Southern players took the limelight at this year’s Petanque England National Ranking and Titles events, and also the recent “La British Open” competition at Heckmondwick.
Congratulations to Sammy Thatcher & Kaylee Thatcher who were crowned the 2019 National Women’s Triples Champions along with Claire White. The trio were also victorious at a previous Triples Ranking event in Nottingham, securing maximum Ranking points. Both sisters secured a place in the top six of this year’s Women’s Rankings and so could be selected for the World Championships in Cambodia later this year. For more information on the Women’s Rankings, check out the link on Petanque England website: Womens Rankings 2019
Well done to Callum Lombard who took the title of 2019 National Men’s Triples Champions along with teammates Dean Ashby and Jason White. More information on the Men’s Rankings and Championships can be found here: Mens Rankings 2019
Callum and Kaylee also won the National Mixed Doubles competition at the National Titles Weekend in Gravesend. Congratulations to the impressive duo; they beat some tough opposition on the day to be crowned the Mixed Doubles Champions.
This year also saw a new National Veterans Ranking series introduced, which included three separate Triples competitions held at Harrow, Adur and Rainworth Petanque Clubs. Southern’s Hassi Leverett and Graham Elcome teamed up with Duncan Brown from Kent and competed in all three events, finishing as runners-up at two of the competitions. All three players were ranked at number four, and Petanque England then selected Hassi to join the top-ranked Veterans team of Simon Bird, Cliff Campbell & Ian Barnes to represent England. Congratulations and all the best to Hassi and the team, who will compete in the European Veterans Championship in Bulgaria in September.
Finally, Southern’s very own Steve Daykin, Callum Lombard and Jamie Brooks won La British Open in Heckmondwick on 13-14 July, a prestigious event attended by many National and International players. With 54 teams in attendance, the trio’s determination saw them win all their games over the two days and they were crowned the competition Champions, winning an impressive prize pot of £1,000.
It’s fantastic to see successes from Southern players (from juniors to veterans) who are making their mark both nationally and internationally!