"Ya Can't Tell the Players Without a Scorecard!"

Despite the title above hearkening back to early 20th century American baseball (a sport that's on my mind now that Spring Training has started here in Florida for northern teams), here's a breakdown of the important characters in our ongoing story of the Mills siblings of Budleigh Salterton--George, Agnes, and Violet--on the equally verdant croquet lawns of England, 1950-1971. If possible, they all have been listed with their associated club, and I've done my best to record their accomplishments on the lawns and any positions held.

If you can add any information about a player or their affiliations, offer a photograph (or a better image), or could suggest adding another interesting or important player to this list, please don't hesitate to let me know--and thank you! I will update information and images as frequently as I can [Last update: 15 July 2011].

Now, please scroll down to see the players...

	Agnes Edith "Aggie" Mills Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club Won the 1953 Luard Cup at Roehampton; for Agnes's prize lists, please click HERE
Violet Eleanor "Vi" Mills Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club Accomplished amateur in golf, lawn tennis, and croquet; participant in tournaments in all three sports throughout England; for Violet's prize lists, please click HERE
	George Ramsay Acland Mills Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club Schoolmaster, author, and veteran of both World Wars; for George's prize lists, please click HERE
Barbara May Chittenden The Compton Club at Eastbourne The wife of Mr. Hugh F. Chittenden, former Head Master of Newlands School in Seaford, Sussex
	Veronica Claire "Vera" Gasson Hurlingham Club Secretary of the Croquet Association, 1960-1970
Lt.-Col. Gerald E. Cave Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club Croquet and Tournament Secretary, 1965-?; 1974 Manager of Great Britain's MacRobertson Shield Series Team
	Mrs. Geraldine Cave Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club Gerald Cave's mother, with whom he lived
J. G. "Guy" Warwick Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club South of England Championship, 1962; Referee, MacRobertson Shield Series, 1974; Brother of Joan Warwick
	Edith Joan "Joan" Warwick Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club Played on MacRobertson Shield winning team in 1963; CA Women's Champion, 1960, 1962, 1965, 1966, 1968; Captain, British Wanderers Women's Hockey Team; Author, Umpiring for Women's Hockey, 1971
E. A. "Tony" Roper The Compton Club at Eastbourne Former Head Master of Ladycross School, Seaford, East Sussex
	Maurice B. Reckitt President of the Croquet Association, 1967-1975; CA Men's Champion, 1935, 1946; Surrey Championship 1934; South of England Champion, 1950; Author, Croquet Today, 1954; Played on 1956 MacRobertson Shield winner
Evelyn Aimee "Aimee" Reckitt Ranked Women's Tennis Player: 1922 (58th); 1923 (28th); 1924 (60th); 1925 (72nd); 1926 (78th); 1927 (62nd); Epsom Tennis Finals, 1923, 1925, 1926 Wimbledon, 1923, 1925, 1927
	Lady Ursula Abbey The Compton Club at Eastbourne? Well-known Breeder of show dogs at Cruft's; a noted outdoorswoman and shooter
Maj. John Roland "Jack" Abbey The Compton Club at Eastbourne? Renowned antiquarian book and manuscript collector, entrepreneur, and veteran of both World Wars; Tournament croquet player as far back as Brighton, 1913
	Rev. Canon Ralph Creed Meredith East Dorset Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club New Zealand Badminton Champion, Singles, Doubles, Mixed, 1927; Doubles co-champion, 1928; Player on losing MacRobertson Shield team (New Zealand), 1930; Past President of both the New Zealand Badminton & Croquet Associations
Sir Leonard Daldry Cheltenham Croquet Club? Referee, MacRobertson Shield Series, 1974 Banker and Senator of Federal Legislature, Nigeria
	Mrs. Alex Fotiadi Bowdon Croquet Club Member of Bowdon C.C. from 1939 until her death in 1990; Club President, 1972-1981; Donor of Bowdon's Novices Silver Challenge Bowl, 1957
Dr. Harold John Penny Winner of the Faulkner Cup, North of England Championship in 1939, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1951
	Isobel Marion Roe Cheltenham Croquet Club CA Women's Championship, 1961; British Women's Ski Champion, 1938-1949; 1937 (Downhill) & 1939 (Slalom & Alpine) Skiing World Championships; 1948 GB Winter Olympic Team, St. Moritz, (Slalom, Downhill, Combined); 1948 Ladies Lowlander Champion; President, The Ladies' Ski Club (England), 1957-1960; Guiness Book of WorldRecords, 1986, Most British Women's Ski Titles Held
Bennett Gregory "Bill" Perry Budleigh Salterton Croquet Club Played on Great Britain's MacRobertson Shield winning team in 1974; winner of 12 tournaments from 1966-1981
	Dr. H. R. "Herbie" McAleenan The Compton Club at Eastbourne Beat E. A. "Tony" Roper in the X Handicap Finals at the age of 83 at the Saffrons in 1964
Dr. William P. Ormerod East Dorset Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club Played on MacRobertson Shield Series winning teams, 1956 (age 19), 1963, 1969, 1974; Won CA President's Cup, 1966; and Men's Championship, 1970; 7 time winner of Open Doubles Chamionship; 9 time winner of Parkstone Dorset Salver Open (54 years between his 1956 and 2010 victories); Current UK/Ireland Ranking: 97th (2011); Donated Wm. Ormerod Trophy to Austrian Croquet Federation, 2006; now coaching golf croquet at Swanage Croquet Club; won Delves-Broughton Open Golf Croquet Doubles Championship in 1954 at the age of 17 with A.E. Stokes-Roberts

[Update (8 July 2011): Many thanks to Budleigh's Judy Perry for the colour photographs used here!]

Worthy Adversaries of the Mills

Last time we attempted to look at the achievements of George Mills and his spinster sisters Violet and Agnes Mills in croquet tournaments ranging from Cheltenham and Roehampton to Budleigh Salterton and Eastbourne.

The Mills siblings weren't on the field of play alone, however. Many names flicker past one's eyes as the small print of The Times sports page is winnowed, searching for "Mills." Some friends and foes are even gathered in the 1974 photograph [left] taken at Budleigh Salterton during the 1974 series played among Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand for the MacRobertson Shield.

Here's a look at the players who most commonly matched up either alongside or against George, Agnes, and Violet. I've transcribed their name as they appear in The Times, as well as adding Christian names as they are provided in the extremely useful Bowdon Croquet photo archives:

Player	Appear- ances	As Partner	As Opponent	Together vs. Mills	Record vs. Mills
Mrs. V. C. Gasson (Vera)	18	10	8	–	2 – 6
Lt. Col. G. E. Cave (Gerald)	14	7	7	–	7 – 2
Mrs. G. E. Cave    (Geraldine)	5	0	5	–	3 – 2
CAVE TOTALS	19	5	14	3 times	10 – 4
Mrs. H. F. Chittenden (Barbara)	12	3	10	–	3 – 7
Dr. H. J. Penny (Harold)	7	0	7	–	1 – 6
C. H. R. Penny	2	0	2	–	1 – 1
PENNY TOTALS	9	0	9	1 time	2 – 7
Miss J. Warwick (Joan)	7	0	7	–	5 – 0
J. G. Warwick (Guy)	6	2	4	–	4 – 0
Miss I. M. Roe (Isobel)	5	0	5	–	7 – 2
A. J. Cooper (John)	6	0	6	–	4 – 2

The column of the table headed "Paired vs. Mills" indicates how many times a pairing played as partners against one or more of the Mills. This is important because as the Caves (Lt.-Col., and his mother, Mrs.) beat the Mills twice [Lt.-Col. Cave is pictured, right], they each put a win on their record versus the siblings even though only one game was played. This happened in the loss the Caves suffered at the hands of the Mills. Dr. H. J. Penny and C. H. R. Penny also fell to the Mills as a pairing, losing one game.

Also, I do not know if the Warwicks (Miss J. and J. G.) were related [Update: They were brother and sister]. They never played in a pair against the Mills, and I'm leery of assuming they are relatives, although they both seem to have beaten the Mills sibs like the proverbial drum! On one day, 6 May 1966, J. G. Warwick [pictured below, left] defeated the Mills twice as George and Violet each were scratched.

An oddity in the line of Mrs. H. F. Chittenden, of Seaford, East Sussex, is that she is recorded as both a partner and a foe for playing a single game: On 10 May 1968, she defeated Miss Violet Mills and Sir Leonard Daldry [pictured far below, right] by 12, playing alongside George Mills.

One last item: Although Miss I. M. Roe matched up against the Mills clan on only 5 occasions, she played 9 games during those tilts. Roe played Agnes for the Women's Championship at Roehampton in both 1961 and 1962, winning both times by tallies of (+4, –2, +17) and (–5, +19, +12).


Here's a table of notable nemeses/allies of the Mills siblings:

Most Individual Appearances	Mrs. V. C. Gasson—18
Most Frequent Partner (w/Mills)	Mrs. V. C. Gasson—10
Most Frequent Opponent (vs. Mills)	Mrs. H. F. Chittenden—10
Most Frequent Pairing (vs. Mills)	Lt.-Col. & Mrs. G. E. Cave—19
Most Victories (vs. Mills)	Lt.-Col. G. E. Cave & Miss I. M. Roe—7
Most Losses (vs. Mills)	Mrs. H. F. Chittenden—7

A last bit of information before closing today would be an examination of the singles handicaps of the Mills trio across time. One last table for quick viewing:

	First Year of Singles	Initial Handicap	Lowest Handicap	Final handicap (1971)
Miss A. E. Mills	1950	+3	+1½	+3½
Miss V. E. Mills	1956	+2	+2	+2
George R. A. Mills	1958	+10	+4	+4

[Update: You can find more accurate information on handicaps by clicking HERE.]


As we can clearly see, Violet indeed must have been the best athlete of the three, taking a handicap of 2 onto the lawn for her first tournament game. George, however, made the greatest improvement in his croquet, beginning as a 10 handicap and, in a decade and a half, shaving that down to 4.

It appears that these handicaps improved over time, but were never diminished until Agnes rose from a 1½ to a 3½. During the 1971 season, for example, when Agnes was 76 years of age, The Times archive tells me she lost her four tournament games played by double-digit scores of –20, –23, –10, and –16. In the very last game she was scheduled to play, she retired. Clearly, the aging warrior of the lawns from the Mills family, Agnes, was losing some of her game. The final loss by retirement, at home in Budleigh Salterton on 6 July 1971 to M. B. Reckitt, might have been particularly hard for such a competitor to swallow.

George had played two games the day before at the age of 74 and had lost both by scores of (-15) and (-13). In fact, the Mills family is recorded as having played just one game after Agnes could not take the field on the 6th of July in 1971. On that same day, Violet Mills defeated C. Edwards (+5) in the first round of Level Singles at Budleigh. I've scoured The Times, page by page, over the next several days and there is no record of Violet, aged 70, having played a subsequent tournament game at Budleigh that year despite her 1st round victory. In fact, I cannot discover any of the siblings having played another tournament game. Ever. Anywhere.


[Update: This correct information came from Chris Williams of the Croquet Association:

Looking in the 1970 Gazettes I can see that George played in the July
week tournament at Cheltenham (13-18 July)

He lost to Isobel Roe and Christine Bagnall in the first rounds of the B
Class event. It was played as a draw and process which everyone gets two
chances to progress in the event. He lost his first game in the handicap
knockout to FW Meredith (0), playing off a handicap of 4 and lost in the
first game in the handicap doubles playing with RN Bateson, who I think
it still playing croquet nowadays.

I cannot find any evidence of any of the three of the Millses playing
after 1970.

Thanks, as always, very much, Chris!]


Over the next few posts, we'll take a look at some notable opponents of the Mills clan at tournaments from 1951 through 1971, including a surprising connection to the teaching career of George Mills!

"Death is the only pure, beautiful conclusion of a great passion" -- D. H. Lawrence

It is with mixed emotions that I sit here writing this on an exceptionally chilly January night here in Florida. Yesterday I finally came upon the death notice of George Mills from The Times. Even a blind squirrel eventually finds a nut...

I've been immersed in complete frustration trying to sort out Mills and his sisters and the lives they lived as croquet-playing retirees in Budleigh Salterton—the search engine at The Times is as unwieldy, unfruitful, and un-user-friendly as you could possibly imagine.

Anyway, I've been logging a compendium of their exploits on the field of play in an Excel document that's growing more cumbersome by the day. Still, I often take the time to keep probing the Byzantine bits and bytes of data that make up the Archives at The Times for other information about Mills and his family. It finally, at long last, paid off!

Utterly by coincidence, I acidentally stumbled upon the death notice of a Mills family croquet nemesis (and sometimes partner in doubles), Veronica Claire (V. C.) Gasson, who played at the club in Hurlingham. George and his sisters, Agnes and Violet, often played there, as well as facing off against Gasson in Budleigh Salterton and all around the south of England. [Her notice is pictured, above left.]

I hadn't been even remotely looking for the obituary of any of their croquet-playing cronies, but the surprising discovery of Gasson reinvigorated my quest for the death notices of Mills and his sisters. It wouldn't be easy, but luck would be with me.

I knew from ancestry.com that spinsters Agnes (born in Bude, Cornwall, in 1895) and Violet (born in Kensington, London, in 1902) had died in the same quarter of 1975: Jul-Aug-Sep. It turns out that their deaths were reported in the same issue of The Times, dated 15 July, 1975.

Violet, George's younger sibling, had left us on July 6th. Agnes, a year older than George, passed just five days later on the 11th. Their ages were 72 and 80, respectively.

I knew that if the girls deaths had appeared in The Times, there was no way George's hadn't. I set out to find him, and finally did.

His own notice, which appeared in the paper on 11 December 1972, reads as follows:

MILLS.—On Friday, December 8, 1972, peacefully in hospital. George Ramsay Acland, very dearly beloved brother of Agnes and Violet of "Grey Friars," Westfield Road, Budleigh Salterton, Devon. Loved by all who knew him. Funeral service at the Roman Catholic Church on Wednesday, December 13, at 10:30 a.m.

Mills had just celebrated his 76th birthday on 1 October.

It's funny. I knew Mills was dead. I knew he'd died in Oct-Nov-Dec 1972. I knew he'd died in Devon. And, thanks to Michael Downes, I knew he'd been living with his loving sisters at Grey Friars on Westfield Road in Budleigh Salterton.

Now there's a date, and a place—"in hospital"—and a funeral service set for Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.

I should be happy to have ascertained the facts of the matter.

Perhaps it's normal, though, to feel sad.