Gisborne’s former world croquet champ gives ‘gateball’ a go

Gisborne's Joe Hogan has reached the top of the world in the traditional form of croquet and has had success in the more modern golf croquet, and now he is turning his skills to what has been described as a Twenty20 version of the game - gateball. "New Zealand team captain and president of the Gateball Association of New Zealand, Dennis Bulloch, gave Hogan this gateball set so he could practise in the months leading up to the Asia Pacific tournament. Hogan and practise partner Don McConnochie set up the equipment at the Barry Memorial Croquet Club courts to get to grips with the new game.

Former world croquet singles champion Joe Hogan has spread his wings to take in the sport’s equivalent of Twenty20 cricket.

Gateball is a mallet team sport inspired by croquet and invented in Japan in 1947.

Men and women compete together in teams of five in games that last 30 minutes, during which players have 10 seconds to make their shot or lose their turn.

Gateball is to croquet what Twenty20 matches are to cricket, Hogan says.

He had his first taste of competitive gateball this month as a member of the first New Zealand team to enter an international gateball tournament. It was the Asia Pacific Open held in Chinese Taipei over three days.

Hogan, who won the inaugural world croquet singles championship in England in 1989, was invited to join the team by Dennis Bulloch, president of the Gateball Association of New Zealand and team captain.

“Dennis has been a top association croquet and golf croquet player and has been playing gateball for two or three years,” Hogan said.

“He went to a tournament last year with Australia, and reckoned New Zealand could field a side that would give the Aussies a good run.”

The teams played quins (five-person teams) on the first day, trebles on the second and pairs on the third.

On the first two days, New Zealand were “in the hunt” for two games and were “smashed” in the other.

But in the pairs, Bulloch and Hogan won New Zealand’s first game in international gateball – a cause for “huge celebrations”.

“On the same day, the Australians won their first game,” Hogan said.

“It was their second international event but they had their local championships ahead of us and have been playing gateball for over 20 years.”

Hogan intends to play association and golf croquet as well as gateball this year. He plans to compete at the national tournaments and make himself available for international play if selected.

In February, he will be in Palmerston North defending the New Zealand men’s championship in association croquet, a title he won in February this year ... 33 years after the last time he won it. He has won it five times in all, along with a swag of other honours.

“Croquet keeps me young,” said Hogan, who turns 66 on October 29.

“I’ve been inspired by the Olympics.”

According to Wikipedia, gateball was invented by Suzuki Kazunobu. While the rubber needed for many ballsports was in short supply, Japan had a ready supply of the wood used to make croquet balls and mallets. After a revision of the croquet rules, gateball emerged as a game for young people.

It became popular in the late 1950s when a physical education instructor introduced gateball to the women’s societies and senior citizens’ clubs of Kumamoto City. The Kumamoto Gateball Association was formed in 1962 and a local set of rules was established.

This version of the game became known nationally when it was demonstrated at a national fitness meet in Kumamoto in 1976.

Shortly afterwards, gateball’s popularity exploded as local government officials and representatives of senior citizens’ organisations introduced the sport around the country.

In 1984, the Japanese Gateball Union was founded, and in 1985 the World Gateball Union was formed.

Gateball is most popular in China, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea and Chinese Taipei, and has a growing presence elsewhere, notably North and South America, and Australasia.