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Commentary on Day 5 at Surbiton

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Back up to the other end for tea...

rutger is pegging out the first.

forster on a tp in his second with cumming's clips on 3b and 3b.

chambers now 2 and peg, trimmer is on a tp, but is currently staring down a 45 degree 2-b. trimmer has a jump... Fails it to west boundary. Chambers now has a break for the match.

rutger starts game 2 in standard fashion, bullen has a deep tice. Rutger misses partner, but Bullen has missed his tice.

Mmm...trifle...

rutger has played a nice stroke to get in front of hoop 1. Wibbles meekly into the jaws. Brian has hit.

somehow Pete got back in and has now just run 4b. Red clip still on hoop 2.

jamie has just stuck in hoop 6 giving Cumming and easy roquet.

Stephen Forster has peeled rover straight with peelee going into the yard line area and striker's ball staying handily in the jaws.

Meanwhile james hopgood is still stressing over a declined 9 yarder...

 

Forster has taken the second game +10 TP to level the match with Brown. (Sorry if I said it was cumming before...cumming is playing Jamie burch on the neighbouring lawn)

bullen's clip is on 2 and he is widely split. Rutger misses a dribble to join partner.

bullen missed rutger's balls to 9y east of c1. Rutger missed a very dribbly dribble.

roving reporter Lines says Robbie Fletcher has failed hoop 4 with a delayed tp ahead of him.

Forster has restarted. Looks like Forster to east boundary, Brown duffer, Forster hit this rushing it into the jaws of hoop 6. Returns to partner on east boundary. Robin misses, Stephen has just failed hoop 1, giving Robin a lift and 7 yarder for everything with the ball that is now just south of hoop 6. Hits.

Excitement on lawn 1... Trimmer on 2b, Christian Carter on hoop 2 still.

Great spectacle on lawn 2 for the crowd... Rutger has a very angled hoop 1 which he has a referee for. Referee calls a friends for additional company. Plays a very clean stroke in which the mallet follows through and lifts the hoop clean out of the ground! Carrots came half out of the ground! 

Referee collection confers, looking confused...makes the correct decision...clean (checked by commentary team on video). Rutger now continuing his break while FOUR people surround hoop 1 and dare it to be floppy again.

Trimmer 2b v carter 2... Kris posi at hoop 2. Pete poor posi at 2b. Kris ran h2, took long angled posi at hoop 3...others say impossible...  Pete ran 2b by nothing, bu tcould still get to 3b. Took 3y straight posi at 3b. Kris took tight posi at h3... 2foot straight.

pete failed 3b off the rh wire. Kris ran h3 by two yards, dribbled off the ball at 3b on the correct side, and now has an angled hoop 6 on his two ball break.....which he has failed...leaving a 17y rush to 3b.

Pete has missed his rush to 3b.

rutger ran h3 off the south boundary, missed the return. Brian Bullen among the balls again.

marcus "that was a bit unlucky rutger"

rutger "which bit?"

 

Kris fails to get in front of 6. Pete takes 7 ft posi at 3b.

Kris takes posi. Pete takes posi. Kris through 6, gets reasonable posi at 1b.

it is now 5pm and this match that started at 9.30 am is now in game 2.

pete runs 3b, takes posi at 4b. Kris takes tight posi at 1b...I.e. fails the hoop into the jaws. Expert commentators...

 

down the lawns... Giraud has gone around v Robbie.

Brown has had the first ball around in the decider against Forster and has a tidy NSL.....Forster has missed the lift.

Pete through 4b... Thinking about taking posi at penult. Lags to between hoops 3 and 4.

Kris through 1b...not far enough ...ddoesn't take on his long hoop... Giving Pete a chance to get in front of penult...gives himself a 3y angled hoop. Nice hoop stroke by Kris...a good stroke to 3b will make this interesting

Brian Bullen has left a ball up near corner 3, but is otherwise trundling around happily..now on 5.

down the lawns... Farthing appears to have the innings after breaking down at 2b earlier. Not sure where Fulford is. Robbie Fletcher is in play.

 

Kris has over hit his approach to 3b. Allowing Pete to take good, probably wired, position at penult. Kris takes good posi at 3b. Turns out penult is quite angled, but Pete is through... Down to the peg.

chris clarke describing the Atkins hoops and how they have parallel adjustable uprights ...no good for me...I like a nice wide top of a hoop to jump through... Roehampton hoops were runnable in the air from virtually any angle.

meanwhile Pete has taken good position at rover... He is forcing Kris to run 3b and hit the 7 yarder which will move it away from his hoop.

Kris taking on his angled 3b... Runs it and centre-balls the 7 yard dribble.

expert analyst wants blue croqueted to corner 2 to get it well away from rover.Kris opts for a thickish takeoff putting Pete south of 3b. Takes position at 4b. 

Pete gets decent long position at rover. Kris runs 4b, gets angled position at penult...looks pretty runnable from where Pete was checking it out... 2.5ft, 20 deg. Pete through a 4.5 foot straight hoop to the boundary. 

Expert analyst wants this 2y off the boundary level with rover.

 

meanwhile Jamie Burch has just appeared with beer in hand. The English Mac hopeful has come back from a game down to beat Canada's Brian Cumming.

 

Pete has going a bit in from the east boundary, just south of peg high.

Kris bounces out to an unrunnable position.

Pete has a free go at the peg. If he had gone for our expert analyst's position, he would get to shoot at the peg to a position that threatened rover.

Burch on to watch the peg...just missed on the right.

Kris taking good position.

much discussion on the choice of shot for Pete... CClarke wants the shot at red as its a bigger target...Burridge wants a go at the peg followed by a go at rover afterwards.

pete misses the peg. Kris grovels through penult by 6 a few feet... Takes great position. Burridge's next shot now available.

 

back on lawn 2 Bullen has had a southern cross (basically a leave with all the balls spread all over the lawn). Rutger has Mssed the 4b ball. Bullen 1 and 4b, rutger 1 and 4. 

 

Chris now wants to go north of the peg, Burridge wants to shoot at red....

mallet in the air...it's going to be a dribble at the peg...... Well...it looked like he was trying to dribble...but over hit it by 10 yards!...he is now just in from the west boundary.

Kris probably slight favourite now...runs rover cleanly. Lets see how accurately he can dribble at the peg. Unlucky...absolutely no shot at the peg.

 

next door on lawn 2.. Brian played his 4b ball and stuck in penult. Rutger has missed... Brian taking that ball to the peg...bit of pressure on Rutger now...

Robin has broken down on his TP...3b and penult.

bullen has run rover...rutger near c4 and 5y w of c3, no lift... Bullen taking corner 1, but also choosing to pull the ball out of c4. Puts it near hoop 2, joins in corner 1 guarding the shot well. Back to corner 4 for that ball.

Kris guarding the shot at the peg by going 3y in from the east boundary. Peg v peg.

Pete nails the peg...leaps in delight!!

well that game took a bit over 4 hours...looks like the best of 5 option will be off the table tomorrow.

 

Fulford currently finishing a TP to level the match after Farthing failed 3b.

Bullen is through hoop 1 with his second ball. Nothing in prospect though...I fancy him taking over corner 2 now...it does look like he could try the tonk into c4... Nope...misses a short cut smash to red up on the north boundary. Rutger has an 11 yarder joining up with partner if he misses...hits...it's his hoop 1 ball and black is near 1. Plays an ok croquet stroke to get a rush to hoop 1....now has got a good rush to hoop 2.

on lawn 3 it looks like Stephen is having a dpo with Robin's other ball on 3b.

chaps in the lawn 1 marathon have stopped for a quick cuppa and piece of cake.

Pete v Kris...

1. Kris to east boundary

2. Pete s of c2

3. Kris misses partner from A baulk

4. Pete taking the long double....misses

 

Robin v Stephen...

Stephen completes the dpo...

Robin takes contact from blue 5 y south of c2. Puts this somewhere between 3 and 4, hits 5 yarder at ball in c1, rolls up putting blue and black quite close together getting nowhere near 3b... Takes on a long angled hoop...hitting the near wire and joining up with Forster giving him a 3 ball break with his hoop 2 ball

 

Rutger v Brian...

rutger tries a straight peel of hoop 4.. Peelee in the jaws and not far back. Good man... Rutger faults himself. About 16 inches apart...opted for the half-jump...looked ugly and yellow comes back, while red screams through to the south boundary.

Brian has a 4footer with his hoop 2 ball with 4 balls near hoop 4. Pays a bad stroke to get a horrible rush to hoop 2...hits it really well. He's through and now has a great chance to level the match.

 

pete v kris...lots of interaction and Pete has the first break with a ball near corner 4.

 

Forster now has a rush to 3b with an average 4b pioneer which is nearish penult. Copes ok. Is now rushing to rover from the peg...all over now I think, good effort from Robin, but the Australian number 2 is into the next round.

Trimmer is on hoop 4 in a comfortable 4 ball break. 

Brian Bullen is also looking favourite to finish his 4 ball break to take this match into three.

my iPad is down to 11%, so we'll see how it copes with things as they continue. Paddy has just turned up sporting a big hotdog. 

Fulford v Farthing game 3: 

1. Rob antiduffer

2. Chris duffer

3. Rob hits duffer goes to 4b with defensive spread

4. Farthing misses into c4

5. Rob starting a break for the match....going well.

 

Bullen running 3b with complete control....now penult...still in control...

need to switch iPads...I am convinced..they are marvellous portable devices...my boss is also marvellous in agreeing to purchase one for me!

bullen pegs out...+20 and game all. Rutger looking very beatable here...I wonder what the mac selectors are thinking about the candidates...

Eeuugh...it is raining. Robert has stopped for rain gear. He is on lawn 6 ...far too far away to see.

Pete Trimmer has had a ball around and a spread. After a bit of thought Kris has picked up the ball from near the wet boundary and is shooting at Pete's balls from the end of A baulk. Misses a dribbly shot.

Pete now has a possibility for a TP for the match.

Brian Bullen has stopped for a hot dog. Good choice to let Rutger stew a bit.

Oops...blinked again...pete rushed partner straight to hoop 1 now has it at hoop 3, had to lay a big croquet stroke putting oppo to 4 from three and geting a good rush on yellow which was still at the peg to hoop 2... Plays that and the subsequent rush really well and now has a standard TP.

 

A quick look at the board, understanding that two of the matches inprwigress will have an englishman through and one eliminated and we have 17 players still in contention of which the nationalities are...

1 south africa

1 ireland

3 new zealand

4 australia

8 england

Meanwhile, someone has convinced the boys to start again...

1. Bullen to east boundary

2. Rutger shot into corner 2 from A baulk (!)...probably just letting off a bit of steam

3. Bullen missed partner from A baulk

4. Rutger hits the long double from B baulk.

Robert fulford has peelee one foot in front of rover, and is running 4back with complete control.

 

Back on lawn 1 Pete has rushed peelee through after hoop 4 having jawsed it after 3.

 

Rutger v bullen

4. (ctd) rutger rushes well into corner 2... Has a cannon....and he's off.

 

Drama on lawn 1!... Pete has stuck in hoop 5 with one peel done. Kris needs a good croquet stroke to get a rush to hoop 1. Has done well, and has a 4 yard approach with a ball at hoop 2 and the penult ball waiting to be peeled.

 

Hoops are out of lawn 6... Congratulations Robert Fulford.

Nerves taking over now...Kris gets the peel with hoop 3 pioneer near penult. Rushes within 2 feet of 3...sticks in it.

pete taking the 12 yarder with blue from hoop 4 at black for the game...misses to 5y east of c2.

 

Rutger is having a 1back leave!

Kris runs hoop 3... Rushes to hoop 4.  Pete reports he failed hoop 5 from a foot dead in front...played an ok shot. Lovely chap Pete. Not just saying that cos he is sitting next to me... Kris has done well to pick up this break.

4. Cont. rutger has a wide crosswire at 1, has his balls about 5.5 y apart in c3...

bit damp here...i hope ipads are more impervious to water than samsung galaxys!

 

5. The Intimidator reports that blue can see exactly half of black. Brian is shooting black at blue. Hits it in the middle! ...this despite not going that close to the hoop...did he use a cunning hill?

5. Brian plays a dreadful croquet stroke! From mid south boundary he attempted to play a huge croquet stroke sending partner to 2 ... Black goes screaming off the east boundary a bit north of peg high. Seemed a bit unnecessary given how far apart Rutger's balls were and that one was almost in c3. Ian reports the mallet twisted in Brian's hand.

6. Rutger hits his 5.5 yarder...approaches hoop 1 well....fails a 2.5 foot hoop 1 badly. 

7. Blue is very deep so Brian will be shooting at partner on east boundary. Misses

8. Red fails hoop 1. Great opportunity for Brian to settle into this deciding game. He has a really good temperament. Rushes partner in lawn a bit, takes off to a ball 8 inches in front of 1, has a all 6 inches in front of 2. Backward takeoff  to hoop 1... Runs it with no rush. Lovely croquet stroke puts red into the jaws of 3 and gets a cut northish... Now has a ball in hoop 5, has had a gentle Willock to hoop 4 and has a long takeoff to the ball in the jaws of hoop 3.

 

Meanwhile on lawn 1, Kris has peeled Pete through rover straight and is having him off... Kris 1 and peg vs 5 and box. Red (for 1) is 3 y south of c3. Pegout is 6 inches from being a greivous. Off in c2 with yellow (peg ball)

5. Brian plays a dreadful croquet stroke! From mid south boundary he attempted to play a huge croquet stroke sending partner to 2 ... Black goes screaming off the east boundary a bit north of peg high. Seemed a bit unnecessary given how far apart Rutger's balls were and that one was almost in c3. Ian reports the mallet twisted in Brian's hand.

6. Rutger hits his 5.5 yarder...approaches hoop 1 well....fails a 2.5 foot hoop 1 badly. 

7. Blue is very deep so Brian will be shooting at partner on east boundary. Misses

8. Red fails hoop 1. Great opportunity for Brian to settle into this deciding game. He has a really good temperament. Rushes partner in lawn a bit, takes off to a ball 8 inches in front of 1, has a all 6 inches in front of 2. Backward takeoff  to hoop 1... Runs it with no rush. Lovely croquet stroke puts red into the jaws of 3 and gets a cut northish... Now has a ball in hoop 5, has had a gentle Willock to hoop 4 and has a long takeoff to the ball in the jaws of hoop 3.

 

Meanwhile on lawn 1, Kris has peeled Pete through rover straight and is having him off... Kris 1 and peg vs 5 and box. Red (for 1) is 3 y south of c3. Pegout is 6 inches from being a greivous. Off in c2 with yellow (peg ball)

Wifi down...back on using ipad thru phone connection...wonderful what you can do with devices these days...

 

Pete has a thick takeoff from red moving it to north of hoop 3, gets long angled position...takes good position.

Brian making the most of his opportunity on lawn 2.

Kris red to c4... He is now snuggled in c2 and c4.

Euan has informed me that ipads are rather water resistant..dont plan to test that theory on his ipad!

Pete runs 5 by 5 feet...hands on hips... Shooting at the hoop 1 ball in corner 4... Hits.

Pete's roll from corner 4 ends up south of the peg...bit disappointing...lawns much slower now.

taking on the hoop...good chance to win if he gets it....bounces off the lefthand wire near yellow in c2... Thats the peg ball.

it is raining and quite cold.

Brian loses a bit of control around 3b...good takeoff. He's going to have a spread...ball at the peg currently a bit rough, but rushes well out of 3b. 

Marcus looking for odds on Bullen for the match. Good win for him over Samir today. Marcus made 3 errors and apparently Samir made none. Good win for Marcus then.

ian reports he and Dave had one error each. Dave shot v well and had a good TP with excellent break pickups.

 

Kris now joined up guarding corner 1 a bit deep... Pete to west of c4 from mid north boundary.

 

Brian has a spread with his balls quite far south.

Kris made 1, good rush to 2... Good chance to finish now that the lawns are a very friendly pace.

looks to have laid up with a wired rusg to hoop 3

 

Rutger has lifted the ball near hoop 2 (his hoop 1 ball) and misses the short shot by quite a distance.

Brian has rushed to hoop 1. Gets a good rush back to the east boundary...gets a ball south of 3 and a good rush to a short hoop 2 ball.

turn out Kris had left a ball open...has gone into c1....north boundary wasnt really guarded.

yellow (peg) north boundary north of 3. Red ( for 3) in c1. Pete has lagged north of hoop 1.

Kris to c4 with yellow.

Pete gently centre balls red.

Brian thinking about a TP...made 2 off partner, rolled it across...had to rush poor pioneer basically through black to 3... Lovely shot. Through 3 and has a chance to straighten up peelee....lining up the peel...

it's through...with a nice rush south.

 

Pete has croqueted red just north of 6 going to yellow....puts this near c2... Has a 5 yard straightish hoop...nice stroke through to the boundary.

now has a 9 yarder back at red......misses.

Brian is through 4 with a rush north...nice stuff this. Shanks rush to the middle of the east boundary...black is quite deep, so this isn't a great position to be in.

 

Brian is through 4 with a rush north...nice stuff this. Shanks rush to the middle of the east boundary...black is quite deep, so this isn't a great position to be in.

 

Kris puts yellow in c1.... Pete shoots.. Misses by 9 inches.

 

Brian's croquet stroke up to black left a 5 yarder which he hit. Black now on the north boundary as he took off back to the hoop 5 pioneer. Is running 6 hard to black...looks like black is going to 2back for a delayed double.

nope...rolls black to the righthand wire of penult going just past red getting a rush on it to 2b...got away with that

 

Problems for Kris...takes off from black...into the jaws of hoop 6! Goes just throu leaving it wired from blue but probablu rushing somewhere near 1b.

2b pioneer is 2 feet south of hoop 1 now...disaster...has grovelled through 1 back...I'm not sure how much of black he can see....nails the middle of it!

 

Pete shoots at red...misses!

rumour has it the second round is best of 5 if this Trimmer marathon finishes. Kris has a stoppo approach for the game.

Kris' stoppo leaves a 4 foot hoop...runs it by 8 yards...snicks his 8 yarder at blue...rolls it near 1back failing to get behind partner....nice roll down to guard corner 4

c.clarke "never make hoop 4 unless you can make hoop 5 as well"

Things getting messy on lawn2... Brian taking off for a wide 3b pioneer...average...has a great setup up the lawn for a delayed double though. Long hoop approach... Grovels through to have a horrible sweep... Aargh...looking at a hammer stroke...nooooo...

 

Pete to c1. Kris through 4, rushes well to 5, then 6

 

Belated thanks to James Hoppy for a coke too...looked very sweet entering the club hand in hand...

Keith reports this is completely unhittable...unlucky....intimidator says impossible even with a sweep. Nothing else hittable either....very unlucky.

 

Kris makes 6 rolls to north boundary nearish c3...referee now in attendance.

 

Apparently with a bit of hill Brian might get lucky.

Dave reckons it has chances with a sweep through the hoop. Doesn't seem to know (how) to do this.

Looks like he wants to play something horribly angly ....no....into corner 4. ...dont like this as it gives Rutger a great opportunity to put a ball to 2 getting a rush to hoop 1.

Rutger seems to have lost interest a bit here...gets nothing near hoop 2, poor rush nowhere near hoop 1... But approaches it well... Mallet up...requests to be pegged down.... Declined...appeals. ...managerial decision. It's pretty light still. I thik there were some discussions about giving an opportunity to stop at 8.30... At this rate Rutger will be still at the managers tent at that time.

 

Pete on the light..."i think it's absolutely fine and would continue on for quite a bit to get best of fives tomorrow". 

 

on the other lawn pete had nothing andwent to mid east bdy to wait for his lift. Did consider trying to curl around the peg...decided hitting the peg would be bad...

Rutger has a one yard hoop 1 and other ball still on 1back.

manager offers Brian the chance to peg down...not keen...definitely in his interests to continue.

Rutger is back on the lawn... Runs 1 to give himself and 8 yarder. Misses by a mile.

 

Meanwhile Kris has run 1back, rushed short of 2b and is splitting them off the east boundary.

Euan is here in tshirt and short!...i am shivering in my jacket!!

 

Brian hits with his 4back ball...decent choice...playing the penult ball risks handing it all back if he missed. Takes off from north of penult to 4back...runs it...now has an 8 yarder at partner with a ball in baulk... 

Kris splits off near c4 and halfway up east boundary... Pete snicks the corner 4 ball with his lift.

hits a great rush on yellow to north of hoop 2...  

 

Brian has rolled to penult...has a very very angled hoop. Fails it. Rutger's hoop 1 ball is just off A baulk

 

Pete approaches 1b well but runs it to level with yellow. He has red near 3b..... Rolls down to red almost putting yellow off and not getting a rush.

Rutger has hit partner, taken off to Brian's balls ...rushed one of them to where he cant get a 2b pioneer. Has taken off to get a decent rush to 1b ...sprays it and has another takeoff... Runs 1b...  Has another 7 yarder...

...and the bells rings to offer a pegging down. Very gloomy here.

 

Pete has misapproached 2b and gone into the middle of the south boundary.

Kris to c2 with the ball near c1... Pete hits the ball near c4....takes off 5 y short of c2.....rolls up to a wee way from 2b...fails it ....time for a chinese!!!!

 

They are pegging down lawn2. Rumours abound of no practice for pegged down games tomorrow morning.

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