There is still no practice at Marewa as we wait for the courts to "dry out".

Court 1
Malcolm Fletcher (Australia). R and Y
Jenny Clarke (New Zealand) Won toss. K and U
1. K to eb, 9y N of IV
2. R to II
3. U misses K from A baulk
4. Y shoots at R. Hits centre ball. Takes off to oppo's balls, hits and gets cannon, sends U to 5y S of 2, K to S of 5, rolls, bad position, bounces off.
5. K hits Y gently, makes 1 but goes to and hits U, rolls it to behind 2, going to R in II, sends R to 3 and goes to Y, takes off to position, runs 2 and has a break.

Court 2
Ken Bald (Australia) R and Y
Greg Bryant (New Zealand) Won the toss. K and U
1. U to 9y N and two y W of IV
2. Y to wb, peg high
3. K to eb giving it a rush to Y
4. R misses from III to IV
5. K rushes U to Y, Y to 1, runs 1 to level with U on wb and misses (7y)

Court 1.
5 (continued) Jenny goes to 4b, leaves R on 4, Y 5y W of the peg, K in II and U on the eb 11 y N of IV.
6. R is lifted to the end of B baulk and hits K.

Court 2.
6. Y shoots at oppo's balls on wb (9y). Misses.
7. K rushes U to 2, makes 2, rushes Y to 3, makes 3 with U 12y N of 4, makes 3 with rush to N of U and has a break. He collects R from IV after 4,

Court 1.
6 (continued) He sends K to 2, bounces off 1 with K nearby and Y near 4.
7. U hits R gently, and has a break but sticks in 2.
8. R shoots at K, just N of 2, watched by referee (me). Hits. Calls referee again to watch him hit U in hoop. Misses ball and hoop to IV.
9. Jenny continues her break, is hampered after 3 and shoots at her ball on middle of wb. Hits! Continues and has reached 2b. Continues and is approaching penult from K which she rushed into the hoop. calls refand attempts Irish peel to gain position but U sticks in the hoop. Moves U a few inches so it is in a position to score the hoop.
10. R hits Y (3y) approaches 1, bounces off and his mallet hits the ball again. He calls the fault himself.
11. K hits R, makes 4b and misses return roquet to 1 ft in front of 1.
12. R bounces off 1.
13. K hits quarter ball of R from 3 ft

I lost it while refing on court 2, but Y just missed K in IV and Jenny is approaching rover, her hoop, off U, with R three y from I. She makes rover and hits Y ( 4 y), sends Y to 5y from eb, 14y N of S bdry, retires to II, with rush to penult.b

Court 2.
7 (continued). He has a tricky bit before 1b where he has roqueted U and uses it to bombard Y away from just behind the hoop. Succeeds. Runs hoop by 10 y. Hits return roquet. Continues break. Lines in ball after making 2b and calls referee (me) to check if it's in a hole. It wasn't. After 3b he rushes his partner ball to IV and sets a rush to 1, with R on wb peg high and Ynear eb, also peg high. Calls referee to check which of the multiple chalk lines he should use.
8. Ken also calls referee as he does not want to take unfair advantage and have more than one ball fro A baulk. Eventually declines the lift and shoots with R from where it lies. Misses and Greg may have a cannon in IV.

I lost the plot while refereeing on court 1. U must have failed 2 on turn 9.
10. Rand Y join in IV.
11. U misses oppo's in IV
12. U stuck in 2 with K 6 y away.
13. Calls ref and hits Y with K

Court 1.
X. Malcolm just hit Y and missed oppo's balls in II. Jenny has made penult and has a return roquet of 7 y, with K and Y both near the centre. She finishes.
Jenny leads 1

Court 2.
Clips are K on 4b, U and Y on 2, R still on 1. Y just mis-approached 2 and has laid up on N bdry, 7 y E of II, with

Court 1.
6 (continued) He sends K to 2, bounces off 1 with K nearby and Y near 4.
7. U hits R gently, and has a break but sticks in 2.
8. R shoots at K, just N of 2, watched by referee (me). Hits. Calls referee again to watch him hit U in hoop. Misses ball and hoop to IV.
9. Jenny continues her break, is hampered after 3 and shoots at her ball on middle of wb. Hits! Continues and has reached 2b. Continues and is approaching penult from K which she rushed into the hoop. calls refand attempts Irish peel to gain position but U sticks in the hoop. Moves U a few inches so it is in a position to score the hoop.
10. R hits Y (3y) approaches 1, bounces off and his mallet hits the ball again. He calls the fault himself.
11. K hits R, makes 4b and misses return roquet to 1 ft in front of 1.
12. R bounces off 1.
13. K hits quarter ball of R from 3 ft

I lost it while refing on court 2, but Y just missed K in IV and Jenny is approaching rover, her hoop, off U, with R three y from I. She makes rover and hits Y ( 4 y), sends Y to 5y from eb, 14y N of S bdry, retires to II, with rush to penult.b

Court 2.
7 (continued). He has a tricky bit before 1b where he has roqueted U and uses it to bombard Y away from just behind the hoop. Succeeds. Runs hoop by 10 y. Hits return roquet. Continues break. Lines in ball after making 2b and calls referee (me) to check if it's in a hole. It wasn't. After 3b he rushes his partner ball to IV and sets a rush to 1, with R on wb peg high and Ynear eb, also peg high. Calls referee to check which of the multiple chalk lines he should use.
8. Ken also calls referee as he does not want to take unfair advantage and have more than one ball fro A baulk. Eventually declines the lift and shoots with R from where it lies. Misses and Greg may have a cannon in IV.

I lost the plot while refereeing on court 1. U must have failed 2 on turn 9.
10. Rand Y join in IV.
11. U misses oppo's in IV
12. U stuck in 2 with K 6 y away.
13. Calls ref and hits Y with K

I think I lost commentary between refereeing.

Court 1. Jenny won the first game.

Game 2.
1. Y supershot to 4ySW of peg.
2. K to 3y SSE of peg
3. R at K gentL, misses to 5 ySSE of 6.
4. U hits K, gets break, has gone to 5.

Court 2.
Clips are K on 4b, U and Y on 2 and R on 1. They have Ben like this for some time. Greg is now in play witH a pioneer, R, at 2. He plays at it gently from 3y and misses, leaving R with a 2 y shot.
X. R hits U, takes off to K at 3. Goes to Y and leaves U near 2 and K near 3. Rushes Y to 7yE of 1. Leaves his balls E of 1, not sure if he bounced off or just left ball there.
X. U shoots at K )14y), Misses to eb, level with 3.
X. Y hits R, takes off to U and should have the break.

Court 1. 4(cont

Court 1. Jenny has gone to 3b so far, now makes leave after 3b. R on eb, peg high, Y peg high, 6yW of the peg, K and U a foot apart just N of IV
Y is lifted to A baulk and hits K, rushes U to R and R to wb, 2 yards N of level with 1. Rolls the hoop but bounces off from 4 ft to the Wb.
K misses U from IV to a yard W of III (18y)
R hits Uto I, rolls to 5 ft straight, runs hoop t o level with peg, misses Y to I. Y is left 3 1/2 y N of 1.
K hits U (17y), has a break.

Court 2. Y sticks in 2.
U misses K into II
Ken calls ref, runs hoop cleanly and hits U, fails to get position for 3 and retires to end of A baulk with R S of 1,u and K 5y apart.
U hits K to near Y, rushes Y to Isends it to ???
I lost this while refing.
Clips are now K on 4b, U in play, just made 4, hampered, his Y at 5. R clip is on 1, Y on 3. He makes 5, and rushes Y to near IV, picks up the wrong blue ball from court 1 and is stopped by the referee (me) as he is playing with an outside agency and so that play is null and void.
Ken Bald knew exactly what had happened and the balls are returned. Greg retires to sit and have a drink to regain his composure.

I have been relieved for a short break and commentary is suspended.

Court 1. Jenny is making her second break, not attempting peels. She just made 2b, makes 3b hampered, calls referee and misses

Court 2. Greg put K into the jaws of 4b and attempted the half-jump peel but U went straight over K, not touching it. He showed his annoyance. He calls my reliever and hits the hoop, going to the eb.
Y is lifted to III and hits U to 4, comes back to 3 via R near 5, fails to hit K past the hoop but hits it, Irish peels K to get in front of 3, runs 3 to U and should have a break.

Court 1. Jenny took her second break to the peg laid up in IV.
Malcolm lifted Y to A baulk, hit an oppo ball and laid up in I. Both his clips are on 1, with Jenny's on peg and 4b.
Jenny hits K to eb peg high. U is near IV.
Malcolm makes 1, sends K to near II, Y to E of 3 and sets up on S bdry.
k to I.
Y bounces off 2

Court 2. U declines a 3y shot at y to shoot at K, in front of rover, hits and returns to Y at his hoop, penult. He makes penult. Peels K at rover, makes rover and finishes.

NZ 1- nil games

Jenny wins second game and the match while I was checking and fixing hoops after NZ won the first game on court 2. The rest of my commentary will be all about court 2.

When checked hoop 1 on court 2 was too narrow. The hoop setter used eight thicknesses of newspaper in the holes to widen the hoop to correct specification.

I think they are having lunch, so I must do the same!

Lunch is over and it's now about 27 degrees, with a forecast of 28. But the sun is blazing down and the players will find it very hot. There are some wispy streaks of cloud, about 2/8, but the sun shines through them. A gentle breeze keeps it from becoming oppressive.

Game 2. Same balls.
1. R (Ken Bald) from B baulk to 5y E of the peg.
2. U (Greg Bryant) from A baulk to 2y S of the peg.
3. Y shoots gently at U, misses by a very small amount and finishes only a yard past.
4. K makes a double from A baulk and hits Y, sending it to 3 yards W of 6. Greg should have a break. He rushes R to U, U to 1 makes 1 and is away.

4 ( continued). He has sent U to SE of 1 after 3. Is he thinking is setting a leave after 6 with a view to an NZ tpo? Makes 4, sends Y to 6 and goes to U. R is a good pioneer for 5. No, he is peeling his U ball through 1. It finishes on the wire, not jawsed. He makes 5 with a little jump and has a rush on R to the end of A baulk. R is sent to 2y S of 1b and he rush peels U through 1. It only goes a yard through although hit with power. He leaves it, takes off to Y, makes 6 and his break is well controlled. He makes 1b off R and sends it to 4b, rushing the pivot, Y, to the W of U which is 3y N of 2b. He keeps Y nearby, makes 2b and spends some time thinking. I suspect he was going to put Y on the back of 1 but left it too far to the W. He touches U, sends it to peg high between 1 and 2 and rushes Y to the middle of the eb. He takes off to R at 3b, short, rushes R away from a good position, 4y from the hoop, approaches and makes 3b under control. He rushes R to near the peg, sends it to 5y S and 1yW of 2, rushes and rolls K to IV where he sets a rush for U to Y,
.

5. Ken lifts R to III and misses Y to join U and K at IV.
6. U hits R, sends it 6 y into court towards 4 and rushes K to 5 y S of Y. He sends K to 4y SE of 3 and has a rush on Y to III. He ouches it gently and attempts to roll 2 from the eb, finishing 4y straight, with Y just on the N of the hoop. Bounces off to 3y from Y.
7. Y hits U, takes off to K, goes too far rushes it to 4y S of 3, takes off to Y and misses a cut rush to behind 4 on the S bdry, 8 y from Y.
8. U hits K, takes of to oppo's balls, rushes R to 5y SE of 2. Approaches to 1y at 30 degrees. Will he take it on? Yes. Bounces off.
9. R hits U (3 y), makes 1 and 2 and has a break if he is careful.

9 (continued). Ken is in play with R. His Y clip is on 1. The K clip is on 4b and the U clip on 2. He makes and has full control. No attempt at a tpo.

After 1b he leaves K 7y SSW of 1b and bounces off 2b, with Y 2y from A baulk.
10. U is lifted from near 3b and hits Y to 4 y W of 1, sends it to 4 and R to 3 and rushes K to 2. He makes 2 and has a break.

10 (continued). He rushes K to 3 after making 2 and sets for his first peel. Good position. But he is only able to put K just in front of 4b, slightly off to the W, and probably not rush-peelable. He rushes R to the S bdry, sends it to 5 and rushes Y in front of 4. After 4 he rushes Y to 3y SW of 4b, sends

It to 2y W. Of 4b and gently rushes K to the hoop. It bounces off to 1 ft. He takes off to R at 5, makes 5, and rushes R to 7 y SE of 4b. R is sent to 1b, he misses K after long contemplation, to just past the hoop.
11. Ken Bald returns from the clubhouse and has to be told he is in play. Y hits K, takes of to Y at 2, leaving K 7 y S of 3, wired from U. He gets a cut rush to 1 but falls short and wife and sets up SE of 1.
12. Greg walks to S bdry to see where. K would finish if he shoots at Y. He returns to K and shoots at Y. Hits to applause. His U ball is a good pioneer for 4b but will he make 4b? Yes. The blue clip is on 6. But he sticks in 4b from 9 inches straight.p
13. Y shoots at the U, K double from 4y S of 6. Nearly goes through the middle but just clips U, leaves it at 3, sends K to W of 2 and rolls to I, where he sets a rush for Y to the peg.
14. K shoots at U (nearly wired). Hits centre-ball. Clips a re Y on 1, R on 2b, K on 4b and U on 6. K takes off from U on the eb a yard from III, into the jaws of 2b, bounces back slightly but still wired from oppo's balls, goes to IV.
15. Y makes 1 and rushes R almost behind U near III, sends R out almost to 3 and rushes U to 2y NE of 2. Bounces off from 2 ft.

16. U hits Y (4y), tries to get rush on R to 6 but only has a rush to the end of B baulk. Takes that rush to 4y past the end of B baulk on the N bdry, takes off to position at 6, gets good 1 ft position. Wow! Runs hoop to N bdry, hits R. K is in IV, Y is 8 Poe 9 y SW of 1b.

Rushes R to wb, 4y S of 2. He sends R to within a foot of 2b and gets a rush on Y but rushes it to 5y N of the hoop.
Approaches to 2 ft and runs the hoop to 6 yards past Y. Hits Y and has a big shot to send Y to 3b going to R at 2b. Plays it with accuracy. He should now be able to go to the peg.

16 (continued). I spoke too soon. He bounced back off 2b to about 2 inches directly in front.
17. Ken calls referee(me) to watch him hit gently at the 1cm of U he could see. Hits and makes 2n and 3b but misses a 3y cut rush on Y after 3b and goes tithe wb, peg high.
18. K is directly in front of 4b, it's hoop. U is 6y S of 2. U shoots at K, misses to the eb.
19. Y misses R.
20. K runs 4b to N bdry, shoots at but misses U (9y).
21. Y hits R, takes off to oppo's balls, hits K, rushes U to 2 but over-approaches. He returns to his ball near the wb.
22. Greg shoots U at R, misses to I.
23. Y rushes R to eb, 6y S of K, takes off and gets rush to N bdry in front of 3, sends K to 12y S and 3 yE of II, sets a rush for Y towards 4. R is only a foot from the yard line.
24. K to III. U is in I.
25. Y cuts R to two yards from U, rushes U close to 2, fails to get good position, returns to R in I.
26. U walks to I to see what the rush is. From here, behind the N bdry, they appear to be both on the S bdry, but R may be slightly off it. U shoots at them and goes between them.
27. Y hits U, rushes R to 4inches directly in front of 2, makes 2 with a rush back to I, but it leaves the court 9 y N of I. He sends U to a yard S of 6 and sets up on the wb, 9 y N of I! with a rush for Y to the end of B baulk.
28. U shoots at the open double, misses.
29. Clips are K on penult, U on 2b, Y on 3 and R on 4b. Y rushes U to a yard W of K in III, leaving R on the wb. He gets a rush on K and sends it to his hoop, 3. He makes 3 with a rush to the end of B baulk and cuts it to in front of 3. Then he takes off to get a rush on K but cuts it, in error, to just 7y S of III. He plays a pass roll, sending U to 4, which may have gone off if it had not hit the hoop, going to his own ball on the wb. He misses it from 7y.
30. U shoots at the oppo balls from near 4 (21y). Is baulked and re-stalks. The breeze has freshened and is now a wind. He hits! His clip is on 2b He waits for action nearby on the adjacent court as he needs to move the wooden barrier between the courts. He rushes Y to 2b, 2y NW, approaches to a foot, makes 2b and rushes Y near R. He takes off to R and rushes it to 4y s of 3b.

30 (continued). He makes 3b, has an 8y return roquet, hits R to the end of A baulk, sends R to rover and gets a rush on Y, rushes Y to N bdry, N of 2. K is on the N bdry in front of 3. He does not try to get behind K but takes off to it, roquets it gently an takes off for position. The ball hills off and runs into the back of 4b. He looks at it from all angles, then again. Eventually he w alms across to Y, 3y NE of 3 and walks to a position on the wb wired from Y. Thinks some more. At last he hits U to the wired position on the wb.
31. Y hits to a position about a yard from R so that K has only a single ball shot. R has a rush to 4b, it's hoop.
32. K to II.
33. Y rushes R to S bdry, rolls both balls off the wb, watched by referee, leaving a rush to N by Y.
33. U to III.
34. Y hits R gently, rolls balls to in front of 3b, sets rush for Y to its hoop, 3b.
35. K shoots at U, misses, leaving a rush for K to the S.

36. Y makes 3b, takes off to oppo's balls, gets cannon, Mistake! The last hoop he made was 4, not 3b! He rushes U to 5, makes the hoop and takes off to behind R at 4, rushes R to half way up the eb, rolls to IV and nearly sends R off - but not quite. Sets a rush for Y with Y in IV and R a yard W.
37. U is 5y N of 1 and K very near III. U shoots at R and hits.
My apologies about mistaking the yellow hoop. My binoculars have been in the sun and are too hot to use (poor excuse!)
I think he has a cannon. Yes. R goes to near 4 and the roqueted ball, Y, goes off the eb peg high.Greg sends Y to 2 and goes to his K ball in III. He sets up in III with a rush for K to his hoop, penult.
38. Y hits U (22y), rushes K to a foot in front of 6.

He calls a referee, not me, and asks for grass clippings to set the balls or repair a hole. He makes 6 and rushes K to 4, near R. R is rushed to near 2b but he doesn' make good position and retreats to half way between the hoop and the N bdry.
39. U shoots at K in II, misses. K has a rush S.

40. Y hits R to the peg, takes off to oppo's balls, gets a cannon, U goes to 4y W of 3 and K, the roqueted ball, too far, to 5 y past the hoop. He approaches to 4 ft, straight and goes through by a foot, not hampered. He rushes K to peg high 3 y off the wb and sends it to between 3b and rover, getting a rush on R to 2 y NE of 2b. He makes 2b, hampered and calls referee (me). He hits sends R. To 8 y S of 4b, makes 3b off K, rushes it to N of B sends U to S of Y, then to penult and rushes R to 4b, makes 4b and his break is under control. K is sent to rover and he makes penult off U with R peg high to the E of the peg. He is hampered but copes, watched by referee. Makes rover and his clips are now on 4b and peg. b clip is on 4b and U on penult. He leaves K 6y S of 3, U just E of the peg, wired from K and his balls with R on the eb about 7 y N of IV with a rush facing W.

41. U is lifted to A baulk and shoots at R and Y. Misses.
42. R sends U to 4y into the court and rushes Y to 4y S of K, sends it to penult and rushes K past 4b to about 2 y from III. He approaches 4b to 2 yards at 20 degrees, bounces off to eb. That was quite a gentle shot.
43. Greg walks to U, E Of 4, then back to U. Shoots at U, 28y and misses.
44. Y to near I.
45. U misses K (6y). U has a rush N.
46. R to II.
47. Greg sets a rush to penult about 7y N of IV, possibly wired from Y in I.
48. R goes to 3y W of IV.
49. K rushes U to 2y SE of penult. Gets a 2 ft position, straight. Bounces off.
50. R shoots at oppo's balls. Near penult. Misses to N bdry, 9y E of II. U has a rush to R.
51. U rushes K to 3y E of R, sends K to N bdry, 7y E of II, rushes R to near IV, takes off back to set rush for K to penult.

52. R shoots at Y, misses. R has a 2y rush on Y to the E.
53. K rushes U to penult, makes ,penult, rushes U towards wb but it hits hoop 3, glancing off to 10yS of II. He takes off to the oppo balls, hits R and rushes Y to 3y W of rover. Stops U to a position he intends to be wired from R (7y E of I), about 9y S of 4b, gets good position on rover and runs it tot he S bdry. Declines the 9y shot on R and selects a position between his U ball and II. Hits K there, just missing U which he may have been aiming at.

54. Y goes to 3y W of IV.
55. Both players have clips on 4b and peg. Greg spends time thinking. I think he will eventually set a rush for U. U hits K to near II. Sets a rush for k to the peg, wired from R by 1 and 2 (I think).
56. R shoots at Y, misses.

57. U hits K, takes off to R and misses (5y).
58. R sends K to 5 Y W of IV, rushes Y to 5y S of 4b and over-approaches.y goes to the yard line and he sends R to the yard line, 2ft E of Y.
59. U shoots at 1 1/4 balls from 17y. This shot could decide this game. Hits Y to a yard E of R. Leaves Y and gets rush on R to the hoop, 1 ft in front. Sends R to a yard E of the hoop and runs 4b to the bdry. Rushes Y to the eb, 2y S of III. Sends Y to rover, rushes R to penult, 3ft NNW, approaches to six inches, straight, makes penult, touches R, sends it to deep position S of rover, makes rover off Y and finishes.

NZ wins the second game and the match, 2 to nil.