The new Interclub season started much the same as the last one finished. Not only was the venue the same, but once again we had remarkably nice weather, a huge turnout (99 players – another new record), great competition and a very convivial atmosphere, despite the COVID-Safe requirements.
Once again, this was helped along by the innovative and popular new timing regulation arrangement, which maximises playing time and minimises waiting time, while providing the relaxed ambience of untimed games without the frustrating delays and late finishes that often come with an untimed format. We thank PFA for allowing this arrangement to continue despite opposition from certain quarters.
On the premiership table, after one round, things also look a lot like they did at the end of last season. The top three clubs have all taken up where they left off, the same two clubs are closely vying for fourth position and the battle for sixth is once again very tight.
In terms of the individual honours, on the other hand, the day’s results were more in keeping with previous seasons rather than the last. The winners, ESP’s Alexi Alexi, Arwed Turon & Maurice Belz, had a relatively lean time of it last season — by their own lofty standards — picking up just one gold medal between them (compared to eight the year before). The silver medallists, Deb Rodda, Selina Dally & Wendy Bensen, also emulated a feat they achieved twice in the 2018/19 season. In the bronze medal position was the Adelaide Hills trio of Greg Anderson, Ross Coleman & Quentin Jones, their first appearance on the podium since 2017/18.
Finally, a big thank-you goes to the awesome Novar Gardens crew who once again kept things running like clockwork under difficult circumstances. Your friendly efficiency sets a standard the rest of us can aspire to. Well done.

Round 1 is also the time that individual awards are presented to the most successful players from the season just completed…
The ‘Best Player’ medal went to Selina Dally, who only played in four of the five rounds but never finished lower than 4th in any of them. Selina is a truly outstanding player and has been a consistent performer over many years. This award is thoroughly deserved.
For the second year in a row, the award for ‘Best Player of the Other Gender’ went to a man, this time Maurice Belz — another highly decorated player and out-and- out star. Maurice finished second overall (also from four rounds), trailing by a margin of just one point. Not too “lean” a season, then (only in terms of gold).Continue reading→

The fine and sunny weather was as good as it gets in the middle of winter, setting the scene perfectly for our return to organised pétanque after the shutdown. At times it had looked as if our season was over and we can count ourselves very fortunate to be in a position where we could squeeze in one more round to finish off the 2019/20 Interclub competition. On such a beautiful day, the COVID-Safe requirements did not dampen the mood at all.

With 28 triples teams, the attendance was only just shy of the record set in January, suggesting that the unexpected interruption has not taken the momentum out of our recent growth trend. A few of the regulars were not yet ready to emerge from their isolation bubbles, but this was offset by a very pleasing number of new players participating for the first time — representing five different clubs! (Not to mention the presence of some who would normally be sunning themselves in warmer climes at this time of year.) It would seem crowds of this magnitude are going to be our ‘new normal’.

On the day, it was Penny Lyons, Steve Hambour & Terry Hall from FAB who finished unbeaten and took the top honours. Congratulations to them. This notable achievement is the first time the gold medals have gone to a FAB team since 2009 (Erica, Craig & Anders) and it brought great joy to the growing FAB contingent. It came on the back of an epic fifth round tussle against ESP’s Arwed Turon, Nick Armstrong & Maurice Belz.

Gold medalists Penny Lyons, Steve Hambour & Terry Hall (FAB)
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