Equipment Store

Not only have the recent storms broken two sails on the Lytham Windmill ( on which our logo is based) but the equipment store's roof was ripped off.

The repair has been completed by Ian, Philip, Terry and Liz and incorporates a reorganisation of the interior.

12th November 2010

New Kitchen

There are a couple more workers in the dining area responsible for designing and installing it.

12th November 2010

Lawns treated and closed

Liz and Ian have spread lawn feed across all the lawns and ask for them to be closed until 19th November.

5th November 2010

Abridged news

There was a good turnout all through the day and many jobs were completed. See the short slideshow below for more details.

31st October 2010

Keeping you posted

The white chain link fence has been extended along the West and North boundaries of lawn 3.

The wider effect delimits our area to good effect. From the car park the entire width of the far end is now marked out by this fence.

26th October 2010

Croquet in Borneo

Tony & Jean, friends of FCC visited Borneo, primarily to meet our distant cousins in the mist, but along the way they found time to drop into The English Tea House for a quick game on their lawn.

The link above opens a satellite image on Google Maps but if you allow a little extra time without moving the mouse, the page will zoom in further automatically.

21st October 2010

A moving story

From EBay to the position of the old club house in six minutes.

14th October 2010

Advanced team win league

With the last few remaining fixtures now out of the way and the mathematical uncertainties removed, the Chairman has summed it all up, as only he can, in his October letter (Log in required). Then continue the celebrations in the trophy room.

9th October 2010

Lawn rescue

David Barrett's report appears on the NW Federation website:

Due to Crakes lawns being flooded overnight, the team captains hurriedly ageed to accept an offer made by Liz Wilson, on the previous Sunday, that if there were any problems at Crake we could play at Fylde. Phone calls were exchanged shortly after dawn today and although Liz and Peter were literally leaving to go on their holidays, they mobilised the club members immediately and then still found time to call in at the club to ensure everything was in order. It certainly was, so off they went. From then on Ian and Betty looked after us like royalty. By the time the Bury team arrived at 9.15am Ian had already re-painted the white lines on both lawns and was busy putting in the hoops etc. The whole place was a hive of activity as the Fylde Club members and contactors were dismantling the existing wooden shed and moving it further into the corner of lawn 1.

Play started immediately on arrival of the Crake team at approx 9.45am Throughout the match Betty plied us with teas, coffees and she even went to the local butchers, from whom she bought the most delicious hot meat and potato pie which they had made specially for us. By close of play the 'workers' had re-erected not only their existing shed, but also a ' new larger sized shed' in place of the original, so there will now be about three times more accommodation space.

It was an excellent days croquet which everyone enjoyed and both teams wish to express their thanks and gratitude to the Fylde Club for all their help and kindness.

6th October 2010

Controversial plans for club unveiled

With the double almost confirmed, the committee is set to decide on a set of plans to take the club forward into the next season. These plans will accommodate extra spectator capacity and provide a secure area for the storage of any mallets left behind after matches.

Critics have pointed out these plans leave no room for any lawn space.

A Fuerta report is expected very soon.

6th October 2010

Lawn Report

Lorna Ndawarda reports on the weekend when even the Ryder Cup was washed away.

The final league match of the season took place today in very wet conditions. With other matches in the Northwest abandoned due to flooding our lawns remained perfectly playable after twelve hours of constant rain. Only on the short lawns did any puddles form but once the rain stopped in the afternoon these could be seen to drain rapidly in a matter of hours.

The Advanced Team Captain adds:

This weekend we faced our most important match in the short history of our team. On behalf of the team I would like to thank all our members who have contributed their skills, time and effort making it possible to play on our lawns during such wet weather. The league should be completed this week. There are some complicated scores for the manager to decide upon however we hope that we will be able to celebrate and bring the NWFCC Advanced League Trophy back to the club.

3rd October 2010

The Shed End

With our EBay bid succeeding we need a space for the new p-a-v-i-l-i-o-n.


Ian, Philip, Ken, Terry, Geoffrey and Liz prepare the new site!

21st September 2010

Selectors' weekend


Held at Southport with sixteen players over three days Lee picked up the Selectors' Weekend trophy after beating Alan Mayne in the final of the knockout stages.

Liz and Peter also took part, trying TPs when they could and coming away with some good wins as well as a selection of peg & peg losses to think about.

12th September 2010

BETTY NARROWLY MISSES OUT

First day at Coronation Park for the Bury Handicap Tournament and lawn one was showing signs of water-logging but although the test of being able to run a ball from one corner to the other was positive it proved a bit of a drag. Puddle patches were evident. Members used implements to move the water and the sun obliged helping the situation. Rain then brilliant sunshine was the order of the two days with the club house doorway looking like a weather vane as members went in and out putting wet weather gear on one minute then taking it off in another. Eight people contested the handicap; normally undertaken at the Commonwealth facility at Heaton Park.

During the two days there were some outstanding ball plays and there was a number of eighteen point games which were completed in less than twenty five minutes. It was just a shame there were not any spectators as the play was outstanding. 30 yard roquets were frequent and some magnificent split rolls to the hoop were made by Margaret Anderton who recovered from a number of failed rushes. At the end of day one, Margaret Anderton was on three wins alongside Malcom Daines, in contention were Bob Thompson and Betty Bates on two wins out of four.

The second day saw tides turning with Margaret winning only one of her games, Bob completing a hat trick along with Betty and Malcolm winning his first two games. All eyes were on Richard Harvey versus Malcolm as the final and decisive game was in play and everyone eagerly anticipating the result. As everyone else had finished all eyes were on lawn two. With twenty minutes to go Malcolm was on peg and penult with Richard on four back and rover. If Malcolm won he would win the title if he lost it would be a three way tie with Betty and Bob. Richard played a fabulous shot 30 yarder from four back to one with a roquet and stealthily moved the balls around the lawn leaving Malcolm split up. Malcolm shot and narrowly missed by the smallest of margins, with time ticking Richard went on to rover and clanged the hoop. Still split up Malcolm shot at his partner ball to miss by a hair’s breadth. Richard went on to do Rover and peel to win the game. A nail biter with many gasps coming from the audience. A three way tie FIVE WINS out of SEVEN for Malcolm, Betty and Bob. Tie came down to who beat who, but as each had beaten one of the others even this was inconclusive, so the result was decided on hoop difference. Malcolm who played consistently well both defensively and offensively ended with a small hoop margin.

Betty had some wonderful games playing and winning two games in less than an hour and a half had a difference of 39 hoops but the ultimate winner was Bob Thompson from Nottingham who played consistently well all weekend with a 53 point difference. Commiserations to the losers, there was no poor play it was just the winners were exceptional and the win of the toss proved one of the crucial elements. Thanks to Geof Young for organising the tournament and everyone at Bury for their hospitality. A wonderful weekend in friendly company.


Ken Anderton, Bob Thompson, Richard Harvey, Geoff Young [M],
Margaret Anderton, Ros Pimlott, Malcolm Daines, Betty Bates & Steve Reynolds.

12th September 2010

Ian qualifies for All England Final

Ian finished second in the NW Area Final held at Pendle & Craven and qualified for finals at Budleigh Salterton on 18/19 September.
Therefore the club has a chance of retaining the New Zealand Tray , which could be the first time that has been done in the long history of the trophy.

4th September 2010

Handicap team win league with game in hand

A message from the Captain.

Lee, Betty, Alan and Ken gave Fylde a resounding win over Bowden St Mary's yesterday. This makes it 7 wins out of 7 this season and has clinched the league title for the Club. Congratulations to everybody and a big thank you to all for all your brilliant play this season. Hopefully the Advanced team can also win their last match and make it a double for Fylde ( the little club with the enormous heart).

Read the full Match report.

Winning this trophy gives us entry to the CA Secretary's Shield next season.

4th September 2010

Alan wins at Pendle

Alan finished in second place at the Pendle and Craven August Handicap Tournament and was awarded the Handicap 10+ trophy. He won 5 out of 7 games. On the final day of the tournament he beat the leader Janet Davies in the morning session to take the overall lead of the tournament. Unfortunately, he lost his final game and with Janet Davies winning her final match she had scored enough index points to become the overall tournament winner.

Maureen Whittaker presents Alan the trophy.

Alan's match results were ;
Alan 26 David Turner (Tyneside) 10
Alan 17 Roger Schofield (Pendle and Craven )26
Alan 26 Joe Lennon (Glasgow) 7
Alan 26 Mike Bowser (Hunstanton) 18
Alan 26 Robin Delves (Pendle and Craven) 1
Alan 22 Janet Davies (Chester)18
Alan 22 Ron Welch (Pendle and Craven )26.

30th August 2010

Peter Wins at Edgbaston

Early rain showers abated during the first round to be replaced by constant sunshine. Perfect conditions for Croquet on the fine lawns at Edgbaston to contest the five round B Class Swiss event for the Sally Nicholls Trophy. Having the lowest handicap of the twelve put some pressure on Peter but the conditions suited his game to a tee and he scored 5/5 to win the trophy.

Ian Slater, manager of the event, presents Peter with a bottle of wine and the trophy.

Liz was also playing very well and her only losses were by one and two points. Both FCC members were attempting TPs but the final Rover peel eluded them both on several occasions.

30th August 2010

The MacRobertson Shield

The MacRobertson Shield is the World Team Championship for Association Croquet. Between Fri 6 and Tue 10 August Bowdon hosts GB v USA and Heaton Park hosts Aus v NZ.

Seven FCC members attended at Bowdon today to watch the doubles. Local hero Ian Lines was again in action following on from his double tripple debut playing with Robert Fulford. Bowdon was magnificently decked out. What a boost for Croquet in the NW to have these two matches taking place and to be able to provide world class referees and managers for this event.

See more at the MacRobertson Shield website.

For a photo gallery please click here.

FCC's Press Release after the event which leads to the following newspaper clip .

7th August 2010

Mexico 2010 Postponed

The Mexico Trophy was due to be held at Southport this weekend but due to the busy calendar fixtures Southport face this month the event has been postponed until next year.

2nd August 2010

outside broadcast Breakfast Special

The team appear on the breakfast show promoting the club.

Listen to the Golf School Broadcast.

Or listen to Radio Lancashire live now.

9th July 2010

Trophies from Pendle

the Pendle Midweek Tournament ran for four days.

Peter won the B class trophy beating Chris Donovan in the final.

Ian won the Handicap Doubles trophy playing with Paul Rigge from Bury, beating Fylde's Ken Harper and Neil Kellet in the semi-final followed by the holders, John Filsak (seen presenting the prizes) and Howard Bowron in the final.

9th July 2010

GARSTANG ROTARY CLUB PLAY GOLF CROQUET

Alan reports from his outing.

Alan and Cath gave a presentation of Golf Croquet to members of Garstang Rotary Club at The Pickerings Country House Hotel. Members played Golf Croquet doubles and everyone enjoyed the evening. The President and Secretary took copies of our hospitality nights and they saw an opportunity for social interaction and fundraising whilst using FCC facilities. One member took details of the forthcoming Tuesday Night sessions for newcomers to Croquet and Club members.

1st July 2010

Jamboree

Liz reports from Southport

The advanced double team of Peter and Lee showed Fylde the way at the Jamboree.

The handicap team of Ken (c) and Ian and Terry won both matches on Saturday beating Bowdon and Bury on the difficult lawns in the cage. On Sunday Alan replaced Terry and they lost 3 – 0 to Bury in the morning and narrowly to Chester when Alan had an easy win. Ken lost and Ian lost +1 on time. The short team of Betty or Liz, Philip and Catherine did well on Saturday beating both Bury and Southport with Philip winning all five games!!! On Sunday the team was Liz, Martin and Geoffrey and they unfortunately lost to Chester. The golf team finished 2nd overall in a field of 7 teams with Abdul and Philip winning all their games.

Overall Fylde finished 2nd to Chester in the short, golf and handicap.

Chester won the overall event with Fylde very worthy runners–up. Of Fylde’s 16 playing members 14 took part and all played in good spirit and without complaints. Man of the match Philip - 9 wins out of 9 over two days. And to the rest of us - Well done the blues!

  Advanced Pts Handicap Pts Short Pts Golf Pts Total Points Position
Chester
3
5
4
6
18
1
FYLDE
4
4
3
5
16
2
Bury
2
2.5
1
3
8.5
3
Southport
1
2.5
2
1
6.5
4
Culcheth
0
0
0
4
4
5
Bowdon
0
1
0
2
3
6

Thanks to Tony Thomas for his photographs .

27th June 2010

The Midgeland

Ten members entered this one day Golf Croquet tournament managed by Lee.
Abdul Ahmed beat Ken Harper in the semi-final
Ian Theakstone beat Alan Morton in the semi-final.
Ian Theakstone beat Abdul Ahmed in the final.

6th June 2010

1stTP

FCC Lawns were graced with their first triple peel today. Lee playing a NW Federation Leage match produced this fine finish agaist Abdul Ahmed from Pendle.

5th June 2010

Time Lapse Experiments

The Sheep come over the hill at 0:50 and the clouds are interesting over the houses. Apart from that the experiments are rather disappointing. Perhaps the Mac will offer a better view?

Experiment2

Experiment1

3rd June 2010

The counties

After selection for this event, Lee reports back from the lawns.

The Inter County Championships were held as usual at Southwick/Compton over the bank holiday weekend. Lancashire made a slow start, and after 2 days they had only 2 wins out of 6 matches leaving them perilously close to the relegation zone. An improved performance, and weaker opposition, saw 3 wins out of 3 on day 3, putting the team comfortably in mid table. Lancashire’s sole game on the final day saw them become the only team to beat Somerset, who regained the title from 2nd placed Nottinghamshire, which left the team with 6 wins out of 10 and 3rd place overall courtesy of beating Glamorgan in their head to head match. The undoubted stars of the team were the 3rd pairing of Lee Hartley and Paul Rigge (Bury) who finished with 9 wins out of 10, which is possibly a Lancashire record.

3rd June 2010

Ian nails it

Ian has converted an old set of balls into useful targets by adding a spike which, when driven into the ground, prevents the target ball moving if roqueted. By practicing at a constant target players may establish a better understanding of the chance of hitting a ball at various distances.

3rd June 2010

Ken at the peels

Playing at Southport, Ken renewed his doubles partnership this weekend with Gail Curry reaching the final round.

9th May 2010

Alexandra's Palace

A handsome donation to our club found by Martin, transported across the ground by Philip and erected by Ian together with a squad of willing helpers.

Feedback from the first version suggested it was too long. A shorter version has been created.

21st April 2010

Lee grabs Lancashire hot spot

The Lancashire team for the AC Inter County Championships selected by playing captain David Openshaw is Dave Nick, Ailsa Lines, Bob Burnett, Paul Rigge and Lee. Lancashire will take on twenty other Counties plus a Chairmans Select team at two venues in Sussex between 29th May and 1st June.

Lancashire are in Division 1 and consequently will play ten matches of three games of doubles.

See the results from last year here.

8th April 2010

Longman cup news

Fylde have drawn Pendle in the first round of the Longman Cup .

Our last game with Pendle in this competition was in 2003 which we won 5-2. It was a home match for us but actually played at Pendle. Therefore this match will be at Pendle and must be played before 11th July 2010.

1st April 2010

Internal tournaments

With the lawns opening in just a few days, our tournament manager has been planning the season ahead. The latest news is that the date for the Midgland One Day Golf Tournament has been set for 6th June. We hope all members will play this year. Please keep the day free and let Lee know you intend to play as soon as you can. The long range weather forecast is very good.

26th March 2010

What lies around the corner this year?

Well these new Fylde Corner Pegs (FCPs) for a start.

Designed and hand crafted in wood and metal by Ian, the FCP is easy to place while keeping lawn damage to a minimum. FCPs are also very easy to pick up and put away. The high gloss finish of the FCP ensures they can be seen, even from the opposite corner and the carefully rounded top will prevent major injury in case of falling on one.

Rog Barnford says: "FCPs are the nicest corner pegs I've ever seen"

£240 per set of four. Free delivery to any NW Club.

Please note when ordering that two sets are required per lawn.

11th March 2010

It drives like a dream!

Ian & Philip reassembled the scrafier. They report from the workshop at dusk.

New drive sprockets (4 in total) New drive chains (2 in total) New pulley cover (finished in a very attractive battleship grey). New main drive shaft with three new support bearings (replacing the dodgy clutch). New drive pulley. New pulley belt. Rotor blades removed, flatened, sharpened and reset on the rotor. Engine 'lower-end' stripped and crankshaft mounting bolts tightened.

She's a beauty!

31st January 2010

2010 fixtures arranged

This year the lawns will open on 28th March 2010. Explore the calendar on the fixtures page for an overview of the season ahead.

12th January 2010

Website's tenth anniversary

The club's first web pages were created ten years ago. Why not celebrate by visiting the archive section?

9th January 2010

ARCHIVED

The 2009 news was archived.

31st December 2009