Will HWCC succeed in their opening Longman Cup match? Read on...

After crashing out in the first round of the Longman against Southwick last year, the HWCC team were full of vim going into this contest; a recent loss against Ealing in a friendly match was an additional pique to achieve a result away from home.

The team was Alan Clark (3.5), Kenny Weir (14), Matt Miles Griffiths (14) and Mark Wilce (20). They faced an experienced Ealing team, of Tony Elliott (6) Simon Turner (6), David Graham (11) and Margaret Page (16).

All games were played to Base 6 bisques, in accordance with the competition's advice for high handicap players. This made for a tactical and aggressive playing environment, with both sides able to deploy bisques in most of the matches.

In the morning session, David Graham made excellent use of his 7.5 bisques to beat Alan Clark 26-4. In the other singles game, Kenny Weir achieved a hard-fought win against Simon Turner, with the score at 21-12 when time was called.

In the doubles match, Mark Wilce and Matt MG made the most of their 11 to 5 bisque advantage; an early 6 hoop break gave them the lead, which they defended resolutely from that point on. Nevertheless, Tony Elliott was able to get a four-ball break going, and looked like taking his ball all the way round, before unfortunately blobbing 3 back. It was a tight and nervy match, finishing 19-14 to High Wycombe. HWCC went into lunch 2-1 up.

As always, Ealing were consummate and generous hosts; an excellent lunch was served, with homemade salads by Margaret, fresh strawberries, and a wide selection of cakes. Ealing's Carol was there throughout the day, offering refreshments whenever needed, and making the guests feel very welcome.

In the afternoon session, Lawn 1 saw the doubles teams face each other singly; Margaret Page demonstrated her class with a 26-11 win over Mark Wilce, making the most of her 10 bisques. She was the only player to peg out on Lawn 1 all day.

On Lawn 3, Alan Clark won 17-10 against Simon Turner, whose 2.5 bisques weren't enough to get a result against the lowest handicap player on the lawns. Kenny Weir made judicious use of his 8 bisques to David Graham's 5, to win a very close match 23-20.

With the match score at 4-2, the last game was academic. With his 6 handicap, Tony Elliott had no bisques to Matt MG's 8, and it resulted in a defensive, somewhat negative, encounter, which finished 19-7 to Wycombe.

The final result was 5-2 to Wycombe, which flattered the guests somewhat, considering how close many of the games were.

All in all, it was a fine day's croquet, played very much in the spirit of the game. HWCC and Ealing have a long history of friendship, stretching back to them sharing their ground with us when we were homeless, and it was a pleasure to continue this association. We look forward to Hurlingham in the next round!

​Matt Miles Griffiths