British and World Marbles Championship

I am very sad to share the news of the recent death of John Roberts, one of our long time participants in the British and World Marbles Championship. John had been ill for some time, and came to find me at the tournament this year to tell me that he would no longer be with us next year, so was saying farewell and thank you while he still could.
John was a stalwart of the tournament and will be missed. We send our condolences to his family and friends, especially his teammates form the Turners Hill Tolleymen, who he captained for many years.

John's funeral will take place at 11am on 30th November, in the church at Turners Hill.

RIP John, and thank you for your contribution to the tournament over the years, it was appreciated.

Roy Wells of The Black Dog Boozers has asked me to share the following, which I do with our condolences.

It is with sadness in my heart I need to let you know my brother Alan passed away on February 27th. He was one of the founding members of the Black dog Boozers. Alan played for many of years and winning many of titles with the team. His funeral will take place on Tuesday 21st March at 12.30 at the Surrey and Sussex Crematorium in Crawley.

The 2023 British and World Marbles Championship will take place on Good Friday, 7th April, at The Greyhound, Tinsley Green, with playing starting from 10.30am.

It was good to be able to resume the tournament last year after the enforced break, and I hope that this year will be an even greater success, with more teams playing again, and equally good weather!

Invitations have now been sent out to regular teams by email - if you have not received yours, or are interested in entering a team, please message me via this page with your email address as soon as possible.

As well as the usual team championship and individual match we will be playing an extra game this year to celebrate the Coronation - this will be an opportunity to see qualifying players demonstrating their marbles skills under pressure and should be very intense competition to watch. Details of the rules etc will be available on the day.

Whether you are intending to visit as a player or a spectator, we look forward to welcoming you to take your part in this world famous tournament. Featuring highly experienced players alongside complete novices, while everyone plays to win in the main knockout draw, there can only be one victorious team, and this is why the priority of this day has always been to promote the importance of tradition over competition.

Where else would you want to be on Good Friday other than at The Greyhound, with marbles to watch, play and buy, lovely food available, a bar open all day, tales of past tournaments to hear - and sunshine if you are lucky! The Mayor pops in every year, be sure to do the same!

There were eventually 12 teams entered into the main draw for the 2022 British and World Marbles Championship, some established teams, some well known teams featuring players from other established teams to make up the numbers for this year, and one scratch team comprising experienced players and total novices.

The draw was, as always, made in advance, with the 4 semifinalists from 2019 drawn in separate quarters. Each team then randomly drew their position on the day, and with one of the previously drawn 4 teams not playing, one quarter was very sparse and the games were not necessarily played in order through the rounds, with many byes being in place, none of which made any difference to the final result - it just keeps the team in the office on their toes!

The opening match was a first round one between the Yorkshire Meds and The Shots. Although every player had the opportunity to shoot the match was over in the second round when Halim had a break of 23 marbles, winning the Yorkshire Meds the match with a total of 31 marbles to 4! This early break also won him The Sam McCarthy-Fox Break of the Day trophy for 2022.

The second match was a second round one featuring The Black Dog and Charlwood A. The Black Dog won in three rounds with a score of 25 marbles to 7. This win was mostly due to Colin's score, but every player in each team scored at least one marble.

Both teams in the third match had byes to round two. The result here was inevitable with scratch team Third Death Star being the worst victims of a merciless draw and meeting the reigning champions 1st MC Erzgebirge from Germany. By part way through round 2 Third Death Star's three novices and three experienced players had all at least taken a shot, although one had also been knocked out, and their score of 4 was no competition for Sebbo, whose second round break of 12, following one of 8 with his first shot, brought the team score to 31, and that was the end of that!

Next we had another first round match with The Caterham Cowboys playing the UFCs. These teams were more evenly matched, and are the reason that we limit matches to 4 rounds until the quarter finals. The end result was a win for the UFCs with a score of 9 to 6.

Match five was a second round one with The Yorkshire Meds playing The Tolleymen, who had combined two teams from previous years. This time Halim saved his break of 19 until his third shot, and at that point The Yorkshire Meds hit the target of 25 marbles and defeated The Tolleymen, who had been leading until that point with a score of 10, with all of their team scoring at least one marble.

Byes took both teams in match six through to the second round. Charlwood One had chosen their name so that the words would be called out at least once, and sadly this was the only time as they were beaten at the end of the four rounds by The Johnson Jets with a score of 17 to 8 and two of their team knocked out!

The luck of the draw placed the Rolling Drunks in the quarter final before taking a shot, and game seven found them playing 1st MC Erzgebirge. They put up a spirited performance, with 5 of their 6 players scoring, but it wasn't enough to hold off the Germans, and they were beaten 25 marbles to 7 with the first shot of round 3.

Game eight was the next quarter final and brought the closest result of the day. This is what marbles at its best is all about. By the time everyone had played twice the score was 22 marbles to 16, but this evened out in round three and eventually The Johnson Jets and The Yorkshire Meds had 24 marbles apiece, both needing the final one on the ring. This was finally taken by the Yorkshire Meds, putting them directly into the final as there was a bye in their semi.

Match nine featured the UFCs in their first quarter final, playing against the Black Dog, and with most members of the UFCs contributing to their final score of 10 it was not until the fifth round that the higher scoring Black Dog, including 2 players from previous teams, managed to score the winning 25th marble.

There was only one semi final played, with match number ten seeing 1st MC Erzgebirge's hopes of retaining their 2019 title destroyed. They were wiped out with a score of 17, when Colin had a break of 14 for the trailing Black Dog, bringing their score to the required 25 marbles before most players had taken their second shot!

And so to the final. The Black Dog and Yorkshire Meds are both past champion teams and each wanted to regain the title. Bob from the Meds chose this match to start playing like a champion, and with a break of 17 marbles from his first shot their team score at the end of the first round was 21, to 8 for the Black Dog, who just couldn't get their eye in. By the time Mourad, the final Meds player to shoot in round two, took his shot they needed just one marble to win and his score of two secured the victory for the 2022 British and World Marbles Champions for the first time since 2016 - The Yorkshire Meds with a final score of 26 to 10.

As the only team with a makeup of players that enables them to have a clean sweep of victories, The Yorkshire Meds made a valiant attempt at the feat this year with the individual title the only one that evaded them, when they were thwarted by Colin Gardner.

The final results of the day were:

Winners - The Yorkshire Meds

Runners up - The Black Dog

Individual winner - Colin Gardner

Sam McCarthy-Fox Break of the day winner - Halim Tata

Gardner's Golden Oldie winner - Halim Tata

Nina Coen Best Lady Player winner - Leila Kara

The post with the match reports has apparently been removed for violating Facebook rules! Trying to get it reinstated.

There were eventually 12 teams entered into the main draw for the 2022 British and World Marbles Championship, some established teams, some well known teams featuring players from other established teams to make up the numbers for this year, and one scratch team comprising experienced players and total novices.

The draw was, as always, made in advance, with the 4 semifinalists from 2019 drawn in separate quarters. Each team then randomly drew their position on the day, and with one of the previously drawn 4 teams not playing one quarter was very sparse and the games were not necessarily played in order through the rounds, with many byes being in place, none of which made any difference to the final result - it just keeps the team in the office on their toes!

The opening match was a first round one between the Yorkshire Meds and The Shots. Although every player had the opportunity to shoot the match was over in the second round when Halim had a break of 23 marbles, winning the Yorkshire Meds the match with a total of 31 marbles to 4! This early break also won him The Sam McCarthy-Fox Break of the Day trophy for 2022.

The second match was a second round one featuring The Black Dog and Charlwood A. The Black Fog won in three rounds with a score of 25 marbles to 7. This win was mostly due to Colin's score, but every player in each team scored at least one marble.

Both teams in the third match had byes to round two. The result here was inevitable with scratch team Third Death Star being the worst victims of a merciless draw and meeting the reigning champions 1st MC Erzgebirge from Germany. By part way through round 2 Third Death Star's three novices and three experienced players had all at least taken a shot, although one had also been killed, and their score of 4 was no competition for Sebbo, whose second round break of 12 following one of 8 with his first shot brought the team score to 31and that was the end of that!

Next we had another first round match with The Caterham Cowboys playing the UFCs. These teams were more evenly matched, and are the reason that we limit matches to 4 rounds until the quarter finals. The end result was a win for the UFCs with a score of 9 to 6.

Match five was a second round one with The Yorkshire Meds playing The Tolleymen, who had combined two teams from previous years. This time Halim saved his break of 19 until his third shot and at that point The Yorkshire Meds hit the target of 25 marbles and defeated The Tolleymen, who had been leading until that point with a score of 10, with all of their team scoring at least one.

Byes took both teams in match six through to the second round. Charlwood One had chosen their name so that the words would be called out at least once, and sadly this was the only time as they were beaten at the end of the four rounds by The Johnson Jets with a score of 17 to 8 and two of their team killed!

The luck of the draw placed the Rolling Drunks in the quarter final before taking a shot, and game seven found them playing 1st MC Erzgebirge. They put up a spirited performance, with 5 of their 6 players scoring, but it wasn't enough to hold off the Germans and they were beaten 25 marbles to 7 win the first shot of round 3.

Game eight was the next quarter final and brought the closest result of the day. This is what marbles at its best is all about. By the time everyone had played twice the score was 22 marbles to 16, but this evened out in round three and eventually The Johnson Jets and The Yorkshire Meds had 24 marbles apiece, both needing the final one on the ring. This was finally taken by the Yorkshire Meds, putting them directly into the final as there was a bye in their semi.

Match nine featured the UFCs in their first quarter final, playing against the Black Dog, and with most members of the UFCs contributing to their final score of 10 it was not until the fifth round that the higher scoring Black Dog, including 2 players from previous teams, managed to score the winning 25th marble.

There was only one semi final played, with match number ten seeing 1st MC Erzgebirge's hopes of retaining their 2019 title destroyed. They were wiped out with a score of 17, when Colin had a break of 14 for the trailing Black Dog, bringing their score to the required 25 marbles before most players had taken their second shot!

And so to the final. The Black Dog and Yorkshire Meds are both past champion teams and each wanted to regain the title. Bob from the Meds chose this match to start playing like a champion, and with a break of 17 marbles from his first shot their team score at the end of the first round was 21 to 8 for the Black Dog, who just couldn't get their eye in. By the time Mourad, the final Meds player to shoot in round two, took his shot they needed just one marble to win and his score of two secured the victory for the 2022 British and World Marbles Champions for the first time since 2016 - The Yorkshire Meds with a final score of 26 to 10.

As the only team with a makeup of players that enables them to have a clean sweep of victories, The Yorkshire Meds made a valiant attempt at the feat this year with the individual title the only one that evaded them, when they were thwarted by Colin Gardner.

The final results of the day were:

Winners - The Yorkshire Meds

Runners up - The Black Dog

Individual winner - Colin Gardner

Sam McCarthy-Fox Break of the day winner - Halim Tata

Gardner's Golden Oldie winner - Halim Tata

Nina Coen Best Lady Player winner - Leila Kara

Apologies for the delay in this report on the tournament on Good Friday 2022 - we have had some issues with internet access.

We had glorious weather, which is always a good start, and it was lovely to finally be back at The Greyhound after missing 2 years of play because of the pandemic.

Following the sad death of longtime organiser Sam McCarthy-Fox last July, this tournament was played in his memory, and during the afternoon a plaque was unveiled on the wall of the pub to commemorate him and all he has done for the sport of marbles over many years. We were also joined by local Morris dancers The Broadwood Men, who Sam danced with for many years, who performed a dance written in honour of the marbles at Tinsley Green, in his memory.

For various reasons there were fewer competitors this year, and members of a number of well known teams amalgamated with others who needed players, meaning far more teams were actually represented than the number who appeared in the draw.

Following initial misinformation about the tournament being cancelled there were fewer spectators than usual too, however the smaller but enthusiastic crowd made for a very enjoyable day reminiscent of many years ago - the kind of Good Friday Sam always loved the best, making it a perfect day to remember him.

The Deputy Mayor visited as part of her 30th birthday celebrations, and was fascinated by how skilled some of the players were, and, as ever, there were a number of photographers around all day recording the event for various publications.

We have inevitably lost players during the break between tournaments. Those I am aware of include Tom Chamberlain, who played with The Handcross Rebels for over 60 years, and longtime member of the Johnson Jets Mark Parsons - both of whom made a great contribution to carrying on the tradition of playing marbles at Tinsley Green.

If you are intending to enter a team in the tournament on Good Friday can you please message me via this page to let me know.
Thank you.
Looking forward to seeing you on Good Friday, when we will be unveiling a plaque in memory of Sam during the day.

We are very happy to announce that the British and World Marbles Championship will finally take place again on Good Friday, 15th April 2022, at The Greyhound, Tinsley Green.
We look forward to welcoming both players and spectators to this traditional and historic tournament at it's spiritual home, where play will begin around 10.30am.
Invitations to regular teams were sent on Ash Wednesday - all levels of players are welcome, and if you are interested in entering a team please supply your email address via messenger and we will be happy to send details to you as soon as possible.
This year we will be playing in memory of Sam McCarthy-Fox, and there will be a plaque unveiled during the day to commemorate his dedication to and love of this tournament, without which it would not have continued.

For anyone who is interested, Sam's funeral will take place in the Kingswood Chapel at Worthing Crematorium On Friday 13th August at midday - all are welcome to attend.

We are very sad to announce that Sam McCarthy-Fox died on July 7th. Sam was 76 and had been suffering from heart failure.

In 1978 there was an attempt to relocate the annual marbles tournament from its home at The Greyhound to Crawley Leisure Centre. As a great lover of the preservation of traditions Sam was not happy at this, and, after speaking to a few like minded players, he persuaded them to play at Tinsley Green anyway, and a new era began.
Over the last 40 years the British and World Marbles Championship has gone from strength to strength with Sam at the heart of it, and he was enormously proud of that. He was especially proud of how we were always able to include anyone in a team if they wanted to play on Good Friday, and how we managed to maintain what was of utmost importance to him, the importance of tradition over competition, while running a world renowned event. Our players vary from complete novices to those with decades of experience, and Sam's philosophy was always to make them all welcome and allow them all to play. One of the other things he particularly loved was the way in which the German teams have become an integral part of each Good Friday at Tinsley Green, and how players who have moved away continue to return each year to be part of our living tradition.
As well as running this tournament Sam was passionate about everything to do with marbles. He had a huge collection of over 100,000 of these beautiful glass spheres and he would never turn one away if it needed a good home. One year he even appeared in the Guinness Book of Records sitting in a bathtub full of them!
Sam visited marbles tournaments in several countries over the years and had a vast network of marbles connections worldwide, many of whom became close friends. He also enjoyed visits to marbles factories in America, learning all that there was to know about the manufacture of marbles.
Throughout every year Sam answered numerous queries about marbles in all shapes and forms, giving interviews to radio and television companies and written publications around the world - he has given talks on marbles, run marbles workshops and was happy to discuss them with anyone who would listen. His archive of marbles memorabilia was extensive and he has compiled a comprehensive history of Good Friday tournaments.
Sam was a true ambassador for marbles and our tournament was very lucky to have him for so many years.

Thank you Marble Sam - we will miss you.

The Yorkshire Meds were another team to play marbles at home on Good Friday last year to help continue the tradition - if any teams do so this year please let us have some photos.

We are sorry to confirm that the 2021 British and World Marbles Championship will not be taking place due to the current worldwide COVID19 pandemic.
We hope to see you back at The Greyhound, Tinsley Green on Good Friday 2022.

As we have been unable to hold the tournament this year I would like to thank Darren, Siobhan and Cormac for playing a token game of marbles to maintain the Good Friday tradition for us. See you at Tinsley Green next year.

Only just seen this one!

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Due to the current worldwide situation regarding COVID19 it has been decided that the British and World Marbles Championship 2020 will not be taking place.
We will return to The Greyhound at Tinsley Green on Good Friday 2021.