The Princeville Derby
2015 is continuing to be a challenging year for the Patriots, as they rack up another defeat to Princeville "B".
In the opening games, I.Tomlinson faced A.Holdsworth whilst D.Bowers played against B.Lawson. It wasn't the best of nights for Ian who was trailing from the back foot, a combination of shots not being executed as intended and the balls running unkindly, though he wasn't far away from getting into a leading position. However Alan had the edge and was rarely troubled as he won by 14pts.
Meanwhile, Dave and Bernard were involved in an intriguing tussle at the baize where the lead often changed. Dave was playing noticeably better than in previous weeks, whilst Bernard himself looked in good touch with some deft strokes. The tension cranked up another notch, Dave being double balked got out and almost got a cannon, only for the moving yellow ball to be a razor blade apart from the white. This left Bernard an awkward stroke to play at, running the risk of playing a push shot. Taking his time, Bernard attempted to play a masse in-off but just couldn't get enough elevation on his cue. Another shot was attempted, but in a twist the wrong ball was played and a foul stroke given.
With less than a minute to go, Dave was two points behind and scored a cannon and had an opportunity to win the game with a distant in-off, but agonisingly rattled the bottom corner pocket. This presented Bernard with a scoring shot, but as he took his stance the buzzer went and the game finished level.
During those matches, the Billiards
room became a drop in centre with three visitors making brief
appearances. One from the church wanted access to another room,
whilst the other two were opposition players from a team who played on Tuesday night to collect some belongings left behind.
In the 2nd half, El Capitan K.Tomlinson faced G.Kershaw whilst J.Butcher was up against S.Kershaw. Keith played a captains innings and maintained a healthy lead for much of the game. Even when Gareth pulled the game back, Keith simply restored his lead and won the game by 26pts.
Meanwhile, Stephen was presented with a task to claw back 90pts and could not have started the game any better. Beginning with a text book break off, stringing a series of scoring visits including breaks of 40 and 37 and finishing those visits with the balls relatively safe. Scoring opportunities were at a premium for James, who spent most of the game off the baize rather than on and was predominantly left with long range shots.
By the halfway stage, Stephen got a handy lead of 20 and in control of the game. However the match was still alive for James with Captain Keith controlling affairs in his game, meaning an aggregate point for the Patriots was still achievable. A rare opening was presented for James and managed to reduce the deficit by 10, but it proved to be a false dawn as Stephen continued his fine scoring and raced to the summit. With time at a premium and only a cue ball pot left as a viable scoring shot, it was go for broke time for James who attempted a cannon off the bottom cushion in order to get a break going. The cannon never materialised, mainly due to a very tight angle and Stephen finished things off with a 41pt victory. This was enough for Princeville "B" to win the aggregate by 29pts and claim the game 3.5-1.5.
We shall see how this affects the league standings on Sunday, despite the 3.5-1.5pt reversal the Patriots remain top of the Pudsey League. How much of a 6pt lead remains to be seen with 2nd place St Andrews "A" visiting Pudsey Congs, 8.5pts from 1st and a team with potential to go on a late season charge.
