CA Diplomas Awarded in 2008
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Chris Bennett and Esther Jones with CA President Bernard Neal
Chris Bennett and Esther Jones - Edgbaston Croquet Club
In 2002 Edgbaston Croquet Club was facing a falling membership, deteriorating lawns, a potentially prohibitive renewal of its lease and a general lack of funds. Chris Bennett and Esther Jones offered to 'run' the Club for the time being, increasing the number of tournaments, improving the standard of play and encouraging a more active membership - they guaranteed to cover any losses personally.
The first task was to get Birmingham City Council to admit liability for extensive lawn damage and flooding due to lack of maintenance of a culvert, and to make appropriate guarantees and compensation. By 2005 the lawns were so much improved that the Club was invited by the CA to be one of the venues for the World Croquet Championships. This gave Chris and Esther the opportunity to successfully apply to Birmingham City Council for a grant of £8,000 - mainly to provide a badly-needed new cylinder mower and other lawn machinery, also six sets of Dawson balls and 15 club mallets. It also enabled them to persuade their landlords and neighbours to carry out in excess of £10,000 worth of surgery on surrounding trees which were causing damage to the lawns, at no cost to the Club. The promotion of croquet parties with local corporate organisations was another project which now provides an annual income of some £2,000. All of the above resulted in a long-term renewal of the lease on very favourable terms incorporating a deal on the connection of an electricity supply - a grant from the CA covered the purchase of appliances.
In 2007 the Club celebrated its Centenary and was transferred back to a traditional committee structure. It is now a regular and popular venue for CA events. The award of a Diploma to Chris and Esther would be appropriate recognition of their work over five years in carrying the Club through its crisis.
Tony Backhouse - Cornwall Croquet Club
Having served on the committee of the Woking club, Tony moved to Cornwall in 1995, found no formal club there and contacted seven enthusiasts to set about forming on. In 1988, Tony because the Chairman/Secretary of a club that relied on private lawns and, after eight years of searching for a permanent site, established a two-lawn venue, at Porthpean, that was opened in May 2005.
The Club has gone from strength to strength, with Tony as the guiding light. When he retired as Chairman this year, all members acknowledged the work and effort that Tony has put into making this a successful club, with some forty members playing both codes, and entering teams into the South West Federation Leagues. His work for the club continues as Tournament Secretary and wherever, he is needed, including duties as Association Grade One coach and referee.
Undoubtedly, without Tony's persistence and vision, the club would not be as healthy as it is.
Ian Burn with CA President Bernard Neal
Ian Burn - Rother Valley Croquet Club
Ian, a retired surgeon, has been a member of Rother Valley Croquet Club since its inception in 2000, and before that for at least three years when the club played less formally in Fittleworth. He took a leading role in the decision to move to the club's present site and in all the work involved in setting up a new club. He has been on the committee for most of his time in the club, and has served as Chairman and latterly as Vice-Chairman. He has been Club Tournament Secretary from the beginning and was Club Captain for five years. While encouraging and often coaching others in both Golf and Association croquet within the club he has also done much to promote our club's standing in the wider croquet world. He is currently Club Archivist and is presently working on a brief history of the club's first ten years, to be ready for the 10th anniversary in 2010. In 2002 he wrote a widely publicised article on the health benefits of croquet.
Ian is a natural leader and inspirer of others, generous and full of encouragement, but never seeking the limelight for himself. His wise counsel has helped to steer the club through difficult times. Without his tact and hard work behind the scenes, we would not be where we are now. He has been supported throughout by his wife Fiona, who plays an active role in the club's hospitality.
Ian is moving away from the area for family reasons, and he will be greatly missed.
David Barrett - Bury Croquet Club
David was a founder member of the Bury Club 20 years ago and has served on the committee in many different capacities ever since. He has run coaching courses at the club every year and has also helped other North West clubs. Ten years ago he arranged the relocation of the Club's present lawns and also negotiated with Heaton Park for the use of the Commonwealth Games bowling greens for croquet. During his last three years as chairman he raised money and organised all the work required to bring electricity to the clubhouse and put in a very good fitted kitchen. He has inspired everyone in the club to work on improving the clubhouse and also to play for club teams and in the North West Federation Leagues. This year (2008) marks two significant anniversaries at Bury and David has been committed to the development of the club in every way over the whole time.
Christine Constable with CA President Bernard Neal
Christine Constable - Sussex County Croquet Club
Christine started playing croquet at the Worthing Club in 1991. In 1992 she joined Sussex County Croquet Club and quickly established herself on and off the lawns.
In 1995 she offered to take over the running of the Club's substantial catering operation. On numerous occasions under her leadership, the club has catered for in excess of 60 people each day, a number that many successful restaurants would be proud to serve. During her leadership of this important operation, she continued to obtain volunteers, raise standards and, most importantly, maintain the catering operation as a major contributor to club funds.
In 2007 she relinquished her catering responsibilities to step into the breach as Club Chairman for 12 months in spite of just having been appointed a magistrate. Chris is an active referee and has also managed Tournaments since 1999. In spite of her heavy workload she is still a member of the Club's Management Committee and club Vice-Chairman.
Roger Bowen - Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club
Roger is a past grounds manager, a past Croquet Chairman, a General Committee member, with extensive sub-committee service, a referee (Association and Golf Croquet), a hoop setter, assistant coach and mentor. He is an enthusiast with a penchant for innovation: for example, he played a leading role in effecting major improvements to four lawns and raising the necessary funds for this from various sources; he installed automatic watering on eight lawns; he designed a retaining wall with a honeycomb structure for the full length of one lawn and personally built it; he set up and ran for a time indoor croquet sessions at various locations, and these attracted new members; he set up and maintains the club website and he has written a history of the Club.
Connie Chick with CA President Bernard Neal
Connie Chick - Littlehampton Croquet Club
Connie became the Club's president in 2002, having been the Chairman for the previous four years. Since she joined Littlehampton Croquet Club in 1988 she has served on the Committee almost continually and her many activities have included coaching new members, catering for match teas and fundraising, which are met with equal enthusiasm.
Connie has been a member of both the South East Croquet Federation (SECF) Croquet Committee and the CA Golf Croquet Committee. She has been match secretary for both friendly and SECF League matches and has represented the club in the SECF League.
In the winter of 1994/5, together with her late husband Don - Treasurer and Sportsfield representative - Connie oversaw the relocation of the Club's elderly wooden clubhouse to its present site on the sports field. Next year, 2009, marks the centenary of Littlehampton Croquet Club and, no doubt, Connie's boundless energy will be spearheading the celebrations.
Margaret and Tony Garner - York Croquet Club
Margaret was a founder member of the club and has been on the Committee for most of the last 20 years. She was Social Secretary for two years and Match and Tournament Secretary for five years but perhaps her greatest contribution to the club has been in the four years up to last December when she was Club Secretary and devoted much time to instruction and enthusing newcomers.
Tony joined the club one year after his wife, son and daughter (if you can't beat them...) and joined the Committee in 1993. He became Match and Tournament Secretary in 2001 and despite poor health has ensured that the club completed every fixture for the last six years - no small feat in a small club in up to four leagues. He has also been 'official' photographer and webmaster and 'unofficial' policeman when they lived nearby and there was 'yob' trouble.
Tony and Margaret have worked as a team in all aspects of club activity which has sadly come to an end because of Tony's ill health and moving twenty-five miles away.
David Godfree with CA President Bernard Neal
David Godfree - All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
David Godfree has acted as croquet secretary for over 30 years. During that time he has developed a full range of internal club competitions, both Association and Golf croquet. With infectious enthusiasm he has persuaded many club members to try their hand at croquet, and to maintain their interest, has organised regular informal club days. David also developed indoor croquet to keep up interest in the winter, using snooker balls, small mallets and hoops fitted to sockets under a carpet.
Due to David's initiative, there is now a programme of club matches, both home and away.
Gordon Hopewell - Nottingham Croquet Club
Gordon Hopewell first played at the club while a pupil at the Nottingham High School, being one of a group of six talented players who contributed significantly to the revival of the sport. He won the Association Plate and played in the Chairman's Salver. He returned to Nottingham in 1980, served briefly as Treasurer and then generously as President for 16 years. Throughout this time, he played a full part in managing and catering for tournaments, coaching beginners and passing on his wisdom to more experienced players, and undertaking improvements to the pavilion, in addition to his ceremonial duties.
Peter Jones - Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club
Peter is a past Club Secretary, a past Club Chairman, current Chairman of the Club's Handicap Committee, current Chairman of the Club's Federation League Team, an Association Croquet referee a Grade 2 approved coach, a manager of CA and Club tournaments, and a past member of a busy sub-committee. For many years he has given generously of his time, his talents and his energy. He has coached extensively and acted as a mentor; he has also done an enormous amount of work recruiting and training hoop setters throughout the season (ten lawns and a practice lawn) and has performed much of the hoop setting himself.
Beatrice McGlen - Nottingham Croquet Club
Beatrice McGlen joined the club while working and playing at the Bretby Coal Research Establishment and improved rapidly, winning the Steel Bowl and playing for winning Nottinghamshire Inter-counties teams. Despite living an hour away from the club, with family and work commitments, she has been generous with the time she has given to it, and in encouraging new members. She has served as a very efficient Chairman of the Committee for two spells and, notably, she reintroduced the practice of members catering for tournaments, after a period when it had been contracted out. She did this by organising rotas, cajoling members to take part, and most importantly, leading by example, taking on the task when others were not available.
Graham Roberts with CA President Bernard Neal
Graham Roberts - Cheltenham Croquet Club
Graham Roberts joined the Cheltenham Croquet Club in 2000 to learn to play croquet as his wife Maryse had done the year before. He has succeeded very well and frequently plays for the club in various leagues and competitions. He was talent-spotted early on by the Committee as someone with other abilities and over the last few years has transformed many areas of the club buildings. Graham sees what needs doing and proceeds to do it with great skill and little fuss. He was also talent-spotted by the lawns manager and Graham uses his careful and accurate approach as part of the hoop-setting team and his contribution to he club's activities do not end there. He is a calm and able manager of members' days and group visits to the Club. He can also be found in the kitchen that he has so improved, helping with the catering. We sincerely hope Graham doesn't go off croquet.
Andy Mitchell - Ramsgate Croquet Club
Andy Mitchell was one of the founder members of the Ramsgate Croquet Club when it formed in 1984 and is now Vice-Chairman, having served as Chairman for four years.
He heads the Club's maintenance team, dealing with any mechanical items that need repairing such as mowers and sprinklers. He has devised a method of using drainpipes as stop-boards which are much easier to use than wooden boards and he is responsible for painting lines and hoop setting. The clubhouse is a dilapidated listed building and he and his maintenance team keep it in as good order as possible.
Andy organises all club competitions usually with at least 60 competitors, and organises the First and Last days, which although trophies are presented are considered fun days and supported by nearly all members, which requires a great deal of juggling of numbers.
Although in full-time employment, Andy can be found at the club at weekends for most of the year, doing something and he also helps with the Saturday Junior club if there is a shortage of volunteers. When he takes a holiday it is to catch up with a job at the club, He is the hoop-setter and assists with all the CA tournaments at the club, usually being first to arrive and last to leave. He has a phenomenal memory and can recall incidents since the Club opened, and past members which is a great help on occasion.
Liz Wilson with CA President Bernard Neal
Liz Wilson - Fylde Croquet Club
Liz has been a member of the club for almost 20 years and during that time has dedicated herself to the Club and the sport of Croquet. Soon after joining, she began to take an active part in running the club, becoming treasurer and running annual beginners' courses. Her teaching methods are lively and fun and she keeps the social side of the club active, which we believe contributes to the success in obtaining new members who stay with the club and develop as players.
Liz served on the North West Federation Committee for several years and her post brought her into contact with the larger world of croquet and the best players in the region. Liz brought this knowledge back to the club and used it to help each and every member improve as players.
Over the past six years, the club has grown from only having one short lawn team in Federation leagues to having five teams covering all the four disciplines of the game, and this is because of Liz's drive, enthusiasm and coaching skills. She now holds the position of Match Captain and recently became a Grade One Association Coach. Liz has also been a member of Pendle and Craven for many years and has managed several tournaments there and often will assume RoT duties.
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