Oh la la! Pétanque club paints Ōrewa red white and blue

The flag of France, the ‘tricolore’, was flying from the flagpole and pétanque players, were decked out in red, white and blue on July 14 for the annual Hibiscus Pétanque Club’s Bastille Day tournament.

The event celebrates the sport’s French origins and, with a bottle of champagne up for grabs for the best-dressed, members donned their berets, fake moustaches and red, white and blue stripes. One player strung garlic around his neck, and another painted his boules (the balls used for pétanque) in red, white and blue stripes.

Club captain Dave Robinson said a lot of work had gone into the preparations, as they welcomed and catered for around 36 teams from all over Auckland, and one from Tauranga, for the event.

The day was all about fun and gave the teams a good chunk of competition too. The Auckland Chanticleer Cup team used the day for practice before next month’s tournament between Auckland and Wellington. The Hibiscus club’s Heather Matthews, and Chanticleer coach Michael Emerson won top honours.

Hibiscus Pétanque, based behind Bowls Ōrewa, is an up-and-coming club, Dave said. It is one of the largest in Auckland with 80 members, two competitive interclub teams and four national players. Helping it attract new members is the quality of the terrain it offers, featuring more than 20 pistes.