CA Diplomas Awarded in 2020
Contents...
Mike Oulton - Rottingdean Croquet Club
Mike joined Rottingdean Croquet Club in 1989 five years after its inauguration and, following his retirement from work, began to take an increasingly active role within the Club. With only one three-quarter-sized court and members who liked to play social croquet, Mike saw the need for someone to train to be a coach and took it upon himself to be that person. He qualified to be a Club Coach in 2004 at Hurlingham Croquet Club. Since then he has provided weekly coaching sessions for both Association Croquet and Golf Croquet for members which, in turn, has inspired other Club members to qualify as Club Coaches, thus helping to raise the overall standard of play within the Club.
In addition to his coaching role, over his thirty years of membership, he has held varied posts of responsibility within the Club and has served on the Committee. He was Maintenance and Equipment Officer for over ten years maintaining Club premises, its equipment and the court. He served as Chair of the Club from 2008 to 2011.
Mike qualified as a Golf Croquet Referee in 2004 and since then has carried out Refereeing duties within our Club and for various tournaments at Sussex County Croquet Club. In 2004, directly after qualifying, he was called upon to be an On-Court Referee for the World Golf Croquet Championships held at Sussex County Croquet Club. Fifteen years later he was refereeing again at last year's World Golf Croquet Championships.
Over a thirty-year period, Mike has made a huge contribution to our Club and has worn a variety of hats in his efforts to promote the game both within the Club and the surrounding area.
Jane Hull - Kington Langley Croquet Club
Jane Hull is a founder member of Kington Langley Croquet Club set up 36 years ago in 1984. Jane was very much involved in getting the club off the ground and served on the Committee until 2011 in various roles including being Match Secretary from 1996 to 2011.
Jane was part of the team maintaining the lawns which included mowing for over 20 years.
She has been part of the successes the club has had over the years in the South West Federation Leagues, including success in the Secretary's Shield which was remarkable for such a small club.
In 2014 Jane was inaugurated as President of the Club. She is always ready to promote Kington Langley Croquet Club and the game of Croquet which is a very important part of her life in the summer when she enjoys travelling to different clubs partaking in CA tournaments. Through this, she has formed many friendships in the croquet world.
In 2017 Jane took on the monumental task of managing the Club's development when the club went from one and a half lawns to two full lawns. She was involved with interviewing contractors and then liaising with the chosen Contractor throughout the process which was a very big commitment for her and the club. Jane will be the first to say it was a team effort but without Jane's leadership, the development could have been far more difficult.
Jane is involved in essential fundraising by organising a successful Bridge Drive in the Autumn of each year and supports the fundraising done by other members throughout the year. Jane is always praising others for their achievements and it is time she receives some recognition for her years of dedication to the club she helped found and for raising the enjoyment of croquet.
Jean Cobbold - Cheam Croquet and Bowls Club
Jean Cobbold has worked tirelessly for this club since its inception over eight years ago. She was part of the working party set up to consider the feasibility of founding a croquet club in the underused Cheam Bowling Club grounds. It was agreed that the formation of a club should go ahead and Jean assisted with the practical and administrative tasks necessary, including defining a logo for club use. Jean volunteered to coordinate publicity and organised newspaper articles, posters and printing and distribution of flyers.
Jean arranged a taster weekend before the inaugural meeting to determine the interest in setting up a club. Jean's publicity efforts were well rewarded when 100 people attended and 40 signed up before the club even existed. Another 40 joined at the inaugural General Meeting in March 2012. At the meeting, Jean was formally elected as club secretary.
As secretary, Jean dealt very efficiently with the administrative tasks of the club and helped to set in motion a series of social and fund-raising events. Jean has given considerable practical support to
the club, including painting the white lines on the croquet lawn. To further support the club Jean became a qualified coach and helps to run the Public Training courses held at the club which gives potential members a taste of the game of croquet.
In April 2020, due to the Coronavirus movement restrictions, Jean rose to a new challenge and organised a virtual Annual General Meeting. At the meeting, Jean stood down from her post as secretary after eight years but said she will continue to support the club wherever needed.
Lilian Holdsworth - Littlehampton Croquet Club
Lilian first joined Littlehampton croquet club in 2001 and has been a stalwart member ever since, usually present at least 4 times a week and willing to volunteer for any task. In 2008 she became Chairman which office she held until 2012. She was elected President of the club in 2011, a position she still holds.
Under Lilian's dynamic Chairmanship the membership reached a point in 2010 when a waiting list had to be considered. She never misses an opportunity to recruit new members and, as one of our coaches, encourages them and keeps them under her welcoming wing indefinitely. In fact, Lilian is always very welcoming and encouraging to all our members and visitors all the time.
During our Centenary year in 2009, Lilian introduced the Littlehampton Centenary Cup when teams from clubs in West Sussex meet for a day of friendly competition. This has continued every year since and is the main event of our season. During this year she also curated a history of croquet exhibition for the town museum incorporating the club's history. Whilst both Chairman and President, in 2011 Lilian led the club through a divisive dispute which, although it caused her serious stress and required external mediation, was never allowed to interfere with routine club events.
Since 2008 Lilian has been a considerate and diligent unofficial welfare officer for the club: keeping in touch with sick and retired members.
As club President she gives quiet, sound advice to the Chairman and Committee whenever requested. Lilian is often seen sweeping out, washing up, or cleaning the toilet. She combines many public duties (including assisting the Lord Lieutenant) with her club activities, sometimes on the same day, resulting in dramatic costume changes to the surprise of new members!
Don Williamson - Southport and Birkdale Croquet Club & North West Federation
Don Williamson has been a stalwart member of Southport and Birkdale Croquet Club for over forty years, serving on the Committee many times including Chairman and Presidential roles. He has also taken a leading role within the North West Federation over the years as Coaching Officer and Federation Handicapper.
Don has introduced numerous beginners to the game and within the club has organised hundreds of coaching sessions for beginners and improvers, in addition to running club sessions on Laws, Handicapping and Lawn Etiquette. He has also developed an expertise in Lawn Maintenance and the high-quality lawns at Southport are a tribute to his enthusiasm and the incredible number of hours devoted to mowing and supervision. He also enjoys repairing and renovating equipment and many beginners have started their croquet careers with a reconditioned mallet from him.
Don has travelled extensively over the northwest to run coaching sessions at other clubs and advise on development and handicapping. He is an AC Grade 1/2 Coach and Examiner, a Senior GC and AC Referee and an AC Championship and Examining Referee. He has refereed at many tournaments and international events.
The contribution made by Don Williamson to Croquet in the northwest at both club and regional level is immense, his expertise is widely recognised and respected throughout the area.
Christopher Hague - Beckford Croquet Club
One day in 2012, Chris Hague, an accomplished croquet player, was playing tennis at Beckford when inspiration occurred to him that the adjacent field, owned by Beckford Village Hall, could provide a good croquet lawn. Chris approached numerous people in and around Beckford who agreed to join the club, and so Beckford Croquet Club came into being.
Now however the hard work began, and with nothing more than spades, rakes and wheelbarrows the lawn was brought into existence. Much work was needed, and Chris headed a team of volunteers to do the work. Chris's initiative and energy were enormous as he masterminded the project. He obtained equipment and support from the CA enabling the club to begin playing. An old concrete garage was given to the Club to store the equipment.
The club lacked a clubhouse. Once more Chris masterminded the difficult planning application system and identified and arranged the delivery of a self-build wooden "chalet" type building which has served the club extremely well.
From the beginning, Chris was chairman of the Club Committee, in which role he performed much of the physical and administrative work of the club and encouraged the development of croquet skills of the members. However, in 2018, with the load undiminished, Chris retired as chairman and was elected President of the club.
Chris's dedication to croquet and to the Beckford Croquet Club has been outstanding. His drive, initiative and leadership have transformed a piece of a meadow into a vibrant and happy club. He continues to make a significant contribution to the health of Beckford Croquet Club.
Martin Beacon - Nottingham Croquet Club
Martin Beacon has been a key member of Nottingham Croquet Club for many years, involving himself in a wide variety of aspects of the life of the club.
He has been our pavilion manager for several years - making sure that everything is in stock from milk, coffee, beer and wine to washing up liquid and toilet paper (even through the panic buying!).
He was on the organising committee and was Grounds Manager for both the AC Women's World Championship, which the club hosted in 2015, and the 2019 U21 Golf Croquet World Championships, onsite in the early hours, unfurling national flags, placing scoring boards, erecting marquees and fencing, washing chairs and doing emergency trips to buy large quantities of ice-cream when the weather suddenly took a turn for the better.
In 2013 he was involved in the planning for sinking our own borehole and installing the very successful water sprinkler system. He is currently working with our project manager to extend the irrigation to the recently acquired redundant bowling greens and is liaising with the contractor for their re-laying this autumn.
Martin personifies croquet - well mannered, a gentleman, always competitive but fair AC player, friendly, keen to pass on his skills to newcomers, keeps in touch with frail or ill members and former members, and always willing to lend a hand.
Adrian Kirby - Peterborough Croquet Club
Adrian is and has been the lifeblood of Peterborough Croquet Cub almost since our foundation. He has inspired many others to take up the game and improve. He is also a reliable person to turn to when something needs doing or a committee post is vacant.
When Peterborough Croquet Club was founded in July 2006 Adrian Kirby was one of the first new members to join having previously played with considerable success for the works team Thomas Cook Peterborough. November 2008 Adrian represents Peterborough Club at the Soham indoor Croquet the first time he represents the Club and then in April 2008 becomes Vice-Chair of the club from which point his house becomes the principal meeting and social venue for the club until he moved to smaller premises in 2016. In March of 2009, Adrian was appointed club captain, responsible for all club and external competitions a role in which he continues to this day. Adrian also became the lead person for setting up the lawns at the start of the season and subsequently for tournaments a role he has also carried out since 2009. In 2009 he also became the club handicapper another role that he continues to fulfil to this day. When the CA introduced coaching qualifications Adrian dutifully went off to be trained to ensure the club had at least one accredited coach.
In 2016, again the club was short on officers so Adrian stepped into the role of treasurer and sought out a new independent auditor for our books. In 2017 Adrian became an accredited Association referee as there were none in the club and then in 2018 though he rarely plays Golf Croquet he qualified as a Golf Croquet referee too.
If it were not for Adrian Kirby it is highly unlikely that the Club would have survived to this day.
David Hunt - Nailsea and District Croquet Club
David started to play croquet in 2002, after being leafleted outside his local Co-Op. He made rapid progress as a player and was quick to get involved in the life of the Club. In spite of the fact that David was still working, he volunteered to be on the mowing and hoop setting rotas and was always ready to help with other jobs, often providing his van for transporting bulky items.
Now retired, David is a pivotal and valued member of the Lawn Advisory Group. He is enthusiastic about trying new ideas and is always ready to provide effort in their implementation. He has taken responsibility for hoop-setting at the Club and works hard to maintain Nailsea's high standards in that area.
He designed and built a drill stand to ensure that the hoop holes were drilled vertically. As well as leading the positioning and accurate setting of the hoops, he extends his role to the painting of hoops in the winter and also to the harvesting and sieving of molehill soil. In addition to all his volunteer effort, David is invaluable to Nailsea managers. He will step in or out at the last minute to ensure that tournaments or club competitions have a suitable number of players. He is always willing to play Doubles with beginners and has recently begun to coach AC both formally and on an ad hoc basis. Over the years, David has been a reliable member of various League teams, both AC and GC, and has captained some of them. He is a formidable opponent in both disciplines and is particularly skilful at one-ball.
In short, David is a very good sport, a hard worker, and a much valued and popular club member.
Dr Adam Moliver - Cheltenham Croquet Club
Adam Moliver joined the Cheltenham Croquet Club in 2005 and, applying his clinical approach to the full, made rapid strides in reducing his handicap to single figures. But he soon understood that there is much more to being a full member of a club than just being proficient in playing the game and representing the Club, and looked for more ways in which he could contribute. And this he did; significantly and across the whole gamut of the Club's activities. One would hesitate to say that it is because of his background in old age psychiatry but he has the ability to pass on his love of the game to new members and rapidly forged a niche in introducing beginners to the game with to the effectiveness of his coaching. Pinny to the fore, he also became a regular inhabitant of the kitchen and a frequent provider of tournament lunches and teas. He is also a stalwart member of the hoop-setting team, ever necessary with the Club's (normally!) busy tournament schedule. He was elected to the Committee in 2013 and immediately took on the role of Chairman; an office he held until the Spring of 2020. As Chairman, he continually looked for ways to improve the image of croquet and the standing of the Club within the local community. He oversaw the creation of the Club's website, the provision of broadband within the Club and the move to an online lawn booking system as well as being to the fore in volunteering for the less thrilling maintenance of the club and grounds. It is obvious that Adam enjoys his croquet and the Club certainly benefits from this.
John Evans - Glamorgan Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
John Evans has played croquet for a long time, starting at Stourbridge in the 1970s. He took a break from it on returning to West Wales and started playing again not long after Dyffryn Croquet Club was formed in 1986.
Our new venue has entailed a lot of work for the members of Glamorgan Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. John has been at the forefront of that, from organising the initial cut of the very rough pair of lawns to the reasonable playing surface that we have at the moment. He has taken on the new club role of grounds officer, organising quotes for re-laying the lawns, purchasing of a new mower and other items. He is always keen to make the longish journey from home to the club to cut and work on the lawns.
As if this wasn't enough croquet to occupy his time, John has set up Llandovery Croquet Club from scratch and been a constant mentor to the new players at the club. He also helped and advised on the setting up of Mumbles Croquet Club. As you can see, John likes to keep busy - with croquet clubs!
David and Nancy Temple - Sidmouth Croquet Club
David and Nancy Temple retired to Sidmouth, took up croquet and proceeded to get heavily involved in all aspects of the game and the club over many years. They worked tirelessly, on and off the committee, developing the sport in Sidmouth and were instrumental in building the club's membership to practical capacity. They were particularly keen to support and mentor new members and always willing to coach developing players. Overall, they helped to make Sidmouth a welcoming, recognised croquet venue at home and abroad.
David was committee chairman for several years and represented the section on the General Management Committee [GMC] of this large, multi-sport club. His opinion was always sought and he is recognised as a man who 'get things done'. He masterminded the fundraising for the irrigation system which is still talked about by the GMC. No wonder that he is now the overall club president.
Nancy became a proficient player and then took up tournament management. She managed the open B-Level event for several years with an excellent balance of strictness, good humour and flexibility. She also ran internal competitions and, as social secretary, maintained a busy social calendar; ensuring the club 'worked' for all.
They were both club handicappers and reliable SWF league players. Both played in the intermediate team, captained by Nancy and David turned out for the advanced league. In all aspects the Temples participated; from the provision of teas to repairing shelters to the construction of the 'coffee cart'.
David and Nancy - a most effective team. Always willing to assist with sound advice and practical, hands-on help, from which the Club has greatly benefited.
Howard Bowron - Penrith and North Lakes Croquet Club
Howard Bowron has played a central and pivotal role in helping the club to develop from its initial roots when croquet was started locally by members of U3A in the early 2000s.
When Howard moved to Cumbria as an established croquet player, he came across the U3A players and soon joined in and helped paint a picture of the wider aspects of the game and its rules to those involved.
In 2007 they moved to our current location, Edenhall Tollbar, playing on two short lawns initially on a cricket pitch outfield. The standard of grass we are told was not great, so one of Howard's first jobs was to take charge of getting the two lawns into a better condition.
Howard, at members' request, took on the role of Chairman and Secretary and also continued with his quest to improve the playing surface, a passion he continues to directly contribute to today.
One member from the early days at Edenhall and still involved quoted "Howard has tirelessly built up the infrastructure and has always been a source of encouragement to new and existing players. His enthusiastic nature has meant that a lot of members have stepped up to challenges they thought were beyond their capabilities and as such established a vibrant and popular croquet club".
Over a number of years at the start of each season, Howard has run various coaching sessions for all classes of members.
Howard has been a staunch supporter of AC at all levels of skill and has been instrumental in setting up the club's short and full lawn leagues.
Howard encourages players to represent the club against other clubs as it helps to verify the handicaps that he is involved in moderating each year.
Ian Stratford - Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club
Ian has been a member of Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club for many years. His contribution to the Club is considerable having been a member for full terms on both the General Committee and Croquet Committees.
As a retired engineer, Ian was closely involved in the preparation for the design and supervision of a major building project to replace an existing pavilion that had gone beyond a safe state of repair. The new 'Middle Pavilion' is now admired for its sympathetic design, and held to be a tremendous asset to the club.
During 2019 he took the role of club Membership secretary where he was exposed to the various spreadsheets and paper records that had been used to manage all details of our 260 members.
Ian's task was also to convince a rather traditional club, and its management structure, that a step change was needed, that our rather 'mature' membership could be safely tutored and would be able to quickly adapt to the technology. This he and his small team have achieved.
During the Club's winter season the computerised system was introduced in stages to live operation and we are proud to say that it has saved a considerable burden of paperwork and volunteer time.
Ian's commitment to the club is undoubted and his work has set the club securely for the next generation of members. Importantly his work will be of interest to other clubs and he has already offered to be a point of contact for others looking to upgrade their systems. The Club has been very lucky to have Ian's skills so freely and willingly offered.
Des Honey - Cornwall Croquet Club
Since joining Cornwall Croquet Club in 2006 Des has become involved in all aspects of running the club including its recruiting and fundraising activities.
He has encouraged others to take part in croquet, always having time to give help and support through group and individual coaching for new and old members alike. He coaxes non-members to try croquet at specially arranged group sessions and never misses an opportunity to promote the game in other areas of his life. He is simply a very good envoy for croquet in Cornwall and the club as a whole.
When it comes to club competitions, Des's invincible IT skills have enabled him to prepare Swiss or American Blocks, knockout or handicap formats, or more or less any configuration, and then go on to act as manager.
Des soon became involved in other aspects of running the club, joining in lawn working parties and generally being a reliable pair of hands whenever needed.
Becoming a Golf Croquet referee added another achievement in Des' croquet career. He has also been a club committee member for nine years and served as Chairman for three of these. For five years he took the lead in ground maintenance and the care of various allied machinery.
Des is ready and willing to help in any way he can, often being the first to volunteer his services. Notable projects in which he has been involved include a successful application for a CA grant and negotiating a long term lease with our landlord. In conclusion, Des has played a strong part in the development of Cornwall Croquet Club, being well known in many clubs in the South West Federation and is also a great ambassador for the sport in general.
Howard Rosevear - Cornwall Croquet Club
Howard was farming in Cornwall when he heard about the game of croquet from his friend Trevor Bainbridge, whose brother was a keen player. He was introduced to the Chairman of Cornwall Croquet Club who was looking for a suitable permanent site for the club and agreed to rent some of his land for the purpose.
In 2003 Howard started work on providing two lawns and the following year the club was up and running at its current location. Howard's further involvement in the club's development resulted in a comfortable clubhouse and, more recently, a third lawn.
Throughout the years since then, Howard has retained a keen and active interest in all aspects of club affairs. He has honoured his position as club President by attending AGMs and committee meetings and supporting club social and fundraising events as well as hosting fund-raising events in his own home. He has been an active member of the club's South West Federation Golf Croquet league team for many years, playing in home and away matches and has taken part regularly in the club's own tournaments both as a competitor and supporter.
Howard promotes the game of croquet in other areas of his life, arranging taster sessions for groups in which he is involved and recruiting new members. Throughout all these years his commitment to and support for the club has remained strong. Only recently, during the COVID-19 pandemic, he has taken on the care of part of the club grounds and visited the premises every day to check on it whilst it was unoccupied during the lockdown. In short, without Howard's involvement, commitment, help and support our club would not exist as it is today.
John Guy - Broadwas Croquet Club
John Guy joined Broadwas Croquet club in 2009, very quickly took to the game and joined the committee. During the ensuing 10 years, John has progressed to be responsible for coaching, refereeing and competitive play in many CA tournaments.
John has been instrumental in encouraging new potential comers to enjoy the game at Broadwas and become members.
John attended CA coaching courses and then set about passing on his skills and knowledge to our growing membership such that Broadwas Croquet Club has won many Federation, High Handicap and specific All-England competitions.
Broadwas has a Club day and Fun Friday when we invite potential new members to come along and have a game. John has a key role in welcoming new members and teaching them the basics before full-time membership. All members, both new to the game and those from other clubs, are issued with a handicap card by John before joining the club, enabling them to play on club days and competitively.
Without John's enthusiasm for members to play well and enjoy the game, we would not be a strong and successful club of 60 members, many having a handicap lower than 5.
Besides John's role as head coach, he is always available to help in many other roles within the club such as lawn maintenance, training on the art of hoop position and setting, and club administration.
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