In October 2020, the Croquet New Zealand Council unanimously voted to adopt the new constitution. This changed the previous Executive Committee to a Board and provides provisions for independent Board members to be appointed.
The Board is made up of 7 positions. 4 are elected from the membership at the AGM and 3 are independently appointed by the Appointments Panel.
The current Board is:
Tony O’Donnell (Chair) Elected Member Elected – AGM 2021 Re-elected – AGM 2023 Club: United Croquet Club Association: Canterbury | Tony worked as a Chemical Engineer where he developed expansion projects, firstly at a pulp mill and then NZ Steel before he moved into management. During the early stages of the Electricity sector reorganisation, Tony completed a Business Studies degree and became Divisional Manager of Retail. Tony progressed to an Executive at United Electricity where he was responsible for the gross margin, dealings with major suppliers and was Chairman of the Risk Management Committee. During this tenure, Tony was also an influential member of the MARIA Committee which developed the rules for trading electricity. Following his retirement, some twenty years ago, Tony took up croquet. First with golf croquet and then learning association croquet. Tony has held many roles during his croquet career including terms as the President and Treasurer for his club, United Croquet Club. Treasurer for the Canterbury Croquet Association, tournament manager at local, regional and national tournaments and is also an examining referee for golf croquet. Tony was elected Chair of the Croquet New Zealand Board in November 2021. |
| Dallas Cooke Elected Member Elected – AGM 2021 Re-elected AGM 2023 Club: Croquet Mt Maunganui Association: Bay of Plenty | Coming soon. |
Judith Hanratty CVO OBE Appointed Member Appointed: May 2021 Re-appointed May 2023 Member of the Croquet Association | Judith’s early career was in law. She has been called to the Bar in England (Inner Temple); in the State of Victoria, in Australia; and in New Zealand where she was educated and spent the first twenty years of her career. She holds an LLB; LLM (Hons) and Hon LLD from Victoria University of Wellington, where she was a member of the Council and Non-Executive Treasurer for ten years until she relocated to the UK in 1986. In NZ she was also a member of the inaugural Board of Telecom NZ. She has lived in Heretaunga, near Wellington since her return to New Zealand in January 2020. Over a period of some 30 years, she was a member of the boards of companies listed on the London and New York Stock Exchanges in the energy and insurance sectors and of UK statutory bodies including the Council of Lloyd’s of London (where she was Chairman of the Market Supervision Committee), the Gas and Electricity Markets’ Authority, the Competition Commission, and the Takeover Panel. She has represented NZ at golf and was a member of the Board of England Golf for five years following the merger of the men’s and women’s governing bodies. She is a member of the Croquet Association in the UK. In 2002 she was awarded the OBE for services to the oil and gas industry in the UK; and in 2007 she was appointed by HM The Queen to be a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order. She is an Honorary Fellow of Lucy Cavendish College, University of Cambridge. |
Darla Blake Elected Member Elected AGM October 2022 Club: Doubtless Bay Croquet Club Association: Northland | Darla comes to the Board with a wealth of experience in governance, strategic planning, and financial matters. She’s owned several successful businesses, in addition to holding various executive roles over 25 years in public service – providing advice and guidance to business owners, individuals, councillors, community boards in local government and guiding communities though their development processes. Darla has a Post Graduate Diploma in Public Management, Post Graduate Certification in Economic Development, as well as having qualified as a Business and Personal Coach. Now retired and settled in the Far North, she took up Golf Croquet at the Doubtless Bay Croquet Club over five years ago. Since that time, she’s held various Executive Committee positions at the club ranging from Secretary, Treasurer, and Vice President. Currently she is their Club Captain/Treasurer. |
Baubre Murray Elected Member Elected AGM October 2023 Club: Kelburn Municipal Croquet Club Association: Wellington | Baubre is a Chartered Accountant and a Fellow of both CA ANZ and CPA Australia. After an early background in audit and consulting she ran her own accounting practice for 15 years but is now semi-retired. She is a Chartered Member of the Institute of Directors and has worked in governance roles for the last 30 years, mostly in the Not-for-Profit sector. She is currently a trustee of the LifeBlood Trust and is the CA ANZ and CPAA representative on the International Federation of Accountants SMP Committee. She spent 12 years with Croquet NZ from 2005 to 2017 in various roles including 12 years on the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee (with 9 of those as Chair), 8 years on the Executive Council and 3 years as Vice President, served for 5 years on the Board of Nuku Ora (previously Sport Wellington) including as Chair of the Assurance and Risk Committee, 5 years on the Human Resources NZ Board including a term as Chair and also Chair of the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee, and 6 years on the Board of the Crohns and Colitis NZ Charitable Trust. She has been playing Croquet since she was at University, initially AC and more recently GC. She won the Gold Cup in 2013 and was Runner -Up NZ Womens Champion in 2021. She has participated in the World Womens AC Championships in both 2012 and in 2023 and in the Qualifying Tournament for the AC World Championships in July 2023. |
| Bonnie Johnstone Appointed Member Appointed: May 2024 | Bonnie is passionate about Croquet. After a stroke (10 years ago) Bonnie realised there was more to Croquet after Greg Bryant retrained her, knocking out bad habits especially the infamous Aunt Emma play. The strategy, four ball break and a tidy leave makes the game so much more exciting. Bonnie enjoys playing both codes. Bonnie’s career spans over 35 years in Government. Customs Wellington, involved in the creation and interpretation of Acts and Legislations. New Plymouth IRD, running seminars for businesses and individuals re tax obligations. Bonnie has a strong background in financial Management and has held Senior positions in the Financial sectors. Bonnie completed her degree in Business Management Systems. Bonnie has served on many boards, notably Taranaki Health Board (Government Appointed) NZ Occupational Therapy Board. Bonnie is currently a Registrar with an Iwi. She has a Government appointed position as an Independent on the Social Security Appeals Authority, which requires her to travel around New Zealand and hear cases in the Civil Courts. Bonnie is confident her experiences and knowledge will contribute to the betterment of Croquet. |
