Dubbo's croquet club has reached its 100th anniversary milestone this month.
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Its celebration planned for Saturday was put on hold for the moment because of the city's COVID-19 outbreak, but the club instead planned to mark the occasion "COVID-style" on Saturday with a virtual get-together.
During September the Daily Liberal will continue to profile club members and significant moments...
Tricia Shanks
Years rush by when you are young and when you are older.
When you are young you excitedly await your next birthday and moving up a grade at school and all the activities that school life brings.
Then reality strikes and the big R word, 'responsibility' hits you.
Working to achieve your goals, partying and having fun with friends, marrying and having a family to care and support.
Life is full of a growing family and then they fly the coop, and another circle of life begins.
Many more birthdays down the track and a few grey hairs soooo...
What do I do next?
It's time for me time!
Being single or with your partner you have grandchildren or even great grandchildren to share your life with you, but I need a mature interaction, meet new friends and be part of something exciting like in my younger days.
Carefree and tripping the light fantastic (moving a bit more carefully than when I was young) around a croquet court sounds like a good exercise.
The challenge of what to do after retirement was upon me.
Tennis, netball and basketball are no longer a reality of my life, but they were the sports I loved to play when I was young and ever so energetic, now they are beyond my physical capabilities.
An opportunity to try croquet with my sister-in-law in Altona, Victoria soon came, and I was hooked from the first hoop.
I arrived back home in Dubbo and rang up the local croquet club and I was playing the next week.
Arriving and feeling out of place I was welcomed and introduced to ever so many people.
How will I ever remember all these new faces.
I then decided to learn and remember a few people each week.
That worked well and I soon recognized them at croquet with their hats and uniforms on but away from croquet they looked different without their croquet gear on so that brought on another challenge.
Brain overloaded with tactics, how to hold the mallet, how to strike the ball correctly, what colour ball to hit in correct order and what shot to play.
Well, the challenge was there waiting to be mastered by making a good hoop, jump shot or roquet.
That does not mean I produce a perfect game for there is always good and bad days in everything and croquet is no different.
A day without croquet is like a day without sunshine.
- Muller Park Tennis and Croquet Club president Tricia Shanks
Croquet is a gentle competitive game for young and old and keeps you fit and mentally stimulated in the best of company.
Celebrating 100 years of croquet in Dubbo it is an honour to represent the Muller Park Tennis and Croquet as president.
Throughout the years the club has grown from a room in the Dubbo Bowling Club new clubhouse in 1921 with two croquet lawns, to a new clubhouse built by the Dubbo Bowling Club for the croquet players in 1952.
December 2017, we relocated to our new home of croquet at Muller Park Tennis and Croquet Club developing two specifically designed artificial turf courts for the members.
A day without croquet is like a day without sunshine.
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