Dubbo Croquet Club

08/04/2026

Easter Saturday’s club singles golf competition was a seven-hoop game, twenty-five-minute cap with no adjustments for handicaps.

Instead of signing up beforehand, so an order of play could be done, available players turned up on the day, and played according to a novel draw method.

The games captain drew a name tile at random and asked its owner to claim a court and a colour set (that is, primary or secondary balls).

That lucky person then drew two tiles and chose whether to play either or neither, thus nominating the court and colour of both. One of those drew two tiles and repeated the procedure.

Players could choose how many games they played, which was appreciated by those who had family commitments on the day, and others who ran out of puff.

The club’s statistician now has calculations to do, accounting for handicaps, games played, and the alignment of the planets.

Graham Bender ran the most hoops. Ray Doyle cleared hoop four from twenty yards out, Charles Campbell achieved a sixteen-yard hoop clearance, and Lyn Jeffrey had the great satisfaction of making a fourteen-yard hoop.

Special mention to beginners, Jenny Hennessy and Lyn Jeffrey, with just three instruction.

Perfect weather for a perfect day. Well done to everyone participating.

02/02/2026

It is with great sadness that we advise members and friends, that Margaret Lewer passed away 29th January 2026, aged 90.

Magaret, and her late husband, Don, were long time members of the club, well back to the days when Association Croquet was the only game played at the club.

Margaret and Don travelled frequently, always with their mallets in the boot, visiting and playing at other clubs along the way. At one occasion they were introduced to Golf Croquet.
About 20 years ago, on return to Dubbo, they introduced Dubbo Croquet Club to Golf Croquet.
This was just at the right time. The club was stagnant and membership declining. Golf Croquet, due to its more social nature, was the ‘shot in the arm’ we needed.
It renewed interest and enthusiasm, and made croquet more attractive to prospective members. The rest is history.

Thank you, Margaret. Your memory will live on.

18/12/2025

The festive season is upon us again, and in the words of 'Dickens' - "Christmas would not be Christmas, but for the happy interchange of wishes".
Herewith our very best wishes to croquet friends, and friends of croquet, near and far. May you have a peaceful and pleasant Christmas.
And come the New Year, may your mallets behave and the game excede your wildest expectations in 2026.
From all of us at Dubbo Croquet Club.

07/12/2025

Our Christmas Party was last Thursday night, with a good roll-up of happy party goers. Its is also the night for the presenting of annual award certificates to celebrate notable happenings or achievements, as the Pesident finds worthy.
Please see the photos for details of the awards.

14/10/2025

Our quarterly newsletter has been published. It can be downloaded via the link on our website, https://dubbocroquetclub.blogspot.com/ or via the link in the email members should have received by now.
There's a chance to win a book on Golf Croquet by locating a number of typos, mistakes, problems, etc, that have been caused by the gremlins that roam the editors office.

Dubbo Croquet Club, established 1921, formerly known as Dubbo City Croquet Club. Now at new and better venue with a steadily increasing membership.

02/10/2025

Last Monday, 29th September, one of the Pace GC Foundation Coaching Sessions was held at Orange City Croquet Club.

Two members from Dubbo Croquet Club, Charles Campbell and Ingrid Stufano, attended the session, which was conducted by Bob Kerr.
The coaching session was well attended, with over 20 participants, and provided valuable information and practical guidance.

It was a well-informed and enjoyable afternoon, and our thanks go to the Orange City Croquet Club, Bob Kerr, and his wife Dianne for their efforts.

22/09/2025

Saturday 20th September we celebrated 104 years of croqueting in Dubbo. The weather was brilliant and some 30+ members turned up to enjoy the day. Of course, it helps when cake is promised😉!
All three courts were packed with players, even the front garden area was taken into use (proving a challenge due to the long grass).

The Captain, Charles, had organised a competition between pairs, called Reversi. Hoops 1 to 5 had to be run in reverse order, with the primary and secondary colours competing against each other, running their respective hoops. First pair to peg out winning the round.

Happy birthday to all of us, and thank you all for a great day.

17/08/2025

⭐️Shout Out to Our Captains!⭐️

A huge congratulations to our new Dubbo Croquet Club Captain, Charles, for all his efforts in leading us through a wonderful mini tournament day against Orange - a job well done! 👏👏

At the same time, we send a heartfelt thank you to our outgoing Captain, Ben, for all the time, support, and help behind the scenes. Your dedication has been greatly appreciated. 💐

From Ingrid (and the members).

17/08/2025

Round Two of the Western Area Interclub Competition was held this past Friday, 15th August, when a team from Orange arrived to challenge the local Dubbo team.

Orange City Croquet Club challengers were: Nigel Setchack, John Bolderston, Anne and Chris Weale, Edward Hoogen Boom, and Kate Christian. On the Dubbo team were: Margaret Sheridan, Ian McKenzie, Graham Bender, Tricia Shanks, Ingrid Stufano, and Ray Doyle.

The matches consisted of two Doubles and two Singles, all Best-of-Three.
The result was an even split with two matches to Dubbo and two matches to Orange.
Congratulations and commiserations as the case may be.

It was a great day, great games, and great friendship. A huge thank you to the many Dubbo members who supplied glorious scoff and tuck. There can never be too much of such goodies.

10/08/2025

Every 3 months or so it has become custom to get together for an informal luncheon. Last Wednesday, 6th Aug, the luncheon was at the Western Star Hotel. It is a nice relaxed afair to catch up on gossip and happenings. Here's a few snaps from Ingrid.

04/07/2025

Our quarterly club Newsletter ( #36 July 2025) has just been completed. Members can download it via the link in the email they have received. You can also go to our website DubboCroquetClub.blogspot.com and click the link under News & Links on the right side.
Of interest are tips to avoid double taps, and how to stalk successfully, among other things.

Dubbo Croquet Club, established 1921, formerly known as Dubbo City Croquet Club. Now at new and better venue with a steadily increasing membership.

10/06/2025

Yesterday, Monday 9th June, the club proudly gained a number of new coaches. The morning was set aside for the tuition and assessment of 5 new Level 1 Golf Croquet Coaches, with the afternoon dedicated to advance our 5 current coaches to Level 2 status.
Both sessions were conducted by Kevin McGlynn from Canberra, a well known and high calibre coach, referee and competition player, and we were very pleased to have him with us once again. Our sincere thanks, Kevin.
This was the coldest and most miserable day (weather wise) so far this year, so a lot of tuition work was conducted inside. But we did venture outside for a short time for some more advanced technique demonstrations, until the chill sent us back inside to finish off the session, and some well deserved coffee and cake.
Lunch was provided by the club and Charles, our new captain, had made an excellent and welcome chicken/vegetable soup.
The following members are now Level 1 Coaches: Alannah Fraser, Ingrid Stufano, Ray Doyle, Tracey Keenan, and Wendy Starr. Congratulations, the club is sure to benefit from your dedication, we'll done.
The following coaches advanced to Level 2: Graham Bender, Tricia Shanks, Kate Colwell, Lillian Wallace, and Ben Vang.
Congratulation and thank you for all the hard work and effort in tutoring and coaching new and existing members. Level 2 Coaches will be assisting players with learning and understanding sound playing techniques, as part of their general coaching duties.