Jenny, having not played for about 5 hours, is having a knock-up. She employs a practice routine I like, starting with a 1st corner cannon then playing a 3-ball break.

The play-off will be regular advanced, not Super. (Both players have to agree for Super in this event, and Jenny sensibly declines a form of the game she hasn't tried.)

These two last played in the knock-out first round in the Worlds in Wellington in February.

T1 Clarke Black 9y N of 4th corner.
T2 Maugham Yellow just S of 2nd corner.
T3 Clarke Blue misses Black from A-baulk, coming on 1y N of Black.

T4 Maugham Red shoots at Black / Blue from A-baulk. Hits.

T4 Maugham Red makes 1 off Black. Now can he roll off 2 from 2nd corner? Has a 3-yard hoop...

T4 Maugham fails 2 to 1yS of 2nd corner.

T5 Clarke Black misses Blue (16y).

T6 Maugham Red hits Yellow (8y). Takes off to Black, rushes Blue 6y shy of 2. Take-off approach, 1y hoop, runs 2. Hits Yellow, croquets it to 4.Has rush toward 3, doesn't play it well, takes off to Black, short, so now has backward take-off to 3 from ten yards. Overhits it, 4y hoop...

T6 Maugham fails 3.

T7 Clarke Blue has short roquet on Red. Croquets Red to 2, 4y short of Blue, copes, reasonable rush to 1, makes hoop, has 5-yard return roquet, copes, has 4-ball break.

Possibly spoke too soon...
T7 After hoop 1, Clarke sends her putative hoop 3 pioneer into the pivot. Has to hit 9-yarder. Copes.

T7 Clarke still going, now for 3-back with a spread looming.

Much discussion of the 1-ball endgame. Giraud only made 1 or 2 physical errors, Maugham failed a few hoops, yet Giraud lost.

T7 Clarke has made 9 hoops, but has insufficient control for a spread, so it will be a sort of OSL

In the final of the Plate Nick Mounfield beat Alison Jones.

T8 Maugham has a few 13-yarders to choose from. He lifts Red (from the E half of the lawn) to A-baulk, and hits Black. The Yellow ball is 7y S of 2.

Red is for 3, remember. His rush on Blue ends up near 3rd corner, so plays big croquet stroke to Yellow, rush not good enough, so has leave.

T9 With no shot under 25y, Clarke Black finesses near 2nd corner

T10 Maugham Red makes 3, ends up rushing black to 4. It glances off the peg. possibly helping. Makes 4, has break.

T10 Maugham still needs a couple of good shots for full control. Hoop 6 pioneer is by peg. Ends up taking off from 4y SE of 6, runs hoop to boundary where Blue is wating.

T10 Maugham's rush to 1-back ends up in the back of the hoop, looks like the worst position. Copes. It won't be an MSL, maybe an NSL?

T10 All 4 balls are round 3-back. The return roquet after the hoop moves a lot of balls, which causes gesticulation from the player. It's going to be the fallback OSL again.

Clips: Clarke: Black 1, Blue 4-back; Maugham Red 4-back, Yellow 1.

T11 Clarke lifts Black to A-baulk. Shoots at Yellow (13y)....

T11 Clarke misses to just N of Yellow.

The Blue ball is peg high, maybe 3y in from E bdry. Other balls near 4th corner.

T12 Maugham Yellow rushes Black 12y N, croquets it to 2, getting (cut) rush on Blue to Red. Taking off to Red from 3y. short. Cuts Red 3y NE of 1. Take-off approach. Makes hoop.
Can he dig Blue out in time for standard TP?

The Blue ball is 3y W of 4th corner, a foot or two in-lawn,

T12 Maugham Yellow has a 2y rush after 2. Wants it near 4th corner, but it ends up near 1st corner. Rolls Black to 4, Yellow only just stays on lawn 5y shy of Blue. Hits Blue, another big roll. Approaching 3 from 8', with standard tp if he gets this stroke right. Now lining up peel from 3 yards...

The peel pulls to miss hoop entirely. The tp is delayed.

T12 Maugham Yellow has had some imperfect play, so the attempted 4-back peel before 6 is again about 3 yards. Peel fails.

T12 Maugham Yellow has Red as his 2-back pioneer.

T12 Maugham Yellow has his 3-back pioneer (Blue) a bit deep, so Red cannot get to 4-back for the stp, unless he plays a good rush in a minute...

T12 Maugham Yellow will be having zero peels this turn.

Maugham has made 12 hoops. Diagonal spread with Blue at the peg, Black 6y WNW of peg, Red with rush on Yellow to Blue / Black from 11y N of 4th corner.

Clips: Clarke: Black 1, Blue 4-back; Maugham Red 4-back, Yellow peg

T13 Clarke plays Black as it lies. Dunno if it could see a bit of Blue, just misses Yellow.

And Maugham should finish....

David Maugham beats Jenny Clarke +17, and becomes Champion of the East Midlands for the 6th time.

Thanks for following. I'm hoping to travel to Cheltenham on the Thursday (12th), and commenting maybe Thursday evening, and definitely Friday Saturday Sunday.

Bye till then, Andrew