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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  

New Croquet Flags and 900 Visitors

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More Than 900 Try Croquet at Countryfile Live

Tim King keeps Sandy Finchett-Maddock cool in the sun.
Tim King keeps Sandy Finchett-Maddock cool in the sun.

After last year’s successful debut the CA team returned to Countryfile Live at Blenheim Palace, Oxford. The four days (2 to 5 August) were baking hot, but that did not deter the visitors; most of the 120,000 plus visitors wandered past the lawn in the very centre of the show. Our counts show that over 900 people picked up a mallet and tried croquet (up from 800 last year); over 85 people left their contact details for Dave Gunn our Development Officer, to steer them towards clubs near their homes- (up from 65 last year) and others made direct contact with a CA volunteer who came from their local club.

Croquet at Countryfile Live (Photo: Alison Jones)
Croquet at Countryfile Live (Photo: Alison Jones)

We don’t think that we were on television this year, but Carol Kirkwood gave croquet a go and both she and Anita Rani gave a plug for croquet during the Q & A sessions in the Big Barn. The volunteers also did a great job passing out leaflets and chatting to passers-by: up-dating their knowledge of croquet and dispelling a few myths.It is always difficult to assess impact, but undoubtedly the public profile of croquet was raised and interest stimulated, which we hope will convert into people taking up croquet.

Eynsham club members waving the flag for the CA
Eynsham club members waving the flag for the CA

This year we trialled four new Sail Flags with the CA emblem on them to catch the attention of passers by and they were very useful. The flags are kept at Cheltenham and if any club wants to borrow them for use at their events, they are most welcome – Surbiton used them at the Solomon this week.

Interestingly, Countryfile Live has decided to have two shows next year – one at Blenheim and a second at Castle Howard in Yorkshire so I’ll be talking to our Northern colleagues about any potential interest in the latter.

Finally a big “thank you” to all the volunteers who stuck to their tasks in such roasting conditions, to Tony and Pat from Eynsham who did a great job making the lawn out of parkland and managed the setting up and dismantling of the site, to the Eynsham club and Klim Seabright for the loan of equipment and to Frances Colman who recruited the volunteers and managed the admin processes.

A very slow Croquet player at Chastleton churchyard near where the Laws of Croquet were formulated.
A very slow Croquet player at Chastleton churchyard near where the Laws of Croquet were formulated.

 

Chester players top Level Play Golf Tournament

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Gary Greenwood Retains Chester Level Play Golf Trophy (Chester GC – 0 + Cross Over Tournament 4/5 August 2018)

Competitors in the All England golf croquet tournament with local councillors, Razia Daniels and Neil Sullivan, who attended the event on the first day of the tournament

 

One of the Croquet Association’s national competitions for level play golf was hosted by Chester Croquet Club over the weekend of 4th and 5th August. Fourteen top class players from all over the country, including Ripon, Watford, Cheltenham and Bakewell, contested the Maggie Cowman trophy over the two days of play. Five Chester players joined the competition, Trevor Farrell, Chris Thomas, Jayne Taylor, Garry Greenwood and Roger Edwards.

The final match for the trophy was between two Chester players Garry Greenwood and Trevor Farrell. After an extremely close match the winner at 10-9 was defending champion Garry Greenwood who received the Maggie Cowman Trophy and a personal medal. The Chester Bowl for second place was won by Ann Brookes from Colchester, and Steve Marsh from Bakewell  won the Telford Plate.

David Guyton presented the trophies to the winners and thanked everyone for making it such a successful event for the third year in a row. David Crawford was manager of the tournament.

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