2025 NSW GC Pennants Division 1 final

Division 1 Finals

Hosted by Southern Highlands Croquet Club on 11 & 12 October 2025

Teams from Queanbeyan, Marrickville, Manly and Newcastle clubs competed.

The event was won - for the third year in a row! - by Newcastle Club.
Chris Gill and Alastair Torrance also played for the Newcastle team during the zone phase but were not at the Final.

Queanbeyan, competing for the first time in the Division 1 competition, were very close runners-up by just one match.

[Tournament Manager's report by Stephen Bruce, Southern Highlands Croquet Club]

On a fine but windy day in Exeter, the 2025 Division 1 Pennants Finals got underway at Southern Highlands CC on 10 October.  At times the wind was so strong it blew over the wooden benches but that didn’t seem to perturb the players.  Unsurprisingly, the standard of play was exceptional with cannons, bombards, reverse jump shots and clearances of over 10 yards.  Not to mention placements from over 20 yards to in front of the hoop and hooping from all manner of distances.

After a relatively sedate practice session on the Friday and a warm welcome from Club President Jill Malone, serious play got underway early on a cloudy and blustery Saturday morning with Marrickville, captained by Lance Howes, playing “newbies” Queanbeyan (who made the Finals in their first year in Division 1), captained by Ann Clifton.  With Queanbeyan fielding croquet legend Peter Freer and Kevin McGlynn in the singles, you would expect a victory, but the Marrickville team made it a close contest going down 2 matches to 1, 5 games to 3 and outscoring Queanbeyan 47-45 in hoops.  A win to Queanbeyan.

This was followed by Manly, captained by Jaki Gaskell, playing Newcastle National Park, captained by the estimable Derek Bull.  Again, a close fought contest with Manly running out winners 2 matches to 1, 4 games to 3 and 40-37 in hoops.

Manly played Queanbeyan next and Queanbeyan were showing their class with Kevin McGlynn beating Jaki Gaskell, Peter Freer beating Paul Camphuis and Ann Clifton and Janelle Wilson beating Richard Savage and Lloyd Wishart in the doubles (with the doubles played on the Sunday).  A second win for Queanbeyan and the result was 3 matches to nil, 6 games to 1 and 47-23 in hoops.  

Newcastle played Marrickville in round 4 and the close contests kept on coming.  Derek Bull beat Gareth Denyer and Tony Hammond beat Peter Sinclair but Stephen Catt and Lance Howes from Marrickville beat David Kelly and Ruth Mulvaney in the doubles (which was also played on the Sunday morning). The result for Newcastle was 2 matches to 1, 4 games to 2 and 35-31 in hoops.

On a balmy, sunny Sunday morning, Manly played Marrickville and Marrickville were winners again with Peter Sinclair beating Paul Camphuis (but Paul won more hoops), Gareth Denyer beating Lloyd Wishart and Stephen Catt and Lance Howes beating Richard Savage and Blake Thompson in the doubles.  The result was 3 matches to nil, 6 games to 1 and 45-34 in hoops.

So, after 5 rounds, it was Queanbeyan on 2 wins with Manly, Marrickville and Newcastle on 1 win each.  Manly and Marrickville had played their 3 contests and were out of contention.  In a “you couldn’t script it” outcome, the random draw produced Newcastle versus Queanbeyan in the last contest to decide the ultimate winner - Newcastle could win on a countback.

In possibly the match of the tournament, Derek Bull beat Kevin McGlynn in 3 games, 19-15 in hoops.  Some of the play in this match was breathtaking, with 20-yard clearances, 15-yard promotions to in front of the hoop and jump shots under enormous pressure.  In possibly the highlight of the tournament, Ruth Mulvaney took on Peter Freer with Ruth playing out of her skin and running out the winner in 3 games, 16-15 in hoops.

With Newcastle winning 2 matches, it meant that both Newcastle and Queanbeyan were on 2 contests each and 5 matches each.  It meant that the last match of the tournament, the doubles, would decide the overall winner.  Now the weather had started to change and the balmy, sunny day gave way to a return of the wind, a drop in temperature and then the rain started to fall.  This didn’t stop the players though and David Kelly and Tony Hammond beat Ann Clifton and Janelle Wilson in 2 games, 14-7 in hoops.

Which meant that Newcastle National Park were the 2025 Division 1 Pennants Champions, 2 contests and 6 matches to Queanbeyan’s 2 contests and 5 matches.  Marrickville finished a very credible third with 5 matches and Manly fourth, who were the only team to beat Newcastle.

The Finals were scheduled to play over 3-days but we managed to organise it so it was played over 2-days and only on 2 lawns.  This took some deft shuffling of matches and a herculean effort by all the volunteers who were scoring, providing catering and refereeing.  A special mention to all the referees – Malcolm Powys (Tournament Referee) and Doug Cornish (Nowra) plus Judy Tonkin (Marrickville) and Tony Hammond (Newcastle) as Referees in Training.  

Southern Highlands has shown that a tournament of this stature can be held at a 2-lawn club and we very much look forward to doing it again.

Congratulations to Newcastle National Park.

RESULTS

Croquet Scores

PHOTOS

1.  Players of the four Division 1 teams with SHCC hosts and referees.
2.  Newcastle team - winners.
3.  Queanbeyan team - runners-up.
4.  Marrickville team.
5.  Manly team.