Perfect spring weather, some serious petanque and plenty of bonhomie were the rewards for a large turnout of competitors in Round 2. As usual, the Gawler club went all out to make it an excellent day, serving breakfast as well as lunch to the hungry petanquers.

Taking home the gold medals on this occasion were the Club d’Adelaide trio of Louis Oltarczy, Wayne Twigden & Alain Rousse, carrying on the excellent form they displayed last season. They got there via a thrilling one-point win in the fourth game against the internationally acclaimed girls from ESP, Deb Rodda, Selina Dally & Wendy Bensen, who went on to claim the silver.Continue reading→

The first round of the new season was well attended despite the threat of showers, which fortunately did not materialise. Conditions were cool, but pleasant enough.

Last year, in the 2017/18 championship, the pecking order was fairly well established after Round 1 and barely changed for the rest of the season. This time around, the early indications are that the season to come may be a bit more interesting than that.

The dominant club on the day was Eastern Suburbs, with their three teams all finishing in the top five. Congratulations to the gold medal winners — Alexi, Arwed & Lionel. The resultant points haul puts ESP well ahead of the rest of the pack, at this early stage.

Reigning champion Adelaide sits in second place, on the back of a silver medal performance by Dominique, Rada & Alain. However, with a depleted squad and only one team in the points, they only just got their noses in front of the next three clubs who are all tied for third ‑‑ Adelaide Hills, Gawler and Prospect. Rounding out this tight pack are FAB, who, in sixth place, are a mere 6 points shy of second!

Such a tight contest is good for the competition and leaves us eagerly anticipating the next round. Thanks to the Prospect club and all their volunteers for doing a great job as hosts.

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Round 5 was held in ideal conditions. In the picturesque green surrounds of the Gawler Petanue Club, the weather was absolutely perfect — sunny and mild from start to finish. It’s just a shame there weren’t more players there to appreciate it.

Stars of the day were a local team comprising two seasoned veterans and a rookie: John Gejas, Glenis Head & Belinda Kopania.

Undefeated, they finished with a classic victory over this season’s dominant team, Messieurs Bouyer, Rousse & Oltarczy. The latter had to be content with third place on this occasion. Congratulations in particular to Belinda, taking home a gold medal in just her second outing, and to Glenis for her first Interclub gold. Well done also to Adrian Clements, Wayne Twigden & Ernie Palmer, in the silver medal position.Continue reading→

It just wouldn’t be League at Stirling without some precipitation, no matter what time of year it’s scheduled. Fortunately, this year the misty rain was so light that it was easily ignored and soon cleared to make way for a lovely sunny and mild afternoon. The varying condition of the playing surface as the pistes dried throughout the day presented an extra challenge to players.

After three rounds dominated by Club d’Adelaide, Round 4 was Prospect’s time to shine. Emulating Adelaide’s efforts in Round 2, Prospect has now become the second club to have ever achieved a clean sweep of the gold, silver and bronze medals. Congratulations to Dave Ward, Lionel Pujol & Tory McBride, winners on the day, and to Brett Williams, Martin Verdonk & Richard Voskamp and Heike & John Whitehorn & Alan Matthews respectively.Continue reading→