The 2020-21 Annual Award winners were announced at the CNZ Annual General Meeting on the 9th of October.
President’s Trophy (Highest percentage of New to Croquet Members): Leith Croquet Club, Otago
Leith Croquet Club had 13 New to Croquet members in 2020-21 which accounted for an impressive 42% of their total membership.
Huon Pine Bowl (Most total New to Croquet Members): Matamata Croquet Club, Waikato-King Country
Matamata Croquet Club had a total of 19 New to Croquet members in 2020-21. This increase assisted the club to grow by 10% from 2019-20.
In a challenging year, 18 Clubs around New Zealand saw New to Croquet membership in double figures.
Club Participation Award: Paraparaumu Croquet Club, Wellington
Paraparaumu Croquet Club won the Club Participation award with a total score of 11%. They have made a concentrated effort in encouraging play with 30% of their membership having an AC handicap and 92% having a GC handicap.
Contribution to Croquet: Michael Hardman (Rose Gardens Croquet Club, Manwatu-Wanganui)
Michael has regularly been a willing and able volunteer for croquet which spans across all three levels; club, regional and national. Michael is a regular at most tournaments held in the Manawatu-Wanganui region whether that be in his capacity as a manager, referee or as a player. He has regularly travelled over to Dannivirke to help run the CNZ Men’s and Women’s and ensure Rangatira Croquet Club could continue to host a CNZ tournament.
Michael has also been a regular on committee’s, and has recently taken over as the Chair of the CNZ Laws Committee.
Michael is a willing volunteer and thoroughly deserves this award.
Volunteer of the Year: Joan Jenkin (Morrinsville Croquet Club, Thames Valley)
Joan has been a steady contributor to the Morrinsville Croquet Club and Thames Valley Association for a number of years. However in 2020-21, Joan was the Morrinsville Croquet Club President, helped organise the Midlands League, was the Manager of the Thames Valley Annual GC Tournament, regularly volunteered as a referee at Association and Club tournaments, liaised with Sport Waikato to enable them to volunteer at the club and organised the Cancer Society Tournament which helped raised over $7,000 for the Cancer Society.
Joan selflessly gives back to croquet and is a deserving recipient of this award.
Most Improved GC Player: Te Kiri King (Park Croquet Club, South Taranaki)
Te Kiri enjoyed an incredible season in which he increased his DGrade by 319 points. This was in large part due to his solid performance at the North Island GC Championships, where he reached the semi-finals, and winning the Top 10 GC Invitation (Yvonne Yeates GC Invitation).
Most Improved AC Player: Logan McCorkindale (Waireka Croquet Club, South Canterbury)
Logan had a breakout season in AC during 2020-21. Throughout the season, he increased his DGrade by over 200 points. This improved his New Zealand ranking from #10 to #3.
During this span, he won three CNZ AC tournaments including the South Island AC Singles and Doubles and the NZ Open Doubles. As well as making the final of the NZ Open Singles.
Player of the Year: Logan McCorkindale (Waireka Croquet Club, South Canterbury) & Duncan Dixon (United Croquet Club, Canterbury)
For the first time in this awards history, it has been shared.
In addition to the outstanding achievements in AC, mentioned above, Logan also saw success in GC. Logan added to his CNZ trophy haul for 2020-21 by winning the South Island GC Singles and the U21 GC Singles as well as making the semi-finals of the GC Nationals.
Duncan solidified his status as one of the greatest GC players in NZ history by winning his 9th GC Nationals Singles title. His 9th title required plenty of composure as he overcame a 1-2 deficit to win the best of 5 games final 3-2. Duncan also saw some success in AC during 2020-21 as he was narrowly beaten in the NZ Open Singles semi-final by the eventual champion.
Congratulations to all award winners for 2020-21.
