A Great Day of Pétanque at Ongar Festival! The John Sear Annual Triples Challenge brought 16 Teams from Eastern Regional Clubs together on Sunday 4th May 2025 for an excellent competition hosted by Ongar Pétanque, alongside the festivities and excitement of the WW2 Reenactment, steel band, military vehicles, charity and food stalls right in the centre of the Town.
Following some close matches in the morning’s ‘Round Robin’, with each team playing 3 matches in their respective groups of 4 teams, the 48 players were all ready to take on the afternoon Challenge. Congratulations go to the French Connection Team from Towers Pétanque – Richard Shaw, Ian Messenger and Mark Jones winning the Championship Cup for the 2nd Year in succession! In the final they were too strong for The Hipsters, from Ongar Pétanque – John Moore, Steve Kramer, and Pauline Prior – who played well all day, having beaten our other Ongar team – the Spitfires – in the ¼ Finals, and Birchanger Bombardiers in the semi- final to earn their place in this year’s Main Final. The Silver Plate Competition produced a closely fought Final with the Boulericay team – Tony Pennock, Averil Gorham, and Edwin Staples – clinching victory over the Bocking Millers. Teams all played in the spirit of the Festival, some dressed accordingly in WW2 attire, and showing their ‘true grit in action ‘. We were pleased to welcome our Sponsor, John Sear, to present the prizes and we thank him once again for his continued support to Ongar Pétanque and this popular Annual Competition. It was also good to receive a visit from Cllr. Jason Gunn, Chairman of Ongar Town Council, Cllr.Roberts, and Cllr. Eydmann along with hundreds of spectators showing interest in this sport, being played at a high level and in a perfect setting at Ongar. Well done to the organisers of Ongar Festival, the marshals and everyone who worked so hard to make this day another success for our Town.
Report from: Carolyn Innocent. Ongar Pétanque.
