Keith Aiton is 2-0 up in the best of five final of the Eastern Championship, against David Maugham, who has won the event more than ten times. The final had to be adjourned, to a date and place to be decided, mid-afternoon, after the courts became inundated.
It may well be the last time the event is played in the glorious setting of Wrest Park, a stately house and parkland currently in the care of English Heritage, which wishes to restore it to its historic state before the club was established there. If you would like to play there yourself, there is an open weekend tournament from 11th-12th August.
Keith getting ready for the final in bright sunshine
though the clouds were gathering
and the infamous trench turned into a moat
which rendered the lawns unplayable, despite the best efforts of local members!
Thanks to Patricia Duke-Cox for the following report:
Ten players entered the July C-class event at Nottingham in July, including a visitor from each of the Blewbury and Hamptworth croquet clubs. The event was well managed and catered for by Bob Thompson players enjoyed the luxury of playing on a court without double banking most of the time. Unfortunately the heavens opened with thunder and lightning on the Sunday afternoon and the courts became waterlogged. Two games were abandoned but the result was never in doubt by that time. The runaway winner of the event with 6 wins was club chairman Omied Hallam.
The results are Omied Hallam 6/6: Lawrence Whittaker, Derek Buxton and David Gunn 3/4; David Brydon 3/5; Roger Berkeley and Paul Wolff 2/5; Richard Stevens 1/4 ; David Woodhouse 0/4 and Patricia Duke-Cox 0/5.
