Club

Croquet

Wrest Park

EACF AC Leagues play-off
17 September

The lawns in Central Park, Peterborough, which are shared with the bowls club whose original clubhouse is on the left.

Having won the Beds & Herts League Wrest Park travelled to Peterborough for the play-off against Peterborough and Bury St Edmunds, the winners of the Northern and Essex & Suffolk Leagues. Getting there was not without mishap: Peter and George’s satnav sent them to the Cathedral (possibly being smart enough to realise that a pre-match prayer might be needed), and David and John took a wrong turning and explored the city for 15 minutes before arriving, but we were all on time.

The format is prearranged, the only element of chance being the draw for which club is to be A, B or C. Peterborough’s team included Ian and Debbie Lines
(both -2), and they won comfortably. Our results were as follows:

George Collin (-½) and Peter Aspinall (10) lost to Simon Conran (6) and Justin Blake-James (11) (Bury St Edmunds) -15

John Bevington (1) and David Woolley (10) lost to Ian Lines (-2) and Stephen Cornelius (7) (Peterborough) -23TP

George Collin lost to Debbie Lines (-2) (P’boro) -9

John Bevington beat Dan Neal (½) (Bury) +13

Peter Aspinall lost to Justin Beaumont (18) (P’boro) -21

David Woolley lost to John Robinette (10) (Bury) -6t

There’s not much to add. With a solitary win we finished last. George, who had substituted at the last minute for Ross Bagni who was unwell, at least went round to peg against Debbie but was then pegged out for his pains. Ian’s assiduity when completing his TP was matched by that of a squirrel carefully burying something next to the gutter on the edge of the lawn a few feet away from where David and John were sitting. The lawns were flat and quite fast, especially at the far end of lawn 1. And the expected rain held off.

Peter and George consider their next move.

© Wrest Park Croquet Club