155th Post: Busy as Bees

BBC Ladies Doubles: Three pairs of ladies are due to represent BBC at the Ladies finals in Marlay Park on Saturday 25th July.  The pairs are Yvonne + Eileen; Maureen + Irene; Terry + Sharyon. They'll have a month to practice together and play other doubles to hone their teamwork before the competition.  Feel free to offer them a game or two. We wish them well in a competition we performed well at last year.

BBC Doubles Qualifier:  due to be played in Bushy Park on Sat 27th June.  Due to unforeseen circumstances no BBC team made the qualifier. Results - the top 6 teams qualified:

Tom Walsh Trophy:  We have reached the knockout stage of this interesting, dual-route competition.  The Monday and Saturday competitions were separate routes to the last eight.  You could play in both and qualify in both but as Ciarán stated in his text:

"Ciarán was Rank 1 in both but qualifies from Monday due to a higher number of wins.  Brigid therefore assumes Rank 1 for Saturday and qualifies from that group. As a result of the above, Seán and Michael who were fifth in their respective Leagues qualify for the Playoffs."

" For the QFs, I'm leaving it to the individual players to organise their matches.

Please post times/results in the Open Chat group so those interested can spectate.

Matches are to 13 and not timed."  

Best of luck everyone.  Hope we get many spectators and a worthy winner.

BBC show support for the IPA Team at the Euros, in Spain:

IPA Mixed Doubles hosted by BBC in St. Anne's and Alden Park on Sunday 7th July:

IPA Mixed Doubles Championship BBC's 2nd national event in quick succession. Thanks to all the volunteers who made it possible.

Congratulations to Barbara and Sariff on their deserved victory in the Irish Mixed Doubles Championship. Well played also to Mary and Kevin, who battled hard but came up against a formidable pair in the final.

A special mention goes to Debra for her remarkable shooting display in one of the semi-finals, which was undoubtedly one of the highlights of the day.

The dual-venue format proved a success, with a variety of playing surfaces testing the full range of players' skills. The winner, Sariff played on four very different surfaces across the day, and managed well! Thankfully, the weather was much kinder than expected, and even the umpire, David, was in good form!

A huge thank you to Tournament Directors Kevin and Stéphane, umpire David, all the competitors, many of whom travelled early in the morning, and the dedicated volunteers who set up and dismantled both venues.

A fantastic day of pétanque and another great showcase for the sport in Ireland.

#IrishPetanque #MixedDoubles #PetanqueIreland #Championships #BoulesSport

Some great casual and competitive play across the month of June 2026:

Visitors from Down Under:

Aussies - Mel[va] Fleming [90 years of age] and her daughter Lynne Arjava graced us with a surprise visit to our pistes on the morning of Friday 5th June.

Luckily, Irene and I were about, greeted them and offered them a game. They were delighted and after a slow start it dawned on us that this pair were dab hands at the sport and regular playing partners in doubles. Lynne was a great 'shooter' and once they got the hang of the surface our 6-0 lead disappeared!

They spent their holiday on these islands visiting as many clubs as they could to experience playing in many locations. Lynne [ aka Lulu ] has promised to send a summary of their trip. When I receive it I'll repost.

They also appeared at the IPA Mixed Doubles in Alden Park as they had met many of the participants, at their local clubs, in the previous weeks. Among other clubs they visited Bushy Park, Marlay, Cavan, Waterford, Sligo, Clashmore/Kinsalebeg etc. Truly a busman's holiday!!

To find out more about the interepid duo visit the Newcastle Pétanque Club page [Aus.] at: https://www.facebook.com/p/Newcastle-Petanque-Club-61587110493152/

Spreading the Gospel:

Along with Michael Carroll, an IPA member from Drumod, I showcased the game of Pétanque at the Carrick Carnival alongside the Shannon on the bank holiday weekend in early June.

Leitrim is a Pétanque desert but we introduced the sport to a variety of locals and tourists with a view to the eventual establishment of a facility/s with so many seasonal tourists visiting the region.

The petition that some participants eagerly signed will hopefully spur interested parties to 'set the ball rolling'!

Maintenance: The area looks splendid at present. Sharyon, Tom B and Tom D have been watering during the dry spell to retain the planters. A few of us have been removing weeds / grasses from the pathways by the roots, if possible, especially after rain.

Upcoming Events: JULY

• Singles Finals - to be arranged by players
• Sun 5th July - Bayside Summer Picnic - 2pm to 5pm - Fun Demo - a few BBC needed
• Wed. 8th July - BBC v Cabinteely from 11am in Alden Park. Set up from 10 am.
• Sat 11th July - Bastille Day Boules 10:30 - 12:30 €5 entry to support IPA teams
• Sun 12th July - from 2pm OPEN DAY - to introduce potential members
• Sun 19th July - Charity Triples Event in Griffeen, Lucan
• Fri 31st July - Memorial Event in St Anne's Park from 10:30 to lunchtime.
• Shooting Practice - each Tuesday night from 7pm
• Friday nights - Social Boules ongoing from 7pm

Learned from recent events:

• Feet inside the circle and in contact with the ground during the throw.
• An accidentally dropped boule is not counted as 'thrown'.
• Boules that went 'out of play' should be removed.... not left on the play area.
• A player should mark the circle and the cosh at start of play.
• Good practice to have a player/s up at the head [ near the Jack ] during play.....
• Only 'marked' boules can be replaced, if needed.
• It is good practice to stand well behind and to the side of the thrower and beyond the jack if up at the head.
• Talking, moving or making distracting sounds when a player is throwing is unsporting.