Good morning NZ/USA fans (and other interested parties).

Chris Clarke is looking after AUS v. UK (doubles on lawns 1, 4 and 5) this morning, and I will be covering the four singles matches between NZ and the USA.

On lawn 2, we have Jenny Clarke (NZ) v. Matthew Essick (USA)
On lawn 3, we have Grey Bryant (NZ) v. James Death? No - he's just collecting a stay ball v. Tom Balding (USA)
On lawn 11, we have Edmund Fordyce (NZ) v. Jeff Soo (USA)
On lawn 12, we have Greg Bryant (NZ) v. Zack Watson (USA)

Correction - Lawn 12 we have Paddy Chapman (NZ) v. Zack Watson (USA).

Chapman and Bryant appear from a great distance to sneak up on the ball in a similar way...

TV coverage today will likely start on Lawn 2 with Clarke v. Essick, and rotate around lawns 3, 4, 1, 2 throughout the day - getting both 2 games of singles and 2 of doubles in, and an even spread of AUS v. ENG and USA v. NZ.

On lawn 2, form for Clarke has been quite reasonable, but struggled with hoops early in the tournament, and hasn't been adventurous enough to attempt many (any?) peeling breaks over the last few days. The lawns are not diabolically tricky by any means, but full concentration is required - hoop width and firmness, wind direction and speed, hills and lawn speed, all have to be factored in.
Essick has been playing pretty well all through, and is probably the form player for those in today's singles. He has been completed a number of peeling breaks, and has been shooting well in most matches.
For this match, I would expect Clarke to be on the ball and focused, not doing anything particularly fancy, and relying on hitting the short lifts and not breaking down. Essick will probably want to make first break and TP without much interaction. That may sound obvious, but generally speaking, I think Clarke is more used to longer matches than Essick, and will probably have more patience (or less adventurousness) when things get scrappy and slow down. It will be interesting to see!

Lawn 3: Bryant v. Balding.

Bryant had a rest day yesterday, and has been playing some good croquet, but not quite as consistently as I have seen him in the past. Balding is someone who I haven't seen play much, but has been roquetting really well in most matches, and has a good positive approach and doesn't seem to be a player who mucks around much. Again, from what I have seen, I would fancy NZ if the match is prolonged, and possibly USA if it's a quicker affair. Bryant has plaid on these lawns more than Balding, and is a more experienced player, but there's not much that experience and extra play can do against good roquetting and minimal errors.

Lawn 11: Fordyce v. Soo.

Fordyce is playing well and with confidence, but sometimes struggling to dig out the first hoop of the break (from what I have seen), but should be the favourite for this match due to consistency of roquet and general comfort during breaks. Soo brings experience and improving form, and can be a really neat player, so I definitely won't be writing him off.

Lawn 12: Chapman v. Watson.

Chapman is not being as faultless with his reading of the lawns (primarily in hoop approaches) and hoop running as he sometimes is, but is still an impressive player in every match. Tactically he obviously knows all the tricks, and even in mediocre form (and he is certainly above that at the moment) is going to win most matches even against top 10 players.
I haven's seen much of Watson to be honest, and I'm not sure that he and I agree on tactics (specifically what shot to take and what % reward it has compared to the other options), but he has been a pretty good roquetter and consisten break maker, and is certainly competent of doing TPs in any game, so he is definitely a good chance of winning this match.

So, we begin.

Lawn 2:

Essick (Black) supershot to 2y WNW of H5.
Clarke (Yellow) to C2
Essick (Blue) at Yellow in C2 - misses.
Clarke (Red) at close double in C2 - Hits Blue, knocking Yellow down a foot or so.

Lawn 3:

Balding (R) to EB 2y N of C4 (understand the jargon? - that was, Red, 2 yards North of Corner 4)
Bryant (Bl) to C2
Balding (Y) at partner from A-Baulk. Misses by a ball width to the North.
Bryant (Bk) at Balding on EB... Snick, rushes yellow to 1, and crawls through and is hampered... Swings through the hoop and joins up 2y from partner along the North boundary behind 2.
Balding (Y) shoots from 1 at partner on EB. Misses.
Bryant plays Blue, hits partner, and does a takeoff loading 2 going to Balding on EB. Another rush to 1 coming up.

Lawn 11:

Soo (R) to standard EB opening
Fordyce (?) to C2
Soo (Y) at partner. Hits, takes off to C2. Sets some sort of leave (behind shelter shed), and Fordyce shoots from A-Baulk at balls on East Boundary. Hits.

Lawn 12:

Watson (R) supershot
Chapman (Bk) C2
Watson (Y) at Black in C2 -misses.
Chapman (Bl) at double in C2, hits the northerly ball and will have a copycat opportunity to start a break as Clarke did on Lawn 2. Through H1.

Lawn 2:

Clarke has run 2 and is marshalling the balls into play. Will have a 14y rush to H3, but after that will have a 4-ball break.

Chapman on break
Fordyce on break
Clarke on break
Bryant on break.

NZ appear to have the early innings.

All 4 breaks going happily or NZ.

Except Lawn 2, Clarke would have been setting a diagonal, but failed 3back...

Lawn 3, Bryant is approaching 5 under control with all 4 balls

Lawn 11, Fordyce is up to 2 back.

Lawn 12, Chapman approaching 2 back.

Ball positions on Lawn 2 (everything is for H1 apart from Red) are:

Red (for 3 back), sitting up against the western wire of 3back.
Blue 2y North
Yellow 2y SE of peg
Black 2.5y SE of peg.

Essick plays black onto yellow - gently, takes off to red, croquets red back to NW of the peg (about 5y from Yellow), and gets a perfect rush on Blue to 1. Should be a break of 9..

Lawn 11: Fordyce sets a diagonal spread. Soo lifts the Westerly ball (Yellow) and fires down East Boundary. Misses to C4.
Lawn 12: Chapman setting a behind-shelter-shed-leave... I.e., probably a spread, since the shelter shed is mid EB, and that's directly in line with my vantage point. Yes, looks like a spread, since Bl and Bk are now set up with a rush to the peg, on EB about level with H5.
Lawn 3: Bryant creeping around stealthily... Up to 2 back.
Lawn 2: Essick up to H4.

Lawn 12: Watson takes lift with Yellow down EB, misses to C4. Copying Soo...
Lawn 11: Fordyce took the rush, putting partner at 2, made 1 happily, and now has a 3 ball break with partner at 2. Yellow still in C4.
Lawn 3: Bryant still creeping...
Lawn 2: Essick in control and up to H5.

Lawn 11: Fordyce has replaced Yellow in C4 with Black, and is approaching H4 happily.
Lawn 12: Chapman begins 2nd break and is making 2 off partner - Yellow still in C4.
Lawn 3: Bryant exercising his arm by holding his mallet vertically in the air for a significant amount of time. After significant amount of time has passed, 2 referees from opposite ends of the venue wake up and run to meet him. He's rolling both ball off court near C4 with an OSL. So, Blue and Black are on EB 1 and 18in N of C4, Red is EB 2y South of peg. Yellow is 5y NW of peg.
Balding lifts Yellow and will be taking the short shot from A-Baulk at what looks like a fair double. Hits Black (the southerly ball).
Lawn 2. Essick makes 9 with a nice tight 2-4 leave. Red is at 4. Good leave. Clarke lifts Yellow from 2, and will be firing from A-Baulk.

Lawn 2 - Clarke shoots at the inlawn ball, looks on line for most of it, and swings away at the last minute to miss. More pace (or more allowance for the hill) required for lifts across that slope..
Lawn 12 - Chapman approaching 5 and setting up for delayed TP - first peel going to 6. Looks good.
Lawn 3 - Balding runs 1 with 5y return roquet, and Bryant's 2 balls 18y apart on EB. Rushes the return to C1. Touch start ahead!
Lawn 11 - Fordyce up to H5. Being boring...

Lawn 3 - interesting start to break.
Balding played some good shots - took off to Black in C4, played a good roll putting black peg high 2y E of the H3-4 line, getting a kind of rush on the boundary ball which was peg high on EB. Cut rushes it to 5y NW of H2, takes off to the hoop, has an angled hoop and retires to C1 - leaving himself a 1ft rush North..
Bryant shoots at double from NW of H2, and hits (with the Blue ball - which is for 4back). One leave coming up.

Lawn 12 - Chapman peels 4back before 6, puts partner to 2back after 6, and carries on.

Lawn 11 - Fordyce going around being uninteresting again. Pity - he's a nice chap.

Lawn 2 - Essick on a 4-ball break setting up for a standard TP. Peels 4back after 3.

Bryant is good at being patient, setting big triangular leaves and waiting for oppo to shoot into the trap or simply resetting after they run to a corner, so that's what I would have expected, but no TPs from Bryant yet as far as I know, so it doesn't surprise me that he decides instead to make 4back and go to the peg with a leave.

Yellow has been left 4ft NE of Corner 1, Red is 4ft SE of H6, and the break and leave should be easy.

Lawn 12: Chapman has done 1 peel, and has just run 4back. Last 2 peels will be straight. Penult should be from about 6in out, so good chance of a finish here.
Lawn 11: Fordyce made it to the peg, and Sue missed lift down EB to C4 - again.
Lawn 2: Essick attempting a 2y penult peel getting a rush to 1back. Jawses it nicely.

Speaking of lawn conditions generally, today is day 2 after mowing, and the sky is overcast and the temperature about 15 degrees, so the grass will have some moisture in it still, and the lawn speed not too tricky. I expect this to change by early arvo, so should see some trickier conditions and more interaction in the singles for any matches still in progress at that time. Over in the doubles though, lots of things are happening.... See Chris Clarke's commentary for the excitement..

Lawn 11: Fordyce wins game 1, 26-0 on turn 8. No mistakes as far as I know.

Lawn 3: Bryant has made rover and set up with Yellow 7y S and 3.5y W of H2 (Yellow and Black are both for H2), Red (for H1) on EB peg high, and Blue and Black again just North of C4 - where Balding hit them last time. No double now though. Balding lifts Yellow and is again taking the short short at Bryant... No mucking around, but this time misses. Bryant now has to deal with the pickup, but is heading to H2, so should be ok. Good chance of a bombard here to start with, because the balls on the EB go (from South to North) Black, Yellow, Blue, with about 1ft between Black and Yellow, and an inch or so between Yellow and Blue. A good stroke here should get Blue up near Red mid boundary - but there is the slope to contend with...

Blue gets half way up... Not too bad. At least Yellow can now get to 3 and Blue be rushed to Red.

Lawn 12. Chapman gets the 2 peels and will be done soon - another 26-0 game for NZ, this time with a TP.

Lawn 2: Essick looks like he has completed his peels, and is up to 4back.

So, recap of the expeditious singles games from the Kiwis/Yanks,

Fordyce took Game 1 off Soo, 26-0
Chapman took Game 1 off Watson, 26tp-0
Clarke lost Game 1 to Essick, 8-26tp
Bryant made life a bit uncomfortable for himself at H3 - having a backward takeoff from 4y SE of the hoop, up hill... but made the hoop and can win against Balding 26-1 if he completes this 4 ball break to the peg. Looking good.

Lawn 11, Game 2

Fordyce to standard uninteresting EB position.
Soo (Yellow) to standard tice position (first of those that I've seen for a while), 2y North of H5.
Fordyce at partner from A-Baulk. Missis by a good bit and leaves a close double.
Soo at Fordyce's double from A-Baulk. Hits (with Red)
Something went wrong, and Fordyce is now back together on EB, adn Soo in C2 and just off EB 2y North of H5... Fordyce to play.

Lawn 12, Game 2

Chapman Black Supershot.
Watson Red EB just North of 5.
Chapman Blue at Red from A-Baulk
Watson down the EB at double, hits Red to C4 and has the innings. Makes and is away.

Lawn 2, Game 2

Clarke plays Blue to Standard EB (level with 5)
Essick Red to C2
Clarke Black at partner from A-Baulk
Essick makes double from B-Baulk.. Hits hard and just misses inside. Has gone off the lawn about 2y South of Clarke's balls.
Clarke makes 1 with a reception ball (no forward rush), and balls in C2 and EB level with H5. Plays a split to load H3 and goes to partner on EB. Will be taking off to Red in C2. Just stays on court... Will have the standard 7y roll to get in front of H2.

Lawn 3, Game 1

Bryant up to Rover and under control. Pegs out to take Game 1 off Balding, 26-1.

Lawn 11, Game 2.

Sounds like Soo missed a short rush to 1, which is how he got to C1.
Fordyce now in break and seems to have just run 2.

Lawn 12, Game 2. Watson on break approaching 5 with all balls under control.

Interesting stuff over in the doubles... See Chris Clarke's commentary.

Lawn 2. Clarke fails H2.
Essick shoots with red (reception ball), misses Clarke, hits hoop and stays nearby.
Clarke has no backswing and can't run hoop... Pairs up on EB.
Essick shoots from H2 to H3, hits. Loads 2 going to Clarke's balls, and pulls up a bit short, so takes 4yarder at near ball, and now has a 5ft backward takoff to get behind a yardline ball to rush to 1. Plays it well, gets a rush to 1, and is away.

Lawn 11: Fordyce stopped at H3 (not sure how), but Soo is in and has run H1.

Lawn 12: Watson looks hampered after 2back..

Lawn 3: nothing happening.

Lawn 12: Watson retreats back through the hoop and ends up on North Boundary. Chapman now has 7y lift with a ball at H1 and a loose H2 load for a 2-4 leave. Hits.

Lawn 2: Essick approaching H2 with everything under control.

Lawn 11: Soo has also stopped, somewhere in the H3 vicinity... There is quite an uphill on the approach there, so maybe that's foxing them? Fordyce hits with Blue.

Lawn 11: Fordyce sets a leave.. Soo's balls are Red in C1, and Yellow on NB behind 3. Fordyce is set up with a rush to SB, on EB 3y S of H4.
Soo plays Yellow into C3. Could be a while before this game gets anywhere significant.

Lawn 12: Chapman has made 3 and all is good.

Lawn 2: Essick is up to 2back, with a loose 2-4 leave coming up.

Lawn 3: Bryant (Black) to Standard EB
Balding (Yellow) to just out of C4,
Bryant (Blue) to just North of Yellow
Balding (Red) from A-Baul, hits partner.

Lawn 2. Essick makes 9 with a leave, Clarke lifts Blue (for H1) from H4 position, fires down EB, and hits. 4ft backward takeoff to H1. Copes and should have a good break.

Lawn 3. Balding makes 1, has a load at 3, and a 2y rush from just off the EB aiming for 2. Rushes to NB behind 2, and will have a backward takoff to get the break under control. Doesn't get position and retires to NB with a rush along the line. Brynat has a double from 3y SE of H3. Hits, again.... Balding is giving him a few too many doubles when he retires.

Lawn 12: Chapman going around.

Lawn 11: Fordyce in play, but can't see what he's up to except doing a smashing cut rush from H4 to the ball in C2. Wherever he is going, he's got a good chance of getting there with play like that.

The sun is out! Lawns should start speeding up a bit now. Fun fun.

Lawn 3: Bryant has rushed partner into the back of 1, and will be setting up a hoop and roquet by the looks of it. It's close though, so referee is called. Ref appears to be fixing an old hoop hole..

Lawn 12: loose 2-4 leave from Chapman. Watson's 3back ball is at H4.

Lawn 2: Clarke going around.

Lawn 11: Fordyce is up to H5 with a reception ball, a ball a bit out from C3, and another half way between peg and EB. Rushes to EB after H5, and is slowly bringing things in.

Lawn 12: Watson picks up Red (for H1) and fires down EB. No hits so far today on lifts down EB on lawns 11 or 12.. still no hits.

Fordyce going around against Soo
Chapman going around against Watson
Clarke going around against Essick
Bryant going around against Balding.

NZ is once again in control (remember they won 3/4 of the first games of the day)

Lawn 2 - vicious roll off on Clarke's approach to 3b, but plays a nice jump shot and comes through with control. However, hoop and roquet, and croquets partner back towards C4, but it only ends up half way there... Looks like an OSL, but she will have to scatter Black back towards C4 if she doesn't want to leave Essick an 11 yard shot. This is indeed what she does, but Yellow is just short of peg high and about 3y in lawn from EB, so has an 11 yarder back at the Northern ball (Blue). Essick plays Yellow at blue and hits. Shouldn't be too difficult to set up a standard TP.

Lawn 3: Bryant approaching

Lawn 11: Soo had a lift, and not sure what happened, but Fordyce seems to have just run H4 with Black.

Lawn 12: Chapman peels 4back after 3. No pioneer at H4, but a rush South and a ball in C4... Will try for a cannon, but not easy on that lawn. That's the exact same situation on the same lawn as the game that I first beat Simon Hockey... Hockey failed H4 5 shots later...

Lawn 12: Chapman does not do a Hockey, and makes H4.

Lawn 11: Fordyce going around.

Lawn 2: Essick going around.

Lawn 3: Bryant going around.

Action on Lawn 11: Fordyce puts a clip on 2back. Soo calling referee... Looks like he's firing from 2yS of 1back, at Fordyce's balls in C2. Misses.

Lawn 2: Essick peels 4back after H3, and is on time for a standard TP.

Lawn 3: Bryant set a leave, Balding missed, Bryant is making H1 with oppo receiver and partner behind H2 (against he wire I think). Yellow is in C4.
Runs H1 by 15 yards, hits Blue at H2 into C2.

Lawn 12: Chapman approaching 3back with only 1 peel done. All set up ahead though.

Lawn 3. Big shot for Bryant - loading 3(4back) trying to get a rush on what was the reception ball at 1 to either C4 (Yellow) or H2 (his hoop). Gets a rush due South and calls a ref... 3 is nicely loaded with partner though.

Lawn 3: Looks like referee was called to check H1, which Bryant run by an unexpectedly long distance and it came through at a bit of an angle. He now continues by putting Red 5y off WB just short of peg, going to Yellow near C4. Stops 10y short, and will be retreating to somewhere N of Blue up near H3.

Lawn 2: Essick is hampered after 4back, looks ugly - 2 referees hovering like birds of prey in attendance, with their ghastly shaddows overlooking the player.. Hits anyway. Good on Essick.

Lawn 12: Chapman up to Rover with Rover peel yet to do.

Lawn 11: Soo is in and taking croquet out of C4. Hmm. Black is on 3back, Red is on 1, Yellow on 2, Blue on 4back. Soo plays what looks like a big roll to H3..

Lawn 12: Chapman wins game 2 and the match (26tp-8, I think)

Lawn 2: Essick wins Game 2 and the match (26tp-10)

Lawn 3: Balding joins up in C4. Bryant plays his H2 ball and will be heading down to C4 with the aim of rushing back up to H2.

Lawn 11: Soo is still in, and Fordyce is pacing around the boundary with his mallet in hand waiting..

Lawn 3: Bryant's rush from C2 just misses the peg and now has s 7y straight approach to H2. Makes 2, rushes South, loads Yellow to H4, will go to Red in C4, croquetting it up to 4back as a reception ball, and trying to get a rush on Blue to 3 (4back) to set up for a standard TP.

Lawn 11: Soo set up in C2, Fordyce retreated to C4, and Soo taps partner, takes off to Blue which is 4y S of H1, hits, and will be approaching H1 with a ball in C4 and one up near C2. Work to do, but through H1 and only slightly hampered...

Bryant fails the approach to H3, leaving receiver (Blue - the peelee) and an escape ball 3.5y apart. May either run or scatter. The former guarantees an innings for Red, the latter will result in anybody's guess as to where they'll end up... It will be the scatter, but with what result..

Scatter played and positions are:

Red 4y SE of H3.
Yellow 2y W of H4
Black on EB peg high
Blue on SB 5ft W of centre line.

Reasonable result.

Balding looks like playing Yellow at Blue (Yellow if for H1, Red for H2, Black for H3 and Blue for 4back).
Hits.

Lawn 11: Fordyce is back in, and has run 3back.

Lawn 2. Balding has maneuvered everything into the lawn and is up to 4 with all balls in lawn.

Over in the doubles, all 3 matches are still going. On Lawn 1, Patel should be kicking himself for not doing the rover peel and finishing the game (again, crummy conservative tactics from a top player), because Aus is back in and have a chance at the game. On Lawn 4, Fisher is on break 2 and scores are about level (AUS are game up). Lawn 5, Fletcher is making break 1 (ENG are on 4back and peg).

Lawn 11: Fordyce setting a leave. Presumably on Rover and 4back. Soo on 2 and 3.

Lawn 3: Balding approaching 1back. Uninteresting now.

Lawn 11: Leave is a diagonal spread, but with Fordyce's balls on EB are open from the ball at the peg. It is slightly hampered, but a double. Soo plays from Peg at Bl and Bk, but misses. Fordyce has 3 hoops to make to win Game 2 and the match.

Lawn 3: Balding approaching 3back, looking for a diagonal spread.

Lawn 3: No, I was wrong - reverse OSL with R and Y in C2, Blue 6y SW of H6, and Black peg high 3y off EB.

Lawn 11: Fordyce is up to Rover, and should finish.

Lawn 11: Fordyce finishes 26-3, to take Game 2 and the match 2-0 and put NZ back in the picture at 2-3 matches for the test. Only Bryant v. Balding on Lawn 3 still in play. An early finish coming up?

Lawn 3: Bryant lifts Easterly ball (Black, for H3) and takes short lift from B-Baulk at Balding in C2. Misses. Balding is for H2 with Red, and should have a ball to the peg, possibly with peels... I hope so anyway. I'm sick of this conservative, game extending, 4ball break with no peels play.

Balding tries for a cannon and gets it. Definitely should get some peels if he send the croquetted ball (Black) to H3, rushing Yellow to mid court, and then rushing Blue back to H2 while loading Yellow to 3.
But alas.. he does nothing of the kind. Yellow ends up at H4, Black by H6, and has to roll in to H3 from 7y ESE.. Not sure what his grand plan was there.
Rolls in and has 2y slightly angled hoop. Runs it with 6y return roquet pointing mid West Boundary. Hits.

Approaches H3 from 3y WNW, fails the hoop. Bryant has a 5yarder with the ball he wants to play and a ball at his hoop and one at the next, and a pivot by the peg. Nice.

Hits 5 yarder but away from the hoop, goes around the lawn and ends up rolling into H3 from 5y East. Plays it well and is on his way. If he wants to try a standard TP, the first peel will be from 4y straight, with an escape ball half way to C3, and possibly slightly more North than half way. Has a go :)

Top shot - peels it cleanly on a hilly lawn. Striker runs into Red, but that's fine - a standard load to H5 while sending striker to 4 is all that's required. Should be a good chance for a TP finish here.

2nd peel done and approaching 2back.

Rush peels after 3back, takes off to load at 4back, pulls up a bit short (up hill), but hits 4 yard rush.
Has now finished break and will take Game 2, 26tp-11, and the match 2-0.

Well done NZ - winning 3/4 singles matches this morning, all in straight games, the only loss being Essick d. Clarke 2-0.

That's it for my commentary for the USA v. NZ match, which leaves all the doubles to go. Chris Clarke is on top of those, one of which will be constantly on the livestream https://livestream.com/mysportlive/events/10679699 and the updated scores for each game in progress can be found at any point throughout the day or night at https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1VjvMxLJ087wsZoCv6fIf3enrHImF4aZvkEYhGHhp9OQ/edit?usp=sharing

Thank you Gareth Denyer for organising everything!

Enjoy your afternoons/evenings/mornings' viewings, and see you tomorrow.