So, in the end our team finished 3rd in one of the tightest Masters competitions I've ever known. Any one of 3 teams could have won the event in the final round, with 1st-3rd place decided on points difference after each had achieved 9 wins. We missed out on 2nd by a single point. We rode our luck for much of the competition it has to be said, winning four games 13-11 (which could have gone either way to be honest).
Disappointing end to our season. Looking back, personally it was quite a good season - 2nd in Singles, 1st in Doubles, 2nd in Triples and 3rd in the Masters. I'll take that although that illusive Masters win still eludes me.....
Friday 11 October 2013
Wednesday 11 September 2013
Masters This Weekend
It's that time of year again when the top 12 ranked teams in Scotland compete over 2 days for the Scottish Masters title. This is by far Scotland's best and most hotly contested competition. It serves as selection for international representation next year for the Men's Worlds (assuming we are given a place by the FIPJP), Women's Europeans, Veterans' Europeans and the Celtic Challenge.
This year Fochabers PC are hosts who always put on a warm welcome for us all. I am looking forward to it! Maybe we might improve on 2nd this year - we have finished 2nd more times than I care to remember but never quite managed top spot. Maybe.
This year Fochabers PC are hosts who always put on a warm welcome for us all. I am looking forward to it! Maybe we might improve on 2nd this year - we have finished 2nd more times than I care to remember but never quite managed top spot. Maybe.
Thursday 5 September 2013
Repairing Pitch Marks
We have an interesting little debate going on locally about what is and isn't acceptable as far as repairing pitch marks are concerned and I'd like to share my views for what its worth.
As most will know, Petanque can be played on any ground surface. This loose definition means that a variety of surfaces are acceptable, from the very smooth, sandy and flat surfaces to those which resemble a building site. This isn't an article about what constitutes a good, bad or authentic surface by the way (there are no right or wrong answers). Many surfaces are constructed with a loose top dressing and a firm base - often the base is a compacted layer of dust which acts as a 'blind' for a drainage layer below (certainly in Scotland we need the drainage). When a boule lands on the top dressing it leaves a crater or pitch mark on the surface like this:
We have all come across the situation where one of these pitch marks coincides with the point you want to land your boule in with your next shot and the rules therefore allow you to repair one pitch mark before each shot. Personally I'd prefer that the rules did not permit any ground repairs at all but we have to play within the rules we are given. The rule is as follows:
Article 10........ the player who is about to play, or one of his partners, may fill in a hole which would have been made by one boule played previously.
What the rule does not tell us is how the hole repair may be done. Well here's how to do it - move the dressing layer to fill it, but don't 'sweep' your foot or stamp it flat - that's not allowed.
As most will know, Petanque can be played on any ground surface. This loose definition means that a variety of surfaces are acceptable, from the very smooth, sandy and flat surfaces to those which resemble a building site. This isn't an article about what constitutes a good, bad or authentic surface by the way (there are no right or wrong answers). Many surfaces are constructed with a loose top dressing and a firm base - often the base is a compacted layer of dust which acts as a 'blind' for a drainage layer below (certainly in Scotland we need the drainage). When a boule lands on the top dressing it leaves a crater or pitch mark on the surface like this:
We have all come across the situation where one of these pitch marks coincides with the point you want to land your boule in with your next shot and the rules therefore allow you to repair one pitch mark before each shot. Personally I'd prefer that the rules did not permit any ground repairs at all but we have to play within the rules we are given. The rule is as follows:
Article 10........ the player who is about to play, or one of his partners, may fill in a hole which would have been made by one boule played previously.
What the rule does not tell us is how the hole repair may be done. Well here's how to do it - move the dressing layer to fill it, but don't 'sweep' your foot or stamp it flat - that's not allowed.
Friday 19 July 2013
How to turn into 10 to 13
As if to prove my points about the importance of shooting I'd like to share with you a shot from a real game I was involved with on Wednesday. I don't like boasting about amazing shots, particularly in print as its all a bit narcissistic to me, but in the context of my last post it does go to prove a point and therefore I am going to share it with you anyway.
The game situation is 6-10 to red. All blue players have thrown all of their boules and red have one still to play. The situation in the head looked like this...
To put this into a bit more context, the leading boule is 40cms from the jack, the jack is 6.20 cms and the 3rd and 4th boules are approximately 1m beyond the jack.
In this situation, with one ball left you have a few options to try and score - shoot the leading boule - point to beat the leading boule (and perhaps drag the coche) but there is only one way of dealing with this situation if you want to close the game now.... "What, get 3 points out of this scenario? Kidding right?" Many players might settle for scoring one or two in the scenario, but there is a way....
To score 3 points is tough, but it can be done (and was). First and foremost I hope it is obvious that you need to shoot the leading boule. If removed this would give you at least a point (the 2nd boule now counts), or two with a carreau. Look at how the 1st and 3rd boules are aligned compared to the direction of play. The are not quite in direct line with each other (important). If you got a good contact on the leading boule (with spot carreau) where does the hit boule go? Yes, towards the 3rd boule. Because they are not directly in line the shot boule might hit the 3rd boule on its left side....And, if it does the 3rd boule on the left side where does it go next? Yes, towards the 4th boule.
The player about to play noted all this and, with a wee smile, knowing it would be unlikely that all of that would happen and that he would settle for a hit on the first boule for one or two points, played the shot. It was perfect, one of those once in a blue moon shots which hardly ever pay off. A spot carreau on boule 1 caused it to crash onto the left side of the 3rd boule and the resulting deflection caused it then to hit the right side of boule 4. And the result - 3 points to red - game over and much amazement from everyone.
As I say I don't like to boast, but it does illustrate the point that you should examine the head carefully and try to identify all of the options available to you to score AND if there is an opportunity for you to close the game you should strongly consider taking it (provided you also understand any risk).
The game situation is 6-10 to red. All blue players have thrown all of their boules and red have one still to play. The situation in the head looked like this...
In this situation, with one ball left you have a few options to try and score - shoot the leading boule - point to beat the leading boule (and perhaps drag the coche) but there is only one way of dealing with this situation if you want to close the game now.... "What, get 3 points out of this scenario? Kidding right?" Many players might settle for scoring one or two in the scenario, but there is a way....
To score 3 points is tough, but it can be done (and was). First and foremost I hope it is obvious that you need to shoot the leading boule. If removed this would give you at least a point (the 2nd boule now counts), or two with a carreau. Look at how the 1st and 3rd boules are aligned compared to the direction of play. The are not quite in direct line with each other (important). If you got a good contact on the leading boule (with spot carreau) where does the hit boule go? Yes, towards the 3rd boule. Because they are not directly in line the shot boule might hit the 3rd boule on its left side....And, if it does the 3rd boule on the left side where does it go next? Yes, towards the 4th boule.
The player about to play noted all this and, with a wee smile, knowing it would be unlikely that all of that would happen and that he would settle for a hit on the first boule for one or two points, played the shot. It was perfect, one of those once in a blue moon shots which hardly ever pay off. A spot carreau on boule 1 caused it to crash onto the left side of the 3rd boule and the resulting deflection caused it then to hit the right side of boule 4. And the result - 3 points to red - game over and much amazement from everyone.
As I say I don't like to boast, but it does illustrate the point that you should examine the head carefully and try to identify all of the options available to you to score AND if there is an opportunity for you to close the game you should strongly consider taking it (provided you also understand any risk).
Wednesday 10 July 2013
Shooting is fundamental
I often get asked why you should learn to shoot, after-all to the beginner it can be quite frustrating early on to keep trying to shoot when they feel they could do better if they just pointed all the time. All too often we see players elect to point (because they think it is easier or safer to) when a shoot would make things a lot better.
First and foremost, the objective of shooting is to change things, to remove opponents boules from the possibility of counting. The fewer boules your opponent has in play the fewer points they can score - it's that straightforward. OK, you may say, I understand that but I think I can get closer. This mentality often leads to lots of boules in the head especially if both teams have similar views. Often the opportunity to shoot to improve the situation in favour can be overlooked if the focus is always on 'just get closer than them'.
We have all witnessed the game where pointing dominates and scores tick over slowly. One team get one close one end, the next is the same etc etc. Petanque, we must remember, is about being closest to the jack at the end of an end - this is very different than always being close to the jack. I have a small saying which I try to stick by when I can - "I don't want to slowly lose this game". Slowly losing is a symptom of a pointing mentality - oh well, I didn't get close this end, but I might the next and so on. Failure to shoot at the right time is a recipe for losing slowly. You may have boules tightly packed in the head, but if you never shoot your opponents are also likely to have a few boules hanging around the head. You might (slowly) win games just pointing, you may even win the odd competition, but those teams who are more balanced in their play (shooting at the right time) are more successful in the long term.
Many a time I have played games where, in deciding which shot to play, I have found myself thinking "well my opponents are unlikely to shoot that boule, even though I can see how in doing so they might score heavily". I am exploiting the fact that I think they should shoot but probably wont - which is fine for my team but a shame for my opponents who unknowingly missed a golden opportunity.
So, where does this propensity to prefer pointing come from? When we learn the game we are shown how to hold a boule, how to stand/squat, how to throw. And, as coaches, what is the first thing we do? We put a jack on the ground and tell the student to try and get close... Why? Because that is instantly rewarding - the student might get a boule very close and we (rightly) congratulate them - "You're a natural", "sign her up!" etc etc.
What would happen if we placed a boule at 5.5m and asked the student to shoot it before introducing them to a jack? They might miss several times before getting a hit. Is that demoralising? Perhaps it is. But the objective is to show them the importance of shooting. Tell them if they can do it they will win more, win bigger and have one up on players who don't shoot.
Now I'm going to put forward a potentially controversial statement. Shooting practice makes you a better pointer.... There, I said it. You might think I am bonkers but think about it for a minute. A pointer aims to land their boule in a certain spot (or at least they should if they want to be any good). A shooter aims to land their boule in a certain spot too (the target). There may be differences in trajectory and desired outcome, but the objective is fundamentally the same. Consistently landing your boule in the right place. This is about repetition and building muscle memory. Our body eventually remembers what it feels like to land a boule in a certain place. Over time, the time spent shooting at various distances then allows us to ask our body "Ok, you know what it feels like to land there, now what adjustments do we need to make to that feeling to make our boule rest in the place we want after it has landed". If you can shoot a boule at 10m you should also be able to lob a point to 10m too - it just makes sense to me.
It would be remiss of me not to mention pointing practice at this point. But by pointing practice I do not mean endlessly rolling boules towards a jack - pointless in my opinion. If you consistently roll your boules at a low trajectory with no regard for where your boule lands before it rolls you might get lucky if the competition is played on a flat terrain. But time and again I hear complaints about more challenging pistes from pointers who think the world is against them. Just think about this for a minute - why would you deliberately limit your ability to win by only specialising in one type of playing surface? It might mean you do very well at your home club but what if you get drawn to play on a piste you don't know how to play - what then?
Let's be clear here - pointing is hard - consistently putting your boule precisely where you mean to is not easy. So pointing practice must focus on the landing spot. Pick a point on the ground and aim to land on it again and again and again, this will help you on rough ground conditions or those with a soft or thick topping. Now think about what might happen if you put a boule in that spot.... It's no surprise to me that the best players can point and shoot.
First and foremost, the objective of shooting is to change things, to remove opponents boules from the possibility of counting. The fewer boules your opponent has in play the fewer points they can score - it's that straightforward. OK, you may say, I understand that but I think I can get closer. This mentality often leads to lots of boules in the head especially if both teams have similar views. Often the opportunity to shoot to improve the situation in favour can be overlooked if the focus is always on 'just get closer than them'.
We have all witnessed the game where pointing dominates and scores tick over slowly. One team get one close one end, the next is the same etc etc. Petanque, we must remember, is about being closest to the jack at the end of an end - this is very different than always being close to the jack. I have a small saying which I try to stick by when I can - "I don't want to slowly lose this game". Slowly losing is a symptom of a pointing mentality - oh well, I didn't get close this end, but I might the next and so on. Failure to shoot at the right time is a recipe for losing slowly. You may have boules tightly packed in the head, but if you never shoot your opponents are also likely to have a few boules hanging around the head. You might (slowly) win games just pointing, you may even win the odd competition, but those teams who are more balanced in their play (shooting at the right time) are more successful in the long term.
Many a time I have played games where, in deciding which shot to play, I have found myself thinking "well my opponents are unlikely to shoot that boule, even though I can see how in doing so they might score heavily". I am exploiting the fact that I think they should shoot but probably wont - which is fine for my team but a shame for my opponents who unknowingly missed a golden opportunity.
So, where does this propensity to prefer pointing come from? When we learn the game we are shown how to hold a boule, how to stand/squat, how to throw. And, as coaches, what is the first thing we do? We put a jack on the ground and tell the student to try and get close... Why? Because that is instantly rewarding - the student might get a boule very close and we (rightly) congratulate them - "You're a natural", "sign her up!" etc etc.
What would happen if we placed a boule at 5.5m and asked the student to shoot it before introducing them to a jack? They might miss several times before getting a hit. Is that demoralising? Perhaps it is. But the objective is to show them the importance of shooting. Tell them if they can do it they will win more, win bigger and have one up on players who don't shoot.
Now I'm going to put forward a potentially controversial statement. Shooting practice makes you a better pointer.... There, I said it. You might think I am bonkers but think about it for a minute. A pointer aims to land their boule in a certain spot (or at least they should if they want to be any good). A shooter aims to land their boule in a certain spot too (the target). There may be differences in trajectory and desired outcome, but the objective is fundamentally the same. Consistently landing your boule in the right place. This is about repetition and building muscle memory. Our body eventually remembers what it feels like to land a boule in a certain place. Over time, the time spent shooting at various distances then allows us to ask our body "Ok, you know what it feels like to land there, now what adjustments do we need to make to that feeling to make our boule rest in the place we want after it has landed". If you can shoot a boule at 10m you should also be able to lob a point to 10m too - it just makes sense to me.
It would be remiss of me not to mention pointing practice at this point. But by pointing practice I do not mean endlessly rolling boules towards a jack - pointless in my opinion. If you consistently roll your boules at a low trajectory with no regard for where your boule lands before it rolls you might get lucky if the competition is played on a flat terrain. But time and again I hear complaints about more challenging pistes from pointers who think the world is against them. Just think about this for a minute - why would you deliberately limit your ability to win by only specialising in one type of playing surface? It might mean you do very well at your home club but what if you get drawn to play on a piste you don't know how to play - what then?
Let's be clear here - pointing is hard - consistently putting your boule precisely where you mean to is not easy. So pointing practice must focus on the landing spot. Pick a point on the ground and aim to land on it again and again and again, this will help you on rough ground conditions or those with a soft or thick topping. Now think about what might happen if you put a boule in that spot.... It's no surprise to me that the best players can point and shoot.
Monday 8 July 2013
Challenge Match - Penicuik vs Tweed Valley
Our petanque club received a challenge from Tweed Valley PC and we hosted them on Sunday 7th July - the same day as Andy Murray would try and win Wimbledon... bad timing or what!?
In the end, with the help of 3 players which we pinched from Tweed Valley, we won the match 8 games to 1 and we all managed to catch the final set of Andy Murray's match too! Result.
I have been practicing shooting mercilessly all summer (the weather has been very kind to us) and I will often spend an hour or two in the evenings shooting - setting up game situations and trying to test myself with tricky shoots (over the tops, directly behind the jack, side-by-side, double take outs etc). There is some definite progress but practice is all very well, it's more important to be able to do it in the pressure of a tough game. I have had to abandon a few evening sessions when the midges were biting - keep forgetting the repellent!
Our piste is very much a shooters piste (which is the way it was supposed to be). Pointers find it tricky as it is quite unpredictable - shooters of course are not worried about these things! The surface now has a number of humps and bumps which are inevitable as it beds in. It was laid and compacted in the snow in March and so was totally soaked at installation. Now it has been baked the base is rock hard and the top dressing floats on it in a very pleasing way. In the barer parts it is almost impossible to draw a circle on the ground and so we often use plastic circles instead. I think all our players like the surface - I certainly feel it will make them better players as there are only a few genuinely challenging pistes in Scotland. I am looking forward to welcoming players from all over Scotland to Penicuik for the Scottish Triples on 1st September.
Next up for me is the Scottish Singles & Shooting on 27th July and my defence of the Scottish Pairs on 28th July. Being both an organiser and a player in SPA competitions has its problems - lack of the ability to warm up being the biggest. I have never been good at singles play, it can expose any weakness quite easily and singles competitions always seem to coincide with 'a bad day'. Maybe that will change this year...
In the end, with the help of 3 players which we pinched from Tweed Valley, we won the match 8 games to 1 and we all managed to catch the final set of Andy Murray's match too! Result.
I have been practicing shooting mercilessly all summer (the weather has been very kind to us) and I will often spend an hour or two in the evenings shooting - setting up game situations and trying to test myself with tricky shoots (over the tops, directly behind the jack, side-by-side, double take outs etc). There is some definite progress but practice is all very well, it's more important to be able to do it in the pressure of a tough game. I have had to abandon a few evening sessions when the midges were biting - keep forgetting the repellent!
Our piste is very much a shooters piste (which is the way it was supposed to be). Pointers find it tricky as it is quite unpredictable - shooters of course are not worried about these things! The surface now has a number of humps and bumps which are inevitable as it beds in. It was laid and compacted in the snow in March and so was totally soaked at installation. Now it has been baked the base is rock hard and the top dressing floats on it in a very pleasing way. In the barer parts it is almost impossible to draw a circle on the ground and so we often use plastic circles instead. I think all our players like the surface - I certainly feel it will make them better players as there are only a few genuinely challenging pistes in Scotland. I am looking forward to welcoming players from all over Scotland to Penicuik for the Scottish Triples on 1st September.
Next up for me is the Scottish Singles & Shooting on 27th July and my defence of the Scottish Pairs on 28th July. Being both an organiser and a player in SPA competitions has its problems - lack of the ability to warm up being the biggest. I have never been good at singles play, it can expose any weakness quite easily and singles competitions always seem to coincide with 'a bad day'. Maybe that will change this year...
Wednesday 3 July 2013
2013 - a busy year so far
Any regular readers of this blog have probably disappeared through inertia on my part so for that I apologise. With so much going on recently my own blog has suffered a bit but that should change from now on.
In October 2012 I was elected President of the Scottish Petanque Association, a real honour but it is not without its challenges either. I have to say the SPA has a great team at its helm - some real 'do-ers' - which does make the job a pleasure. We have the task of promoting what is very much a minority sport and this can be a thankless task. However I am pleased to say that we are gradually making in-roads where budgets and time will allow.
Our biggest task is to increase take up of our sport in Scotland. Much of my activity this year has been focused on meeting people who are interested in introducing petanque to their community. This typically involves arranging open days with petanque 'come and try' sessions or competitions. Enquries from new groups have been strong this year (a total of 4 groups dotted around the country) and we are in regular contact with all of them.
At my own club this year has been very busy, not least because we built our own piste in Penicuik Park. The new piste took around 6 weeks to complete and was finished on Good Friday, just in time for us to host an Easter Day fun afternoon. Since then we have built our membership and now have a regular core of players attending on Sundays. We have also started junior coaching sessions on Wednesday evenings during the summer - we are hopeful that a few youngsters will take up the sport regularly and join our club. We coached almost 230 high school pupils in May and we are planning to make that a regular event.
Back to national matters and the season is in full swing with the Grand Prix Series now decided - won by my good friends from Inverleith. The national Singles, Doubles and Shooting are at the end of July and Triples at my home club on 1st September. In May the SPA travelled to Wales to defend the Celtic Challenge - sadly we didn't quite manage it despite clocking up an impressive haul of 32 wins. Scotland will host in 2014 and we'll be looking for revenge!
On 10th & 11th August Inverleith Petanque Club are hosting the Home Nations. It looks like its going to be a cracker, seeing that it coincides with the Edinburgh Festival. I wish Inverleith PC the very best of luck!
In October 2012 I was elected President of the Scottish Petanque Association, a real honour but it is not without its challenges either. I have to say the SPA has a great team at its helm - some real 'do-ers' - which does make the job a pleasure. We have the task of promoting what is very much a minority sport and this can be a thankless task. However I am pleased to say that we are gradually making in-roads where budgets and time will allow.
Our biggest task is to increase take up of our sport in Scotland. Much of my activity this year has been focused on meeting people who are interested in introducing petanque to their community. This typically involves arranging open days with petanque 'come and try' sessions or competitions. Enquries from new groups have been strong this year (a total of 4 groups dotted around the country) and we are in regular contact with all of them.
At my own club this year has been very busy, not least because we built our own piste in Penicuik Park. The new piste took around 6 weeks to complete and was finished on Good Friday, just in time for us to host an Easter Day fun afternoon. Since then we have built our membership and now have a regular core of players attending on Sundays. We have also started junior coaching sessions on Wednesday evenings during the summer - we are hopeful that a few youngsters will take up the sport regularly and join our club. We coached almost 230 high school pupils in May and we are planning to make that a regular event.
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| Penicuik Piste mid-construction |
Back to national matters and the season is in full swing with the Grand Prix Series now decided - won by my good friends from Inverleith. The national Singles, Doubles and Shooting are at the end of July and Triples at my home club on 1st September. In May the SPA travelled to Wales to defend the Celtic Challenge - sadly we didn't quite manage it despite clocking up an impressive haul of 32 wins. Scotland will host in 2014 and we'll be looking for revenge!
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| Scotland Squad - 2013 Celtic Challenge - Wales |
On 10th & 11th August Inverleith Petanque Club are hosting the Home Nations. It looks like its going to be a cracker, seeing that it coincides with the Edinburgh Festival. I wish Inverleith PC the very best of luck!
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