News
Many congratulations to Jonathan Isaacs who has been elected President of Croquet England. Jonathan is of course our Club President and has a long history of service to Croquet England and before that to the Croquet Association. He previously chaired the CA's Council for two terms, leading the restructuring to form Croquet England during the second. Before that, he chaired the CA's Marketing Committee. In addition, he founded the Croquet Academy, pioneering the academy concept.
Many congratulations also to Angela Avis. Angela was recognised by Croquet England for her amazing work as part of the leadership of our catering, her contribution to the club and her efforts on behalf of the Alzheimer's Society.
For the final event at the old clubhouse before the modernisation begins, Sussex County were delighted to welcome 11 other teams from England, Scotland, Ireland, Spain and Latvia for the Grand Final of the relatively new European Club League event, with Sussex qualifying for the final as hosts. Playing in at least one player’s head as the players strode out onto the lawns were the great fanfaring trumpets of football’s quasi-Handel Champions’ League music.
As is often the case at these international events there was a terrific atmosphere of camaraderie, celebration and fun. The Sussex team was made up of Richard Brooks, Steve Chapman, Pete Dowd (captain), Liz Farrow, Dom Nunns and Konstantin Yudintsev. Rotating the squad to provide various combinations of four players for each match was proving an effective strategy, as after a good start Sussex ramped things up further on the second morning with two of the only 6-0 wins in the event to top their group.
Whilst probably marginal favourites on paper for their quarter-final match-up the team ran out of steam slightly against skilful and determined opponents from Spain in the form of Club de Campo de Vigo, losing out by 4 games to 3. Roehampton ran out the eventual convincing event winners, with Sussex County finishing 7th.
All agreed that this was an excellent addition to the croquet calendar, providing a wide variety of players the opportunity to travel to clubs and parts of Europe which might be new to them. Which Sussex County players will take up the challenge next year of a trip to who-knows-where to try to secure qualification for the grand final once more?
Dominic Nunns
The 19th AC World Championship will commence on Saturday 18 October in West Palm Beach, Florida. 72 players representing 15 different countries will be competing for the title.
Among these is Gabrielle Higgins from Sussex County Croquet Club - best of luck Gabrielle!
Fundraising Day for Prostate Cancer UK 21st September
The fundraising day, delayed after the deluge of the weekend before, proved to be an incredibly successful event raising over £2500 for Prostate Cancer UK. The charity can claim another 20% in Gift Aid from most of the donations that we have received through our Just Giving page, which alone topped £2000. Not only have we raised money, but I hope that we have raised awareness of this insidious cancer.
Members, families and friends turned up to have a go at croquet-with-a-difference. What did everyone think as they wielded their mallets to play bowls, skittles, racing croquet, the Game of Cards and of course the completely bonkers obstacle course?! Prizes of chocolate, wine, and smiley or sad faced wooden spoons were handed out for good shots, bad shots, triumph or disaster.
There were some fantastic prizes taken home from a very successful raffle, and of course lots of tea and cake was consumed.
I’d like to say a huge thank you to the team who helped to plan and then pull everything together, and to the wider team of volunteers who helped to make everything run so smoothly and successfully. I’d also like to record a particular thanks to Vincent who amongst other things, set up the Just Giving page that has made all the difference.
Jo Crosby
Secretary's Shield is ours!
Congratulations to Sussex County team for their 5-2 win in the final of the AC Secretary's Shield. Here is Jonathan Isaac's report:
The Sussex County team battled their way round the M25 to Watford to play a very strong Peterborough team in the final of the Croquet England Secretary’s Shield.
Watford Croquet Club gave us a very warm welcome and supplied us with 2 very pleasant lawns situated in an attractive parkland setting.
The morning session consisted of one double and two single handicap games. Gabrielle Higgins & Simon Fenn-Tye won their doubles match. In the morning singles Jonathan Isaacs beat the current World Women’s Champion, Debbie Lines +11 and David Dickins narrowly lost -3 to scratch player Adrian Kirby.
The afternoon session consisted of 4 singles matches with wins by Simon Fenn-Tye +21, David Dickins +9 and Jonathan Isaacs +17, giving us an overall win of 5-2.
Watford Croquet Club were superb hosts supplying us with an excellent lunch and a glass of bubbly (non alcoholic) to celebrate our success at the end of the competition. They even had their own laser engraving machine enabling the Secretary of Croquet England to present us the Shield engraved with Sussex County as 2025 Champions!
This is the first time that SCCC have won this prestigious competition and praise must go to all the members of the team, not only in the final, but in the knockout rounds leading to this victory
Results:
Gabrielle Higgins & Simon Fenn-Tye beat Ian Lines & Stephen Cornelius
Jonathan Isaacs beat Debbie Lines
David Dickins lost to Adrian Kirby
Gabrielle Higgins lost to Debbie Lines
Jonathan Isaacs beat Ian Lines
Simon Fenn-Tye beat Adrian Kirby
David Dickins bea Stephen Cornelius
The club team: Simon Fenn-Tye, Gabrielle Higgins, Jonathan Isaacs and David Dickins
GC Singles competition 20th September 2025
Congratulations to the four division winners: Douglas Shand, Andrew Fall, Jo Crosby and Tim Bick.
Thanks to Richard Ellis for managing the event.
Full results
| BLOCK A | VL | KY | BA | DS | TJ | DK | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vincent L'Estrange | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 6 | |
| Konstantin Yudintsev | 7 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 4 | |
| Brian Aikens | 7 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 3 | |
| Douglas Shand | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 1 | |
| Tony Jolly | 7 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |
| David King | 7 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 5 |
| BLOCK B | PG | FA | RC | AF | SH | JR | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Green | 5 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 3 | |
| Francis Ainley | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 2 | |
| Robyn Clark | 3 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 6 | |
| Andrew Fall | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 1 | |
| Stephen Hayns | 3 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 4 | |
| Jill Richardson | 3 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| BLOCK C | PH | RW | JM | KM | JC | PH | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Hill | 7 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 6 | |
| Robin Wootton | 5 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 5 | |
| Jim Mander | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 3 | |
| Kathy McColgan | 7 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 4 | |
| Joanne Crosby | 7 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 1 | |
| Philip Harrison | 7 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 2 |
| BLOCK D | RE | JB | TB | TK | FF | TE | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Ellis | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |
| John Bartlett | 5 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 6 | |
| Tim Bick | 7 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 1 | |
| Tim Kent | 4 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 4 | |
| Fiona Fall | 6 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 7 | 2 | 3 | |
| Trish Ellis | 4 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
GC Half day singles
Despite the heavy weekend rain and a morning shower the lawns were in tip-top condition for the twenty players who entered this half-day Singles tournament.
There might not have been any rain but the players had to battle against a very strong wind which several times caused them to withdraw from their stance and start again.
There were five divisions of 4 with a range of handicaps from 1 to 12, evenly divided.
Division A was won comfortably by Morgan with 3 wins and an impressive +14 net hoops.
Division B was tighter with Stephen Collett (Compton) and Phil Harrison each with 2 wins but Stephen prevailed with +4 net hoops against Phil's +3.
Division C was even closer, Kathy and new member John Bartlett tied on 2 wins and +3. As Kathy had beaten John she was declared the winner.
In Division D, Tony Marjoram was the clear winner, 3 wins and +8 net hoops.
There was also a clear winner in Division E, Sue Kilby winning all 3 also with +8 net hoops.
Thanks to everyone for entering and battling through the wind and congratulations to the winners.
Vincent
And thanks to Vincent for managing the event
Full results
| Division A | MC | RS | PG | MC | Wins | Net Hoops |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morgan Case | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 14 | |
| Roger Sutton | 4 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 2 | |
| Paul Green | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | -14 | |
| Martyn Cooperman | 1 | 6 | 7 | 1 | -2 |
| Division B | FP | SC | JM | PH | Wins | Net Hoops |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fiona Phillips | 7 | 6 | 2 | 1 | -1 | |
| Stephen Collett | 2 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 4 | |
| Jim Mander | 7 | 3 | 4 | 1 | -6 | |
| Phil Harrison | 7 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 3 |
| Division C | KM | GT | JB | TB | Wins | Net Hoops |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kathy McColgan | 7 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 3 | |
| Graham Tucker | 5 | 4 | 5 | 0 | -7 | |
| John Bartlett | 3 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 3 | |
| Tim Bick | 7 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Division D | TK | CB | TM | DL | Wins | Net Hoops |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tim Kent | 5 | 4 | 7 | 1 | -4 | |
| Chris Baccarini | 7 | 5 | 5 | 1 | -2 | |
| Tony Marjoram | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 8 | |
| David Larkin | 6 | 7 | 4 | 1 | -2 |
| Division E | LG | SK | PG | AM | Wins | Net Hoops |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linda Gavigan | 5 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 4 | |
| Sue Kilby | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 8 | |
| Peter Goldsmith | 5 | 5 | 3 | 0 | -8 | |
| Angela Marjoram | 3 | 3 | 7 | 1 | -4 |
Unfortunately, the heavy rain on Saturday morning led to the postponement of the much anticipated croquet funday in aid of Prostate Cancer UK.
The good news is that we will be trying again on Sunday, 21 September, running in conjunction with Croquet & Cakes, from 1.00 onwards. Lawns will be available for those who just want to play croquet with other lawns set aside for fun and games.
The JustGiving page is still open for those who want to donate to this worthy cause. So far, we have raised £820, which is amazing. Thank you to all who have contributed. Click here to donate.
We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible next Sunday
Vincent
The Sussex open championships were held this weekend. We had an entry of 22 which was an awkward number to deal with But the weather was fine and there close fought matches in all of the blocks.
On the Saturday the tournament was divided into four blocks two having 6 players and two having 5 players. The format allowed the top four in each block to progress to the first round of the knockout on Saturday afternoon which was a single 19 point game.
The local interest saw Liz Farrow, Richard Brooks, Ben Harwood, Jonathan Isaacs and Robin Wootton progress into the last 16.
On the Sunday the quarter final - again a 19 point match - saw Richard Brooks and Ben Harwood progress to the last 8. Richard played an old club member Neil Humphreys and won, putting him into the Semi Final.
Ben had a very close match with the eventual winner of the tournament Miraslav Havlik, Miraslav winning through by 10 hoops to 8.
The semi final saw Richard against Andrew Hobbs and losing a best of three match 5-7 7-3-6-7.
The final, another close match, saw Miraslav beat Andrew Hobbs 7-6 7-6. The playoff for 3rd and forth places Alex Wood beat Richard Brooks 7-6.
Elsewhere, the Shield for positions 9- 16 was won by Richard Gardiner who beat Stephen Custance-Baker 7-3, 7-5 The play off for the Shield was won by Liz Farrow who beat Gerald O Brien 10-8.
The Plate which was for players who did not qualify for the Championship Knockout was won by Paul Green who won all 4 of his block matches.
Sussex Champion Miroslav Havlik
Andrew Hobbs, runner-up
Colin Britt, Bowl winner
Richard Gardiner, Shield winner
Paul Green, Plate winner
Thanks to Roger Sutton for managing the competition and to Andrew Fall for photos
Full results
| Block A | AH | BH | JI | JH | AF | B | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Hobbs | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 1 | ||
| Ben Harwood | 7 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 2 | ||
| Jonathan Isaacs | 3 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 3 | ||
| Jane Humphreys | 4 | 2 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 5 | ||
| Andrew Fall | 4 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 4 |
| Block B | RG | RB | AW | DH | SH | B- | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Gardiner | 4 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 3 | ||
| Richard Brooks | 7 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 2 | ||
| Alex Wood | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 1 | ||
| Debbie Hayns | 3 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 4 | ||
| Stephen Hayns | 3 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 5 |
| Block C | MH | KT | SC | NH | PG | MW | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miraslav Havlik | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 1 | |
| Kim Taylor | 2 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |
| Stephen Custance-Baker | 5 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 3 | |
| Neil Humphreys | 4 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 4 | |
| Paul Green | 6 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 5 | |
| Marilyn Wood | 4 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 6 |
| Block D | LF | CB | TJS | MH | RW | GO | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liz Farrow | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 1 | |
| Colin Britt | 3 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |
| Trevor J Smith | 4 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | |
| Mark Hamann | 3 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 6 | |
| Robin Wootton | 1 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 4 | |
| Gerald O'Brien | 4 | 1 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 2 | 3 |
Championship Knockout
| First Round | Second Round | Semi Final | Final | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Hobbs | Andrew Hobbs 10-5 | Andrew Hobbs 10-7 | Andrew Hobbs 7-5, 3-7, 7-6 | Miraslav Havlik 7-6, 7-6 |
| Stephen Hayns | ||||
| Stephen Custance-Baker | Colin Britt 10-7 | |||
| Colin Britt | ||||
| Richard Brooks | Richard Brooks 10-6 | Richard Brooks 10-7 | ||
| Jonathan Isaacs | ||||
| Neil Humphreys | Neil Humphreys 10-5 | |||
| Liz Farrow | ||||
| Miraslav Havlik | Miraslav Havlik 10-4 | Miraslav Havlik 10-8 | Miraslav Havlik 7-2, 7-6 | |
| Robin Wootton | ||||
| Richard Gardiner | Ben Harwood 10-9 | |||
| Ben Harwood | ||||
| Kim Taylor | Kim Taylor 10-5 | Alex Wood 10-8 | ||
| Gerald O'Brien | ||||
| Andrew Fall | Alex Wood 10-6 | |||
| Alex Wood |
3rd-4th place playoff
Alex Wood beat Richard Brooks 7-6
| Plate Block | JH | DH | TJS | PG | MH | MW | Wins | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jane Humphreys | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 2 | ||
| Debbie Hayns | 4 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Trevor J Smith | 7 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 3 | ||
| Paul Green | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 1 | ||
| Mark Hamann | 5 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 5 | ||
| Marilyn Wood | 6 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 4 |
Shield Knockout
| Quarter Final | Semi-Final | Final | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stephen Hayns | Stephen Custance-Baker 10-3 | Stephen Custance-Baker 10-8 | Richard Gardiner 7-3, 7-5 |
| Stephen Custance-Baker | |||
| Jonathan Isaacs | Liz Farrow 10-8 | ||
| Liz Farrow | |||
| Robin Wootton | Richard Gardiner 10-6 | Richard Gardiner 10-8 | |
| Richard Gardiner | |||
| Gerald O'Brien | Gerald O'Brien 10-6 | ||
| Andrew Fall |
Shield playoff
Liz Farrow beat Gerald O'Brien 10-8
Bowl Knockout
| Semi-Final | Final | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| Colin Britt | Colin Britt 10-3 | Colin Britt 10-7 |
| Ben Harwood | ||
| Neil Humphreys | Kim Taylor 10-8 | |
| Kim Taylor | ||
Saucer Knockout
| Semi-Final | Final | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| Jonathan Isaacs | Jonathan Isaacs 10-9 | Jonathan Isaacs 10-6 |
| Stephen Hayns | ||
| Robin Wootton | Robin Wootton 10-7 | |
| Andrew Fall | ||
How to enjoy yourself and play croquet
Video by Bill Arliss