Wednesday, June 03, 2009

Cochonnet Knocked to the Back for the Win

It is the smallest game piece - but the most crucial: the cochonnet.
...and so often overlooked in the strategy.
Today, I watched as Mark and Aaron had their 2 points sitting well protected at around 9 meters. If points weren't cut, they'd keep the win.
Tim W. and Brandon fired in their boules - but each fell too far away. It was down to their last three. Brandon shot into the grouping, but instead of removing the opposition's boule - they kicked the cochonnet free and way into the back (at 13 meters).
Easy pickings! Tim & Brandon already had a boule in the back (always a good thing in case a cochonnet is pushed there) - and the lobbing of the remaining boules ensured a victory.
So what did we learn? That a hail mary shot to the cochonnet can alter the game's outcome.
Other cochonnet hitting opportunities include those times when you're down to two boules (while the opposition is sitting on tons of points) and you want to just slap the cochonnet right off the piste (nullifying the round). You definitely don't want to try to hit out the cochonnet with your last boule if (via Article 13) the opposition would get points for un-thrown boules - keep it in mind.

No comments: