The 4 last news
CqE Diplomas for David King and Frances Low
Croquet England Diplomas recognise those club members who have given outstanding service to croquet and have been active in Club or Federation affairs over a long period. Diplomas have been awarded this year to David King and Frances Low. The citations read:
David has been a member of the club since 2011. He is always ready to offer help and is very keen to help people play and improve their game. David is a club coach and he coaches on Academy GC courses as well as helping with newcomers on our four free lessons introductory offer. His welcoming nature and friendly patient approach have been key to getting many newcomers to join the club.
David’s background as an accountant means he is great assistance to the club treasurer and he acts as the examiner of the club’s annual accounts as well as helping out with monthly accounts and the financials for special events. He also acts as the Treasurer for the South East Federation.
It was in the three GC World Championships that SCCC has held since 2019 that David’s organisational and people skills came to the fore. In 2019 he acted as the main point of contact for visiting players on their transport arrangements between the four host clubs - Southwick, Compton, Tunbridge Wells and West Worthing. In 2022 and 2023 he ran the player registration process and the gate for spectators.
David has captained club teams, most recently in the South East Fed GC R league where SCCC have been champions in 5 of the last 11 years. David regularly plays in tournaments. In doubles his regular partner is Richard Brooks and they are a very successful pair in local tournaments.
David is a regular helper at our corporate / society events and has taken on organising a couple of them this year.
Frances has been a Grade 2 AC coach since 2006, an examining coach since 2014, a GC coach since 2016 and an AC referee since 1998.
She is a founder member of the committee that runs the Croquet Academy and has been a strong advocate of AC coaching. Her teaching background gives her a good basis for coaching and she sets high standards.
Frances is also a member of Rottingdean Croquet Club and coaches members there in AC as well as encouraging them to enter South East Federation and other events.
Frances has been very concerned about the decline in AC playing numbers. To counter this, she has led the introduction of Short Croquet at Southwick. Initially with Winter modular courses that she ran in 2021, 2022 and 2023 to introduce people to Short Croquet. During the playing season in 2022 and 23 she backed these courses up with regular Wednesday morning roll-up sessions. She has gone further in 2023 and 2024 with Short Croquet doubles tournaments and in 2024 two Short Croquet jamborees with teams from Southwick and other local clubs (several players for other clubs have benefitted from her Short Croquet Coaching as well). We now have more people playing AC than for many years, many of whom played only GC a couple of seasons ago.
Frances helped during the recent World Championships at Southwick with the player registration process and by scoring on the lawn side scoreboards.
Frances is a regular tournament manager for our one-day GC and AC tournaments and for SE Federation events held at Southwick.
Congratulations to them both.
GC Doubles Tournament 9th September
Report from Roger Sutton, Manager
The half-day doubles tournament on the 9th of September was hastily re-arranged to accommodate the 6 Spanish players who had entered the Sussex Open over the previous weekend. Their flight back to Spain on the Sunday evening had been cancelled and so I rearranged the blocks and included Jenny and I to make the numbers.
The winners of each block were
Block 1 - Helen and Andrew Wilson 3 wins +7 hoops
Block 2 - Sue Gale & Susan Caulfield 2 wins +4
Block 3 - Pilar Alvear & Sergio Garcia 3 wins +9
Congratulations to Helen and Andrew, Sue and Sue, Pilar and Sergio.
And thanks to Roger for managing the event.
Full Results
| Block 1 | S&TN | A&HW | LA&LA | R&JS | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sue & Tony Nicholas | 4 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 3 | |
| Andrew & Helen Wilson | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 1 | |
| Lourdes Alvear & Luis Alarcon | 7 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 2 | |
| Roger & Jenny Sutton | 6 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 4 |
| Block 2 | SK&DR | M&AA | SG&SC | PG&AG | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sue Kilby & Diana Rolf | 7 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 2 | |
| Martin & Angela Avis | 3 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | |
| Sue Gale & Susan Caulfield | 7 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 1 | |
| Peter Goldsmith & Alan Grundy | 5 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 3 |
| Block 3 | LM&LG | PA&SG | DL&RE | MMF&MB | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laki Marangos & Linda Gavigan | 5 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 4 | |
| Pilar Alvear & Sergio Garcia | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 1 | |
| David Larkin & Richard Ellis | 7 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 2 | |
| Manuel Marcos Fal & Maria Baurguete | 7 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 3 |
Stephen Custance-Baker wins Sussex Open Golf Championship
The Sussex Open this year was a truly international affair. 8 Spaniards had flown in from Seville and Steiner Olsen had flown in from Norway. Add to that Peter Balchin had driven up from Wales.
The Spanish players
Saturday the field was split into 4 blocks and games battled against the rain all day, fortunately the lawns stood up to the rain and all lawns remained playable.
The first four in each block would go forward to the championship knockout on the Sunday.
Block one was led by Steiner Olsen followed by Martin French, Andy Jones and Jonathan Isaacs. Block two was won by Richard Gardener followed by Mark Hamilton, Liz Farrow, and Maria Burguete. Block three was led by Kim Taylor followed by Pilar Garcia, Stephen Custance-Baker and Arturo Garcia. And finally block four was won by Konstantin Yudintsev, with Colin Britt Lourdes Alvear and Bob Clark. So the Championship Knockout continued with its international flavour.
There was a slight improvement in the weather on the Sunday but heavy overnight rain had made courts 2 and 3 unplayable.
The last 16 played a single 13 point game, which was also the case for the quarter final. We were mindful that our Spanish visitors would have to leave at 5 o’clock to catch their flight home. For the losing quarter-finalists a bowl event was played which was won by Steinar Olsen.
Steinar Olsen
Liz Farrow, Richard Gardener Kim Taylor and Stephen Custance-Baker battled through to the Semi Final, which was played as a best of three 13-point games.
Richard Gardener beat Liz Farrow 7-5 5-7 7-3 and Stephen beat Kim 7-2 3-7 7-5.
This set up a final between Richard Gardener and Stephen Custance–Baker. Stephen got the better of this winning 7-2 5-7 7-2 and so won the Hamilton Trophy which was presented to him by the Mark Hamilton, in honour of his mother.
Stephen Custance-Baker
Those not in the knockout played a plate event which was won by Giles Peperell.
Giles Peperell
Thanks to Roger Sutton for managing the event and to Linda Gavigan for the pictures.
Full result
| Block 1 | SO | SRJ | MMF | MF | JI | AJ | JH | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steinar Olsen | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 1 | |
| Sergio Rueda Jimenez | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 7 | |
| Manuel Marcos Fal | 4 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 5 | |
| Martin French | 6 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |
| Jonathan Isaacs | 6 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 4 | |
| Andy Jones | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 3 | |
| Jane Humphreys | 6 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| Block 2 | RP | CD | RG | NH | MJB | MH | LF | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Platt | 7 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 7 | |
| Caroline Denny | 5 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 7 | 3 | 5 | |
| Richard Gardener | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 1 | |
| Neil Humphreys | 7 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 6 | |
| Maria Jesus Burguete | 7 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 4 | |
| Mark Hamilton | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 2 | |
| Liz Farrow | 7 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 3 |
| Block 3 | RB | SC | KT | LdA | GP | PPG | DS | AGA | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Brooks | 7 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 7 | |
| Stephen Custance-Baker | 6 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 3 | |
| Kim Taylor | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 1 | |
| Luis de Alarcon | 7 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 6 | |
| Giles Pepperell | 7 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 8 | |
| Pilar Plasencia Garcia | 6 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |
| Douglas Shand | 7 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 5 | |
| Arturo Gross Ariza | 4 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 4 |
| Block 4 | PB | LVA | CM | IGA | CB | KY | RTC | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Balchin | 5 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 6 | |
| Lourdes Valdenebro Alvear | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 3 | |
| Chrissie Merrington | 6 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 5 | |
| Ignacio Gross Ariza | 4 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 7 | |
| Colin Britt | 7 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |
| Konstantin Yudintsev | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 1 | |
| Robert T Clark | 7 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 4 |
Championship
| First Round | Second Round | Semi Final | Final | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Konstantin Yudintsev | Pilar Plasencia Garcia 7-5 | Liz Farrow 7-3 | Richard Gardener 7-5, 5-7, 7-3 | Stephen Custance-Baker 7-2, 5-7, 7-2 |
| Pilar Plasencia Garcia | ||||
| Martin French | Liz Farrow 7-6 | |||
| Liz Farrow | ||||
| Richard Gardener | Richard Gardener 7-5 | Richard Gardener 7-6 | ||
| Arturo Gross Ariza | ||||
| Andy Jones | Maria Jesus Burguete 7-4 | |||
| Maria Jesus Burguete | ||||
| Robert T Clark | Robert T Clark 7-3 | Kim Taylor 7-5 | Stephen Custance-Baker 7-2, 3-7, 7-5 | |
| Jonathan Isaacs | ||||
| Colin Britt | Kim Taylor 7-3 | |||
| Kim Taylor | ||||
| Stephen Custance-Baker | Stephen Custance-Baker 7-3 | Stephen Custance-Baker 7-5 | ||
| Mark Hamilton | ||||
| Lourdes Valdenebro Alvear | Steinar Olsen 7-3 | |||
| Steinar Olsen |
5-8th place 'Bowl'
| Semi Final | Final | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| Pilar Plasencia Garcia | Pilar Plasencia Garcia 10-4 | Steinar Olsen 7-4, 7-4 |
| Maria Jesus Burguete | ||
| Robert T Clark | Steinar Olsen 7-5 | |
| Steinar Olsen | ||
Plate Event
| Plate | PB | CB | KY | CM | IGA | LVA | RB | LdA | DS | GP | RG | NH | CD | RP | JI | AJ | MMF | SRJ | JH | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Balchin | 5 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 10 | |||||||||||||||
| Colin Britt | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 5 | |||||||||||||||
| Konstantin Yudintsev | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
| Chrissie Merrington | 7 | 7 | 2 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |||||||||||||||
| Ignacio Gross Ariza | 7 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| Lourdes Valdenebro Alvear | 4 | 7 | 1 | 11 | |||||||||||||||||
| Richard Brooks | 6 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 9 | |||||||||||||||
| Luis de Alarcon | 7 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 6 | ||||||||||||||
| Douglas Shand | 6 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 8 | ||||||||||||||
| Giles Pepperell | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| Arturo Gross Ariza | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||
| Neil Humphreys | 6 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 12 | |||||||||||||||
| Caroline Denny | 7 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 14 | ||||||||||||||||
| Richard Platt | 5 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 13 | ||||||||||||||
| Jonathan Isaacs | 3 | 0 | 17 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Andy Jones | 6 | 2 | 0 | 18 | |||||||||||||||||
| Manuel Marcos Fal | 6 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 7 | |||||||||||||
| Sergio Rueda Jimenez | 3 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 16 | |||||||||||||||
| Jane Humphreys | 5 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 15 |
Sussex County visit West Chiltington
The Sussex County team of Rachel & Richard Pointon. Jo Crosby & Nira Scutt travelled to West Chiltington on Tuesday to play a South East Croquet GC Handicap League match.
Black clouds were gathering around the croquet lawns, and a few rumbles of thunder heard, but fortunately the rain held off and Sussex County won a closely fought match 5-4.
Thanks to West Chiltington for their hospitality and an excellent tea! This match followed an earlier 8-1 win at home to Cheyney in the same competition.
