Pennants, championships and a Centenary competition at The Range Maleny

We have been very glad to see the back of the constant rain in our usual mountain paradise after many weeks of opening the curtains each morning to be greeted with mist, drizzle and rain. Finally, with the sunshine, out we came to resume play with renewed energy and enthusiasm! Our greenkeeper, Wallace Roy, and several others had worked hard to clean away debris and get rid of the moulds and other nasties that had invaded the grass during the big wet. Our lawns are playing well at the moment and we are enjoying the winter sunshine.

We have had a busy couple of months, with our Association players taking part in both the Bray and the Lochwood Pennants competitions. Although we are a small club, we have a lot of heart and were pleased with our efforts, with the Bray team coming in second overall and the Lockwood team coming in third. We did have disruptions in the dates set for games but forged on to complete the season. We are already looking towards next year's Pennants competition, planning to field teams in both again. Thanks to our team captains, coaches and referees for supporting our participation throughout the season.

The end of June saw our own club's Association Croquet championship played, with players competing in Divisions 2, 3 and 4. A hearty congratulations to Donna Manning, winner of Division 2, with Sarah Widin as runner-up.

In Division 3, Dianne Horsman was the winner, with Lynette Evans the runner-up. Well played, Dianne! Wallace Roy was the winner and Helen Uhlmann was runner-up in Division 4. Wallace is seen in the photo receiving the Shield from Sarah, with Helen watching on. Well done to all who took part in this friendly and lively competition.

Our club is fortunate to have so many coaches who are very generous with their time and advice, contributing to the skills of our players. We have a group coaching session every Saturday morning and coaches regularly make themselves available at other times for one-on-one sessions as requested. They are such a great resource for newer Association players challenged by the complexities of this great game and the coaches contribute greatly to the supportive and encouraging atmosphere at our club, reassuring us when perplexed that making roquets one day and missing them all the next is quite normal while learning! The same goes for making and missing hoops.

Another development in our club, is the increasing participation in Ricochet play. We fielded a team in our local Ricochet Pennants competition, with Sarah Widin, Donna Manning and Ken Barker teamed up with players from Nambour, aptly named the "Ranbour" team captained by Bill Habner. Congratulations to these players for winning this competition. Such a great effort with some members playing Ricochet for the first time!

Many of our players have taken part in competitions far and wide over the last month or two including the Windsor Brooch, The Centenary of Croquet Association competition at Wynnum and the Centenary of Croquet Ricochet competition at Windsor, amongst others.

Photo (Above) shows Lynette Evans, Donna Manning and Sarah Widin after the Wynnum Centenary competition, happy to have placed 2nd. Absent from this photo is Ken Barker, the fourth member of this team.

In other club news, we are delighted that Sarah Widin and Donna Manning have been selected for the State Development Squad. A hearty congratulations to them both on this great achievement and we look forward to watching their skills progress as they take up this opportunity. I'm sure that the whole club will benefit from this as they are both generous to newer players, passing on their experience and expertise as coaches.

We're hoping that the Weather Bureau's forecast of El Nina returning will not eventuate and that we'll be enjoying our croquet in the gorgeous sunny mountain weather during these last winter days and into spring!

By Helen Uhlmann, The Range Maleny. From the Croquet Newsletter, August 2022, pages 29-31.