KENT PETANQUE ASSOCIATION ISSUE No.89 NOVEMBER 2013 TOP TABLE DAVID BAXTER MARTIN EGGLETON KEN BUCHAN MIKE CUBBITT and MICK NASH Another successful evening of Annual General Meetings of the combined, Kent Petanque Association and the Shepherd Neame K.P.A. Leagues. A few notes and comments..not minutes! This was the first time that the AGM s were held at Gravesend Rugby Club, following on from the previous years at Lordswood Sports & Social Club, with a successful format pioneered by Mick Weston of Lordswood and the KPA Committee. Mike Cubbitt of Gravesend Rugby Club welcomed the members, and introduced guest of honour and presenter of the KPL Trophies...Dougie Dick from Shepherd Neame. Around 70 members attended this evening, which can be considered great support for Petanque in Kent. 70 members for any AGM is good..for a minority sport such as Petanque, 70 is excellent. By the reactions and lack of criticism from the floor it can be assumed that the organisers of both the K.P.A. and Shepherd Neame KPL are on the right course, and have the support of the membership. The end of year accounts show a healthy 9387 in the KPA General fund, 3000 in the Shepherd Neame KPL Fund and 1600 in the Junior Fund. The KPA Treasurer proposed that the KPA subscriptions for members should be unchanged and remain at the 2013 level.the proposal was carried. Also recorded that following the recent EPA, A.G.M. the EPA member subscriptions will also remain the same for year 2014. DOUGIE DICK DEAN ASHBY and JACK BLOWS Page 1
Every year.the KPA Chairman.MARTIN EGGLETON selects and presents a trophy...named the Taylor Trophy to a worthy individual who has made a significant contribution to Petanque in Kent. This year the trophy was awarded to MIKE CUBBITT of Gravesend Rugby Club. Excellent evening!!...however it still amazes that some players and teams that have won honours throughout the year are too tired to turn-up to receive their One of the Teams from the BAT & BALL P.C. trophies.particularly in the case of the KPL where the Wednesday League matches are the mainstay of competitive petanque for the majority of players..strange? Praise was given to RAY KEEMER-RICHARDS (KPA Membership Secretary) with the assistance of MICK NASH (KPL Secretary), who managed to increase the membership fees income by around 300 by chasing and cajoling members who were less than forthcoming with their membership fees in previous years. The K.P.A. proudly records the addition of three new excellent petanque venues in Kent, thanks to Gravesend Rugby Club, the Railway Inn at Sole Street and Istead Rise Community Centre. All three clubs were helped by cash grants from the KPA/KPL to add to funds that they raised from other sources. DAVID BAXTER proposed another bright idea that was overwhelmingly and enthusiastically supported by the membership..to go forward with the proposal to arrange for a Sports Psychologist pilot scheme with a limited estimated cost (to the KPA) for a provisional limited number of players to be subjected to the psycho-magic, and if successful, to be followed by a full scheme for the involvement of more players. DOUGIE DICK and the boys from the RAILWAY P.C. - DEAN ASHBY, JACK BLOWS, SCOTT ASHBY AND NEIL PHILLIPS Page 2
Another team from the BAT & BALL P.C. - CAROLINE EDWINS, TIM EDWINS and REBECCA RUDDICK Probably the most interesting aspect of the evening was a proposal from the BAT & BALL P.C.. clearly and eloquently presented by MARTIN PENNELL. The old chestnut... KPL League teams.and the use of substitutes. We all have misgivings and various experiences regarding this issue, and it is not the first time to be raised at an AGM. The more obvious of complaints being that...the substitute rules benefit those Clubs with several teams, and are to no advantage to those clubs with one or two teams. By MARTIN S assessment there were 37 Clubs who entered teams into the KPL Shepherd Neame Summer League, seven of which have multiple teams that could be advantaged by the substitute rules, but in practice only four clubs are advantaged ( due to two or more teams from the same Club being in the same League). More to the point.some of the bigger Clubs can..and do.base their team arrangements and player selection around the substitute rules, and even instigate their own Club Rules to that effect. The outcome does do not always appear to be within the spirit of the game to other Clubs. The two proposals relating to the substitute rule were accepted by the meeting with only one Team voting against. So for the 2014 Season a player may only play for a maximum of two teams in the league in one season AND no player can play for more than one team in the same Division. And food for thought?...maybe next year a proposal to totally abolish the use of substitutes in the Kent League Divisions? AND. finally a serious point raised from the floor in any other business records that.. The KENT Region of Petanque has probably the largest number of licenced members at 670, and only a total of 16 Juniors. What are we doing about it? The KPA and several Clubs have tried various schemes in the past to encourage youngsters, and there is one more in the pipeline at present..but there is no likelihood of a sudden increase in Junior membership in the very near future. Hartley Team the HAWKS - EILEEN FOWERS, BRIDGET SNOW, WENDY BROOKS, RON FREEAR, BARBARA POTTER, and GILL PEARSON Page 3
Two Kent Club teams playing at Whittlesey indoor bouladrome were Hartley Country Club P.C. members.babs Carr, Jim Carr, Mags Yates, Barbara Potter, Ken Potter, Hilda Griffiths, John Griffiths and Ron Yates.and a team from the Duke of Wellington P.C. members.keith Atkinson, John and Judy Moore, Jill and Lee Wood and Steve Wilkinson. The other teams were The Yorkies and Saddle from North Yorkshire, a team from East Midlands and a team made up of mainly local Whittlesey players. These friendly Club competitions are held regularly in the months of November and The MANAGEMENT JOHN SUE ANGIE and CHRIS February at the bouladrome organised by ANGIE and JOHN GOUGHAN and SUE and CHRIS who travel down from the York area for the weekend. They have been running these weekend competitions for about 8 years taking over from a local couple who ran the competitions for several years previously. Gravesend Rugby Club were probably the Page 4
Town centre of WHITTLESEY that has a train station spelt WHITTLESEA first to enter a Kent team, and Hartley have been entering teams for the past ten years. It was a first for the Duke of Wellington P.C. with some of the teams players relatively new to petanque.although team organiser Keith Atkinson has been playing for donkeys years and first played at Whittlesey with the Gravesend Rugby Club. The weekend competition is based upon a series of double and triple matches over ten rounds, giving a total of 25 games for each team. A good, friendly but competitive atmosphere and the top team for this weekends event were the team Extreme comprising of mainly local Whittlesey players. The Kent teams finishing places were 4th for Hartley and 5th for the Duke of Wellington. ANGIE GOUGHAN and her team of organisers put in a good deal of time and effort to ensure a successful weekend and lay on a supper on Saturday evening and buffet on Sunday lunchtime..and provided several bottles of wine for the top teams. These weekends are an excellent advertisement for petanque.and the new comers from the Duke of Wellington enjoyed their first entry into a weekend competition. Whittlesey is a two hour drive from Kent so for travelling Kent teams, an overnight stay is necessary, and although Whittlesey is not blessed with an over supply of accommodation, there are plenty of hotels and guest houses nearby. By coincidence both Kent teams arrived around the same time on the Saturday and both also by coincidence or previous experience had a mid-day breakfast in the excellent SUNSHINE CAFÉ in the town centre..great to see that a café of this standard, quality and value for money still exists! A good weekend of petanque had by all. MICHAEL GEAR JOHN COOMBER URSULA FULTON HARRIERS REMEMBERANCE DAY DOUBLES photos by JACK MILNER Page 5
Held at STAR MEADOW SPORTS CLUB. Attending were Martin Eggleton, Ken Buchan, Mick Nash, Andy Mills, Mike Cubbitt, Richard Spillet, Corrine Cooter, Mark Cooter, Ray Keemer-Richards, Janice Keemer-Richards and Ron Yates. Not much to report.just a couple of points..not minutes. Mike Pegg makes another surprise comeback to put himself forward as the EPA President. Recognised that the Regional Qualifier Finals at Hayling Island was a success for the Kent squad, but accommodation needs to be better managed for next year and will probably result in early block bookings based on an estimate of attending players. Early guestimates based upon the past couple of years would suggest that there is a preference for caravan accommodation rather than the half board chalets for most players. The preliminary yearly accounts for the KPA show that the income from membership fees has increased by around 300 due the due diligence of the Membership Secretary and League Secretary in pursuing 50 members who have not been that forthcoming in subscriptions in previous years. The preliminary accounts show a figure of 9430 plus 1639 Junior Fund in the bank, excluding the funds of KPA Summer and Winter Leagues. Recorded that a KPA player injured her wrist when she fell during a game at the Chairman s Cup, by tripping on a lane string and falling backwards..which tempted several comments that there had been several similar injuries sustained by players over the years. tripping over lane strings and falling backwards. Suggested that a thin heavy plasticised lane boundary line be used.similar to that used at present by Lordswood and Hartley..a line that lays on the ground contour without the need for excessive securing..and will also provide some give when contacted. Suggestions to be investigated further with possible recommendations to Clubs. There was general agreement that the proposal for a KPA Sports Psychologist should be investigated further. Accepted that the KPA subscriptions should remain as is.however there is a strong likelihood that the EPA subscriptions will be increased. Nominations for Committee Members were finalised for presentation at the forthcoming Annual General Meetings. DAVID BAXTER announces that he is no longer a member of the E.P.A. Management Committee. David has been a long time Petanque activist serving on the original South East Region, B.P.A. and latterly the E.P.A. Management Committees. He started his playing career with Gravesend Rugby Club P.C. and at present is a member of Hartley Country Club P.C. and is a member of the K.P.A. Management Committee. David has always been an innovator, an ideas man who follows his schemes to fruition. An enthusiastic do-er, a rare characteristic that will be missed from the E.P.A. Page 6
The team of SCOTT ASHBY and JACK BLOWS and DENISE WILLIAMS of HARRIERS P.C. The team of BECKY and TIM EDMONDS and MICHAEL GEAR President of HARRIERS P.C. SUNDAY 10th NOVEMBER. Report and Pictures by DENISE WILLIAMS A creditable 15 teams turned up on a bright sunny Sunday, to play in the Harriers Remembrance Day Doubles on the 10th November 2013 at Tovil Working Men s Club. The main competition was a keenly fought match contested between two teams from the Railway Tavern Scott Ashby and Jack Blows (Olympus) and Mike and Debbie Capelin (Dragons). Scott and Jack winning 13 5. The Plate competition was played between Becky and Tim Edwins (Bat & Ball) and Michael Gear and Martin Edwards (Harriers) Tim and Becky winning 13-11. Cash prizes were given in the main competition and wine prizes for the Plate winners. Clubs represented were Lordswood PC, Railway Inn PC, Bat & Ball PC, Hartley PC, Whitehouse PC, Crowborough PC, Istead Rise PC, Walnut Tree PC and Harriers PC. RON FULTON MIKE CAPELIN Photos by JACK MILNER RITA COOMBER Page 7
Three local Kent players made recent trips to Canada..one remains.snowed up with the lumberjacks.that person being world traveller KEN PINDER (Duke of Wellington P.C.) last seen chasing an elk up the side of the Rockies with 3 Integrale boule in hand..something for dinner maybe?.good old local boys armed to the teeth and dressed like bushes told him that they normally shoot elk with a gun!...ken said that he would stick and shoot with what he knows best.a set of 75mm diameter boule! Ken said that some elk meat and roast potatoes would make a nice change from his daily diet of Poutine the local Canadian dish...a plate of chips covered with melted cheese and gravy poured over the lot.sounds disgusting.and it is!...a dish that is hard to stomach for a player accustomed to the post match quality cuisine and fine wines served at the Duke of Wellington Ryarsh..so much for the trials and tribulations of the modern day world traveller. And KEN and JANET provide the latest news of their round the world trip. So where did we get to last time..after our stay in Thailand we flew to Sydney and were met by our dear friends Margaret and Marcello Mori, ex DOWPC members. Now you have to have very close friends indeed to ask to stay for six weeks. Well we had the most fantastic time and are indebted to them and their family for taking us into their homes and allowing us to share so many fun times. M&M live in a suburb north west of Sydney called Baulkham Hills which is about forty minutes from the City centre and the most convenient way to get there is by bus. continued Page 8
We were able to buy a seniors day pass costing $2.50 ( 1.50) which allows travel by all forms of transport for that day, Bus, Train, and Ferries. This is not your ordinary bus route Sydney s busses have the outside lane on the Motorway and there are even bus stops in the centre of the MW, These are segregated areas and passengers get to them by overhead walkways then down to the bus stop. We had some very nice conversations with Aussies going to and fro, one lady recounted her whole life to me and nearly missed her stop. We had paid a short visit to Sydney several years ago but this time we could take our time and select our tours and places of interest. We started with the early history oh how Captain Cook discovered Sydney. Then it s centre as a penal colony and how tough life was for the convicts. However there was a very humane Governor who, rather than locking people up, put them to work building the colony. His name was James Macquarie and every town in Australia has a Macquarie street. For the history buffs I recommend a book by Kate Grenville called The Secret River. We visited all the sites, Olympic Park, Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge, Circular Quay, and Darling Harbour and had the most fabulous food and after dinner enjoyed fireworks, Laser shows and saw Jesus Christ Superstar. A highlight of our stay was a visit to The Blue Mountains, where the huge area of gum trees give off a blue hue in the sunshine. We visited Canberra and toured the city ending up at the War Museum easily the best I have ever seen. Marcello belongs to the Mauritian Ex Pats Petanque Club and I was made very welcome and had some really competitive games. They are charming people but spoke with very thick French/Aussie accents. They think nothing of travelling to Melbourne for a competition. We said our farewells with the promise to return next year and flew back to the UK and then on to Italy for a wedding of a close friend and stayed at my daughter s old farmhouse for a month, dog sitting and doing Daddy jobs. We met up with Corinne & Rob Heywood at their place in France, more jobs, then back to UK to our son s home in Bath, more dog sitting and lots more Daddy jobs. We then flew to Tunisia to stay with our daughter again she lives in Sidi Bou Said. Her house has Lots of jasmine in the garden and a huge Wiamarana dog to take for walks. On the 11 September we flew to Toronto via New York and are now staying with Janet s cousin in Southampton which is on Lake Huron, everything is on a grand scale in Canada Lake Huron is about the size of Wales. When you ask how far is a certain place they always quote the number of hours it takes to get there. We had the most amazing road trip to Ottawa, spent Thanks giving with family, then on to Quebec, Montreal and home via Toronto. The colours in the fall, as they say here were spectacular. Really getting into the Canadian way of life and have been attending the local Rotary club meetings and fully appreciate the great work that goes on. So I have now bought me a big check shirt, I now go oot and aboot but what I want most of all is a big truck!! continued Page 9
A friend invited me to play Golf and I told him all about Petanque he said I should try Curling, so for the past three weeks I have been to a beginner s class. It was a bit disconcerting being on ice in trainers but there are many similarities to Petanque. The first stone (rocks they call them) is placed as a guard to the House, the sixteen feet circle. The take out is our shot and the double take out is our big double. The slide delivery is like doing the splits but older guys like me can use a delivery stick. Its great fun but the ice is minus 25 degrees so every body comes off with a red nose. Just like playing in the Winter League. On 2 nd December we fly to Miami, like the Canadian snow birds do, and make our way up to Myrtle Beach South Carolina, taking the Silver Meteor Amtrak train to Charleston, collect a rental and drive on up to MB where we have rented a cute wooden house just one block from the beach. My other great passion is golf and MB has 20 courses close by with amazing senior winter specials breakfast, golf with a cart, lunch and two beers for $30! Catching all the news in the Gazette and via the website, nice to see Kent at the top of things again, Happy Christmas and New Year to everyone. Ken Pinder The final KPA MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETING FOR THE YEAR WILL BE AT HARTLEY COUNTRY CLUB ON 5th DECEMBER AT 8pm. KPA members or representative members from KPA Clubs are very welcome to attend. CHRISTMAS HAMPER DOUBLES Star Meadow Sports Club Darland Ave. Gillingham ME7 3AN Starts at 10am Traditional window cleaning Residential Small Commercial and Gutter Cleaning. Existing customers in New Barn, Hartley, Meopham, Istead Rise. Phone NEIL on 07557 447342 go to JACK MILNER, KEN PINDER, JULIE HUTCHINSON for providing info and details for this issue of the Gazette. Page 10
THE 2013 KENT CLASSIC held at LORDSWOOD SPORTS & SOCIAL CLUB on SUNDAY 6th OCTOBER and organised by DAVID BAXTER A good day in the sun and shade and the Lordswood special micro climate. A reasonable turn-out of players for this years Classic, and organiser DAVID BAXTER continues to make minor adjustments to the format to make it the premier Petanque tournament in Kent. Photo s by JACK MILNER Page 11
No prize winners just out for the day to enjoy the Petanque, photo s by JACK MILNER GOLD SECTION 1st Place - Kevin Spillet Greg Davenprt, Marcus Hickman 300 2nd Place - Colin Senneck, Mick Nash, Joyce Nash 150 3rd Place - Jean Christian Evrard, Micael Evrard, Sebastian Hautecoeu, Geoffrey Kinno 80 4th Place - Chris Watkins, Matt Horrigan, Barry Wing, Garry Atkinson 40 5th Place - Jeff Mitchell, Joe Phillips, Steve Myles, Dave Court 20 6th Place- Neil Phillips, Poppy Whatley, Chris Peat, Jack Blows 20 7th Place- Lasse Dithmar, Morten Saxild, Morten Junge 20 8th Place- Dave Chalkly, Dave Turner, Rachide Hanache 20 SILVER 1 SECTION 1st Place- Bob Gaywood, Martin Eggleton, Jean Louis Guiot 80 2nd Place- Martin Pennell, Mark Toulson, Jes Paine 40 3rd Place- Lee Jamieson, Nic Baxter, Sean Pendergahst 20 4th Place- Dean Saville, Sofiane Lachani, Sam Blakely, Ross Jones 20 SILVER 2 SECTION 1st Place- Frank Charlesworth, Christine peat, David Wicks Ron Phelps 80 2nd Place- Sebastian Sizun, Mark Barlow, Keith Vine 40 3rd Place- Richard King, Sheila King, Brian King, Alan Cregeen 20 4th Place- Tracy Turner, Martin Pry, Paul Turner 20 CONSOLAGE SECTION 1st Place- Eileen Fowers, John Fowers, Hazel Teale 45 2nd Place- Jim Carr, John Griffiths, Jeni Rush 25 A total 1040 prize money was paid out at this competition. There were a total of 32 teams taking part comprising 106 players. Another successful KENT CLASSIC Page 12
In the 16th and 17th centuries, everything had to be transported by ship. It was also before the invention of commercial fertilizers, so large shipments of manure were quite common. It was shipped dry, because in its dry form it weighed a lot less than when wet, but once water (at sea) hit it, not only did it become heavier, but the process of fermentation began again, of which a by-product is methane gas. As the stuff was stored below decks in bundles you can imagine what could (and did) happen. Methane began to build up below decks and the first time that someone came below at night with a lantern..boom! Several ships were destroyed in this manner before it was discovered just what was happening. After that.the bundles of manure were always stamped with the instruction STOW HIGH IN TRANSIT on them, which meant for the sailors to stow the bundles high enough off the lower decks so that any water coming into the hold would not touch this volatile cargo, and start the production of methane. Thus evolved the acronym.. S.H.I.T (stow high in transit)...which has come down through the ages and is in use to this very day.particularly to good effect by our friends across the Atlantic. DOUGIE DICK with JOHN GRIFFITHS, HAZEL TEALE, HILDA GRIFFITHS RON YATES and DAVID BAXTER DOUGIE DICK of Shepherd Neame with the Hartley Kestrels Team who came top of Division 2 and will be playing in Division 1 during the 2014 Summer Season. For the discerning reader of the Gazette..it is obvious that some of the articles in this issue have no connection whatsoever with Petanque! Which is an indication that we are now approaching the season of little or no Petanque news. In an attempt to publish the Gazette monthly, your views, comments and articles for inclusion in the months of December, January and February would be greatly appreciated. Club news, player news or straightforward obtuse and irreverent articles will be very welcome. Please e-mail to...www.ronyates6@btinternet.com READ DECEMBER S ISSUE OF THE GAZETTE FOR MORE PHOTO s OF TROPHY PRESENTATIONS AT THE K.P.A/K.P.L. AGM s Page 13
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