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Full House for last Croquet Event

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Pendle Short Croquet Tournament 11th October 2020

Neil Adams Winner of the new Pendle Short Tournament

Pendle & Craven Croquet Club hosted the new ‘End of Season Short 14pt’ yesterday and became the only place in the country where competitive croquet was being played. Players collected in Earby to contest the last tournament of the year.. well maybe. Watch this space…

The club was nearly at maximum capacity with eight half lawns laid in new holes for this single day (reduced to such as a nod to C-19, no need for hotels).

Players split into two All-play-All blocks and then into KO for final placings.

It might have been a tournament, but the player atmosphere matched the weather; bright, sunny & cheerful, played in great humour & fun!

With all games being untimed, play started promptly at 9:30 and finished just before we ran out of light!

And that was only possible by eschewing the planned Semi-finals and playing the top block winners against each other to sort a winner with Block runner’s up facing each other for 3rd/4th slot.

New tournament = new winner = Neil Adams from Lorna Dewar with John Henderson taking 3rd from Tom Dewar.

One Player comment on the day; “It really was a fabulous day and so helpful and uplifting” – nuff said!

Riggey Wins Millenium LPG but Trophy in Lockdown

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Federation Millenium Level Play Golf Croquet – Pendle, 10 October 2020

Fed Millenium LPG Winner Paul Rigge

The only place in the country where competitive croquet was being played this deep into the autumn, yeap, Pendle & Craven Croquet Club. They hosted the Millennium Level play Golf Croquet after Bury decided to hand the opportunity over.

With the pandemic raging again & infection numbers rising across the NW (and indeed the whole UK), croquet players collected in Earby to contest the last of the Federation’s own tournaments.

Fresh hoop holes on all the courts, tight match play hoops, stop boards, plus all the Covid paraphernalia (‘owned’ chairs, one way systems, hand/ball/clip wipes…..etc) were laid on by the Pendle and Craven Croquet club – again setting the standard in preparation for which it is so well known.

Format for the single day (reduced to such as a nod to C-19, no need for hotels) was Block play with each round being 19pt. Some really hard fought games were viewed and enjoyed by the few spectators present. Mention must be made of two players, one from Fylde & the other from Westmorland – both playing in their very first Croquet Tournaments – exactly typifying why these events are promoted by your Federation, to give a gentle ‘open door’ to this world with and against your mates. What a great fun day in bright sunshine was enjoyed by all.

So saying that, it was a tournament, so there must be a winner – this year’s Champion; Paul Rigge. (seen in the picture NOT holding the trophy – that is still in total Covid Lockdown elsewhere). 

Millenium LPG at Pendle

Storm Ellen Defeated by Croquet Millenium

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NW Federation Millennium AC Advanced
21/22 August 2020 at Pendle & Craven Croquet Club

Sixteen players, sent by their clubs in the NW Federation to compete in this, the ‘Local Friendly Advanced Tournament’ against the people they meet in the local league teams…well that’s the idea anyway.

What we actually got was only fifteen competitors – one had to withdraw at 4am Saturday morning due to Government Covid Lockdown being slapped onto his borough but the rest were all desperate to play some competitive Advanced Croquet this year. The morning also brought other surprises – Storm ‘Ellen’ had ripped & shredded the Marquee into a heap, it was going to provide ‘socially distanced’ C-19 cover to the entries and two flooded lawns – plans of mice & men, etc.

With a mixture of multiple Cars & Sheds, sufficient rain shelter was available on a wet first day to comply with restrictions in place for the out-players. Play in the two stage blocks (A & B) progressed throughout the day as all four courts were restored to playable condition before noon. Dodging the showers by close on the first day ‘A’ flight had completed four rounds, with three credited to the ‘B’s.

Sunday brought brighter weather and the completion of the top flight’s all-play-all collimating in the ‘final’ between the two unbeaten contenders.

There can be only one winner and the ‘Neil Williams’ returns back to Bowdon in the happy hands of John-Paul Moberly this year.

JP Moberley receives the Millenium AC A Trophy from Paul Rigge

After Five rounds in the ‘B’, the only unbeaten player…Lorna Dewar.

Lorna Dewar receives the Millenium AC B Trophy from Paul Rigge with Manager Abdul Ahmad.

Thanks are due to the entire Pendle team for the successful hosting: Gill, Peter, Abdul & Riggey on Thursday. Abdul, Robin, Paul D & Riggey on Friday and of course Abdul for managing the players over the weekend.

Paul Rigge

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