STRUTT AND BOLEHILL 1 COME THROUGH STERN TESTS

IAN BIRKS was unbeaten in singles and doubles for BOLEHILL No 1

BELPER STRUTT CLUB and Bolehill Institute No 1 team will clash  in the final of the Bob McCartin Six Red Cup after they saw off Bolehill No 2 and Matlock Golf Club in very competitive semi final contests.
Les Mooney, recent Christmas shootout winner, continued his impressive run of form by taking green to pink to seal the opener for the golfers and Ian McKay, buoyed  from a singles victory prior to the team event, soon made it 2-0.
Colin Marchington  pulled one back however and Ian Birks took a black ball decider to level before Graham Jones and McKay did likewise in the pairs to put the hosts 3-2 ahead again.
Birks teamed up with Andrew Brough to equalise again and then paired with Ricki Slack took the deciding leg in good style for a thrilling 4-3 win.

Strutt Club took two very tight opening frames through Justin Weller and Paul Jarrett though Kevin Munnelly and Mick Bunting tied proceedings at 2-2.
But the home side took the three remaining scotch doubles legs for a 5-2 success and extend their great run of results this season.

Bob McCartin Six Red Cup semi finals: Matlock Golf Club 3, Bolehill Institute No 1 4; Belper Strutt Club 5, Bolehill Institute No 2 2.
Breaks: R Muxlow 35,25,24; J Smith 25; I McKay 24;  C Marchington 22; A Haggarty 21.

BUMPER TURNOUT AT STRUTT AS LES SHOWS HIS CLASS

ADE SMITH (runner-up) and LES MOONEY (winner) with the ALAN HOPKINSON TROPHY

A RECORD-BREAKING night at Belper Strutt Club saw a fantastic turnout of 22 players contesting the annual Christmas Shootout handicap competitions and once again it was an action-packed evening full of thrills, spills, banter and festive fun with a total of £110 handed out in prize money and both regular contests going down to the final black.

The event started and finished with the Alan Hopkinson Trophy individual knockout, played with three reds up to the final due to the large number of entries and it was Matlock Golf Club's Les Mooney who came to the fore, defeating Jack Lowe, Dale Shaw, Andrew Brough, Steve Bullock and finally Ade Smith in the final where six reds were employed.

Mooney, who is also enjoying a good season for Birdholme WMC in the Chesterfield League's top division, showed his class to eke out a last gasp win with a thin clip on the black from long range after Smith's attempt had rattled in the jaws, also from distance.

RICKI SLACK with the GEORGE MILLS TROPHY for the scotch doubles event

It was so near yet so far for Crich Comrades captain Smith, who also was denied in the scotch doubles final along with partner Andrew Brough by opponents Wayne Shooter (Strutt Club) and Ricki Slack (Bolehill).

WAYNE SHOOTER ... George Mills Trophy winner

Shooter took pink and after a bout of safety-play Slack sank a straight black down the side cushion into the green pocket with little other option from mid-range to take the George Mills Trophy.
Wayne appears on the honours list in the event for the second time in four years after previous success with team-mate Mark Newby in 2016.

DES SMITH ... fastest cueman in the Amber Valley

Alfreton Palmer Morewood continued their ongoing love affair with the Speed Snooker event and this time it was one of the league's most talented potters Des Smith who came to the fore to hold aloft the Eddie Lomas Trophy, seeing off Whitworth billiards competitor Gray Astle in the final to follow in the footsteps of his captain Andrew Haggarty, who won in successive years in 2016 and 2017.

Haggarty himself put up a brave effort for a hat-trick having missed last season, going down by the narrowest of margins in the quarter-finals to Paul Jarrett, who was involved in several thrilling finishes during the evening, before eventually bowing out in the semi-final.

Thanks to Belper Strutt Club for hosting and to everyone who turned out to make it another memorable night. It just remains to say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all participants of the T & M Motors Snooker and Elliott Carpets Billiards Leagues and look forward to seeing everyone in the New Year.

Alan Hopkinson Trophy (3/6 red individual handicap) winner, Les Mooney (Matlock Golf Club); runner-up, Ade Smith (Crich Comrades No 1).

George Mills trophy (3/6 red scotch doubles handicap) winners, Ricki Slack (Bolehill Institute No 1) and Wayne Shooter (Belper Strutt Club); runners-up, Ade Smith (Crich Comrades No 1) and Andrew Brough (Bolehill Institute No 1).

Eddie Lomas Trophy (speed snooker handicap, clearing the colours) winner, Des Smith (Alfreton Palmer Morewood); runner-up, Gray Astle (Whitworth Institute No 2 billiards team).

WHITWORTH DENIED BY BOLEHILL ON RE-SPOTTED BLACK

IAN PEACOCK pulled BOLEHILL No 2 back from the brink

WHITWORTH Institute were cruelly denied a second win in the T & M Motors Snooker League as they fell to an agonising re-spotted black ball loss at Bolehill No 2 after leading 2-0 early doors.
Jeremy Armstrong and Geoff Brailsford, the latter opening his account in the league, scored convincing successes to pit the visitors in the ascendancy but the home side rallied strongly with Ian Peacock with a 22 clearance to decide his frame, and then Mick Bunting making it 2-2.
And the winning pair teamed up again to take the deciding black after the frame scores were locked at 59 apiece in the concluding contest.

Belper Strutt Club moved seven points clear at the head of the table after a superb 5-0 win at Edgefold with Wayne Shooter top of the scoring charts in what was a very consistent performance throughout.

Matlock Golf Club fell 3-2 at home to Crich No 2 after taking a 2-0 lead. Ian McKay was in excellent touch for the hosts with an 82pts haul but Ady Lowe, aided by an excellent 41 break, took each of his singles and doubles frames to complete the turnaround.

Alfreton Palmer Morewood scored a fine 4-1 win over Bolehill No 1 to move past those rivals with Tom Broughton's runs of 38 and 28 in an emphatic opening frame romp being the highlight. Des Smith also scored a wide margin success before the visitors finally got on the scoreboard when Ian Birks sank the pink in the doubles leg.

And Matlock Club were another team to excel, courtesy of a 4-1 defeat of Crich No 1 on their travels with Keith Manlove winning each of his singles and doubles legs to negate Ade Smith's hard fought success for the Tramwaymen in the frame three.

League week 8 results: Bolehill Institute No 2 3, Whitworth Institute 2; Edgefold Matlock 0, Belper Strutt Club 5; Matlock Golf Club 2, Crich Comrades No 2 3; Alfreton Palmer Morewood 4, Bolehill Institute No 1 1; Crich Comrades No 1  1, Matlock Club 4.

Breaks: A Lowe 41; T Broughton 38,28; K Robertson 28,28,20; K Munnelly 27; G Jones 24; I Peacock 22; S Burton 22.

T & M Motors Snooker League        P        W        L     Pts 
Belper Strutt Club                                8         7        1      29
Alfreton Palmer Morewood                  7         4        3      22
Matlock Golf Club                                7         4        3      22
Bolehill Institute No 1                           7         5        2      19
Bolehill Institute No 2                           8         3        5      19
Matlock Club                                        7         4        3      18
Crich Comrades No 1                          8         3        5      16
Edgefold Matlock                                 6         3        3      14
Crich Comrades No 2                          8         3        5      15
Whitworth Institute                               8         1        7      11
Leading breaks: B Monk 56; A Lowe 41; T Broughton 38.
Leading wins: R Slack 6/7; W Shooter & S Bullock 6/8; L Mooney 5/5.

SHOOTOUT NIGHT MON 23rd DEC AT STRUTT CLUB 7.30pm

BOLEHILL THROUGH AMIDST BREAKS GALORE IN COMPS

GRAHAM JONES ... break-fest in singles event

BOLEHILL No 2 edged past Matlock Club 4-3 in the tightest contest of  four Bob McCartin Six Red Cup quarter-finals that took place in the latest set of fixtures.
The match was switched to Bolehill due to scheduling issues and it was Ian Peacock who gave the hosts the lead with a 30-9 opening margin.
Dave Benson equalised before Keith Robertson and Mick Bunting struck back to give the home cuemen a 3-1 lead.
However, Benson teamed up with Graeme Wood to pull one back and Wood again, this time with Paul Bryan made it 3-3 going into the final scotch doubles frame.
But in the end Keith Robertson pulled out a fine long pot on pink to secure victory for his team after teaming up with Kevin Munnelly for the concluding battle.

Bolehill No 1 also secured a 4-3 win over Crich No 1 but conversely, they took the first four frames without reply, albeit with Colin Marchington and Ricki Slack only ahead for the first time after potting the last black. Keith Fretwell, who didn't appear in the singles contests, took each of his scotch doubles frames for the Tramwaymen.

The other two games were more conclusive with Belper Strutt Club taking all seven frames against Alfreton Palmer Morewood and Matlock Golf Club defeating Crich No 2 6-1.
Mark Newby top-scored for Belper whilst Graham Jones did likewise for the Golfers. Only Dale Shaw could offer some resistance for Crich.

An incredible Open Individual Handicap contest saw eight breaks of 30+ as Graham Jones defeated Ben Monk 3-1 with each scoring a top run of 47,a feat also achieved by Sean Dobney in his 3-2 loss to Alfreton's John Smith in the same event.

Bob McCartin Six Red Cup quarter finals: Matlock Club 3, Bolehill Institute No 2 4; Bolehill Institute No 1 4, Crich Comrades No 1 3; Belper Strutt Club 7, Alfreton Palmer Morewood 0; Matlock Golf Club 6, Crich Comrades No 2 1.

Breaks: B Monk 47,38,37,37,35,33,30,28,26,22; G Jones 47,38,33; S Dobney 47,24,22; R Slack 28; J Smith 27,23;  A Haggarty 24; T Blant / I McKay 21 (sct/dbls).

BEN TOPS BREAK CHARTS WITH HALF CENTURY SALVO

BEN MONK ... top of the break charts

BEN MONK rocketed to the top of the break charts as his run of 56 in the concluding pairs leg completed a 4-1 T & M Motors Snooker League success for Alfreton Palmer Morewood over visitors Whitworth Institute.
Tom Broughton with visits of 22 and 20 took a tight opener on the deciding black against Jeremy Armstrong before Des Smith increased the advantage in frame two.
Peter Lee, opening his account for the season, pulled one back in the next but John Smith made the game safe soon afterwards and thereafter Monk weaved his magic to bring down the curtain.

Edgefold gained their second hard fought 3-2 success at Crich in as many weeks, this time against the No 2 team with Sean Dobney notching breaks of 24, 23 and 22 in the two frames he contested. Dale Shaw opened his account for the hosts in the first frame.

Belper Strutt Club continued their merry way at the top of the table with a 4-1 defeat of Crich No 1 for whom Keith Fretwell struck first. Paul Jarrett and Mark Newby took each of their singles and doubles legs for the victors.

Matlock Golf Club hit back from the previous weeks home reverse with their own 4-1 verdict over Bolehill No 2. Les Mooney compiled a run of 31 and Tony Blant won on a re-spot whilst Keith Robertson was on target for the vanquished.

And Bolehill No 1 overcame Matlock Club 3-2, doing the damage in the opening three frames with Colin Marchington's black ball opener pivotal before Paul Bryan maintained his four-game unbeaten run to start the rearguard action.

Ady Lowe struck a break of 43 in individual knockout action, progressing on the final black, an end result also achieved by Dale Shaw and Keith Robertson in their respective events.

League week 7: Alfreton Palmer Morewood 4, Whitworth Institute 1; Crich Comrades No 2 2, Edgefold Matlock 3; Belper Strutt Club 4, Crich Comrades No 1 1; Matlock Golf Club 4, Bolehill Institute No 2 1; Bolehill Institute No 1 3, Matlock Club 2.
Breaks:  B Monk 56; A Lowe 43,26,22; L Mooney 31; R Slack 28,26,24,23,20,20,20; S Dobney 24,23,22; T Broughton 22,20.

T & M Motors Snooker League        P        W        L     Pts 
Belper Strutt Club                                7         6        1      24
Matlock Golf Club                                6         4        2      20
Bolehill Institute No 1                           6         5        1      18
Alfreton Palmer Morewood                  6         3        3      18
Bolehill Institute No 2                           7         2        5      16
Crich Comrades No 1                          7         3        4      15
Edgefold Matlock                                 5         3        2      14
Matlock Club                                        6         3        3      14
Crich Comrades No 2                          7         2        5      12
Whitworth Institute                               7         1        6        9
Leading breaks: B Monk 56; R Slack 35.
Leading wins: R Slack 6/6; T Blant 5/6; W Shooter & S Bullock 5/7.

EDGEFOLD TAKE THRILLER TO EARN A SECOND VICTORY

JAMES TRAVIS was in winning form for EDGEFOLD CLUB

CRICH No 1 and Edgefold Club served up the  thriller of the week in round six of T & M Motors Snooker League matches with the Matlock team taking the spoils on the deciding black for a hard fought 3-2 success.
Paul Trevett put the Tramwaymen ahead courtesy of a 59-51 verdict in the opener and when their experienced campaigner John Smith made it 2-0 soon afterwards, things were looking decidedly rosy for the home side.
But James Travis and then Sam Lavelle scored convincing successes to leave everything on the final doubles leg and Travis again came to the fore, teaming up with Rob Muxlow for a cliff-hanging 51-49 victory.

Elsewhere Bolehill No 1 defeated Matlock Golf Club 4-1 with Ricki Slack clearing the colours to edge out Tony Blant 67-64 in a battle of two hitherto undefeated cuemen  and Ian Birks scoring heavily in the next. Les Mooney was on target for the Golfers.
Belper Strutt Club therefore moved four points clear after their 5-0 clean sweep over Whitworth Institute with Mark Newby top scoring.

Alfreton Palmer Morewood defeated Bolehill No 2 3-2 with Andrew Haggarty making the win a certainty in frame three before the home team hit back with Mick Bunting taking his singles and doubles legs.

And Matlock Club continued their tidy start to the season with a 4-1 defeat of Crich No 2. Paul Bryan and Ady Lowe top scored respectively.

League week 6 results: Crich Comrades No 1 2, Edgefold Matlock 3; Matlock Golf Club 1, Bolehill Institute No 1 4; Belper Strutt Club 5, Whitworth Institute 0; Bolehill Institute No 2 2, Alfreton Palmer Morewood 3; Matlock Club 4, Crich Comrades No 2 1.
Breaks: R Slack 27; I Birks 24; G Jones 23.

T & M Motors Snooker League        P       W       L       Pts 
Belper Strutt Club                                6         5        1      20
Matlock Golf Club                                5         3        2      16
Bolehill Institute No 1                           5         4        1      15
Bolehill Institute No 2                           6         2        4      15
Crich Comrades No 1                          6         3         3     14
Alfreton Palmer Morewood                  5         2         3     14
Matlock Club                                        5         3         2     12
Edgefold Matlock                                 4         2         2      11
Crich Comrades No 2                          6         2         4      10
Whitworth Institute                               6         1         5        8
Leading breaks: R Slack 35 & 31; S Mays 30.
Leading wins: R Slack 5/5; S Bullock 5/6; T Blant 4/5; W Shooter 4/6.