News
SECF level play GC league match
Having played Woking a week earlier in the inter-club knockout competition we returned the challenge them again in this league match. Both teams had made one change to their previous line up but the final result was the same a 4-3 match win for Sussex.
Owing to the different rules of the respective competitions the batting order for our team had to change somewhat. I had played as number one the week before, I was now relegated to position three.
This time our successes were Liz and Richard who each won both of their singles matches. Morgan and Bob fought hard but found Woking’s Jeff Dawson and Mike Town to be in top form on the day.
In the end everything hinged on Liz’s last singles game which she nearly lost at the tenth hoop when the opponents ball was almost through to score the point.
Amazingly she was able to clear it from an angled position behind, near the boundary and then went on to win 7-6.
Report by Richard Brooks
Sussex A captain
Skittles Evening
Thanks very much to Fran Box for organising a very successful and enjoyable Skittles and Fish & Chips evening.
Purley Bury wins trophy
Eight teams again took part in this competition but, unlike last year, the weather was pleasant with only spits and spots of rain on Saturday and warm sunshine most of Sunday.
This year we reverted to the normal Swiss format of play so fine rounds were achieved over the two days.
By the end of Saturday and the first three rounds, Reigate Priory was in the lead with 5 wins, away from Cheam, Guildford & Godalming and Purley Bury, all with four wins each.
Sunday morning saw Reigate Priory falter somewhat, their B team losing to Purley Bury, but still in the lead by one win. The final round pitched Reigate Priory A against Purley Bury A at the lop of the Swiss ladder, a match which went down to the wire, being won +1 on time by Purley Bury.
The Sussex lawns played well and it was just a shame we were unable to attract more clubs to enter a team for this event which is one of the very few where you see a wide range of playing ability in the same competition.
Thanks to Clive Hayton and Richard Pointon for managing the bar and to Karen Hayton, Sue Gale, Pat Harden and Rachel Pointon for the lunches.
Purley Bury Team Captain with Jonathan Isaacs presenting the trophy
GC Doubles One-day Competition 6th May 2022
Block 1was won by Richard Brooks and David King. The cross-over of Blocks 2 & 3 was won by Francis Ainley & Ian Johnson.
Full Results
| Block 1 | BA&PH | RB&DK | LF&JI | CH&RW | CM&RS | B&RC | ASK | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brian Aikens & Paul Hinton | 5 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 3 | =3 | |
| Richard Brooks & David King | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 1 | |
| Liz Farrow & Jonathan Isaacs | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |
| Chris Heath & Robin Wootton | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 7 | |
| Chrissie Merrington & Roger Sutton | 5 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 3 | =3 | |
| Bob & Robin Clark | 7 | 1 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 5 | |
| Andrew Stewart+Kathy Kirkby | 5 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 6 |
| Block 2 | FA&IJ | T&RE | AB&FB | R&RP | B&KH | DL&SR | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Francis Ainley & Ian Johnson | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 1 | |
| Trish & Richard Ellis | 4 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 | |
| Anne Bolland & Fran Box | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |
| Rachel & Richard Pointon | 4 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 6 | |
| Beryl & Ken Hughes | 4 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 4 | |
| Diana Langridge & Sue Rice | 3 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 3 |
| Block 3 | SC&PM | JS&PH | ST&MA | LD&TJ | SF&AG | C&LA | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Susan Caulfield & Pat Mechen | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 4 | |
| Jenny Sutton & Pat Harden | 5 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 5 | |
| Sandra Towner & Mike Akester | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |
| Liz Dury & Tony James | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 1 | |
| Simon Fen-Tye & Alan Grundy | 7 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 3 | |
| Christine & Les Ardley | 4 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6 |
Block 2 & 3 Play-offs
Beryl & Ken Hughes beat Simon Fen-Tye & Alan Grundy 7-6
Francis Ainley & Ian Johnson beat Liz Dury & Tony James 7-6
Early bird Chrissie Merrington arrived first at the Club yesterday. Gate still locked. Key in her bag in the boot. Shut boot, opened gate, then discovered she had locked her car key and phone in the car.
There the car sat until she was able to commandeer a phone from a passer-by and persuade her sister to bring her spare keys.
In the meantime all the other competition (and tennis) players had to park on the roadside.
Still, at least she got the pick of the car park!
Empty car park after Chrissie chose her space!
(Photos: Pat Harden)
In future ....
Evening Roll Ups Underway
The first of our summer season GC evening roll ups took place on Tuesday, 3rd May.
This weekly roll up will take place from 5pm until dusk on Tuesdays through to mid September.
A group of us enjoyed a friendly social chat before venturing onto the lawns to play doubles or singles in closely contested matches. Indeed, one hotly contested game of singles was still being played out when the rest of us chose to return home.
The evening was a promising start for this new, weekly event. The blend of friendly, social interaction with the fun of playing Croquet was particularly enjoyable in the quiet calm of the evening. As we progressed from hoop to hoop we considered how we can have even more fun as the Summer progresses , perhaps with themed evenings. Please offer your suggestions, they will be gratefully received and considered.
We look forward to welcoming you to our evening sessions throughout the season . Don't forget you can also bring guests along too, for the usual guest fee, to share the fun.
Graham Tucker
Nine players entered this event on Friday 29th April, dressing to the Mind Charity code of blue hue. One withdrawal (on commitments) allowed seven games of All play all, running to mid-afternoon in thoroughly enjoyable sunny, crisp conditions on Lawns 2; 3; 4 & 5. The contestants were Paul Castell; Liz Farrow; Clive Hayton; Phil Dunk; Robin Wootton; Ray Hall; Deborah Marcus & Rosemary Faulkner.
Handicaps ranged from minus - 3 to + 17.5 (difference divided by three and rounded to nearest half bisque).
All the players scored individual successes. Clive was runner up with 4 wins but joint winners on five wins each were Paul, Phil and Robin, who was nominated to take the SCCC place at Surbiton CC for Southern Area Final Sun' 8th May. £120 was raised for the Mind Charity. Many thanks to the entrants and generous contributors to the National Total.
Robin Wootton
Thanks to Robin for managing this event.
GC B and C Series Tournaments
The B Series competition was won by Robyn Clark and the C Series event by Simon Turner. Congratulations to them both. Thanks to Jonathan Isaacs for managing the competitions and to the team who provided the lunch: Angela Avis and Trixie and Richard French.
B Series Results
Block Stage
| Block | Wins | Losses | Net Hoops |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ian Rees | 4 | 1 | 13 |
| Robyn Clark | 4 | 1 | 3 |
| Ray Hall | 4 | 2 | 5 |
| Julie Tremble | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| David King | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| Tony Nicholas | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| Brian Jamieson | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| Beryl Hughes | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| Graham Tucker | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Sue Nicholas | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Douglas Shand | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| Bridget Goodman | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| David Russell | 3 | 3 | -2 |
| Phil Davies | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Simon Ancell | 2 | 3 | -4 |
| Alan Grundy | 2 | 3 | -5 |
| Andrew Fall | 1 | 4 | -8 |
| Rosemary Faulkner | 1 | 4 | -8 |
| Richard Platt | 1 | 4 | -8 |
| Carol Driver | 0 | 5 | -16 |
Knockout Stage
| Semi Final | Final | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| Robyn Clark | Robyn Clark 7-1 | Robyn Clark 7-6 |
| Sue Nicholas | ||
| Tony Nicholas | Tony Nicholas 7-1 | |
| Ian Rees | ||
Simon Turner (Ealing) wins the C series Gc Tournament at SCCC
12 players competed in the CA C series GC tournament at SCCC on 1st May.
The tournament was run with 2 blocks of 6 players followed by a semi final and final to determine the final four placings.
Simon Turner (Ealing) won all his matches to take the trophy, finally beating Simon Fenn – Tye (SCCC)7-4 in the final. Paul Brown (SCCC) came third beating Francis Ainley (SCCC) 7-4 to take third place.
The standard of play was extremely good and certainly Simon turner & Simon Fenn-Tye are two names to watch in the future.
(Picture to follow)
Simon Turner playing Paul Brown in the semi final
(Picture to follow)
Simon Fenn- Tye playing Francis Ainley in the Semi Final
C Series Results
Block Stage
| A | SF | CF | PT | PB | JB | ED | Wins | Net Hoops |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simon Fenn-Tye(SCCC) | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 9 | |
| Colin Farquharson(Eynsham) | 7 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 1 | -5 | |
| Phillip Tremble(Guildford) | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 0 | |
| Paul Brown(SCCC) | 4 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 3 | |
| John Bryson(Guildford) | 2 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 2 | -7 | |
| Elizabeth Drury(Compton) | 4 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| B | KH | CJ | BP | ST | FF | FA | Wins | Net Hoops |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ken Hughes(Cheam) | 4 | 7 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 2 | -11 | |
| Carol Jamieson(Caversham) | 7 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 2 | -4 | |
| Bernie Phillips(Guildford) | 6 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 1 | -7 | |
| Simon Turner(Ealing) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 20 | |
| Fiona Fall(compton) | 6 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 | -10 | |
| Francis Ainley | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 12 |
Knockout Stage
| Semi Final | Final | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| Simon Fenn-Tye | Simon Fenn-Tye 7-2 | Simon Turner 7-4 |
| Francis Ainley | ||
| Simon Turner | Simon Turner 7-6 | |
| Paul Brown | ||
| Other places | Wins | Losses | Net Hoops |
| Elizabeth Dury | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| Phil Tremble | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Ken Hughes | 0 | 1 | -5 |
| Carol Jamieson | 0 | 1 | -6 |
| John Bryson | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Colin Farquharson | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Bernie Phillips | 0 | 1 | -1 |
| Fiona Fall | 0 | 1 | -3 |
Sussex GC 2 Minus Tournament 30th April
A relatively gentle day's croquet with a select band of 8 players mostly on home territory played in warmish sunshine, especially the afternoon.
The competition was played as a single block of 13pt games with no time limit. Although their win rate looked pretty reasonable in the morning session the four scratch players did not have things all their one way and by the final round several other players were still in contention. The final round saw Chris Heath, Noel Gill and Sara Anderson all on 5/7 wins so it was down to net points: +8, +8 and +9 were the scores; and the winner was .... Sara Anderson. Congratulations to Sara who took away the Monteith Challenge Bowl. This trophy was presented to the Club in 1931 by Mr & Mrs GC Braithwaite and was used until 2012 for our Summer Tournament AC Handicap class event - sadly to longer played. In the past it has been won by some well-known players including Sir Delves Broughton (he of Kenya White Mischief fame), Miss Elphinstone-Stone (1946 - she played from 1895 until 1961 and won five tournaments at Southwick), and also one of the players in today's competition - Mrs Daphne Gaitley.
Full results
| All | NG | SA | MH | DG | CM | JI | RS | CH | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noel Gill | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 3 | |
| Sara Anderson | 7 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 1 | |
| Mark Hamilton | 5 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 7 | |
| Daphne Gaitley | 5 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 4 | |
| Chrissie Merrington | 1 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 8 | |
| Jonathan Isaacs | 4 | 6 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 6 | |
| Roger Sutton | 5 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 5 | |
| Chris Heath | 7 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 2 |
Sussex County CC 9+ half day singles
The competition was managed by Roger Sutton, for which many thanks from all.
He had to split this tournament into two parts - AM and PM. The winner of the AM tournament was Angela Avis who beat Pat Harden 4-2
The PM tournament has final was delayed as it started raining and now will be played next Tuesday at 12pm between Karan Hayton and Anne Stanton.
Thank you all for playing please be reminded that all scores should be put onto your handicap cards.
Our next half tournament is on the 30th May please enter via the website.
| Block 1 AM | AG | DC | SG | AA | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anne Gill | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | |
| David Comber | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | |
| Susan Gale | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 | |
| Angela Avis | 3 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| Block 2 AM | SG | JS | LD | PH | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Susan Gale | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |
| Jenny Sutton | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| Linda Davies | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | |
| Pat Harden | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 |
AM Finals
Dave Comber beat Linda Davies 4-1
Anne Gill beat Stephen Westwood 4-2
Angela Avis beat Pat Harden 4-2 to win the event
| Block 1 Pm | NS | RD | JK | TE | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nira Scutt | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 | |
| Rita Dona | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | |
| Jerry Key | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 3 | |
| Tony Elkin | 2 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| Block 2 PM | AS | MH | KH | CI | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anne Stanton | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 | |
| Moira Harlow | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 | |
| Karen Hayton | 3 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | |
| Chrissie Issacs | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Block 3 PM | AS | AI | HM | EB | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anne Sherriff | 3 | 3 | 0 | =3 | ||
| Allen Innes | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 | |
| Hilary Mackenzie | 4 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | |
| Elizabeth Bell | 3 | 3 | 0 | =3 |
PM Semi- & Final
Karen Hayton beat Nira Scutt 4-2
Anne Stanton beat Jerry Key 4-2
Final to be played: Karen Hayton vs Anne Stanton