Good Morning on this beautiful morning with clear skies and an expected mid-20s day. The GC Charity Cup started at 8:00am and the first two rounds have been completed.

AC players arrived with blankets and pillows during the morning and the first match has started. In view of the time involved I will not be giving a ball-by-ball description but only a general report. Atkins hoops are set in court 2 on which all the AC matches will be played. They are set to 3 11/16 in fairly hard ground and are significantly harder to run than the ordinary hoops which are in courts 1 and 3, being used for Golf Croquet.

Nick Chapman and Chris Lavina, playing for the Landrebe Lightning team are playing Alison Sharpe and Stephen Howes. The game started conventionally with a ball to the eb (Eastern boundary), a wb tice, a miss from B baulk to IV (corner four) and a miss from A baulk to II. Fifteen minutes have passé and the only one to score has been Alison Sharpe, who then bounced off hoop 2. I think every player has taken croquet!

Although I named this commentary after two of the teams I intend to comment on all matches here.

The second match is the Country Bumpkins, Claire Bassett and Jim Nicholls, v the Tea Ladies, Stephen Richards and Tim Murphy. After 30 minutes play Jim has his clip on 1b and Claire is in play, waiting for Alison to clear an opponent ball from 5 (hoop 5). The other clips are both on 1.

Third members of teams are Stephen Smith (LL - why is a Landrebe not in that team?), David Stanton (SS), Trevor Bassett (CB) and Alan Honey (TL).

I am now about to play a GC game in the charity Cup, so will discontinue the commentary for about an hour.

I'm back after losing to Glen Whitehead 7 - 5 in the quarter-final of the GC Charity Cup.

The Country Bumpkins beat the Tea Ladies 26 - 10 in the first doubles and a singles match has started in that contest, Trevor Bassett v Tim Murphy.

Tim has made his first break to 4b and is starting his second, after Trevor missed the lift, which he took from A baulk at his partner ball, 5 y (yards) SW of 2. He finished on the N bdry and Tim has an easy start.

In the other match they are still struggling. Stephen Howes was hampered after 4b and just missed his partner, the receiving ball. Stephen Pearce, who is playing alone after Nick Chapman pegged out his own ball, is loitering on the bdry N of 2. From hoop 1, where he was when his partner deserted him, he has progressed to 2b. The SS have laid up 3y from the eb, level with 5. He now goes to III and Alison, for 4b, meets the challenge by rushing to 4b, making the hoop, rushing to and making penult and rushing to and sticking in rover. Stephen Pearce shoots from III and misses to the eb. Alison can 't make rover and Stephen Howes shoots gently and misses the ball on rover. Stephen Pearce misses the balls at rover to the eb, 10y S of III. Alison makes rover off her partner, who is now for penult and they lie up near I, which, as 2b, is their opponent's hoop. He takes on the 30 yarder and misses. Stephen Howes rushes to a couple of yards N of penult, makes the hoop with a rush and cuts (by mistake) his partner to N of 1. He makes up for the error with an excellent roll to rover, makes the hoop and finishes with a 7y peg out. Whoops, no! He pegged out his partner ball and missed a 2 yarder at the peg. But no matter, he trickles to the peg and finishes two turns later after Stephen Pearce missed the 14 yarder.
One game to the Sydney Swingers.

Meanwhile the GC Charity Cup has progressed so that Greg Diprose and Charles Douglas are in one semi-final. This is being played as a handicap event and in what we used to call a draw and process format but is being called two-life. Glen Whitehead beat me to be one of the players in the other semi-final. The other player in that semi will be the winner between Charles Douglas and winner of the current game between Anthony Fernance and Hilary White which is six all. Anthony Fernance is the grandson of Wall and Mary(dec) Fernance, long term supporters, referees and managers of tournaments in Sydney. Anthony's son, Elijah, aged 14, is a spectator.

.

Hilary wins!

In the Charity Shield (AC) Trevor just made 2 with his partner clip on rover. The opponent clips are on 1 and 3b. After 4 he peeled the opponent ball for 3b, so he may be heading for a qpo, but he failed 5, so that is no more.

Unfortunately my batteries are low and I failed to bring the charger, so I will have to stop commentary until I go home. I may well return later.

It is now 6:00pm and I'm back with a recharged IPad. This morning I predicted a mid-20s day but that was wildly wrong. In the middle of the afternoon it peaked at 36 degrees - "stinking hot".

There are now about sixty people surrounding and on court 3 enjoying a come-and-try experience. The adjacent Hyatt Hotel Canberra provided a champagne and nibbles event from about 4:00 to 5:30pm in support of the Charity drive, and people are still here.

I will not try to discover the results of the Charity Shield as they are being reported on the other part of Croquetscores.

Some fresh games are about to start, doubles, I think. My guess is that the courts are running at 11 or 12 seconds. The top-dressing done in December has been good for their flatness and the polish-rolling has made them smooth.

Chris Lavina, Y, to 15y N of IV.
Trevor Bassett, U, to just S of II.
Stephen Pearce, R misses Y from B baulk to 8y N of IV.
Claire Bassett, K, hits U from B baulk, takes off to R, gets behind Y, rushes it to the end of A baulk, rolls to good position at 1, about 3 ft almost straight, but sticks in it.
Chris Lavina, Y, hits the E wire of 1 from 6y but makes no roquet.
Claire runs the hoop and rushes the black ball into Alan Honey who has started another game and who was setting for a croquet stroke. Much hilarity, with cries of "Ladies have priority". She plays on and has now made hoop 2 but Alan (W, white) has a long roquet after 1 and misses it. He was playing the third turn of that game. Alison Sharpe, P (pink), makes a double for the fourth turn and misses from A baulk. Alan turns hits her ball and

Claire is now being coached by Trevor, referee watching, as she hits a sweep shot after being hampered after 3.

In the other game Alan missed a hampered shot after 2 and Alison Sharpe is in play. She cut a ball from near the peg at a high angle to a yard from 1 and made the hoop. She is playing very well.

While watching that, Claire has broken down and Stephen Pearce is in play. He is for 1 and has just rushed a ball to the end of A baulk. His roll to 1 lands 3yards out and he sticks in the hoop, with an opponent ball 3 yards directly behind the hoop. It is Trevor's ball and he roquets the ball in the hoop gently. Instead of making his hoop he rolls the opponent ball to 4y SW of 4, roquets and croquets his partner ball to 4y E of 3, going to the other oppo ball S of 2 and takes off to set up near III, giving Claire a rush to II. Claire's clip is on 4. Stephen Pearce, whose ball was near 4, misses Claire's ball to the N bdry. Claire turns down the six yarder and rushes her partner's ball to 6, rolls it to the wb attempting to get a rush on the other oppo ball, but her partner's ball goes out and Chris Lavina has an easy start.

Meanwhile Alison has gone around and just made 2b with all the balls under control.

Chris has rushed an oppo ball to 3y NE of I and approaches 1 to a yard at 10 degrees. He runs the hoop with a hoop and roquet. He has the other oppo ball 4 y NW of 2. His croquet stroke is short and he has to cut that ball towards the hoop. He approaches the hoop to 3 y at 15 degrees and bounces off.

It is now 6:40pm and I need to be elsewhere, so will discontinue the commentary for now. I may be back later.