I played the team of Hatchadorian/Riviera/Fernandez with a scratch team at Valréas last weekend in the afternoon session. My team was pretty good and we gelled quite well for a scratch team. I was pointing on a tough surface and playing 90-95% and I had managed to hit the shots I had to. So going into the afternoon we were confident. Then after a mix of barrage and a 4 hour wait we saw the draw. My team mates were intimidated but I was up for the challenge and truly excited. First end we played 5 perfect points and they shot well 5 times. The last boule was a miss by my shooter and we lost 1. So a decent start. Every end after that was pretty much rinse a repeat. We point well, they hit well but we find ourselves 10-0 down. So we change tactic and attack and shoot 6 and score 4. I miss my last shot by millimetres but it’s a miss. Next end my shooter misses once and casquette once. We are in trouble and I have to shoot the bouchon. I miss the first time but shoot well and the next is a shot that I prefer not to mention. So we lose and the lessons are interesting. They were totally relaxed until we attacked back. Then the cracks started to surface. This means when I meet them again I’ll play a different game in terms of boule placement. When the crowd was gathering after the first end they were under immense pressure. The Irishman as I’m now known was playing well and as an unknown I held an advantage. In future I’ll press that uncertainty even more. I should have used the crowd more. They were vulnerable at exactly 6 meters which my team didn’t want to play as they preferred longer distances. They don’t shoot a boule behind the bouchon. No matter how close it is. It’s an accepted rule in France. This makes them vulnerable and exposes a great opportunity to pressure the pointer and middle. They are not invincible and with the right team and lessons learnt I’m sure I could either beat them or score many more points

Tight game. Last end. 10-11 to opposition. Long distance. Opposition fails to point in within a meter of the bouchon, handing us at least a point but we haven’t measured anything yet. Team mate relieved that we have been handed a lifeline responds to the opposition’s call for 1 point to us by muttering something like, one yes. At that moment the oppo kicks the bouchon after having realised that we were actually lying for two. I call it out and say it is bad gamesmanship. Oppo gets upset and personal about it and starts getting aggressive and explaining that it was well within the rights to do that once my team mate agreed the score. Everyone gets upset, we win the next end and the opponent refuses to shake my hand. What is the moral of the story? I must admit, I haven’t studied the rule book but I have come across people who like bending them in their favour sometimes.

I have been calling the bouchon the coach or cochonnet for decades. This weekend a friend in La Ciotat informed me that coche s an old French word for stagecoach! It's unlikely that we would throw a stagecoach 10 meters! Cochonnet is a Parisien term that the players in the South detest. Apparently the official term is Le But, the little ball and most players use Bouchon. What faux pas have you discovered in this game?

I turned up to a doubles today full of confidence, playing well and on the back of 6 wins last week in mini competitions. Despite playing really well and with a great young shooter we got battered in the A and then B quarter final. I lost a semi yesterday despite being 10/0 up and the quality of the players here is amazing. At least 30 of the doubles teams today I have never seen and at least 28 of them were outstanding and obviously came out for the money. So I’m watching now and trying to determine what makes these players so exceptional and yet they play with zero emotion and are not bothered about the score. The self belief is off the scale

Greetings Simon, Arupam, Chris, Zac,James, Sean, Simon, Karen and Neil! Please tell us all a little about yourselves and what you are looking to get from this community. How you started the game, where your game is currently and anything interesting we should know about you