The Pétanque North West Squad, made up of players from Rochdale Pétanque and Trafford Pétanque, took part in their very first Pétanque England Inter Regionals Competition — and delivered an outstanding debut. The squad finished 2nd in Division 2, securing a well-deserved promotion to Division 1 next year.
Both clubs are immensely proud of their teammates’ performances and the landmark achievement, which firmly establishes the Northwest as serious contenders in the world of pétanque.
Below, each team captain shares their reflections and highlights from what was an unforgettable finals weekend.
PNW Team 1 – Neil
Neil, Paul, Daniel & Sylvester battled through 12 hard-fought rounds, finishing with a superb record of 10 wins and just 2 losses. This placed them 4th overall out of 332 teams, including a victory against the eventual champions — a truly outstanding achievement!
PNW Team 2 – Kevin
People said, “you have to experience it yourself” — they were right.
Venue & Vibe
The setting: a slightly weary Pontins on the Somerset coast. Chalets were small but serviceable, food was fine (despite some grumbles), and queues long thanks to 800 people eating in two hours. The bars became the central hub — buzzing with a reunion feel and plenty of laughter.
Catching up with friends from other regions was brilliant, but just as good was bonding with our Northwest teammates. Even when matches got tense, a quick chat or laugh usually smoothed things over.
The Matches
Kevin (Captain) Denis, Bryn, and Jack. The plan was Denis pointing, Jack shooting, and Bryn and me in the middle. As ever, plans didn’t quite survive contact with reality…
- Saturday: A slow start with three narrow losses (13–11, 13–11, 13–10) and one heavier defeat. We broke through in round 4 (aided by an opponent four pints down), and our highlight came in round 7 — beating the eventual division winners’ second team with a four-shot, two-point end.
- Sunday: After our worst loss in the opener (concrete piste + rolling pointers = nightmare), we changed roles: Denis and Bryn swapped, Jack and I rotated. The switch worked — four straight wins followed. We finished 6–5 overall, just above 50%.
Notable highlights included Bryn’s puddle-play masterclass, Denis shooting and pointing like a machine, Jack excelling in both roles, and me doing most of the shooting. And yes — we definitely played better with Jack’s mum and dad cheering!
Celebration
Presentation night was buzzing. Juniors got the loudest cheers, the bar fuelled the crowd, and when PNW were announced as second place overall, we made the most noise in the room. Medals, photos, congrats from friends — and yes, El Vino did flow.
Thanks & Takeaways
Huge credit to Neil and Christine for the organisation, and to my teammates for making it a cracking weekend. The big question now: how do we bottle that and bring it back to club weekends? Great fun — I’d recommend it to anyone next year.
Regional Squad Captain Report – Mike
Since Rochdale joined PNW, I’ve been keen for us to enter a squad into the inter-regionals. With only two clubs in the region, pulling a squad together hasn’t been easy, so I was delighted we managed it this year.
Players from other regions have always said this competition is the highlight of the playing calendar — and now I’ve experienced it, I completely agree. No other event in England matches it for scale, camaraderie, or the social side of the game.
The support within our squad was incredible. On Saturday night, as darkness fell and the rain came down, most of the PNW squad were still out cheering on Team 4 in their final game. Then on Sunday, my team’s last game was also the final game of the day. The whole squad was behind us as we pushed for victory over Southern — the league winners — which not only secured second place but gave PNW a 3–1 match win over Southern, meaning we beat every region we faced across the weekend.
As a region, we achieved the highest win percentage of all (67%) and were one of only three regions where every team won at least half their games.
I’m already excited to see how we perform in Challenge Division 1 next year.
PNW Team 3 Report
Team: Ian, Gary, François & Mike (Captain)
Our Saturday results showed how much progress we’ve made this year — only losing our final game of seven to a very strong Southern side.
Sunday brought a couple of games where we just didn’t get going, but we still picked up three wins. Among them was a mammoth two-hour battle against East Midlands 4, who went on to finish 3rd. All four of us agreed it was the game of the weekend.
Our last match was a comeback win over Southern 4 on a piste that had troubled us earlier. We finished 8th in the division — impressively beating all four other top-eight sides we faced, including Sussex 3, the division’s top team, handing them their only defeat of the weekend.
PNW Team 4 Report – Stephen
Stephen O’Connor (Captain), Amanda, Ian & Christine
The team gathered early on Saturday morning with the rest of the PNW squad. Following a detailed briefing from Squad Manager Christine Hessing and Neil, Team 4 entered the weekend focused and ready.
Day 1 – Saturday
- Round 1: Bye
- Match 2 (vs Devon): Excellent pointing from Amanda secured a 13–2 win.
- Match 3 (vs Great Western): Christine stepped in, helping secure a 13–5 victory.
- Match 4 (vs Sussex): Ian excelled as first pointer, leading another 13–5 win.
- Match 5 (vs East Midlands): A tense, end-to-end battle edged 13–11.
- Match 6 (vs Suffolk): A gruelling two-hour contest ended in a 9–13 loss.
- Match 7: Christine stepped in for Ian as heavy rain began, but the team fell 9–13.
A strong day overall, showing consistency, resilience, and teamwork.
Day 2 – Sunday
Persistent heavy rain made conditions difficult. Despite battling hard in every round, Team 4 managed just one win from five matches.
Reflections
Captain Stephen O’Connor said:
“As Team Captain, I can only offer my total admiration for each of my team members, who gave their all and contributed significantly to PNW’s success. Our combined efforts helped secure a well-deserved Runners-Up position in Division 2 of the 2025 Inter Regional Challenge.”
Squad Manager Christine Hessing said:
“Wow, what a way to spend the weekend! It was a great honour to be the first-ever PNW manager at the Inter Regional Championship and Challenge. The experience was made even better by the squad securing a magnificent 2nd place against eight other experienced regions. Even more impressively, our percentage wins were the best overall out of all 21 squads. Well played to the whole squad — you did us proud.”
