As the Pudsey Billiards League 2014/2015 season reaches to an end, Princeville Patriots had one more engagement in form of the Pudsey Billiards League Cup Final against league winners St Andrews "A".
En-route to the final, St Andrews "A" beat Princeville "B" and Bradford Deaf Centre. "Patriots" received a bye and beat Pudsey Congs in what was an overall team effort. Interim captain at the time I.Tomlinson restricting a more prolific player in D.Hirst to a 1pt victory. D.Raw might have got the better of S.Gatenby with a 28pt win, but Steve was not necessarily outplayed and held his ground . Anchorman D.Hardcastle held more than his own against another prolific player in J.Hirst, losing by just 14pts and was in front for much of the game.
Come the final match between M.Hirst and J.Butcher, Pudsey Congs had to overcome a 102pt deficit. A difficult feat to overcome, but something Mick is very capable of as he holds the leagues highest break of 51 unfinished and produced two other 30 odd breaks in the same fixture against A.Instrell of St Andrews "A". However it was a case of save the best until last as James powered his way to a 45pt victory with an array of attacking strokes and in a few cases where the cue ball was on the cushion, playing a shot down on one knee in order to overcome compact circuit and seating area.
In team news leading to the final, St Andrews "A" were unchanged whilst the "Patriots" made one change. Regular captain K.Tomlinson, returning from an extended stay in Australia, replaced S.Gatenby. On handicaps, the "Patriots" received a 45pt advantage.
Starting proceedings was D.Hardcastle v G.Rogers and I.Tomlinson v N.Lee. Gary looked in fine touch as he led from the off, scoring at regular visits and gave very little opportunity for Don to get a foothold in the game. Meanwhile Ian and Neil were involved in a high tempoed encounter, scoring over 240pts between them. Neil initially got off to a 20pt lead, but Ian fought back and led by 20pts himself before Neil reduced those arrears to virtually level things up. Both players tried to take the iniative, but got beaten by the buzzer and Ian won by 1pt. On the other table, Gary secured a 38pt lead. At the halfway stage, St Andrews "A" led by 2pts with handicaps taken into account.
Next up by J.Butcher v A.Instrell and K.Tomlinson v G.Pearson. James got off to a bright start against Andy and recorded a 17pt break early doors to be 20pts in front, then consolidated that lead with regular scoring visits, aided by some good fortune. Andy was by means not out of contention, as the game was open for the most part. with both players making unforced errors and leaving scoring shots. A fantastic opportunity for anyone at their fluent best to post a potential tournament winning break. Meanwhile on the other table, Keith and Graham kept toe to toe with each other as small leads kept exchanging hands.
It did not become clear who would win the League Cup until the last few minutes. Keith took the iniative to post a 20pt break to place himself in pole position, whilst James still preserved a lead of 20pts+ throughout. As the final buzzer went, James won by 42pts and Keith by 26pt for Princeville "Patriots" to win the 2014/2015 Pudsey Billiards League Cup. A fitting tribute for a team who dominated the league campaign with a 10 match unbeaten run, only to fall apart with a seven week break and numerous absentees during the 2nd half of the season.
