Fonmon – Field Masters – 6th November
The Last round for the Field Masters tour was Held at Fonmon 6 November 2011-11-07
The Turnout for the last round of 5 competitions was well attended on a crisp autumnal day by archers from all over Wales and even a few visitors from England
The round was marked foresters round, which meant as high scores were up for the takings and potently change the leader-board.
Although the week leading up to the competition saw nothing but heavy rain, the weather on the day was ideal shooting conditions this made the course very interesting as the stance positions at the distance pegs were very slippery with more than one archer having to come down readjust their stance and try shooting. Even traversing the course between targets was tricky due to the footing underneath.
Imogen Kent and Bob Marriot made their debut appearance at the last major competition of the year, Rhys Duffen also shot the course for the first time on cub pegs as to familiarise himself with the rules of competition And were hopefully inspired to continue next year.
It appeared everyone had fun over the day, and enjoyed the rest stops over the day so they could gain strength to continue. And a huge Thank you for Cath Trew for the most welcome supply of hot beverages and food.
The scores are on the WFAA website along with the leader board.
Hopefully we will see you all at the indoor Championship in 2012 15 January
UK & Ireland Field Archery Championships 2011
The UK & Ireland Field Archery Championships 2011 took place on 27th and 28th August at Tintern Abbey, County Wexford on the south-eastern coast of Ireland.
The tournament was hosted by Dunbrody Archers, which was established in 2004, and is the largest club in Ireland with over 90 active members.
The shoot itself is a two day event consisting of a field round and a hunter round. This year Dunbrody archers designed and built two separate courses in and around the grounds of Tintern Abbey in under a month, during the week before the championships Co. Wexford was hit with heavy downpours of rain which slowed their progress however due to their determination and commitment the courses were ready for the start on Saturday morning, the only disappointment was that after the event on Monday morning both courses had to be dismantled.
155 archers representing England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland attended this year’s championships including 9 members of the Llantwit Major Archery club with 4 of them representing Wales in the Team event.
Day 1 saw the Freestyle Unlimited and Freestyle Recurve archers shooting the hunter course which was the easier of the two courses with only a few uphill and downhill shots, which meant the scoring was quite high and number of the clubs members achieved personal best scores. The remaining style groups shot the more challenging field course, which consisted of a number of steep uphill and downhill shots that even the more experienced archers found challenging, nevertheless a number of archers returned with very respectable scores. The weatherman had threatened heavy showers during the day but fortunately they were wrong and the sun shone more most of the day providing us with good shooting conditions which was greatly received especially by Colin Ketley who was in the last group to finish the round, 1½ hours after the next last group.
Day 2. The archers that shot the hunter course on Day 1 shot the field course whilst those that shot the field course shot the hunter course. The groups on day 2 were organised as head to heads which is the top 4 in each style all shoot together. After the great scores and personal bests flying around on day 1, the competition was very close in all shooting styles and once again a number of the LMA members achieved very respectable scores. The early morning weather threatened rain but as the day progressed it improved and the event ended with the awards ceremony being conducted with the sun shining.
The inter-club rivalry between Peter Hatherley and Nathan Trew continued with Nathan struggling to control his left and right direction gave Peter a 33 point lead at the end of day 1 however Nathan made a Valiant effort to correct his problem at the start of day 2 and started to relax which improved his scoring and though he out scored Peter on the Field course he finished the championships 23 points behind him.
Well done to Michael Mattingley AMHB and Chris Gray JMFSR, who won gold medals, Sally Mattingley AFHB silver medal, Sandra Jones AFFSR and Paul Watson AMBBR bronze medal winners.
Congratulations to Dave Gray who shot his first B class score and Colin Ketley who shot his first A class score.
Thank you to everyone involved in hosting the UKIFAC 2011. Dunbrody archers have done themselves and Ireland (as the host nation) proud. The course was thoughtfully laid out in the beautiful abbey setting.
| Name | Style | Day 1 | Day 2 | Total | Position |
| Paul Watson | AMBBR | 256 | 329 | 588 | 3rd |
| Chris Gray | JMFSR | 432 | 436 | 868 | 1st |
| Sandra Jones | AFFSR | 264 | 222 | 486 | 3rd |
| Pete Hatherley | AMFSR | 434 | 405 | 839 | |
| Nathan Trew | AMFSR | 401 | 415 | 816 | |
| Dave Gray | AMFSR | 358 | 334 | 692 | |
| Colin Ketley | AMFU | 513 | 492 | 1005 | |
| Mike Mattingley | AMHB | 175 | 227 | 402 | 1st |
| Sally Mattingley | AFHB | 64 | 130 | 194 | 2nd |
Sunday 24th July – Yardmaster
The Yardmaster shoot took place on the 24th of July. The weather was warm and dry, with a slight breeze up top.
The shoot was a Hunter round with the use of the North sides fourteen targets. There was some exceptional shooting from everyone who took part.
The turn out was small, however the scores were of good standard. Llantwit archers would also like to thank Wynn Jones, Ben Lawson and Cyril John for travelling down to join us.
Shooting Fonmon for the first time was Mitch shooting AMBU. Even though it is a challenging course he came out with a respectable score. Well done.
Llantwit major archers would like to thank Catherine Trew for her help with the catering through out the day.
The list of archers scores can be found on the WFAA website.
report by Nathan Trew
Sunday 29th may – Fonmon Challenge
The Fonmon Challenge went ahead on the 29th of May. The weather was overcast and drizzly to begin with but improved during the afternoon.
The shoot was an Expert round with the use of all 28 targets. There was some exceptional shooting with Fonmon and welsh records being broken.
The attendance was below that of previous years but those that did make it to the shoot, helped make it an amusing day. It was also nice to see Cyril and Rick, who travelled down to tackle the challenging Fonmon course.
The scores themselves were of a positive standard with some archers shooting at their best.
Llantwit major archers would like to thank Catherine Trew for feeding us throughout the day, this time without any eyebrow singeing moments!!!
The list of archers and scores are below in no particular order. Well Done and thank you to everyone who helped and participated.
| Style | Name | Score | ||
| AMFSR | Nathan Trew | 325 | 1st | |
| AMFSU | Colin Ketley | 426 | ||
| AMFSR | Dave Gray | 285 | ||
| AFFSR | Sandra Jones | 159 | 1st | FR WR |
| AFHB | Elise Mattingely | 124 | 1st | FR WR |
| AMHB | Michael Mattingely | 131 | 1st | FR |
| AMFU | Jak Kent | 438 | 1st | FR |
| AMBBR | Paul Watson | 275 | 1st | FR |
| JMFSR | Chris Gray | 435 | 1st | FR WR |
report by Nathan Trew
Sunday 15th may – Field Masters Tournament -St David Shoot
Zenith archers hosted this year’s first Field Masters Tournament, the St David Shoot which was a Field Round on the 15th May. Once again the weatherman attempt at guessing the temperatures were wrong, they said it would be warm and dry, I suppose we could give them some credit as it stayed dry with a bit of a breeze at times.
The attendance was below that of previous years but those that it make it to the shoot were given a warm welcome by Mike Lawson and Zenith archers club members, all the archers would like to thank Ben Lawson who along with Mike missed out on t he shooting to provide the catering.
The Zenith course at Whitney Court, Hay-on-Wye is a 14 target course which was challenging and well laid out with a number of targets catching archers out, there may not be many uphill shots but the downhill ones were interesting.
The scores themselves were of good standard with some archers going all out to finish first. Overall Llantwit Major Archers came away with 4 winners.
Llantwit major archers would like to thank Mike Lawson and Ben Lawson for a warm welcome and taking their time to keep us fed.
The list of archers and scores are below in no particular order. Well Done
| Style | Name | Score | |
| AMFSR | Nathan Trew | 401 | 1st |
| AMFU | Colin Ketley | 480 | |
| AMBBR | Paul Watson | 285 | 1st |
| AFFSR | Sandra Jones | 108 | |
| AFHB | Sally Mattingely | 92 | 1st |
| AMHB | Michael Mattingely | 249 | 1st |
| AMFSR | Peter Hatherley | 399 |
report by Nathan Trew
Saturday 16th – Sunday 17th April Red Kite Welsh & Open Championships
Red Kite archers hosted this year’s Welsh & Open Championships on 16th and 17th April, once again the weather was kind and managed to stay warm and dry for both days though a little breezy at times.
Whilst the attendance at this year’s championship was low, those that did turnout including those that made the long trip down from Scotland received a very warm welcome from Cyril and Jean who were proud to show off their log cabin that Cyril has built by himself from timber cut from the surrounding woods, there was still plenty of trees to jump out in front of wayward arrows as can be verified by Sally and Colin.
The course itself was hard going, not only was the shots difficult but some archers found going underfoot difficult too. It is defiantly a challenging course with a number of shots that looked easy but caught most archers out due to the subtle combination of cross and downhill slopes. Whilst the Red Kite course has a full 28 targets, Cyril decided to split the course with the 14 targets at the top end of the course being shot on the Saturday and the lower end 14 being shot on he Sunday.
Considering the difficultly of the course most archers were satisfied with their scores and overall Llantwit Major archers came away with a good haul of the trophies including 5 Welsh Champions, including Elise Mattingely shooting in her first Outdoor Welsh and Open Championships.
Llantwit major archers would like to thank Cyril and Jean for a warm welcome and excellent weekend.
The list of archers and scores are below in no particular order, well done all, Keep it up.
| Style | Name | Score day 1 | Score day 2 | Overall Score | |
| AMFSR | Nathan Trew | 380 | 323 | 703 | |
| AMFU | Colin Ketley | 457 | 473 | 930 | 1st |
| AMBBR | Paul Watson | 255 | 262 | 517 | |
| CFHB | Elise Mattingely | 163 | 174 | 337 | 1st |
| AFFSR | Sandra Jones | 168 | 156 | 324 | 1st |
| AFHB | Sally Mattingely | 66 | 81 | 147 | 1st |
| AMHB | Michael Mattingely | 220 | 191 | 411 | 1st |
| AMFU | Jak Kent | 470 | 450 | 920 |
report by Nathan Trew
Sunday 3rd April Red Kite Spring Shoot
On Sunday the 3rd of April Red Kite archers hosted their Spring Shoot., The day was overcast most of the time but in the main dry apart from one short moderately heavy shower.. The course lived up to its name with great views of a couple of Red Kites going around at tree top height as well as what can only be described as a ‘huge’ Buzzard making slow lazy circles above – almost worrying at times!
A number of LM Archers made the trip to the Red Kite course near Aberglasney House and received a warm welcome from Cyril and Jean, the new log cabin clubhouse was admired and hot drinks and food were enjoyed by all.
A lot of work has been done on the course but the paths and shoot points are still not for those with poor balance ! Stability was something archers needed more than the bows on occasions! It is certainly a challenging course with a number of shots that really make you think a lot before you shoot and then scratch your head a lot after you shoot.
Most archer’s scores were down on their usual standard, partly due to the difficulty of the shots but partly the difficulty of the course footing. However, they all enjoyed the day.
LM Archers say ‘Well Done’ to Nathan on his first tournament as AMFSR, a very respectable first outing and score.
Llantwit Major Archers would like to thank Cyril and Jean for a very warm welcome and a good day. The list of archers and scores below in no particular order, well done all
| Style | Name | Score | Position |
| AMFSR | Nathan Trew | 321 | |
| AMFSR | Mark Lunn | 457 | 1st |
| AFBBR | Yoke Lunn | 270 | 1st |
| AMFU | Colin Ketley | 469 | |
| AMFU | Nigel Kent | 502 | 1st |
| AMFU | Jak Kent | 440 |
A Few photos of the day
Sunday 13th March Fonmon Spring Shoot
The LMA Fonmon Spring Shoot shoot went ahead on Sunday the 13th, the day was dry and sunny and enjoyed by all that attended. A warm welcome to a number of people who had not shot Fonmon before!
The shoot was a Mk Animal and while a number of Fonmon course records and Welsh records were scored no-one managed the elusive 560 to win the prize for a perfect score
There was some exitement in the Orchard where there was an attempt to uplift the usual food provided to a Michelin standard with boeuf flambé – Steve to the rescue and no stars awarded to the catering crew or more importantly seen by them via the roof ! Seriously – many thanks to Verity and Cath for managing the catering to keep all the archers fed through the day.
Sad to say the turnout on the day was disappointing with little representation by the other clubs. The WFAA committee had other commitments so were unable to attend the first outdoor WFAA tournament of the year but overall a good day with a good shoot. Scores listed below in no particular order.
WR = Welsh Record – this requires claiming via the WFAA process
FR = Fonmon Record – The web site will be updated accordingly
Well done all
| Style | Name | Score | Position | ||
| AMFSR | Nathan Trew | 312 | |||
| AMFSR | Dave Gray | 382 | |||
| AFFSR | Sandra Jones | 346 | 1st | WR | FR |
| JMFSR | Chris Gray | 438 | 1st | WR | |
| JFFSR | Kath Gray | 138 | 1st | WR | FR |
| AMBBR | Mal Williams | 380 | |||
| AMBBR | Paul Watson | 416 | 1st | ||
| AFBBR | Yoke Lunn | 392 | FR | ||
| AFBBR | Vic Kalmaru | 510 | 1st | WR | |
| JMBBR | Gethyn Friend | 264 | 1st | ||
| JMBBR | Ben Harler Witts | 256 | |||
| AMFU | Colin Ketley | 550 | 1st | FR | |
| AMFU | Steve Thomas | 528 | |||
| AMFU | Jak Kent | 544 | |||
| AFHB | Sally Mattingley | 122 | 1st | WR | FR |
| AMUR | Michael Mattingley | 372 | 1st | WR | FR |
Sunday 13th Hunter Classification shoot
The LMA Hunter Classification shoot went ahead on Sunday the 13th, notably it broke our record of dry shoots and a ‘few’ drops of rain were reported to have fallen <insert picture of drowned rat here !>
A brave few were out to get the first classification score of 2011 at Fonmon and get a reminder of the course in the rain. Our sympathies to Steve for his fall and a best wishes for a speedy recovery !.
The course was not at its best and it highlighted the need for the workparties we have put into our diary, We need all our members to help on this as we want to cut steps at most targets to improve the footing and reband a lot of the butts to prevent shoot throughs when they get wet! Please make every effort to come along and help with the course maintenance, it can be fun and you really get to know the course – this can add points to your score at the next competition!
Those that shot on the day listed below with scores in no specific order.
| Style | Name | Score |
| AMU | Colin Ketley | 492 |
| AMU | Steve Thomas | dnf |
| AMU | Nigel Kent | 511 |
| AMUR | Michael Mattingley | 208 |
WFAA Welsh & Open Indoor Championships
The WFAA Welsh and Open Indoor championships took place at Pentref on the 16th of January and Llantwit Major Archers were in attendance in good number as usual. The tournament attendance was slightly down on previous years but there were 34 archers registered, of these, 18 were LM Archers with Michael shooting twice !
The shoot was as usual split into two sessions across the day and our archers were present in both sessions.
All our archers reported enjoying the shoot and while some were not totally happy with their scores, overall good scores were put in as expected. A number of our archers were attending their first National level tournament and we offer our congratulations to them, we hope you enjoyed the experience and will continue to shoot with us at this level.
LMA wish to thank the new WFAA committee for organising the event and Pentref Bowmen for hosting it in their club house, the facilities were good and the reception was warm as expected.
The following archers represented Llantwit Major Archers in the tournament, well done to all especially those new to the shoot and very well done to the 1st’s – nice to see so many in Llantwit Major Archers!
Please note a number of the scores are believed to be Welsh Records and have been submitted for confirmation, they are marked below as WR – well done to those archers.
In no particular order with style shot
| Style | Name | Score |
| AMSR | Dave Gray | 210 |
| AMSR | Mark Lunn | 288 – 1st |
| AFSR | Sandra Jones | 188 – 1st |
| JFSR | Kathrine Gray | 137 – 1st – WR |
| CMSR | Liam Marsh | 121 – 1st – WR |
| JMSR | Chris Gray | 225 – WR |
| AMU | Colin Ketley | 285 |
| AMU | Steve Thomas | 285 |
| AMU | Nigel Kent | 296 – 1st |
| JFSC | Imogen Kent | 182 – 1st |
| AFUR | Yoke Lunn | 247 |
| AFUR | Cathrine Trew | 92 |
| AMUR | Paul Watson | 209 |
| AMUR | Michael Mattingley | 244 – 1st |
| JMUR | Gethyn Friend | 200 – 1st – WR |
| AFLB | Sally Mattingley | 105 |
| CFLB | Elise Mattingley | 40 – 1st – WR |
| AMLB | Michael Mattingley | 194 – 1st |
Photos of some of our archers representing LMA
Mk Animal Class round 9th Jan 2011
The first shoot of the year at Fonmon went ahead on a glorious sunny day with not a cloud in the sky, it was as you would expect cold. The attendance was moderate as expected with 11 archers braving the day. Scores were okay for most with a Fonmon Course record being shot by Nigel Kent, would have been a Welsh record but the shoot was not classed as a tournament so it cant be claimed. Welcome to Steve Thomas on his first shoot at Fonmon, a good start with lots of promise.
The following archers were there and had a good day
| Style | Name | Score |
| AMFSR | Dave Gray | 420 |
| AMFSR | Mark Lunn | 518 |
| AMBU | Nigel Kent | 554 FR |
| JMFSR | Chris Gray | 414 |
| AMFU | Colin Ketley | 534 |
| AMFU | Steve Thomas | 532 |
| JMBBR | Gethyn Friend | |
| AMBHU | Mike Donnelley | 420 |
| AMHB | Graham Anderson | |
| AMHB | Mike Mattingley | 262 |
Mk Animal Class round
The Mk Animal class round went ahead on the 21st November. A cold and mainly overcast day but it held dry for us.
LM Archers would like to welcome Mike Donnelly to the club and to Fonmon, Mike has joined as an associate members so he can shoot Fonmon. We would also like to welcome Katherine Gray to her first shoot at Fonmon, she seemed to enjoy it !
Well done to Colin, Gethyn and Mike Mattingley for shooting Fonmon Course records, Katherine shot from cub pegs with this being her first outing and did extremely well, we look forward to future shoots from this young lady.
The merry band that braved the winter weather are listed below with their scores – a few ups and a few downs but overall a good day with good company and everyone enjoyed the day
| Style | Name | Score |
| Dave Gray | 426 | |
| Mark Lunn | 502 | |
| JFFSR | Katherine Gray | 318 |
| JMFSR | Chris Gray | 424 |
| AMFU | Colin Ketley | 544 |
| AFBBR | Yoke Lunn | 300 |
| JMBBR | Gethyn Friend | 334 |
| AMBHU | Mike Donnelley | 488 |
| AMHB | Mike Mattingley | 344 |