5+ Level play league Moreton-in-the-Marsh vs CPCC – Wednesday 29th April
On Wednesday 29th April the CPCC ‘A’ 5+ Level Play team travelled to Moreton-in-the-Marsh. It was a lovely sunny day although there was a stiff breeze blowing. The wind didn’t quite blow our mallets away but it certainly blew a few hats off.
On paper Moreton were a stronger team and at lunch time the CPCC team were a couple of games behind. However the lovely cakes served to us by the opposition seemed to have a positive effect on our play and at the end of the day CPCC were victorious, winning by 9 games to 7. A special mention goes to Jonathan Flatt who won all of his singles games and succeeded in reducing his handicap.
Lynn Wulcko entered her first ever level play competition and jolly well went and won it! She triumphed 7-1 in the final of the Budleigh Salterton D-Level tournament.
Not satisfied with that result she entered the C-level tournament the following day and came a very creditable 3rd, beating some better players on the way. Onwards and upwards!
On Saturday 11th April a team from CPCC competed in Division 4 of the South West Federation Spring short croquet tournament at Nailsea. The CPCC team was John Rowley, Si Dunk, Ann Munton and Simon Munton.
At one point during the day there was a brief hailstorm which meant that any balls that were hit picked up a lot of hail like a snowball!
There were 5 teams in Division 4 (Bradford on Avon Constrictors, Bristol Brunels, Budleigh Salterton Roquets, Glamorgan Bards and CPCC B). At the end of the day CPCC were in third place having won 8 out of their 16 games. The winner was Glamorgan Bards who won 10 of their 16 games.
Several members of the club played an internal One Ball competition today in aid of this year’s chosen charity, Save The Children. Congratulations to Mo on beating John Rowley 13-11 in the final. A chilly but enjoyable afternoon. Well done to all those who turned out!
To celebrate “the turning of the lawns” our traditional spring Progressive Doubles tournament was held. Progressive Doubles is renowned for descending into mayhem and confusion as your partner keeps changing. This does make it, of course, an excellent social competition where you get to meet and play with different people. Jill organised and kept good order of the proceedings, while Lynn triumphed as the best overall player on the day. And doesn’t she look pleased with her prize!
It’s not a particularly exciting photo … but it was an excellent session up at the cricket club. We welcomed Paul, an extremely engaging and knowledgeable trainer from the South West Ambulance Service. He spent two hours trained us on how to use the defibrillator. We hope the need never arises, but if it does the 25 or so attendees are so much better informed and prepared than they were before this session. In all £140 was raised and donated to SWAS.
Would a football, rugby or cricket team turn their pitch by 90° for the winter? No. Would they shrink the size of the playing surface by a quarter? Again, no. But croquet likes to be different. To prevent excessive wear around the summer hoop-holes, every autumn the lawns at Camerton & Peasedown Croquet Club (CPCC) are turned by 90° and shrunk to 75% of their regular size. This allows play to continue throughout the winter – weather permitting!
A small army of volunteers met this week to undertake the painstaking process. For some arcane reason, lost in the mists of time, only male members of the club had previously been involved in ‘hoop-setting’. CPCC is proud of its inclusivity and diversity, so this year ladies were invited to take part as well. In all, sixteen members came along and had a stimulating morning of accurate measuring, hammering, aligning, filling, marking and finally white-lining. Metrication has not yet caught up with croquet and all measurements are in feet and inches. We like it that way.
Many hands did indeed make light work and all four lawns were turned in under an hour and a half. Celebratory tea and biscuits were then taken as was the obligatory group photograph. As the sun was out we then played on all the lawns to test them out.
We now await that glorious day in spring 2026 when our lawns are restored to full size ready for the upcoming season’s play.
Thanks to all who came along to help. Special thanks to the ladies, some of whom were heard to remark that maybe next year some of the men members will clean the toilets from time to time!
Croquet England awards diplomas to those who have made an outstanding contribution to our sport over the years. This year the committee nominated Brian – and our nomination was approved. We were hoping to present his award on Finals’ Day – which was unfortunately postponed. Instead we found an opportunity on a regular club session and a camouflaged Andy (left) presented Brian (right) with his certificate. Meanwhile Mo sulked in the crowd and complained that the Diploma she received a few years ago wasn’t framed as nicely as Brian’s!
Here’s the citation…
Brian started playing at Lansdown CC, Bath c. 2001. Around 2012 the club relocated to Peasedown St John and Brian was instrumental in organising and raising funds for the move.
He joined the committee as Minutes Secretary and Liaison Officer.
More recently he has helped to raise substantial amounts of money for the new Clubhouse (opened in 2023) by applying to various organisations.
He has, over the years, written numerous articles for the press about the Club and has taken part in several interviews with local radio, promoting the Club
He became a GC Club Coach and subsequently a Grade 1 GC Coach in 2015 and has continued to coach, generously, to CPCC members and in many local clubs.
Not satisfied with just coaching he became a GC Referee in 2023 and has offered his services on numerous occasions both at CPCC and at many Clubs in the area. The amount of time he contributes to the game is humbling.
As if this is not enough he has served on the South West Federation of Croquet Clubs in various roles including Chairman and has represented the South West at Croquet England and is currently a Trustee of Croquet England.
He is now a Development Representative for the South West.
Brian’s enthusiasm for the game is infectious and he is always willing to help or offer advice, whether it is within his club, or further afield.
He would be a very deserving recipient of the Croquet England Diploma
Several of us met for a mower tutorial, followed by a mow. Because we scalped the lawn last week, it was so much easier today. Rather than emptying maybe 100 boxes of grass, we emptied 4! What a doddle. We could simply concentrate on getting our stripes straight.
