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NEWSLETTERNO 54

JUNE 2008

WHAT’S IN THISEDITION

-FIVE NATIONS

REPORT-

APA JUNIORTRIPLES

-2ND QUALIFIER

REPORT-

PÉTANQUE TIPS5 & 6

-APA ‘GIN TRAP’CHARITY PAIRS

RUSSELL HARRIS FUN PAIRSThe Annual Russell Harris Fun Pairs held at the StFaiths Centre again attracted a good entry from awide age range.Format for the day comprised of five timed 45minute rounds with added interest created by therequirement to pre-select a double score roundbefore draw, and bonus starts of varying amountsfor specific categories applied before the start ofeach round.With the aforementioned in place it was apparentthat almost any pair were capable of success andthe afternoon proved to be an enjoyable affair.At the conclusion only Graham Beales and GlenMeredith of Victoria 51 Deopham could claim a100% record with an impressive six wins plus 52 toclaim first place.So close was the competition that four teamsrecorded five wins with another Victoria 51 pairingof Ray Beales and Joel Meredith in second placewith plus 35. The next three placings went to adultpairings with Richard Green and Ros Taylor ofNorwich PC third plus 30, Tony Desposito andDaniel Shevlin of Sprowston PC fourth plus 22, andthe promoting Club Wanderers St Faithscombination of Bob Urquhart and Eileen Bent fifthplus 18.Thanks are due to tournament co-ordinator LouiseRobinson and all participants for attending.Special mention must also be made of the first

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L - R JOSE GARRIDO - STEPHEN GARRIDOAMEE KENNETT - SARAH URQUHART

L - R RAY BEALES - JAMES URQUHART - MICK WICKS

L - R RAY BEALES - JOEL MEREDITH - GLEN MEREDITHGRAHAM BEALES - RICHARD GREEN - ROZ TAYLOR

PHOTOS: SHAUN KENNETT

competitive match of six year old Amee Kennett,who thanks to parents Sarah and Shaun partneringher alternately completed all games and recordedone win.Bob Urquhart, Wanderers SF PC.

NORWICH CLUB SUNDAYMembers of Norwich Pétanque Club enjoyed theirannual Club Sunday at the Cottage, Thorpe St.Andrew, in brilliant sunshine throughout the day. A

four round singles competition was played in themorning followed by players and guests lunching inthe Cottage restaurant before playing a randompairs competition in the afternoon.In the morning Mick Cushion won the NormanGuest Singles Trophy to become this yearschampion with 4 wins and plus 33 points difference.Runner-up was Colin Debbage with 4 wins and plus30, and in third place was last year’s juniorchampion, 14 year old Lauren Ross, with 4 winsplus 29. This result won Lauren the top lady’strophy.The afternoon competition was played over threerounds and resulted in another close finish. LaurenRoss and Tony Brenchley won all three games witha plus 23 points difference and Roz Taylor and EricWhatling produced exactly the same score. TheDerek Daniels Pairs Trophy was awarded to Laurenand Tony on the basis of having scored more pointsthan Roz and Eric. In third place were ColinDebbage and Richard Green with 3 wins plus 21.Norman Guest, Norwich PC.

PÉTANQUE IN 2008 NO 5ROUND IN CIRCLES

Petanque has become one of those pastimes thathas turned into a sport, but sport none the less.Played by over 25,000 players in the UK it is still agrowth activity and television coverage beckons.Why are we discussing this in coaching tips andtactics? Well, television boosts sport but there is aprice to pay. Who would have thought ten yearsago, you would see a red or yellow bowl rollingdown a blue rink in the Bowls WorldChampionships. Did the Bowls players andassociation sell their soul in bending to the TVdirector’s requests? Most sports evolve whentelevision audiences and revenue come knocking.Cameras in stumps at test matches. Cameras inpockets at snooker matches. Rule changes inFootball to make the game speed up. These arejust a few examples how games have changed toget the TV pound. Is pétanque capable or movinginto the spotlight?Moves are afoot, excuse the pun, to bring thespectacle of the game to a wider audience. Part ofthat move is to identify the layout of the playingarea. To those who play this game it is very clearwhere everything is. Some confusion can causeproblems but the rule to scrub out circles so youonly have one clear circle has helped andclarification is only needed in a fraction of the casesit used to be. Even so, mistakes can happen andthrowing from the wrong circle can be embarrassingand cause an international incident. Imagine thatmistake happening in front of a million viewers! I

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have played in many games where the crowd havepuzzled as to why a certain shot was played. It isinteresting to note one side of the watchers couldsee the line was blocked, the other side it wasunclear. I have drifted off watching a game andwaited to see where the throwing team wouldactually throw from. The introduction of plasticcircles can be met with derision from establishedplayers but they are coming and all the topsuppliers now stock them with their branded logos.Not bad advertising as you look down to positionyour feet in the circle. So, to answer why plasticcircles are in the coaching tip session it is becauseyou will soon be throwing from one. Maybe not thisweek or next but they are approaching.Like all new initiatives they will take some gettingused to and may cause more problems than theyappear to solve. I am sure many bowls players justcould not get used to the blue rinks and droppedfrom their established rankings. New players camein and took the colours in their stride.So what are the problems with these circles? Thesimple thing is they are light and thin. This givesthem very little grip on the stony ground and theymove very easily. The solution is to mark them sothey can be put into position again if kicked. Manyhave said by the time you have marked them youcould have drawn a circle, but of course, that is notthe point of them. It is to clearly mark the positionfor the players and crowd. One may say why do weneed to use them if the TV or crowds are notinterested. The same answer could be given as towhy we all have to wear matching strip in topcompetitions when no one from the TV turns up orthere are few or no spectators. They might!Once the circle is marked in position care must betaken not to move it. It does present a trippinghazard on undulating ground and can be a realnightmare on deep gravel pistes. Here they arevery difficult to mark and you could catch your handwhen throwing in a crouch position.The other problem is they are 50cm internaldiameter. This is to make sure they are a legal sizeto stand in. Obviously your feet must not be on thecircle as you are throwing. Simple enough tointroduce without rule changes? Well no. becausethe jack distance is measured from the outsideedge of the normal circle. With the plastic ringsmeasuring 50cm inside diameter it must bemeasured from the inside edge. Makes sense I my

mind but I maybe wrong. The circle can be clearedof gravel when throwing and must be put backwhen the circle is moved after the end iscompleted. You could find yourself in a 5 inch deephole that may need filling before the squat point.The other thing to remember is to take the circlewith you after the last boule is thrown. If boule arestill to play that could be a big mistake. We have allstarted to rub out a circle too early in error but atleast the place you are standing scuffing at theground is clear as the opposition shout in distress.Finding where a circle was as you walk up the pistewith it in your hand could be trickier.Circles are going to be a real boost to the sportwhen it gets good media coverage for our sport.The question is, do we pay the same price as allthose players with expensive matching tops. Anyexpense unjustified in the eyes of the spender is toomuch! Take the role of circles seriously and if youcan practice using one the you will be on stepahead of the opposition. A place we all want to be.Phil Boarder, Pen-Y-Coed Pétanque.

PÉTANQUE TIP NO 6FANNY. GOOD OR BAD

Pétanque is a sport that has a lovely history and isenjoyed by so many people. Players of all agesplay the sport that has moved from pastime to theWorld championship arena. One of the quirkydetails of our sport is the Fanny. Dreaded by some,ignored by others and the rest look on in disbeliefas strange customs and rituals are carried out in astrange, almost religious manners.The question is this. Does the public humiliation ofplayers new to the game put people off the sport? Ican remember kissing a bare bum of an 18 inchhigh gnome elegantly placed in the surround of aloo seat at the Bank House pub in Maidstone. Thewhole play at the venue was stopped and a bellrang while this took place. Very, very humiliating.From that moment on we always have two tasks inany game 1. Score a point 2. Win the game.The history of the fanny dates back to the gamesvery beginning in Lyon, France. The shame of aFanny was to, as legend tells us, kiss the backsideof the ugliest prostitute on the square where thegame was played. The bare backside can still beseen on fanny trophies and medals. How a gnomegot involved we will never know.So newcomers to the sport have a minefield offannies awaiting them. Is this a form of bullying that

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should be driven from the game or just a nicequirky ritual carried out within the ranks of moreestablished players. The two tasks we have in agame are not as unrelated as it may seem. Scoringa point gives you the jack and the position of saidpiece of wood. New players seem always to throwall their boule without thought to the consequences.Last week we were 8 nil up against a fairly newteam. On a lightning fast pitch I placed my lastboule 6 inches in front of the jack. They wereholding with a boule 4 inches to the side with twoboule to play. The fanny was off and we werehappy with this result as we do not wish to fannyany one without due cause. One of these causes Imust say is to stop a good team getting the jack.Anyway you all know what happened. Theopposition threw both boule and with the last oneknocked up my boule to put us 9-0 instead of 8-1.So not all fannies are as blatant as they may seem.Some people fanny themselves through lack ofthought. Maybe the fanny is a method of coachinginvolving pain and humiliation. Remember you donot have to throw your boule. Take what you have ifthere is a risk of losing the end and get hold of thejack!Generally it is always disappointing to lose. It is howyou approach the game that will dictate how yourespond to losing 13-0.As Sir Alan Sugar would say in his London accent“You Lost. I am sorry but you bl**dy well lost. It’s assimple as that, you lost. It does matter by howmuch” You know, he has a point here. Pétanque isone of those games played to a conclusion. Thefirst to 13 points. I have lost to 11 and have beenfar more disappointed with the result than a 13-0loss. In some respects it is much worse to score apoint and still lose as it means you had a chance tocontrol the game but blew it. You threw the jack andthe opposition still beat you. If you get fannied itcould be you just never got into the game becausethe opposition out played you. The jack positionwas totally dictated by them and you never got achance. One occasion I was fannied was by a teamwho paled at 6.1 metres the whole game. We knewthey were crap at anything over 8 metres but wenever got the chance to get the jack longer. Onediscussion after the game was whether we shouldhave pointed strongly onto the jack to move it backeven though this may waste a boule to get it longer.This may be a tactic to keep up your sleeve. Youmay only ever use it once but it is worthremembering.Last week we won a competition, accidents happen!With 5 wins plus 52 on a snake system. Our resultsincluded two 13-0 results. The 2nd team were 5wins plus 50. A close call and a 13-1 win against

the two fannied teams may have please ouropposition but we by our gracious approach wouldhave cost us the competition. We all know it is notall about winning but next time you are playing anew team in a competition I suggest you just playand what happens, happens. A 13-0 result in mostplaces is not dwelt upon and a loss is a loss. Will itput the newcomers off the game? Lose 13-0 tothem and see!Phil Boarder, Pen-Y-Coed Pétanque.I can sympathise with Phil, In 1988 I played in thevery first Jersey Open on Elizabeth Island off St.Hellier. My partner and I were fortunate to befannied by the then GB1 team. At the presentationGala Dinner in the Mayfair Hotel that evening wewere shocked to have our names called out first tocollect an award. This turned out to be a medal anda scroll. The rest is history as they say. I still havethe medal hanging in my office and I havereproduced the scroll below. Names have beenomitted to protect the what ever….. Ed.

Anglia Regional Team Qualifiers –Round 2

The second and final regional team qualifier tookplace on Sunday 11th May at Wanderers St Faithsterrain. The weather was glorious and the shortswere out in abundance.After the first round there was only one teamunbeaten (Simon Fletcher, Tania Cowlin & AndyWilson) with 6 wins then came 5 teams tied on 5wins and 2 on 3 wins who were all in contention forthe top 6 automatic qualifying places.No team remained unbeaten and 3 teams won 4out of their 5 games to claim the top three places.They were Simon, Tania & Andy (10 wins), DerekShoesmith, Jerome Morais & Peter Astle (8 wins)and Peter Walker, Dave Abery & Jose Garrido whorecovered from their ‘off’ day at Bury to end on 7wins in third qualifying place.Ken Harris, Mick Whymer & Pat Papworth won

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another 2 games and qualified at 4 with LynneUrquhart, Bob Urquhart & John Nooney winningtheir last game of the day to ease their nerves andensure 5th place (6 wins). Then it was very closewith the next 4 teams all on 5 wins and they had tobe separated on points difference. The 6th and finalautomatic place went to Michael Neal, DanielShevlin and James Urquhart who had + 4 points.The remaining two triples and the Junior triple forthe EPA Inter-regional competition at Brean will beselected by the Regional selection committee.Thanks go to the Wanderers SF Petanque Club forhosting the day and in particular to Bob Urquhart forpreparing the terrains and to Norman Guest forumpiring and running the day.Peter Astle, Playing Officer.

Anglia Junior Triples ChampionshipThe inaugural Anglia Junior Triples Championshipwas held on Sunday 1st June at the Bob CarterCentre.Five teams entered and the championship wasplayed in a ‘round-robin’ format so that every teamhad to play each other. This unfortunately meantthat each round one team had to sit out. Thishowever did not appear to be a problem as theyoungsters made good use of the spare terrainpracticing when it was their turn to sit out andinvolving some of the adult spectators and familypresent to have practice games.

PHOTO: PETER ASTLETRIPLES WINNERS

After some close and hard fought games the clearwinners were Jonathon Abery, Nathan Martin &Edward Abery (Wanderers SF PC) who won all 4 oftheir games with second place on 3 wins going to

Curtis Money, Fleur Guilman-Beales & GlenMeredith ( Victoria 51 PC) who only lost to thewinners. The shield and medals were presented tothe winners and runners-up by Jerome MoraisAnglia Regional President.

PHOTO: PETER ASTLETRIPLES RUNNERS-UP

It was encouraging for the organizers to get a goodentry for the first time this championship has beenheld and the games were played in a competitivebut sportsman like manner with all the competitorsbeing a credit to their clubs and families.Thanks go to the Bob Carter Centre for hosting thecompetition and to Stuart Picton for preparing theterrain and putting out the scoreboards and chairsand tables. The Anglia Regional Umpire NormanGuest officiated.Peter Astle, Playing Officer.

ANGLIA ‘Gin Trap’ CHARITY PAIRSCompetition

Twenty teams entered the Gin Trap Charity Pairscompetition held on Sunday 15 June at theCottage, Norwich. This year the competition wasdedicated to the three good friends that we havelost over the close season and the RegionalPresident led a minutes silence in remembrancebefore play commenced.The days play format was 6 random draw gamesand the lunch break was taken after round three. Atthis stage there were only 3 team remainingunbeaten. They were Glen Harcourt/Keith Burgess(Sprowston); Trevor Bradley/Mike Skillings (BobCarter Centre) and Ros Taylor/Richard Green(Norwich).After five rounds all 3 were still unbeaten and by a

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quirk of the draw had avoided playing each other soit was all to play for in the last round. Glen & Keithwere first off the terrain with a quickfire 13 – 1 winover Luke Tilsley and Daniel Alden ( Wheel ofFortune) and then had to wait for the other tworesults. Richard & Ros lost to Kevin & Bev Moss(British Sugar) in a 13 – 12 nailbiter but Trevor andMike beat last years defending champions fatherand son pairing Chris & Simon Peel (Exning) 13 - 6.So now with two teams on 6 wins it was down topoints difference and after some careful checkingof the scores by the organisers Glen & Keith weredeclared winners with 6 wins +54 points and Trevor& Mike runners up 6 wins + 40 points. Richard &Ros were 3rd being the best of the 3 teams who won5 games (5 wins +39).

PHOTO: PETER ASTLEWINNERS - GLEN HARCOURT & KEITH

BURGES

PHOTO: PETER ASTLERUNNERS-UP - MIKE SKILLINGS & TREVOR BRADLEY

The Regional President Jerome Morais presentedthe trophies to the winners and runners-up.A total of £267.50 was raised from the entry fees,donations and the raffle. This will be split amongstthe charities nominated by the families, as follows :Doug : East Anglian Air AmbulanceJanet : McMillan NursesGeoffrey : Salvation ArmyThanks go to the Norwich Petanque club for hosting

the competition and to Richard Green for preparingthe terrains prior to play. Norman Guest umpiredand ran the day.Peter Astle, Playing Officer.

The Bob Carter Centre - PétanqueClub

‘OPEN’ Junior Pairs - 14th June 2008(For children up to & incl. 16 years of age)This Competition, with the trophies againSponsored by the Leisure Centre, opened under anovercast skybut with more and more pleasant glimpses of thesun ! The threatened rain never materialised -play-on!Ten young people entered as 5-pairs and two youngpeople “matched-up” on the day - even though thegirlhad never thrown a boule in her life before today !!Nevertheless, she acquitted herself well duringplay…In the absence of our Club Captain (Stuart Picton),Peter Hardy ran the competition with 4 - timedgames each of 40 minutes duration. A randomdraw selected opponents for the first round.Thereafter, opponentswere decided for each round on their accumulativescore (s).Thrown jacks were kept within 5 to 9 metres limits -adults were drafted in to act as arbitrators ifrequired,though generally the players sorted themselves outand all games were played in a keen competitivespirit.At the end of play and Pete had “counted hisbeads” ……the Winners were Christopher Peel & JamesUrquhart with 4 wins and + 40 PD ………… and

Second were David & Alan Kempwith 3 wins and + 13 PD ………… and

Third were Daniel Rushmer & JoshuaWilcox with 3 wins and + 10 PDThe Winners & Runners-up received Cup trophiesand Vouchers for £10 and £5 respectively.Every player, not in the ’top places,’ received amedallion as a memento of the day.The Shooting Competition at lunchtime proved verysuccessful, the adults being joined by some of themore experienced juniors … in all 13 entrantsgiving a 1st prize of £13 with a bottle of wine for2nd place.Chris Peel and James Urquhart won First &Second prize respectively. Where were the old‘uns??No Entry Fee was charged this year (as it is BCC

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PC’s 25th Anniversary Year). The Burgers andHot-Dogs were, as always, a ‘sell-out’ which speakswell of their popularity ….. especially as the firstBurger was FREE to the young people ……..…Age or Rank does not have its privileges !!!!!The Club wishes to thank :- the Leisure Centre forits Sponsorship, Jenny & Chris for doing theB.B.Q.,Club Captain Stuart for his ‘before the event’ work,Pete H. for organising play-on-the-day, Anne H. forbeing ‘Raffle Lady,’ to the band of club memberswho set-up ’bits-and-pieces’ and dismantled same….In conclusion WE think it was a good day - we hopeplayers and spectators feel the same …….

See you next Yearand bring some more friends and Players withYOU !Trevor Bradley, Bob Carter PC.

NORFOLK COUNTY JUNIOR PAIRSCHAMPIONSHIP

With blazing sunshine throughout the day instead ofthe promised rain, only a limited entry of six pairsturned out to contest the Junior Championship atthe St. Faiths terrain.A round robin format was used to play three gamesbefore lunch and two after.Competition was keen and the unbeaten winnerswere Georgie Wright and James Urquhart with fivewins and plus 36 points difference to take theCounty Cup. Runners-up were Jonathan andEdward Abery with four wins and plus 11, and thirdDavid Kemp and Joshua Wilcox with three winsplus 21.Winners for the past two years, Curtis Money andFleur Guilmain-Beales, managed only fourth placewith two wins and minus 7.The County Association wish to thank theWanderers Club for the use of the terrain andfacilities, and Bob Urquhart for his administration ofthe competition.Norman Guest.NCPA Chairman.

FORTHCOMING EVENTSSunday 29th June - APA Pairs Championship - St.Faiths Centre, Norwich. Details from the PlayingOfficer - Peter Astle on 01493-442296.Sunday 6th July - Norwich Gold Cup Pairs - The

Cottage, Norwich. Details from Norman Guest on10603-419897.Saturday 12th July - Pied Piper Adult/Junior Pairs -St Faiths Centre, Norwich. Details from LynneUrquhart on 01603-465507.Sunday 13th July - APA Singles and ShootingChampionship - The Cottage, Norwich. Details fromthe Playing Officer, Peter Astle on 01493-442296.Saturday 19th July - Children for Children CharitySingles - The Cottage, Norwich. Details fromNorman Guest on 01603-419897.Saturday 19th July - EPA Congress of Regions -Luton Sports Centre. See EPA website for details.Sunday 20th July - The 7th Forest Heath CharityPairs - Tattersalls, Newmarket. Details from KenHarris on 01638-601404.Sunday 20th July - Norfolk County PairsChampionship - The Cottage, Norfolk. Details fromNorman Guest on 01603-419897.Sunday 27th July - Norfolk v. Leicestershire -Leicestershire.Wednesday 30th July - André Conan Over 50’sMeleé Pairs - The Cottage, Norfolk. Details fromNorman Guest on 01603-419897.Saturday 2nd August - Kath Watts Memorial Pairs- The Cottage, Norwich. Details from Norman Gueston 01603-419897.Sunday 3rd August - APA Junior PairsChampionship - St. Faiths Centre Norwich, (VenueChange). Details from the Playing Officer, PeterAstle on 01493-442296.Sunday 10th August - APA Triples Championship -British Sugar, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk. Detailsfrom the Playing Officer, Peter Astle on 01493-442296.Sunday 17th August - Circle in the Sand - BactonBeach, Norfolk. Details from Lynne Urquhart on01603-465507.You can download entry forms for APAcompetitions from our website. You may also obtaininformation for some of the club events listedabove from our website. Results of APAcompetitions can also be found there.