Preview of the GC Inter-Club Championship Final at Edgbaston (25 September)

[<<] [>>] by Tim King at Edgbaston
21st September 2021 (GC - Inter-Club)

On Saturday 25 September, Edgbaston Croquet Club will host the final of the 2021 GC Inter-Club Championship. Four-time winners Ashby will play against first-time finalists Bowdon. The match will start at 10:30 and spectators are most welcome.

Live updates will be available on CroquetScores: https://croquetscores.com/2021/gc/ca-inter-club-championship-final-eng/ashby-vs-bowdon

The key statistics for the GC Inter-Club Championship include the following.

• Ashby will extend their record of most appearances in a final of the Championship to 11. Surbiton (9 appearances) and Nottingham (3) are the only other teams to have appeared more than twice.
• In their sixth year of competing in the Championship, Bowdon are appearing in their first final. Cheltenham (11 years) have competed most often without reaching a final.
• Bowdon will become the 18th different club to appear in a final of the Championship.
• Ashby have won 4 Championships. Surbiton (6 wins) are the only club to have won more and Nottingham (3) are the only other club to have won more than two. Nine different clubs have won the Championship. Phyllis Court (12 years) have competed in the Championship most often without winning.
• Ashby (21 years) are the club who have competed most often in the 22 years of the Championship (first contested in 2000). The next most are Dulwich, Surbiton and Sussex County (all 16). In total, 42 different clubs have competed in the Championship.
• Ashby extended their consecutive run of appearances to 20 years in 2021. Dulwich and Surbiton have the next longest sequences (both 15 years) but both missed the 2020 Championship. The next longest currently unbroken sequence is 12 years (Phyllis Court).
• Ashby will be playing their 49th Championship match (a record). The next most are Surbiton (37 matches) and Dulwich (35). Bowdon will be playing their 14th match (putting them 11th on the list of all-time matches played). Colchester have one Championship win from having played only 4 matches in total. Nottingham have their three Championships from 13 matches played.
• Edgbaston will become the 15th different venue for a final of the Championship. Nottingham (3 times) and Wrest Park (3) have hosted the most finals.
• Edgbaston will become a neutral venue in the Championship for the first time. Nottingham (10 times) has most often been a neutral venue; Ashby (3) and Wrest Park (3) are the only other clubs that have been a neutral venue more than twice. In total, 13 different clubs have served as a neutral venue for the Championship.
• Edgbaston will host a match in the Championship for the first time. Wrest Park (3 times), Parson's Green (1), Peterborough (1) and Ripon Spa (1) are the other clubs that have only ever served as a neutral venue (i.e. never as the home venue for the club).
• Edgbaston will take the total number of different venues for matches in the Championship to 39. The top three venues for GC Inter-Club Championship matches (i.e. as both a home and neutral venue) are Ashby (18 times), Nottingham (17) and Surbiton (17).
• 14 clubs competed for the 2021 Championship. The most clubs in any one year is 19 (2008 and 2019). The least is 4 (2001).

These statistics are based on the following publicly visible Google sheet:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/17EdBQS83Y7fEBltcH_s9mhjU9edZJ3qs_DUnh8vCJJg/edit?usp=sharing

If anyone spots any errors then please contact Tim King to provide the necessary corrections.