On Monday 15 May, the Lilydale Section One Level Play team hosted the Brunswick Croquet Club.
Brunswick, sitting second on the ladder, was going to present a real challenge for the Lilydale pair of Glenn Crook and Murray Howlett who are still gaining experience at this level.
The first game was the doubles and Glenn Crook and Murray Howlett were taking it right up to their Brunswick opponents, neither side was getting a clear break and after 12 hoops the score was 6 hoops a piece. Both teams set up well for this hoop but the more experienced Brunswick side seized on their opportunity to run the hoop and won.
In the first singles game, Glenn Crook battled hard and was making it difficult for his opponent to get a clear shot at the hoops but in the end, sheer weight of numbers saw the Brunswick player take out the game.
In the next singles, Murray Howlett played an excellent game, setting his approach shots up in good positions and running some great hoops.
With two singles games, the match could go either way.
In the first singles after lunch the Brunswick player was out to make amends for his loss to Howlett and played very well, not letting Crook settle into the game.
In the last game for the day Howlett, although playing well just fell behind by a couple of hoops and could not make up for the lost ground.
The final scores for the day were Lilydale 1 game 25 hoops Brunswick 4 games 30 hoops.
As this was the last game for the season in section 1, Lilydale has finished fifth on the ladder winning half of their games played. This is a fantastic result for Crook and Howlett in their first year at this level, well done guys.
In Section 2, Lilydale played away at Ringwood Croquet Club. Ringwood is like Lilydale’s second home as they have to hire the Ringwood club for a number of their games due to the fact that Lilydale only has one court.
Lilydale were playing a combined team of Ringwood and Monash calling their team Woodash.
In the doubles, Woodash start strongly and had the first three hoops on the board before Lilydale scored. Lilydale’s Alan Jones and Craig McCracken fought back but the initial break that the Woodash team had kept them in front.
In the first singles, Lilydale’s John Thomson also started slowly with the Woodash player winning the first four hoops. John fought back but missed a critical hoop which left the door open for the Woodash player to win the game.
In the next singles, Craig McCracken played an excellent game not giving his opponent many opportunities around the hoops.
With two singles games to come Lilydale needed to play well to win the day to stay on top of the ladder.
In the first singles, John Thomson started much better and controlled most of the game to win.
In the last game, Alan Jones of Lilydale had a real battle on his hands as both players at times played well and then they also played so played some shots that they would gladly forget. Alan set up very well for the 13th with both balls and was able to control the hoop and win the game.
The final scores for the match were Lilydale 3 games 29 hoops to Woodash 2 games 25 hoops.
This win keeps Lilydale on top of the ladder with one round to play next Monday, which they have to win to stay on top of the ladder and win the shield for the autumn season.
On Thursday 18 May the semi-finals of the Handicap Shield Croquet Season were held at the Ringwood Croquet Club.
The top two teams from the East Division, Lilydale and Ringwood, played the top two teams from the West, Ivanhoe Park and Essendon.
Lilydale played Essendon, these two teams also played off in last season’s semi-finals with Lilydale winning that day.
Lilydale’s team consisted of Glenn Crook, Murray Howlett, Craig McCracken, Alan Jones and John Thomson.
In the first game, Murray Howlett had a mammoth task as he was giving away seven extra turns. Murray started well running the first hoop but the Essendon player was using her extra turns wisely and was going hoop for hoop with Murray. After 12 hoops the score was six hoops each, so the 13th hoop was played to decide the winner. The Essendon player had used all of her extra turns and Murray’s better play and experience won him the game.
The next game was a doubles game and here Glenn Crook and John Thomson teamed up. Glenn and John started well and although they were giving away four extra turns they held a good lead, then the momentum of the game changed and the Essendon pair came back. Glenn and John held on and won.
In the next singles game, Glenn Crook was giving away five extra turns to his Essendon opponent. Essendon was using their extra turns well and staying even with Glenn throughout this game but it was won on the 13th by Glenn.
The next doubles game saw Craig McCracken and Alan Jones play, they were giving away three extra turns to their opponents. The game ebbed and flowed but in the end, it was the extra turns that the Essendon players had that made the difference.
Lilydale were in front but they could not relax as there were 2 games to play and only 2 hoops the difference.
The first game after lunch Alan Jones was playing. The game was close all the way through and both teams set up well with Essendon in with a chance to run the hoop and win the game, which she did.
The last game was a doubles game and Craig McCracken and Murray Howlett paired up. These two have been in sparkling form all season and even though they were giving away a combined five extra turns, and with the result of the semi-final on the line these two were determined not to lose this game.
The final score for the day was Lilydale 4 games 39 hoops to Essendon 2 games 35 hoops.
In the other semi-final Ringwood beat Ivanhoe Park so next Thursday the grand final will be between Lilydale and Ringwood, venue yet to be finalised.
