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UPDATED – Over the Hills for Victory Far Away

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Inaugural Yorkshire White Rose AC Tournament – York CC – 11/12 August 2018

Man in white goes multi-coloured – Paul Rigge

A single player from Lancashire travelled o’er the moor into Yorkshire to join t’others from Yorkshire, Tyneside, Nottingham, Anglia, Luxemburg & London – why?  To contest the “Inaugural Yorkshire White Rose AC Tournament” at York CC over the weekend (11/12 Aug).

Rain was expected..nay! in Yorkshire – God’s own County? Yeah, well it was forecast to be a wet weekend but not a drop fell on Saturday tix hours of play (9:15-20:55) but by the time we left the tournament dinner, the streets were moist with light drizzle. Overnight we moved into full down-pour mode but, wonder of wonders, it cleared up again before play resumed Sunday am, so we got away with another dry tournament this summer.

The welcome was typical White-Rose Northern and the friendly banter/chat was engaging all weekend, Good venue with unlimited tea & coffee (with Biccies & Cake) covered by the entry fee but marred slightly by limited or no parking nearby – plan carefully if you plan to visit.

A fun & welcome addition to the northern tournament scene – recommended, but book your place early.

Oh nearly forgot – the bloke from Lancashire won, but he was wearing white!

Callum Johnson

UPDATE FROM YORK BY PETER THOMPSON:

Paul Rigge won the inaugural Yorkshire AC Open Tournament at York Croquet Club, beating Callum Johnson in a closely-fought final.  At the end of Saturday’s play, three players, Paul, Callum and David Harrison-Wood, were leading the field, with Callum having already beaten Paul.  On Sunday, Paul and Callum both beat David, setting up a final between Paul and Callum with David winning the ‘plate’.

The final was an exciting affair, with both players hitting in well and playing accurate breaks without making mistakes.  At the end, Paul was unable to complete what would have been his third triple of the weekend, but pegged out two balls, leaving his remaining ball on rover and Callum’s on 4-back.  Callum missed a long roquet (for what seemed like the first time in the whole weekend) and Paul completed a tidy finish to win the trophy.

The tournament was fully subscribed with 13 entrants.  39 games were played and completed, with no time limits being necessary.  The three lawns at York were in good condition, but somewhat patchy as a consequence of the neo-drought conditions which had applied for the preceding four weeks.  There was a downpour on Saturday night, and the weather was threatening throughout Sunday, but it held off and the tournament was completed without anyone getting wet.  Some of the players and supporters participated in a convivial dinner at a local restaurant (Valentinos) on Saturday evening.

30 AUGUST – A REPORT OF THIS TOURNAMENT APPEARED ON THE CA WEBSITE – read more here  

Croquet Science of Team Building

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Croquet Corporate Event – Chancellors Hotel Manchester – 26 July

Bars, BBQ’s, Beech Chairs ‘n’ Balls – yes it’s another Corporate Croquet Event  brought to the NW by James Hawkins on behalf of the CA.

Fifty Five Physicists and Engineers from Manchester University wanted a team building ‘get to know you’ event so of course Croquet was deemed the way to enable new friendships to form across the scientific field divide –  clearly none had come across this sport before!

Three courts were created behind the hotel and battle (friendship) lines were drawn with four players thus assigned to each (usually 2 from each area), they were introduced to basic GC laws and allowed to ‘crack-on’, first pair to score 4 points *wins* match…. and another session/match..and another…etc. Many Rotations later, such was the intensity of the competition, that after one really bad ‘flubbed’ stroke, a player broke the offending mallet in frustration – and quickly offered to pay for the damage somewhat red faced.

After four hours of this play, most declared that Croquet was *Fun* – who knew?

Riggey

(who was also present)

2017 Croquet Nominations Sought

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Will your Club be Nominating Anyone ?

Applications are now invited for the Croquet Association Coach of the Year and The Lifetime Achievement Award.  The deadline for any submission should be with the CA Office by 31st January 2018.

Whilst applications can go straight to the CA Office, clubs may find it helpful to discuss their submission with Federation Chairman Paul Rigge beforehand.

2017 COTY and LAW CA Gazette

 

 

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