Croquet in the North West

North West Federation of Croquet Clubs - for everything Croquet in the north west

You are here: Home / Archives for News

Scorching Croquet at Crake

by

Cumbria Cup – Crake Croquet Club – 17/18 June 2017

Peter Wilson with the Cumbria Cup and players in the 2017 event

Only seven entries for the event this year, so Tom Griffith stood down as he had other commitments.  This led to an all-play-all format.  The croquet handicaps varied from 8 to -½.

There were some surprises along the way with Jim Alcock (5) nearly winning the event by beating Paul Rigge (-1/2) and Peter Wilson (1/2 ).  His downfall in the last game came against Dave Nick with one of his usual three ball endings. Many games finished with only two balls on the lawn and great fun was had by all.

The eventual winner on 4 wins was Peter Wilson with Paul Rigge runner-up on 4 wins but beaten by Peter.  Other competitors not mentioned in dispatches were Liz Wilson and David Lloyd. 

We were all ready for rain but came away scorched!  Thank you Crake for a great event.

Pendle Avoid Rain to Win at Ripon Spa

by

Golf Croquet Murphy Shield Pendle vs Ripon Spa 8th June 2017

Pendle and Ripon Golf Croquet players

The match originally to be held at Pendle and Craven Croquet club was moved to Ripon due to the heavy rainfall preceding the date. Pendle and Craven accepted Ripon’s offer to host the match to ensure it could be played before the cut off date. The teams were evenly matched with each side playing handicaps 2, 3, 3, and 6.

The teams were well prepared with full wet weather outfits for the torrential rain forecast. The mornings play commenced in heavy rain and high winds. Libby Dixon and Keith Terry contested the doubles match for Pendle vs Margaret Cowman and Freda Vitty for Ripon with Pendle winning 7-5, 1-7 and 7-3.

The singles were both close games. Paul Dowdall for Pendle winning over Gill Brent 7-4, 4-7 and 7-3 and Roger I’Anson for Ripon beating Will Drake 5-7, 7-4 and 7-5.

The afternoon singles play commenced in bright sunshine. Libby Dixon won her match against Margaret Cowman 7-4, 7-4, Freda Vitty beat Keith Terry 7-1, 7-6.  Paul Dowdall won his game against Roger I’Anson 7-5, 7-6 and lastly Gill Brent beat Will Drake 7-6, 7-6.

The outcome was a win for Pendle and Craven 4-3.

Libby Dixon thanked Fergus Thompson of the Ripon Spa hotel for the use of their croquet lawns and the afternoon tea they supplied.  Pendle look forward to progressing to the next round against Belsay Hall Croquet Club.

England Win Home Internationals at Southport Croquet

by

England Win Croquet Home Internationals – Southport 10/11 June 2017


Following heavy overnight rain, the start of this year’s Irish-hosted Home Internationals at Southport was delayed due to significant puddles on all five courts. Ongoing drizzle (with intervals of heavy showers) kept them topped up, so the usual all-play-all format was amended to a knockout format. The randomly drawn semi-finals were:  England v Wales and Ireland v Scotland

Play finally got underway at 11am on court 5, with court 4 becoming available later in the day. The wet conditions made some play heavy going, with one of the first matches being an eight-hour epic, which Jane Morrison won for Ireland (-5 +13 +23). A quick 13-minute TP in the fading light by Simon Williams over Campbell Morrison (+26 +23tp) gave Ireland their test win 3-1. (Martin Murray having won the single point for Scotland). The England/Wales test was further behind, with England having an overnight 1-0 lead (Christian Carter beat Garry McElwain +18 +18tp), and only one other game completed (James Hopgood leading Chris Williams +4)

There was no further rain overnight, and Sunday morning revealed three playable courts. This was enough to start all remaining first round matches. England won all games played against Wales, to win the test 3-0. At this point (~11am), all games in play were abandoned in order to start the next round. All five courts were now playable, so all 20 players were . Courts 2 and 3 had dried sufficiently for all matches to be started.

Final: Ireland v England
3rd/4th place play-off: Wales v Scotland

These two matches were one-sided affairs, with Scotland and Ireland winning only three games between them before Wales and England won their matches to take 3rd and 1st place respectively. Play finished at around 5pm, as initially planned, allowing everyone to stick to their travel plans and the manager to claim that everything had been under control all along. Danny Johnston, on behalf of the Hosts, Ireland, presented the Frank Cooper trophy to England Captain, David Maugham.


Full Results

Semi Final: England beat Wales 3-0
David Maugham led David Walters +26tp; Samir Patel led Ian Burridge +17 ;  James Hopgood beat Chris Williams +4 +17;  Mark Avery beat John Evans +26tp +16tp;  Christian Carter beat Garry McElwain +18 +18tp.

Semi Final: Ireland beat Scotland 3-1
Danny Johnston led Sam Murray +26;  Simon Williams beat Campbell Morrison +26 +26tp;  Andy Johnston beat David Magee +17 +26tp;  Evan Newell lost to Martin Murray -17 -10;  Jane Morrison beat Alan Wilson -5 +13 +23.

3rd/4th Place: Wales beat Scotland 3-0
David Walters trailed Sam Murray -17;  Ian Burridge beat Campbell Morrison +26tp +18;  Chris Williams beat David Magee +15 +19;  John Evans beat Martin Murray +25 +21;  Garry McElwain led Alan Wilson +20.

Final: England beat Ireland 4-1
David Maugham beat Danny Johnston +3 +17tp;  Samir Patel tied with Simon Williams +5 -11otp;  James Hopgood tied with Andy Johnston -17tp +17tp;  Mark Avery beat Evan Newell +17tp +25tp;  Christian Carter beat Jane Morrison +22tp +17tp.

Find a Category

Webmaster – Chris Alvey (webmaster@croquetnw.co.uk)