ranged from 11 to 20 and for the fifteen men the handicaps ranged from -1 to 11

The club had an anxious time leading up to the event since the main contractors, carrying out regeneration works within the Highfields Park, had gone into administration and left the site in January. This led to sub-contractors delaying works including work on the pavilions and filling ditches between old bowling greens, now croquet courts. Temporary arrangements were agreed for the tournament, club members rallied round and equipment was returned from winter storage.

Eight pairings competed in the mixed doubles knockout, their combined handicaps ranging from 6 to 11.
The final was played on Saturday afternoon between Omied Hallam (-1) & Pippa Hallam (16) [joint h/c 7.5] against Bob Thompson (2.5) & Patricia Duke-Cox (14) [joint h/c 8.5] The game was evenly matched until Omied had a10 minute spell when he was able to run several hoops for himself and also peel his partner's ball. This turned out to be a crucial period of play as later he was pegged out and Pippa had an anxious twenty minutes of solo play whilst their opponents were clawing themselves back into the game. Omied & Pippa won +4T in a 3 .5 hour game.

Both the ladies and mens single events were initially played as a flexible Swiss format with the top four competitors then in a straight knockout on Sunday.

Ladies semi-finals saw Sophie McGlen (12) v Diana Stevens (Hamptworth 16) and Patricia Duke-Cox (14) v Sue Wileman (11). In the Final of Sophie v Patricia, Patricia won 26 - 17. Sophie was unable to overhaul Patricia on this occasion as Patricia played some of her best croquet at this tournament.

Men's semi-finals were between Richard Stevens (Hamptworth 7) v Bob Thompson (2.5) and Martin Beacon (1) v John Bee (Watford 7). Both visitors won through to the final where Richard maintained his unbeaten run to win 26 - 21.

Earlier in the men's singles event, Richard Forman (Huddersfield 7) could possibly be the most disappointed player of the tournament. Whilst he had an exceptional game where he ran 12 hoops with an additional 2 peels in one turn to win one of his singles games, he learned that he would NOT to be awarded his silver Merit badge as he had started the turn with a bisque!

Many thanks to Diana Plant for organising an evening dinner for the competitors and to the Beeston Hockey Club for opening their clubhouse and restaurant to the players for a cooked lunch whilst the croquet club kitchen facilities were unavailable.

Patricia and Richard both earned a reduction in handicaps as a result of their victories.

Bob Thompson managed the event in his usual relaxed style and Brian Shorney, the CA chairman presented the trophies.

David Nicholson won the Woking One-Ball Advanced Handicap Tournament

by Alan Edwards at Woking [^]
8 Jun 2018 (Handicap Tournaments)

David Nicholson won the inaugural Woking One-Ball Advanced Handicap Tournament on 8th June. He beat Kevin Carter by +1 in a gripping final, repeating their result earlier in the day in the block, although by a much tighter margin. Tim Russell came a close third, missing out on the final by a narrow margin.

The tournament was blessed with perfect weather - dry and sunny without being excessively hot.

Hunstanton Over-50s Report

by Terrey Sparks at Hunstanton [^]
10 Jun 2018 (Handicap Tournaments)

In a close finish which could of gone one of three ways James Allcock (Crake Valley) ran out the eventual winner of the Hunstanton's Annual three day Handicap Tournament (The Jane Neville-Rolfe Salver) staged on the 8th - 10th June 2018. Attracting sixteen entries of mixed abilities the tournament was conducted using the Hands-Irwin Egyptian Format.

The weather for the first two days proved disappointingly cold with a typical North Sea northerly wind although thankfully dry. However, play was keen and despite an early promising start by last years winner Barry Pilgrim (Bodham) he never really succeed in drawing clear of the pack being hotly pursued by Jonathan Toye (Downham Mkt) and James Allcock. The second day proved just as close with Ken Anderton (Bury) ending the day in the lead closely pursued by Paul Hethrington (Peterborough), Veronica Carlisle (Hurlingham) plus Barry Pilgrim and James Allcock.

On the last day the Sun Gods smiled on Hunstanton at last and although bright and sunny all day that famous north wind still stayed with us but did not detract that summer seemed to have arrived at last. The morning play really started to sort out the wheat from the chaff and as we moved into the last afternoon session it was clear that the tournament could go one of three ways, with the trophy going to either Paul Hethrington, James Allcock or Veronica Carlisle depending on who beat whom. If Paul beat James than he would be the winner outright. However, providing James won and Veronica was also successful in her game over Ken Anderton than the Manager would have a two way tie to deal with. However, that scenario proved a non starter when Ken managed to see off Veronica, whilst in the other game despite suffering a gastric complaint and despite a valiant effort Paul eventually succumbed to James during the last turn.

Tim King won Wrest Park's inaugural GC A-Level Tournament

by Richard Keighley at Wrest Park [^]
10 Jun 2018 (Golf Croquet)

The pleasure of playing in delightful surroundings on dry and mainly sunny days attracted a full field of 16 top players from around the country. Handicaps ranged from -3 to 2, with the sole exception of Jane Tewson (5) from Long Eaton Park.

The group was split into two blocks of 8 players, who were set the task of completing 7 games on the first day. In Block A, there was an early win for Mike Hills (Northampton) over Tim King (Ashby), but otherwise Tim's progress to the knockout stage proceeded serenely with a total of 6 wins. However, hoop count was necessary to decide who was to join him as 4 players recorded 4 wins each, with only 3 places available. Making the cut were Chris Sheen (Colchester), Jayne Stevens (Northampton and Wrest Park) and Paul Durkin (Long Eaton Park). Missing out, an unfortunate Mike Hills.

In Block B, Les Heard was pleased to record a rare win over his clubmate from Northampton, Lionel Tibble, but this was the only blemish on Lionel's day as he went on to record 6 wins. Second in his group was John Noble (Letchworth) with 5 wins, but hoop count was necessary to give the two remaining places to Raouf Allim (High Wycombe) and Les Heard, both with 4 wins. Peter Nalchin (Dyffryn and Newport) missed out.

With one exception, the Quarter Finals (best of 3 games) followed the form book with Tim King beating Les Heard (7-5, 7-3), John Noble beating Jayne Stevens (7-5, 7-3) and Lionel Tibble, proving too strong for Paul Durkin (7-6, 7-4). However, Raouf Allim surprised Chris Sheen by his calm and accurate play and won 7-6, 7-5.

Raouf's excellent form continued and he took the first game (7-6) in his semi-final against Lionel, but the latter's greater experience prevailed and he won the remaining games 7-5, 7-2. In the other semi-final, Tim King played some outstanding croquet to beat John Noble 7-3, 7-6.

The Final proved to be a masterclass for those watching, and an interesting clash of styles. Tim's crisp and hard-hitting stroke play produced some remarkable clearances and hoop runs. Lionel was relentless with his approach shots from all corners of the court and he adopted a gentler style of stroke-making. Inevitably, the winner was to be the one who made fewer mistakes and who was quick to capitalise on those made by his opponent. This proved to be Tim King, a worthy winner, by 7-5, 7-5.

The Plate competition was won by Chris Sheen.

Hunstanton - GC A-Level Series

Richard Bilton, winner of the Salver

Results: The Salver was won by Richard Bilton and the Plate by Keith Pound.

Day 1 - Saturday 26 May 2018

The 16 players were welcomed to this inaugural 2 day event by David Thirtle-Watts, Chairman of Hunstanton CC. Day 1 was run in 2 blocks of 8 All-Play-All, with the top four in each block qualifying for the Main event; the rest to play each other in a round-robin for the Plate. All games were played without time limits. Martin French acted as Tournament Referee and Richard Bilton volunteered to run Croquet Scores. We are indebted to both of them and also to all the Club Members who supported the event. At the end of Day 1 the results of the All-Play-All blocks identified who would be playing in which event the following day.

Day 2 - Sunday 27 May 2018

The Main event was decided through a series of best of 3 * 13 point games through Quarter, Semi-Finals & a Final with Play-offs for the other places. Richard Bilton prevailed in straight sets. Three of the Quarter Finals were decided in 2 games and one went to best of 3. The final rankings were:

1st RICHARD BILTON (-2)

2nd STUART M SMITH (1)

3rd MARTIN FRENCH (-3)

4th DAVID WIDDISON (-1)

5th PETER DOWD (-2)

6th CHRIS SHEEN (-2)

7th ROGER GOLDRING (-1)

8th PAUL GUNN (1)

The Plate event was decided after 5 rounds of 13 point games in an All-Play-All round-robin. The 6th and 7th rounds were not played with the agreement of the players. Keith Pound produced a clean sheet with 5 wins out of the 5 rounds played. The final rankings were:

1st KEITH POUND (2)

2nd LESLIE HEARD (0)

3rd DAVID BELL * (0)

4th NOEL GILL (5)

5th LOUISE SMITH (6)

6th DAVID THIRTLE-WATTS (2)

7th MIKE BILTON (2)

8th PAUL DURKIN (2)

High Wycombe beat Leighton Linslade 4-3

by Keith Pound at High Wycombe [^]
8 Jun 2018 (Golf Croquet Inter-Club Shield)

Sussex beat Merton 4-3

by Richard Carline at Sussex County [^]
10 Jun 2018 (Golf Croquet Inter-Club Shield)

Sussex County CC beat Merton CC 4:3 at Southwick 10th June.

Results:
Doubles - Richard Carline & Morgan Case (SCCC) beat Julie Sheahan & Louise Taylor (Merton) 7:3 7:5
Singles - Richard Carline beat Julie Sheahan 0:7 7:2 7:5
Morgan Case lost to Louise Taylor 4:7 7:5 5:7
David King (SCCC) lost to Nick Furse (Merton) 4:7 7:5 5:7
David King lost to Simon Emdin (Merton) 6:7 6:7
Mike Kavannah (SCCC) beat Simon Emdin 7:4 7:4
Mike Kavannah beat Nick Furse 7:2 7:2

Cheltenham Golf Croquet Championship (Ascot Cup Qualifier)

by Kevin Ham at Cheltenham [^]
3 Jun 2018 (Golf Croquet Championships)

The Cheltenham round of the Ascot Cup was won by Harry Fisher in a final against Simon Carter 7-2, 5-7, 7-5.

Harry was a late entry, filling in for a late cancelation, taking the thirty second place with just three days to spare. There were eight blocks of four contesting the eight places in the knockout. The top seeds made it through as expected. The next four were not in line with the rankings with Jayne Stevens, Graham Good and Stuart Smith beating the odds.

There were no time limits, apart from a few games at the end of day in the in the consolation block. I had hoped the first game of the quarterfinals would be played on Saturday. It was not to be and they started at nine o'clock on Sunday. The semi finals started at noon with the top seeds playing. The final started at three. It was a managers delight going to three games but it was over in two hours. The lawns at Cheltenham are a delight to play on, flat and the hoops were firm. The weather was sunny with some dark and white clouds. On Saturday we were distracted by some loud jets on afterburn, there was also a black plane with a distinctive twin rudder, a Lancaster.

My thanks to Jay Dyer, who was a non playing ROT, and my particular thanks to Dawn Bentley, who acted as my scribe on both days.

David Maugham won the Bowdon Advanced Weekend

Miranda Chapman (Photo: John Lucas)

The Bowdon Advanced Weekend (2-3 June 2018) was won by David Maugham, who beat Jose Riva in the final -22sxp, +18tp, +14, -26, +8.

The consolation Swiss was won by David Walters.

Surbiton won the SECF Team Handicap AC One-Ball

Canterbury CC Chairman Henry Bryant presents Martin Pulsford, Trudi Pulsford, and Charlie Sturge.

'Canterbury?' said a doubtful voice from the capital, when an SECF team handicap one-ball croquet tournament was first discussed, 'Not sure how many will want to travel to Canterbury. For one-ball?'

Playing association croquet with one ball is a white-knuckle ride, and not for the faint-hearted. In the normal game, if something goes wrong you have other balls to hit, but in this version there's only your opponent's. One slip - and a knife is at your throat. For a niche variant of a niche sport, however, it is suddenly becoming popular. GC players find it less complicated than full AC, a game takes only half an hour, and a fun tournament can be held in a day. That was what Canterbury had offered to host. With three new laser-levelled lawns, a sylvan valley view and a smart clubhouse, they wanted to make a mark. And they did.

Teams materialised from Ramsgate, Tunbridge Wells, Reigate and Surbiton, so with two local sides the lists were soon full. On the day, the sun shone, the sylvan valley shimmered, there was a cooked ham from Hedger's of Canterbury, and a champagne toast to the CA for helping buy a lawnmower. On the killing fields, Tunbridge Wells and the hosts were soon stacking up corpses: Ramsgate provided some star turns, such as a prizewinning seven-hoop break from Christina Rice; but Reigate and Surbiton kept a steady head, using their handicaps well, and in the end it was Martin Pulsford, Surbiton's original doubting Thomas, who took home the champagne bucket trophy and six bottles of wine. In a gracious acceptance speech he said that East Kent had been well worth the journey after all. He and his team would be back next year.

GC C-Level Tournament at Guildford and Godalming CC

A warm summer's day, 16 players and one of the new C level GC tournaments - what more could one want?

For some it was their first ever GC tournament and there was some apprehension as to how it would go. However the usual friendly spirit of croquet players won through and nerves settled for some competitive games.

The morning play provided a few surprises. Two of the competitors with high handicaps, Ken Hughes (10) and Diana Langridge (11) were among the top eight who went through to the knock out section of the competition.

Games continued to be fiercely fought but eventually it came down to the final two. Duncan Catterall (Sydenham CC) and Jan Honeysett (Guildford and Godalming CC) played in a close final game with Duncan eventually winning on the golden hoop.

An excellent start to the new C series so a big thank you to all those involved for making it such an enjoyable occasion.

Belsay Hall lost to Croquet Durham 3-4

by Andrew Carpenter at Belsay Hall [^]
8th June (Golf Croquet Inter-Club Shield)

Belsay Hall (3) lost to Croquet Durham (4)
Played at Belsay Hall 8/6/2018

Individual results (Belsay names first)

David Millener (2) and Hedley Parker (3) lost to Andrew Carpenter (2) and Peter Tymms (3) 2-7 7-4 4-7
Derek Johnson (4) beat Ken Wilson (11) 7-4 7-4
Robert Nixon (4) lost to Dave Parsons (4) 6-7 7-1 5-7

David Millener lost to Andrew Carpenter 5-7 4-7
Hedley Parker lost to Peter Tymms 6-7 6-7
Derek Johnson beat Dave Parsons 7-6 7-6
Robert Nixon beat Ken Wilson 7-1 7-6

Men's & Women's Player Information

by David Maugham at Budleigh CC [^]
7th June (Championships)

The Mixed Doubles is a block followed by a final (or bigger KO in the case of ties). 2.5 hour time limits to fit (at least) 4 games in on Wednesday, then 2 more rounds on Thursday and the last round on Friday. KO games on Saturday and Sunday.

The Men's is Bo3/Bo5 Super Advanced. Given the entry, I am only planning on playing one round a day. The first round will be Bo3 to allow for the Mixed Doubles.

The Women's will be a block followed by a knockout. 1 round on Thursday (followed by the aforementioned Mixed Doubles), 3 on Friday, then the final round on Saturday, followed by a bo3 final on Sunday

Stephen & Alain will not be needed Thursday morning. Mark Suter won't be needed at all on Thursday, although there will be Du Pre games after the first round KO is finished.

Alison Jones and David Maugham Win The Mixed Doubles Championship

by David Maugham at Budleigh CC [^]
13-17 Jun 2018 (Championships)

last updated at 19:03 on 18/06/18

Louise Bradforth Wins The Women's Championship

by David Maugham at Budleigh CC [^]
13-17 Jun 2018 (Championships)

last updated at 19:03 on 18/06/18

James Death Wins The Men's Championship

by David Maugham at Budleigh CC [^]
13-17 Jun 2018 (Championships)

last updated at 19:03 on 18/06/18

Hunstanton lost to Letchworth 3-4

by David Boxell at Hunstanton [^]
5 Jun 2018 (Golf Croquet Inter-Club)

HUNSTANTON LETCHWORTH

Duncan Hector -1 Nick Mounfield -3
David Thirtle-Watts 1 John Noble -1
Noel Gill 4 John Skingsley 1
David Boxell 6 Jeremy Scott 2

Round 1 Lawn Game 1 Game 2 Game 3 Result
Duncan/David v Nick/John N 5 .7/4 .7/4 x H
Noel Gill v Jeremy Scott 4 .7/4 .6/7 .7/4 H
David Boxell v John Skingsley 2 .5/7 .5/7 x L
Round 2
Duncan Hector v Nick Mounfield 4 .2/7 .5/7 x L
David Thirtle-Watts v John Noble 2 .5/7 .6/7 x L
Noel Gill v John Skingsley 1 .7/3 .2/7 .7/6 H
David Boxell v Jeremy Scott 5 .6/7 .6/7 x L

Hunstanton 3 Letchworth 4

Watford beat Camerton & Peasedown 4-3

by Roger Nicholls at Watford [^]
5 Jun 2018 (Golf Croquet Inter-Club Shield)

GC Inter-Club (Murphy) Shield
Watford vs Camerton & Peasedown
5th June 2018 at Watford
Result: Watford beat Camerton & Peasedown 4-3

Teams & handicaps:
Watford:
Brian Havill (2)
Anne Dennis (5)
Robin Barry (7)
Andre Machell (8)

Camerton & Peasedown:
Maureen Boys (2)
Rosalind Key-Pugh (3)
Robin Oldland (4)
Patrick Knight (6)

Scores (Watford names first):

Brian Havill & Anne Dennis beat Maureen Boys & Rosalind Key-Pugh 7-6, 6-7, 7-6
Robin Barry beat Patrick Knight 7-6, 7-5
Andre Machell beat Robin Oldland 7-6, 7-4

Brian Havill beat Maureen Boys 7-5, 5-7, 7-4
Anne Dennis lost to Rosalind Key-Pugh 7-6, 5-7, 6-7
Robin Barry lost to Robin Oldland 2-7, 7-6, 4-7
Andre Machell lost to Patrick Knight 7-3, 5-7, 4-7

Blewbury lost to Bristol 3-4

by Eric Soakell at Blewbury [^]
5th June (Longman Cup)

GC Home Internationals Team Announced

by Martin French [^]
3rd June (CA Official News)

The GC Selectors have chosen the following team to represent England in the 2018 Home Internationals:

• J-P Moberly (Captain)
• Jonathan Powe
• Rachel Gee
• Tobi Savage

Three reserves have been selected too, in the following order:

1. Harry Fisher
2. Tim King
3. Nick Archer.

We wish the England team well in the Home Internationals.

I apolgise for this announcement being late - entirely my error.

Martin French

chairman

GC Selectors

Wrest Park beat Letchworth 5-2

by John Bevington at Wrest Park [^]
2 Jun 2018 (Mary Rose)

Mary Rose 2018
Saturday 2 June at Wrest Park
Wrest Park beat Letchworth 5-2

Bryan Harral (0) & George Collin (1.5) beat David Tutt (0.5) & Keith Rhodes (2.5) +9
John Bevington (1.5) beat Heather Bennett (3.5) +9
David Morgans (3.5) beat Ian Mantle (3) +21

Bryan Harral beat David Tutt +18
George Collin beat Keith Rhodes +16
John Bevington lost to Ian Mantle -16
David Morgans lost to Heather Bennett -16

David Morgans, a new member having moved south from Shropshire, got things started with a win against Ian Mantle. Wrest Park won the doubles and went into lunch 3-0 up after John Bevington, on rover and peg, was able to take advantage of a rare but expensive miss from Heather after 2-back, conceding a lift with the balls usefully placed.

The top singles had moments to savour. David Tutt opened with white to corner 4. Bryan played pink (!) and went off the south boundary just east of A baulk. David then took croquet from the replaced correct ball, turning down the rush on offer. George, who had been hitting everything, had black on peg and was using it to try an angled penult peel on blue. Red was near the peg. The peel attempt put blue into the jaws of penult (OK so far), but black carried on to roquet red. This would have been all very well but for the fact that the roquet had been made via the peg.

David had been warned about Heather's accuracy but it didn't help him, and John exhausted the repertoire of unforced errors when he played the wrong ball at very much the wrong time.

Weather: a glorious second of June. Lunch and tea: Sharman Harral did us proud.

Colchester lost to Bristol 3-6

by Richard M Smith at Colchester [^]
2nd June (Inter-Club)

1 Fulford & Burridge beat Goacher & Smith +26tp
2 Dave Kibble beat Michael Heap +15
3 Ian Burridge beat Richard M Smith +9tpo
4 Robert Wilkinson beat Jonathan Hills +2
5 Robert Fulford beat David Goacher +20tp
6 Dave Kibble beat Jonathan Hills +26tp
7 Robert Wilkinson beat Michael Heap +25
8 Richard M Smith beat Robert Fulford +19tp
9 David Goacher beat Ian Burridge +26

Surrey won the 2018 Inter-County Championship

by Sam Murray at Sussex County and Compton [^]
29 May 2018 (Championships)

Surrey won the 2018 Inter-County Championship, winning every match.

The Channel Islands, Glamorgan, and Gloucestershire were relegated from division one.

Dorset won division two, and were promoted along with Oxforshire and Suffolk.

Match results on CroquetScores.com

Wrest Park GC C-Level Tournament (National Series)

by Richard Keighley at Wrest Park [^]
23 May 2018 (Golf Croquet)

A full complement of 16 players with handicaps ranging from 7 to 14 assembled in cool and breezy conditions to take part in this new tournament. Local interest was provided by Terry Collis and Chris Harrison, and Tracy Martin (Letchworth) and welcome groups from Northampton and Wingrave made up the numbers.

In the morning block play Tracy, Chris and Ann Udall (Northampton) each won all their games and Terry edged his block on hoop count. They were joined in the knockout stage by Gail Dowd and Vivienne Heard (both of Northampton) and Karen Gray and Christine Skidmore (both of Wingrave).

In the quarter finals, the form book prevailed with success for Tracy against Vivienne (7-5) and Chris against Gail (7-2). However, Ann had a good tussle against Christine (7-6) and Terry needed all his experience to beat Karen (7-5). In the semi-finals, local interest ceased with good wins by Tracy over Terry (7-5) and Ann over Chris (7-4).

The Final between Tracy and Ann turned into a classic with each hoop being closely contested. Inevitably, the 13th hoop was required to produce a winner. Ann eventually left a tap in, but was thwarted by a long clearance through the back of the hoop by Tracy, which left her own ball poised for a victory which she duly secured.

In the Plate competition, an all-Wingrave Final also produced a nail-biting finish with a win for Jill Branham against Bev Reekes (7-6).

Finishing Order:

Tracy Martin

Ann Udall

Chris Harrison

Terrence Collis

Nottingham beat Newport 5-2

by Mark Lansdale at Nottingham [^]
30 May 2018 (Longman Cup)

Overall: Nottingham won 5-2.

Details:

Staley (12) & Beaumont (11) vs Potter (6) & Haslam (20) Notts win 26-20
Lansdale (14) vs van Essen (5) Newport win 26-16
McIntyre (14) vs Yellar (10) Notts win 26-4
Lansdale (14) vs Potter (6) Notts win 26-1
McIntyre (14) vs Haslam (20) Notts win 26-15
Beaumont (11) vs van Essen (5) Newport win 26-17
Staley (12) vs Yellar (10) Notts win 26-13

Chester beat Bury 5-2

by John Dawson at Unknown - not stated [^]
30 May 2018 (Longman Cup)

Chester beat Bury 5-2. The morning was a clean sweep for Chester though
by a very narrow margin in the two singles (John Dawson + 4 over Margaret
Eccles and Paul Taylor + 3 over Margaret Anderton) . The weather turned
grim in the afternoon and play became much more variable. John Dawson
had an early win over Ken Anderton but the other three singles went the
full distance. David Guyton ground out a solid win ( +6) over Margaret
Anderton but Phil Nuttall (last year's All England AC handicap
champion) hit another golden streak in the second half of his match with
Paul Watson to record a +11 victory for Bury. Similarly Margaret Eccles
took her revenge on Chester as she defeated Paul Taylor by + 7 despite
giving away 8 bisques.

In short a closely contested match in some pretty difficult conditions

Watford beat High Wycombe 5-2

by Simon Hathrell at Watford [^]
30 May 2018 (Secretary's Shield)

Secretary's Shield
Watford vs High Wycombe
30th May 2018 at Watford
Result: Watford beat High Wycombe 5-2

Teams & handicaps:
Watford:
Alan Clark (1)
Nick Archer (2)
John Smallbone (4.5)
Adam Huby (8)

High Wycombe:
Mike Porter (1.5)
Keith Pound (5)
Richard Peperell (7)
Geoff Youd (14)

Scores (Watford names first):

Alan Clark & Nick Archer beat Mike Porter & Keith Pound +14
John Smallbone beat Geoff Youd +7
Adam Huby beat Richard Peperell +2(T)

Alan Clark lost to Mike Porter -19
Nick Archer lost to Keith Pound -5
John Smallbone beat Richard Peperell +9(T)
Adam Huby beat Geoff Youd +13(T)

The most exciting finish was in the game between Nick Archer and Keith Pound,in which Keith reached peg and box while Nick was still for hoops 1 and 2. But it wasn't until Nick had reached penult and rover that Keith finally managed to hit in and peg out his second ball.

Pendle lost to Bowdon 3-4

by Will Mellor at Pendle [^]
27 May 2018 (Longman Cup)

Bath beat East Dorset 4-3

by Paul Francis at Unknown - not supplied [^]
28 May 2018 (Longman Cup)

Sussex beat Woking 5-2

by Roger Sutton at Sussex County [^]
25 May 2018 (Golf Croquet Inter-Club)

Ian Cobbold beat Andrew Dutton 7 3
Ian Cobbold beat Andrew Dutton 7 4
Barry Huxley beat Roger Sutton 7 5
Roger Sutton beat Barry Huxley 7 2
Barry Huxley beat Roger Sutton 7 5
Mike Town beat Richard Brooks 7 4
Richard Brooks beat Mike Town 7 4
Mike Town beat Richard Brooks 7 5
Liz Farrow beat Bernard Jones 7 6
Liz Farrow beat Bernard Jones 7 3
Ian Cobbold beat Barry Huxley 7 6
Ian Cobbold beat Barry Huxley 7 3
Andrew Dutton beat Roger Sutton 7 5
Roger Sutton beat Andrew Dutton 7 5
Roger Sutton beat Andrew Dutton 7 6

Rachel Gee won the European GC Championship

by Stephen Mulliner at Budleigh Salterton [^]
28th May (Championships)

Rachel Gee came from behind in the final to defeat Pierre Beaudry (BEL) by 3-7, 7-4, 7-5 to win the 2018 European GC Championship. Rachel had previously won the title in 2014. The Championship was full of surprises.

Based on recent form, the likely semi-finalists were the block winners, Andres Alvarez-Sala (ESP), Stephen Mulliner (ENG), Harry Dodge (ENG) and Ian Burridge (WAL), all of whom had won all seven of their block matches. In the event, not one of these four made it that far.

In the KO first round, Ian Burridge met the young Spaniard, Andres De Diego, in superb shooting and hoop-running form and lost 6-7, 7-2, 3-7. In the quarter-finals, Andres Alvarez-Sala lost to his fellow-countryman, Rafael Romero, 3-7, 7-5, 5-7 while Pierre Beaudry found his most inspired form to beat Harry Dodge 4-7, 7-2, 7-4. The young Irishman, Mark Stephens, who had played so well in the 2017 EGCC in Spain, beat Stephen Mulliner in a game 3 hoop 13 thriller by 7-4, 5-7, 7-6 to the dramatic accompaniment of a rapidly approaching thunderstorm.

All the while, Rachel Gee made quiet, steady progress and beat Andres De Diego in straight games to reach the semi-finals. These were less dramatic than the quarters and Rachel and Pierre defeated Rafael and Mark in two games.

The final began with Pierre in prime form and he soon took the opening game 7-3 and led 3-2 in the second. Rachel now rallied and squared the match 7-4. Pierre made an even better start in the decider and led 4-2. However, a long hoop 7 and long clearances before 8 and before 9 combined to turn the game and match in Rachel's favour.

It was an excellent performance under pressure and a very well-deserved victory. The club was very warmly thanked for its enthusiastic welcome and hospitality and the excellent state of the courts.

Availability Opened for the 2019 WCF Womens GC World Championship

by Martin French at Hawkes Bay area, New Zealand [^]
28th May (World Championship)

Availability is now open and closes on 22nd July 2018, for any woman member who would like to be considered for a England place in the WCF Womens GC World Championship, from 2nd to 9th February 2019, in New Zealand. The event entry has more details, including a link to the WCF web page about the event.

Martin French

CA GC Selectors

Data Privacy Notice Published

by Dr Ian Vincent [^]
24th May (CA Official News)

One of the biggest changes to UK data privacy law becomes effective on 25 May 2018. The General Data Protection Regulation ("GDPR"), is a positive step towards giving you more control over how your data is used. The changes should also help to better protect your personal data.

The new regulation supports your right to have your privacy respected and your data protected. It is designed to give you confidence that the personal information we hold about you is accurate, up to date and well managed and to give you easier access to it if you wish to check or change it.

As part of its continuing work to comply with the GDPR, the CA has published a Data Privacy Notice giving the conditions under which it processes personal data.

Bryan Harral won the Wrest Park AC Handicap Tournament

Mel Christie of Northampton in play

Bryan Harral won the Wrest Park AC Handicap Tournament held on 19-20 May

The tournament was won by Bryan Harral, who had the lowest handicap, played the most games and won them all. A second prize was awarded to Jonathan Lambton who had the highest net points score of +72 from five games.

The 15 entries were evenly spread on handicap from 0 to 20, and manager Eric Audsley did his best to avoid the seven home members having to play each other. Our thanks to Tim and Gill Brewer for lunches and teas, and to whatever natural forces brought us such warm and sunny weather.

Bryan Harral (0) 6/6

Jonathan Lambton (8), Keith Harker (7), Robert Skeen (6) 4/5

Geoff Strutt (9), Tony Elliott (6) 3/5

Richard Keighley (14), John Bevington (1.5) 2/5

Andre Machell (7), Eric Audsley (2) 2/4

Mel Christie (20), Peter Aspinall (10), David Gillett (6), George Woolhouse (2.5), George Collin (1) 1/5

CA GC Grass Roots Qualifier at Hunstanton

by David Boxall at Hunstanton [^]
24th May (Golf Croquet)

Susan Debenham won the Hunstanton round of the CA's GC Grass Roots Level Play Tournament held on Thursday 24 May 2018. The day started overcast and was relieved by sunny spells, but with a cold wind. There were 8 entrants and play was organised in 7 rounds of 13 point games on an All Play All basis. During the third round one of the players withdrew from the tournament. After seeking advice from the CA's Grass Roots Manager, those games already played were excluded from the calculation of the overall results.

The final position was as follows:

1st SUSAN DEBENHAM (8)
2nd ROS ETHERIDGE (11)
3rd JANET CARPENTER (9)
4th CHRISTINE THIRTLE-WATTS (10)
5th GWENDA MACKENZIE (12)
6th SUSAN BOXELL (10)
7th JANET KENDAL (12)
8th ANNE GILL (14) (withdrew)

Our congratulations to everyone for a good day's play. Bath awaits the winner on Sunday 9th September 2018 for the National Final. Best wishes to Susan Debenham and hopefully also to Ros Etheridge.

Pendle & Craven Croquet Club B-Level Golf Croquet Tournament

by David Lloyd [^]
19 May 2018 (Golf Croquet)

On a scorching hot day, the round robin for the Pendle B level golf tournament was played, all players played 'in the spirit of the game' - the croquet was excellent with many fine clearance shots being played, but as the grass dried, hoop approaches just continued rolling! Finesse was at a premium - a delicate sense of pace was required. David Lloyd was the clear winner and will be playing in the final at Camerton and Peasedown in October.

Watford lost to Letchworth 3-4

by Keith Rhodes at Watford [^]
23 May 2018 (Longman Cup)

Letchworth beat Watford 4-3 in the Longman Cup at Watford on Wednesday 23 May.
Letchworth names first

Morning:
Jeremy Scott and Colin Davies lost to John Smallbone and Robin Harold-Parry -21
Martin King beat Adam Huby +4 (T)
John Hall beat Mark Homan +8

Afternoon:
Jeremy Scott lost to John Smallbone -15
Colin Davies beat Mark Homan +2
John Hall lost to Adam Huby -5 (T)
Martin King beat Robin Harold-Parry +2 (T)

Dulwich beat Camerton & Peasedown 6-1

by Simon Carter at Dulwich [^]
16 May 2018 (Golf Croquet Inter-Club)

We gave our guests our legendary hearty Dulwich lunch and then rattled off the singles. These went to form with Dulwich claiming four out of four, all in straight games. It has to be said that Colin gave Pierre a scare on the 13th in their second, and only some very crafty split cannon clearing from Pierre saved that game.

Final result Dulwich 6 Peasedown 1.

Hurlingham lost to Woking 0-7

by Alan Edwards at Hurlingham [^]
22 May 2018 (Mary Rose)

Woking beat Hurlingham 7-0
played at Hurlingham on 22th May 2018
reported by Alan Edwards

Woking names first
Alan Edwards & Nick Harvey beat Alan Chance & Andrew Wise by +11
Andrew Dutton beat Veronica Carlisle by +26
Ian Anderson beat Hugh Carlisle by +9

Nick Harvey beat Andrew Wise by +26
Alan Edwards beat Alan Chance by +10
Andrew Dutton beat Hugh Carlisle by +25
Ian Anderson beat Veronica Carlisle by +14

2018 AC Development Squad Selection Announcement

by Alison Jones [^]
22nd May (CA Official News)

Congratulations to the following selected 12 players who will form the AC Development Squad 2018

Andrew Dutton
Andrew Willis
Cesar Miranda-Reyes
Chris Coull
Chris O'Byrne
Craig Winfield
Daniel Gott
Dave Gunn
John-Paul Moberly
Mark Van Loon
Sarah Melvin
Tobi Savage

These players have shown significant improvement and dedication to improving their game in the last twelve months, where their achievements and potential have been recognised, and sonominated for a place in the development squad. The squad has been selected in agreement with myself, Lead Coach David Maugham and the CA Selection Committee Chair.

Alison Jones

AC International Performance Director

Croquet Association

Southport beat Crake 6-1

by John Haslam at Unknown - not supplied [^]
22nd May (Longman Cup)

New GC Grade 3 Elite Coaches Announced

by Mark Suter [CA Manager] [^]
21st May (CA Official News)

We are pleased to announce the appointment by the CA Coaching Committee of 2 further GC Grade 3 Elite Coaches as follows:-

• Chris Clarke
• Dr Jenny Clarke

Congratulations to you both.

Sarah Hayes Won The Bernard Neal Challenge

by David Foulser [^]
21st May (Level-Play Tournaments)

Bernard Neal Challenge - Advanced Weekend - Cheltenham 19-20 May

A sun-baked Saturday morning at Cheltenham Croquet Club, and a draw of 36 entrants, saw a couple of major upsets with the number one and four seeds bowing out of the competition in the first round. The holder and number one seed, Mark Suter was knocked out by an in-form Dave Gunn +10 on time. Whilst Robert Wilkinson, seeded fourth, was defeated by local member and tournament Manager David Foulser +26, in an error-free match. Another local member who was impressive was Wendy Wu, in her first ever A-class event; she sailed through to the quarter-finals. Wendy is rapidly improving her croquet skills, and is definitely one to watch out for in the future. As expected, number 2 and 3 seeds, Chris Williams and Sarah Hayes respectively, romped through to the semi-finals fairly comfortably.

Sunday saw more glorious sunshine as the temperatures rose to a comfortable 23 degrees. In the semi-finals, Sarah defeated Chris +22 and David beat Louise Bradforth +17. The final saw old Cheltenham rivals, Sarah and David, go to battle; however, Sarah who was described by some spectators as a 'machine', put on a clinical performance and beat David +25. Overall the conditions were inconsistent between all the 9 lawns.

Some lawns were very quick and some more easy-paced. This saw very few peeling turns and only Robert Wilkinson and Mark Suter finishing the event with 2 TPs each. One of Robert's TPs was against Mark in the final of the plate where Robert put on an excellent performance and completed his TP with a very well controlled turn to win the plate. For full results, please see croquetscores.com.

European AC Championship, Stavstorp, Sweden 17-19 August 2018

by Mark Suter [CA Manager] at Stavstorp, Sweden [^]
21st May (International)

Following the passing of the Closing Date on 20 May 2018, the following players have been awarded places:

Holder: Jose Riva (Spain)

Runner-up: Duncan Reeve (Scotland)

Membership Places

• Bruno Hess (Germany)
• David Houston (Scotland)
• Stephen Mulliner (England)
• Steinar Olsen (Norway)
• Roberts Stafeckis (Latvia)
• Anton Varnas (Sweden)
• Rich Waterman (Wales)

Ranking Places

• Mark Suter (England)
• Robin Brown (England)
• Wolfgang Usbeck (Germany)
• Joern Vinnen (Germany)

David Maugham won the Western Championship for the 7th time

David Maugham receives the trophy from Alison Jones.

Thirteen of us gathered for the Western Championship, played over 3 days (18-20 May) in glorious sunshine at East Dorset. The lawns have been much improved in recent months due to the sterling efforts of the excellent new groundsman Robin Wilcox, and so were in tip-top condition for the weekend. And the hoops were pretty tight - indeed slightly too tight as a couple of balls got jammed on the first day. With the cafe now in new hands, East Dorset is once again a first-class venue for top-quality croquet.

The top 4 seeds were Stephen Mulliner, David Maugham, Christian Carter and Duncan Reeve, who were joined by 5 East Dorset locals - Anthony Dix, David Harrison-Wood, David Kendrick, Jonathan Powe and Tom Weston - plus Andy Myers, Andrew Killick, Alison Jones and Richard H Smith.

In the semi-finals, Stephen Mulliner beat Jonathan Powe +1, +18qp and David Maugham beat Christian Carter +8, +16. So it was Stephen Mulliner and David Maugham who fought out the 9½-hour, best-of-5 final on Sunday. The first game saw quite a bit of interaction, but Stephen eventually got control of all 4 balls and made a very tidy standard triple to take the game +14tp (1-0). In the second, David pegged out one of Stephen's balls to leave himself on peg and 2-back against Stephen on 3-back and box. After some lengthy cat-and-mouse games, Stephen finally ran rover and pegged out from 10 yards to win +3 (2-0). Game 3 also concluded with a 3-ball finish, this time with David on 4-back and box, and Stephen on 1 and peg, which David won +4 (2-1). In the 4th game, Stephen did a tpo, leaving himself on peg and 1-back against David on 3 and box for another 3-ball finish. Stephen made one hoop but left David a 25-yard double, which he duly hit and finished +7otp to take the match to the decider (2-2). In the final game, Stephen made a 5th turn break to 4-back. After some interaction following the contact, David did a tpo and managed one pop to leave himself on peg and 1 against Stephen on 2 and box. After more toing and froing, David laid up in C2 with Stephen in C4. Stephen took the shot, missed, and David played a very controlled 3-ball break from hoop 1 to the peg to win the Westerns for the 7th time. Many congratulations to him.

Duncan Reeve took the Plate, beating Andy Myers in the final +26tp.

Mark Avery won the Newport Open Weekend

by Andrew Gregory at Newport [^]
20th May (Level-Play Tournaments)

Mark Avery won the Newport Open Weekend, defeating Nick Mounfield in a best-of-2 final. He thus retains the Donald Cornelius trophy

A full complement of fifteen players gathered, including three affiliated to Cambridge University, which has a mutually beneficial association with the Club. Handicaps were spread from -2 to 3.5, and there were quite a few close games. The lawns were nicely quick, with interesting patches. 16 out of 47 games were decided by Triple Peels - Avery had 6, the Lineseses 3 each.

No real incident to report - just excellent weather, good pub meal, friendly company. An agreeable weekend.

Full results at croquetscores

Colchester Spring Weekend Handicap tournament

Debutant Ellen Thompson (Photo: Sam Murray)

Paul Hetherington won the singles event (The John Foreman cup). Jeff Farrington & Ron Atkinson won the doubles at Colchester Croquet club.

The format was one full day of doubles, followed by 2 days playing singles.

Six pairs took part in the doubles, playing fourteen point games, with a time limit of one and a half hours. Five games were played, each pair playing all others. It was a tightly packed schedule, but we managed to squeeze in a delicious lunch and some cake for tea. Colin Hemming and Rob Waites won their first game, the other four ended in a draw. It was a close contest throughout the day, but for the second year running, the trophies were won by Ron Atkinson and Jeff Farrington.

Sixteen competitors entered the singles with handicaps ranging from minus one and a half to 18. The format was flexible Swiss handicap to the base 10. Ellen Thompson (alias Mrs. T-shirt) played in her first tournament, and managed to win one game in spite of playing off 18 instead of her present handicap of 22. Three players ended the day on 80%, but as Paul had beaten Rich and Neil decided not to play any more games, the trophy was won by Paul Hetherington.

The sun shone throughout the three days and an enjoyable time was had by all. Good food and drink, and excellent company.

Results

Singles

1st Paul Hetherington 80%

2nd = Neil Chalmers & Rich Waterman 80%

Doubles

1st Jeff Farrington & Ron Atkinson 1 draw 3 wins

2nd Colin Hemming & Rob Waites 3 wins

3rd = Georgeen Hemming & Bernard Yallop 1 draw 2 wins

Nick Steiner & Paul Hetherington

Ashby beat Church Stretton 4-3

by Arthur Rowe at Ashby [^]
19 May 2018 (Secretary's Shield)

Church Stretton, making their first appearance in the Secretary's Shield, travelled to Ashby on a gloriously sunny day to play this match. The lawn conditions were unusual, with brown but slowish lawns and very firm hoops in the hard dry ground. Will Gee & Arthur Rowe made short work of the doubles in the morning, and the singles games were shared with wins for Ashby's Adam Wheatley and Church Stretton's John Wilkins on time.
In the afternoon, Will was again the only player to finish, with the other games going to time. John Knowles played some nice croquet against Arthur to secure a second win for Church Stretton, but Adam Wheatley got the 4th win for Ashby. George James beat Richard Sanville making it 4-3 to Ashby.

(Ashby names first)

Will Gee (-1) & Arthur Rowe (3) beat Brian Christmas (3) and John Knowles (9) +19
Richard Sanville (8) lost to John Wilkins (12) -1T
Adam Wheatley (18) beat George James (11) +7T

Will Gee beat Brian Christmas +16
Arthur Rowe lost to John Knowles -8T
Richard Sanville lost to George James -9T
Adam Wheatley beat John Wilkins +9T

CA England Membership Places for the WCF Over 50s GCWC this October

by Martin French at Cairo, Egypt [^]
19th May (World Championship)

The two ENG Membership Places have been awarded to Andrew Dymond and Roger Goldring. Six England players have already secured Ranking Places: Stephen Mulliner, Jonathan Powe, Tim King, Stephen Custance-Baker, David Widdison, and Peter Dowd.

Martin French

chairman

CA GC Selectors

CA Young Person Sponsorship Scheme

by Roger Staples [^]
24th April (CA Official News)

The CA has created a sponsorship scheme to encourage clubs to attract young people into the sport.

Roger Staples, Chairman, Development Committee

Welcome New Members

by Alison Jones [^]
23rd February (CA Official News)

The Croquet Association extends a special welcome to our new Standard Members.

The welcome page tells you about logging into the members' area.