Braintree team win Bronze at First English Open International Petanque tournament

Onley Arms players Trevor and Daniel Blows, along with Adam Buxton and Lorne Gibson from Rayne Swan played in the recent two-day English International Open triples.
The event, held at the Wood Green Arena at Godmanchester, attracted teams from France, Spain, Slovakia, Holland plus a host of GB International players.
Three defeats on Day one, by the smallest of margins, took the team into the Bronze competition on Day two.
Two early wins over the East Midlands and Southern teams (both 13-7) put the team into the semi finals where they played Tovil from Kent.
With Lorne Gibson pointing well, the team built an early lead and cruised through to the final with a score of 13-3.
In the final they played group 2 winners, Southern Counties, who had beaten the Slovakian national team during the morning session. At 1-2, Daniel Blows produced three good ends and helped the score to 7-2. The next end saw Adam Buxton produce the ‘shot of the day’ to take five and a 12-2 lead. For the next end, Trevor Blows replaced son Daniel on the terrain. To complete a great day, ‘super sub’ pointed in for the winning shot to take the Bronze title.
The team enjoyed the experience of mixing with senior petanque players and were rewarded with trophies and a cheque for £150.
Gold winners were Spain (defeating Holland 13-12) while team France picked up the Silver title.