Hello from a blustery wet Carrickmines on a cold Wednesday. I'm between games so will provide a little commentary on the Championship Singles matches currently in progress

Just spotted that I have a superfluous "by Danny Johnston"in the commentary title, it's been that kind of day

On lawn 2 we have game 3 between Nathaniel Healy and Michael O Shaughnessey. Game 1 was taken by Nathaniel with a very neat TP and game 2 was looking like it would go the same way until, on his second break, Nathaniel's mid-length rush out of hoop 2 jumped clean over due to a hole in the court. Michael took that one some time later and we have a decider

Nathaniel played first (with green and brown) and put a ball near hoop 4 with a scuffed attempt at reaching the east boundary.
Michael went to the West boundary on turn 2 allowing Nathaniel to hit oppo 3rd turn and set a dream leave.
Shot down the line from Michael....
Yuck, complete mis-hit, ends up 4 yards from Nathaniel's laid rush.

Turn 5. Nathaniel has left Michael's turn 4 pink on the EB and rushed across to white near hoop 2.
A few good shots later and he's through hoop 1 with a rush across to pick up pink on the EB.

Plays a good rush across

Croquet stroke loading 3 was ok. Has an ok pioneer and roquets the oppo pink on the EB. Will take off back for partner brown at hoop 2.

It really is miserable out there. Nathaniel is sporting a very fetching set of white waterproofs witch look the like they keep the water out very well. His opponant has just remarked they might well keep out ebola such is the cover provided.

Nathaniel JUST sneaks through hoop 2 fro 2.5 feet. Sends a good pioneer to 4 and should be away once he liberates the second oppo ball from the EB.

On lawn 1, Patsy Fitzgerald is playing Fred Rogerson. Fred took the first with a TP in a throwback to the 1990s. In his own words he "gave" Patsy game 2 a number of times so we have game 3 on lawn 1 as well. It really doesn't get much more exciting than this.

The opening on lawn 1 seems to have been standard EB ball from Fred followed by a duffer from Patsy. Fred joined up by the looks of it and Patsy has hit 4th turn. His rush to 1 from the joined up oppo balls looks to be quite short but the lawns are fairly easy so he should cope

Copes. Patsy is through 1 and should have a 3-ball break together shortly.

Nathaniel tootling along without much drama. His 1-back pioneer is a bit deep but he won't be too concerned.

Big shock of the event so far is Simon Williams crashing out of the Championship to Jack Clingan in 3 games. He came through the first came despite a blunder on his way to the rover peel, but a few more blunders in the subsequent games allowed Jack to hit in and solidly finish out each one to progress. For posterity, the blunders included: get wired by the peg after penult on a straight double peel, missing a 2-3 yard roquet after 6 again on a triple and running 1 with the wrong ball. A lot in one match it must be said.

Patsy is through hoop 3 with his first ball, seems to have all the balls but no hoop 4 pioneer.

Oh dear Nathniel. He has overapprached 2-back and is planning his escape. Either he can't see corner 2 or he has decided against is for some reason because he has hit off to the standard tice position on the WB. Seems odd but I'll try and confirm why he did that.

Michael lining up his 7 yarder on turn 6.... Hits partner which had been Nathaniel's 3-back pioneer. Sends it in the region of hoop 2 on the way to Nathaniel's ball at hoop 1.

Roquets. Decent croquet stroke gives him at 18" hoop. Clubs it through for a 6 yard return roquet... No decides to hit at Nataniel's 2-back ball on the WB.

Oh he's missed it!

Nathaniel has a break now. Will he go to 4-back and have a cross-wired max distance leave? Will he go the whole way to the peg? Will he do something else? Who knows really, we'll just have to wait and see.

Patsy is on 3-back attempting an NSL. Balls are in the right place for the most part, though the other oppo ball is very near hoop 2 and open to B-baulk

Through 3-back. Seems happy with the wiring he got when he played the approach so rushes partner off the EB and jiggles the balls round to give a rush pointing at red near hoop 2

Seems to have left a double for red from where it lies, but people never seem to take that shot on so he might be ok.

Looks like Nathaniel is journeying peg-wards.

Actaully no, he looks like he's going to have 4 back and then have a spread...

So condcede the lift and leave 2 hoops to peel. Approach to 4 back is short, angles hoop coming...

Through with a smoothish stroke. Now to hit the return.... Done. So the bizzare tactics can continue.

On Lawn 1 Fre is pacing around looking at the various balls. Seems to be lifting red for a shot down the line.
Patsy 1+4-back, Fred 1+1.

Fred shoots...... Misses down the line. A TP attempt for Patsy looms.

Excellent spread from Nathaniel.
Nathaniel 1+Penult plays Michael 1+2.

Both matches are game all of course.

The players are all wet and cold. I am not, which is good.

Michael is lifting his forward ball from the peg for another shot down the line.

Hits this one much much better and is very unlucky to watch is fall off line. Finishes in corner 4.

Now if Nathaniel can get his break together his strange tactics might pay off.

Patsy had a standard NSL pick up position to start and has underapproached hoop 1. He has scattered the ball he approcahed hoop 1 off to level with the peg on the EB leaving the strikers ball level with 1 also on the EB. His other ball is halfway between 3 and 4 on the line of the hoops and the remaining oppo ball is north of the peg. Fred has shot with his ball hear the peg at Patsy's forward ball and missed to the EB.

Correction. Patsy's scatter was to the WB where his own ball also remained.

Nathaniel is through 1 with a split roll to play for a 3-ball break.

He has been playing quite well in patches this week, interspersed with some more ordinary play. He'll do well to finish this off having been unlucky in game 2 with the lawn intervening on his rush.

Patsy appears to have hit in with his hoop 1 ball and got a rush pointing at the south boundary on his partner ball

Hits it well and will have an approach from 5 yards south of hoop 1 straight

Poor approach has ending up with hoop 1 being failed to the wire where it can't see partner.

Fred is joining up near 2 on the WB.

Nathaniel continues his break. Through hoop 4 now, centre balls his 5 yard return roquet to the middle of the lawn. Sending the peelee to its hoop on his way to 5. Will have to collect the 4th ball from around hoop three for a full 4 ball break.

Left himself a longish hoop 5.
2.5 feet maybe.

Through with no rush. Big split croquet shot coming up to load 1-back and collect his escape all for the upcoming peel.

Awful shot sees the strikers ball finish 15 yards short of the target and possibly wired from the nearest ball.

No he's not! He clips the peelee to to 6 to continue the break to his opponents disgust.

Peels will get fairly behind here I think. Grovels through 6and faces a hampered roquet on the peelee. Having to take on the 9 yarder at Michael's ball near 3.

Hits it to his opponents continued silent disgust. The break is still on and a chance to peel on the way to 1-back is now on too!

Would be risky though as the 1-back pioneer is not ideally placed. It's further south than you might like, but it is plausible.

No Nathaniel wisely opts to take off and have a go at the death roll later.

There has been some interaction on lawn 1 so now all the balls are scattered and I have no idea how they got there.

There has been some interaction on lawn 1 so now all the balls are scattered and I have no idea how they got there.

Patsy seems to have regained the innings and is setting off on another quest for hoop1 and his triple for the match. All good quests start from the south boundary.

Nathaniel has declined a perfectly good death roll on the way to 2 back. Taking it fairly hand with the old peels.

Patsy grovels through 1 and smacks the only ball he could hit over behind Fred's other ball. Will get a break going easily but will struggle to get the peelee out for a standard tp having left it at 1.

Plays a poor croquet stroke which leads too a poor rush and another groveled hoop.

Patsy not sure what to do here, will probably run home to partner behind 1 which gives Fred everything if he hits.

Nathaniel going for highly risky death roll on the way to 3 back. Has to get it here or will be delayed.
Gets the peel and hits his pioneer to leave a longish approach.

Patsy meanwhile called a ref and roqueted oppo to continue his break. Looked like a good shot.

Nathaniel runs 3-back and snicks his return.

His penult pioneer is quite far north, but his 4-back pioneer is good. You can't have it all as they say.

Patsy has croqueted partner back up to its hoop for peeling. Currently approaching hoop 4. Delayed tp is still on.

Back on lawn 2, Nathaniel is attempting to tidy up his peelee in front of rover before taking-off back up to penult.

Peelee sligthly improved, still over a yard from the hoop. Sneaks through penult! Rover peel to come

Lawn 1, Patsy has good position for the 4-back peel before 6.

Here comes the rover peel. No deep ball but a side ball in place.
Places a roll for his Irish peel. Both through, should finish here.

Nathaniel rushes partner through rover! Wins the third. Tea tray has appeared. All's well in the world. Might get some more commentary in this afternoon