Ealing Croquet Club

Ealing hosted Rother Valley for our final South East Federation U League fixture of the season.

In a close-fought match we ran out 4-3 winners, meaning we came out on top in three out of our four matches this year.

Ealing took a 2-1 lead into lunch, with the highlight being Gary Bennett pegging out opponent Chris Stiff when on hoop 1 with his other ball, and oppo on 4-Back. After one or two alarms Gary prevailed +4.

Two of the afternoon games were particularly close. Gary beat John Cosier +1, and Harry Midgley lost -2, after Chris Coote hit the last shot and finished nervelessly.

With Simon Tuke losing -18 to Chris Stiff, everything came down to the game between Carole McLoughlin and Kate Flynn. Carole showed her usual competitive steeliness to hold out for a victory +5 On Time.

As our photo shows, the lawns had benefited greatly from regular watering over recent weeks, though the glorious sunshine meant players were seeking shelter wherever it could be found!

All in all a very enjoyable match played in a great spirit. It remains to be seen whether our efforts will be enough to top the League.