From the President

Chers Amis,

These days we are all getting used to becoming nimble and flexible in our forward planning and so it was with the first Alliance Française event for 2021. On Sunday, 7 February, we held a multi-purpose event which stood in for the (somewhat belated) 2020 Coupe d’Antibes pétanque extravaganza which had been cancelled due to weather, and the 2021 Alliance Française Welcome Party, an indoor event which had been cancelled due to concerns over the new strains of Coronavirus arriving in Australia. It was pleasing to see a total of 34 of our members bring their morning tea, lunch and liquid refreshments to participate in the play-off of the South Coast’s most prestigious pétanque event. There were many contestants so the time available to have a serious play-off was short.

After a brief welcome and an obligatory glass of bubbly we all headed for the pistes. There were many nail-biting moments as, one by one, teams were eliminated and, finally, Les Trois Amis (Bill Schwensen, Mike Coghlan and Nikki Jane) forged their way to the top with runners-up Les Napoléons (Barry Hewes, Greg Dive and Phil Woof) coming a close second. It was a particularly good result as members, Nikky Jane and Phil Woof are not only new to pétanque, they are also the newest members of our Alliance. A big congratulations to Nikki, Phil and their teams.

Anybody who is familiar with French rugby will understand the French obsession with style and panache. Of course, this obsession applies to all French sports, pétanque being no exception. So it was fitting that the most important award of the day was made to Julie Welsh, the person most distinguished for the grace and poise of her playing style. Congratulations Julie! We are currently in the planning stages of two upcoming events: a picnic lunch at Tathra on Friday, 12 March and a French Film night on Thursday, 22 April. Please note these days in your diary and look out for announcements providing further details in the coming weeks.

Meilleurs voeux,

Robert McCombie