BELPER CONTINUE TO SHOW THAT SIX RED SPARKLE

WAYNE SHOOTER was quickly into his stride

THE T & M MOTORS SNOOKER LEAGUE started with the Bob McCartin Six Red Cup group matches and there was a big opening week clash as Grand Slam winners and current holders Alfreton Palmer Morewood No2 entertained the five-times winning team from Belper, now playing from the British Legion, formerly of the Strutt Club.
Wayne Shooter was first into his stride for the visitors as he took the opener 40-15 and when Mark Newby and Steve Bullock added the next two frames 32-22 and 42-32 respectively, the Legionnaires were already standing on the cusp of a memorable victory.
A black ball verdict for Justin Weller provided the decisive blow, and keen to rack up the points, Newby and Shooter combined soon afterwards to make it an incredible lead of 5-0.
Ben Monk and Jamie Rowland's run of 33 in the scotch doubles earned a much needed first win on the night for the Amber Valley cuemen and in a ding-dong battle in the final frame, the home team secured a 39-38 verdict through Kyle Ryde and Andrew Beardsley to earn what could yet be a crucial second point in the qualification stages.

Another team off to a flyer were Tansley Potters, last season's league runners-up, who stormed 4-1 ahead in their home group match with Alfreton No3.
Steve Hawkins was first on the board before newcomer Carlos Zaragoza equalised but with Joe Neville and Gray Astle each successful, the home side were well in the ascendancy.
The two Nevilles added the next before the Jack Lowe / Alex Fisher and Ady Lowe / Zaragoza combinations fought back strongly to reduce the final score to 4-3.

There was success for Alfreton No1 however as they took a 5-2 win from Crich Comrades. Andrew Haggarty and Phil Longden were undefeated in their singles and doubles legs whilst Rob Mulliss achieved the same feat for the Tramwaymen. Des Smith's black ball success in frame two was also pivotal.

Bob McCartin Six Red Cup Group A: Tansley Potters 4, Alfreton Palmer Morewood No3 3; Group B: Alfreton Palmer Morewood No2 2, Belper Royal British Legion 5; Group C: Crich Comrades 2, Alfreton Palmer Morewood No1 5.
Breaks: Ben Monk / Jamie Rowland 33 (scotch doubles).

ALFRETON PM No2 ACCOMPLISH THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM

ALFRETON PALMER MOREWOOD No2  Grand Slam quadruple winners 2022/23:
L-R: Ant McMahon, Steve Donner, Jamie Rowland, Andrew Beardsley, Ben Monk, Kyle Ryde and Kevin Rowland.

ALFRETON PALMER MOREWOOD No2 became the first team ever to win the quadruple grand slam of team events since the modern schedule has been in place thanks to their 3-1 defeat of Matlock Golf Club in the Jaeger Trophy play-off final at Bolehill Institute.
Having done the treble last season, that is seven out of the last eight trophies going Amber Valley way as they added the Bob McCartin Six Red Cup to the aforementioned prize, the T & M Motors League Championship for the Hartshorne Cup, and also the Captains Cup points aggregate competition.

SIMON
MAYS

Andrew Beardsley has certainly been a big factor in the record-breakers' impressive haul with some high winning percentages over this period and he took the opener 66-26 with some solid potting and matchplay.
It was soon level, however, as Ian McKay produced one of his best displays of the season to take the second frame 77-50 and leave all to play for.
Most-winning player Graham Jones was up next for the golfers but could never find his rhythm this time around and Ant McMahon got the better of a scrappy frame to take it 55-16 and re-assert the league champions' lead.

And after a titanic battle in a fourth frame that lasted a full hour, with fortunes swinging to and fro, Simon Mays pulled out spectacular pots on green and brown before a miscue on the pink by his opponent eventually decided the issue in cruel fashion.
It is Alfreton's fourth win in the Jaeger Trophy play-offs having first won it in the 2014/15 season when the top eight qualified and they actually finished seventh!

EDGEFOLD No2 Jimmy Harper Plate
winners 2022/23:
L-R: Steve Burton, Rob Muxlow, Ryan Spencer,
Roy Taylor and Jamie Wright.

Also taking place was the Jimmy Harper Plate final (team consolation aggregate points event) for those departing in the early rounds of the Captains Cup.
Edgefold No2 won the toss for venue against opponents Tansley Potters, and confirmed their improved showing of late with a 325-217 win over the league runners-up.
Roy Taylor got things rolling in the opener with a 79-51 verdict and when Robert Muxlow and Steve Burton also added to that tally with 62-36 and 69-25 scorelines respectively, the writing appeared to be on the wall with an overall lead of 98.
Gray Astle pulled a little of that back as he took the next 67-45 but that still left a mammoth task for his team in the concluding doubles leg to come.
Steve Burton's run of 24 pretty much sealed the deal although Joe Neville quickly hit back with 21 but eventually Burton and Taylor ran out victors 70-38 to rubber-stamp the prize.

Only the Denis Morton Trophy (pairs handicap) final remains to be played and will be delayed until June as neither party could fix up a date in the regular season due to other commitments and shift work.

Also congratulations to Elliott Carpets Billiards League stalwart Jim McCann of Whitworth Institute who finished as a very creditable runner-up in the Jock McGregor handicap event organised by the EABA at Derby recently.

Jaeger Trophy (top four play offs) final: Alfreton Palmer Morewood No2 3, Matlock Golf Club 1 (at Bolehill Institute): 66-26; 50-77; 55-16; 78-58.
Jimmy Harper Plate (team aggregate consolation) final: Edgefold Matlock No 2 325, Tansley Potters 217: 79-51; 62-36; 69-25; 45-67; 70(24)-38(21).

DONNER'S 136 TOTAL CLEARANCE IS ALL-TIME RECORD

ALFRETON PALMER MOREWOOD Captains Cup winners~
L-R: Simon Mays, Andrew Beardsley, Jamie Rowland, Ben Monk, Steve Donner and
Kevin Rowland. Not pictured: Kyle Ryde and Ant McMahon.

STEVE DONNER was the undoubted star of Alfreton Palmer Morewood No2's Captains Cup final victory over Edgefold No 1 at Crich Comrades as he produced the League's highest recorded break in its history, courtesy of a magical total 136 clearance in the opening frame.
Overhauling the previous best of 126 from Scott Cooney in the 2006 OMYA Cup, Donner also usurped the previous best-ever single-frame match contribution of 120 from himself just last season.
Opponent Duncan Harwood was left standing in awe after playing just one safety reply to Donner's break-off and thereafter the Alfreton cueman only once looked slightly out of position but pulled off an excellent double into the middle pocket to keep the break going.
It was going to be difficult for Edgefold to come back from that and when Ben Monk rifled in breaks of 32 and 24 in the next, the writing was already on the wall.
Simon Mays added to the deficit in frame three as he took an 82-60 win despite Steve Clark's run of 21 keeping him in the hunt mid-frame.

When the Matlock men did eventually reverse the trend, it was only by a single point as Sean Dobney edged a 59-58 verdict  and despite him teaming up with Harwood to secure a 60-27 win in the doubles leg, there was still a 396-301 final scoreline in favour of the Amber Valley men.
This leaves them just one win away from completing the never-before-achieved quadruple grand slam of all four team trophies after they took home three of them last season.

ADY LOWE .. Open Handicap winner

Meanwhile, the Open Individual Handicap Trophy went to Alfreton No 3's Ady Lowe for the first time who defeated Tansley's Joe Neville 4-1 at Bolehill Institute.

Neville looked in excellent touch as he took the opener 68-34 with some consistent teen breaks but couldn't quite reproduce that kind of form in the remaining frames as Lowe took control of a largely tactical encounter, scoring just the better of the pair for the bulk of the contest.
A hard-fought third frame going to Lowe on the pink proved to be a pivotal point of the match.

Captains Cup (Team Aggregate) Final (at Crich): Alfreton Palmer Morewood No2 398, Edgefold Matlock No1 301: 136(136)-55; 93(32,24)-67; 82-60(21); 58-59; 27-60.
Open Individual Handicap Final (at Bolehill): Ady Lowe (Alfreton PM) 4, Joe Neville (Tansley) 1: 34-68; 57-32; 51-41; 60(22)-39; 58-37.

BEN AND ROB LIFT TROPHIES AFTER THRILLING VICTORIES

BEN MONK ... four-timer

BEN MONK of Alfreton Palmer Morewood lifted the OMYA Cup (Individual Scratch event) for the second successive season and the fourth time overall, courtesy of a hard-fought 4-3 win over Belper Strutt's Justin Weller in a high quality encounter at Tansley.
Weller struck first in the opener with a 22 break en route to a 67-42 verdict before Monk hit back strongly with runs of 41 and 28 to equalise.
More swings and roundabouts ensued as the Strutt man, remaining undeterred, hit back for 2-1 after needing two snookers on the colours and then completing a clearance from brown onwards to snatch the frame.
Monk struck early in the next with a run of 32 but Weller worked his way back into the frame. Needing a difficult pink down the bottom cushion from the opposite jaw, the Strutt cueman agonisingly rattled it in the jaws as he strived for position on the black and Monk stepped up gratefully to tap in for 2-2.
Buoyed by that success, Monk was again in with a 35 break but still could not shake off Weller and eventually needed a long pink to edge the frame 61-48.
The Strutt man was still battling valiantly and notched an early 35 break to once again level at 3-3 before Monk replied with a 31 in the decider to take the frame 70-14 in a pulsating contest.
Ben afterwards dedicated the win to his ex-work colleague and friend Paul Bates who had passed away recently in tragic circumstances.

ROB MUXLOW...black ball decider

The "B" (Intermediate) Individual Handicap final featured an all-Edgefold match-up with ex-team mates and regular practice partners Duncan Harwood and Rob Muxlow locking horns on World final night.
It was an evening of gritty snooker with lots of tight finishes and after a double-kiss on the pink from his opponent, Harwood struck first with pink and black for a 60-47 success.
It was soon 2-0 as Harwood controlled the second and 25 adrift in the next, Muxlow's prospects appeared bleak until he gradually battled back and clipped in a long pink and then despatched a straight black into the middle pocket.
Still it appeared to be going Harwood's way as he held a lead of 35 early doors in the next but again Muxlow  did not yield and eventually completed another fine comeback by taking blue and pink for 2-2.
And in a nip-and-tuck decider, Muxlow stepped up to knock in pink and black for a nerve-tingling victory after a safety shot had gone slightly awry from his opponent.

Meanwhile, the Jaeger Trophy play off semi finals took place with the tightest contest seeing Alfreton Palmer Morewood No2 defeat Bolehill Institute 3-2 on Hall Street.
The euphoria of Bolehill's last gasp qualification soon wore off on the night as a late withdrawal left them one man down from the start and Simon Mays (31 break) and Kyle Ryde (runs of 54 and 27) were in barnstorming form to boot as the hosts raced into a 2-0 lead.
Ian Birks pulled one back with an 87-57 win in the next and when Simon Zoppi, giving the extra handicap as the substitute player doubling up, levelled with one of his best performances of the season, there seemed a chance of pulling it out of the fire.
But that was reckoning without the impressive Ryde, who was virtually unplayable all night, and he completed the job in hand in the doubles leg with runs of 25 and 21 to see his side into the final.

Their opponents will be Matlock Golf Club, who ended the unbeaten home run (in straight frames events) of Tansley Potters courtesy of a 3-1 win.
Joe Neville put Tansley ahead early doors but after that, the golfers dominated proceedings with Les Mooney, Graham Jones and Tony Blant all registering decisive wins to see them into the final.

OMYA Cup (Individual Scratch) final: Ben Monk (Alfreton PM) 4 Justin Weller (Belper Strutt) 3 (at Tansley): 42-67(22); 83(41,28)-13; 41-53(22); 52(32)-42; 61(35)-48; 19-59(35); 70(31)-14.

"B" (Intermediate) Individual Handicap final: Rob Muxlow (Edgefold) 3 Duncan Harwood (Edgefold) 2 (at Edgefold): 47-60; 20-55; 59(22)-53; 63-51; 70-58.

Jaeger Trophy (top four play off) semi finals: Alfreton Palmer Morewood No2 3, Bolehill Institute 2 (K Ryde 54,27,25,21; S Mays 31; B Monk 21); Tansley Potters 1, Matlock Golf Club 3.

ALFRETON No2 RETAIN TITLE WITH WIN OVER EDGEFOLD

ALFRETON PALMER MOREWOOD No2

AFTER an action packed final week of re-arranged fixtures in the T & M Motors Snooker League, it was Alfreton Palmer Morewood No 2 who retained their title courtesy of a 3-2 home win over Edgefold No 1 and then the failure of Matlock Golf Club to gain maximum points from their remaining game.
Kyle Ryde (22 break) was in barnstorming form in the opener and took an 82-12 victory before Ant McMahon battled hard to take the next on the black.
Chris Taylor (24 break) pulled one back for the Matlock cuemen but Ben Monk put the game to bed with runs of 32 and 22 before Sean Dobney (48 break) took the doubles leg with Taylor.

Edgefold No1 completed their fixtures the following night and lost their chance of a play-off place with a 4-1 defeat at Crich Comrades.
Paul Trevett ran up 80pts in the opener and Nick Berry made a winning reappearance after injury before Edgefold avoided the whitewash in the doubles.

Matlock Golf Club needed all five points from their trip to Bolehill Institute to lift the title but it was the hosts who completed the clean sweep to move into their highest league position of fourth when it mattered most and secure an unlikely play-off place.
Colin Marchington edged the opener on the black to quosh the golfers' dreams and with the score standing at 3-0, Tony Blant potted the deciding black in the next (against Ian Birks) only to see the cue ball disappear into another pocket which summed up their night with Bolehill taking the pairs leg to boot soon afterwards.

Bolehill had also been in action in the Jimmy Harper Plate semi finals earlier in the week but haven't been as effective on the road and Edgefold No 2 continued that trend with a 298-231 aggregate win.
Only nine points separated the teams before the final doubles frame but Steve Burton (27 break) hardly missed a pot throughout and partnered Rob Muxlow to an emphatic 75-17 win.

Their final opponents will be Tansley Potters who had to battle hard to see off Alfreton No 3 277-250. Gray Astle and Ady Lowe top scored before the Nevilles defeated the Lowes 56-38 in the doubles to maintain their small advantage.

Ben Monk also reached the final of the OMYA Cup (Individual Scratch) defeating Les Mooney of Matlock Golf Club 3-0 with a top run of 39.

League (re-arranged): Alfreton Palmer Morewood No2 3, Edgefold Matlock No1 2; Crich Comrades 4, Edgefold Matlock No1 1; Bolehill Institute 5, Matlock Golf Club 0.
Jimmy Harper Plate (Team Aggregate Consolation) semi finals: Edgefold Matlock No2 298, Bolehill Institute 231; Tansley Potters 277, Alfreton Palmer Morewood No3 250.
Breaks: S Dobney 48; B Monk 39,32,32,27,22,22; S Burton 27: C Taylor 24; K Ryde 22; A Lowe 22.

T & M Motors Snooker League         P        W       L       Pts
Alfreton P Morewood No 2                18        13        5       54
Tansley Potters                                  18        14       4       52
Matlock Golf Club                              18        11        7       50 
Bolehill Institute                                 18          7      11       46
Alfreton P Morewood No 3                18          9        9       45 
Edgefold Matlock No 1                      18          7      11       43
Alfreton P Morewood No 1                18          8      10       42
Edgefold Matlock No 2                      18          8      10       40 
Crich Comrades                                 18          7      11       39
Belper Strutt Club                              18          6      12       39
Leading breaks: S Donner 92, R Mulliss 67 & 60.
Leading wins: G Jones 14/18; J Neville 13/18.

TITLE RACE GOES DOWN TO LAST WEEK FOR TOP TRIO

GRAY ASTLE ... gritty display

TANSLEY POTTERS completed their league programme with a 3-2 home win over Belper Strutt Club and hang on grimly to top spot as two points separate the top three teams going into the final week of re-arranged T & M Motors Snooker League fixtures.
Joe Neville continued his fine form with his 13th win from 18 games as he edged the opener 57-49. Steve Hawkins added to the lead with a 57-32 verdict in the next.
Paul Jarrett reduced the arrears in frame three but Gray Astle ground out a crucial black ball win to settle the match before Strutt took the concluding doubles leg courtesy of Justin Weller and Mark Newby.
With Matlock Golf Club inactive, the focus was on Alfreton Palmer Morewood No 2 to see if they could gain a foothold in the title race.

But opponents Edgefold No2 were in no mood for a victory parade just yet as they returned from Hall Street with a stunning 4-1 win.
Jamie Wright took the opener on the black and with Steve Burton, Rob Muxlow and Roy Taylor adding to it the hosts were reeling until Ben Monk and Kevin Rowland showed their class with a century points haul in the remaining doubles leg. In fact Monk was in excellent nick throughout the evening, with defiant runs of 44,38 and 30 as he battled to stem the tide.

A few of these teams were in action again later in the week and a sense of normality was resumed with Alfreton No2 defeating Strutt Club 3-2. Monk was again inspirational as he gave his team an early lead which soon became 3-0 before the hosts struck back with Justin Weller taking his singles and doubles legs.

Edgefold No2 meanwhile returned to Alfreton to play the host club's No3 team but this time the Amber Valley cuemen held sway 3-2 as Ady Lowe and Steve Burton top scored respectively.

Alfreton No3 had also been in action earlier in the week but fell 4-1 to the Edgefold No1 team despite Graeme Wood striking first for the vanquished. Chris Taylor top scored for the Matlock team.

And Alfreton No1 signed off for the season with an excellent 4-1 defeat of Crich Comrades. Andrew Haggarty was successful in both singles and doubles for the victors while Paul Trevett notched 83 points en route to the solitary success for the Tramwaymen.

In the competitions, Ben Monk and Simon Mays reached their third successive pairs final in the Denis Morton Trophy while Ady Lowe saw off Justin Weller to take his place in the Open Individual Handicap final.

League week 18 results: Tansley Potters 3, Belper Strutt Club 2; Alfreton Palmer Morewood No2 1, Edgefold Matlock No2 4; Belper Strutt Club 2, Alfreton Palmer Morewood No2 3; Alfreton Palmer Morewood No3 3, Edgefold Matlock No2 2; Edgefold Matlock No1 4, Alfreton Palmer Morewood No3 1; Crich Comrades 1, Alfreton Palmer Morewood No1 4.
Breaks: B Monk 44,38,30,30,29,27; J Weller 24; M Newby 22; S Mays 21.

T & M Motors Snooker League         P        W       L       Pts
Tansley Potters                                  18        14       4       52
Alfreton P Morewood No 2                17        12        5       51
Matlock Golf Club                              17        11        6       50 
Alfreton P Morewood No 3                18          9        9       45 
Alfreton P Morewood No 1                18          8      10       42
Bolehill Institute                                 17          6      11       41
Edgefold Matlock No 2                      18          8      10       40 
Edgefold Matlock No 1                      16          7        9       40
Belper Strutt Club                              18          6      12       39
Crich Comrades                                 17          6      11       35
Leading breaks: S Donner 92, R Mulliss 67 & 60.
Leading wins: G Jones 14/17; J Neville 13/18; L Mooney 12/17.

GOLF CLUB HIT THE SUMMIT AS TANSLEY ARE EDGED OUT

GRAHAM JONES ... 14 wins out of 17

WITH three matches taking place over the Easter period, Matlock Golf Club capitalised on Alfreton No 2's inactivity and a narrow defeat for Tansley to take over leadership of the T & M Motors Snooker League going into the final scheduled round of games (plus a few re-arrangements).
The golfers travelled to Alfreton No1 but it did not go their way early doors as first Des Smith and then Phil Longden put the home team 2-0 to the good.
Les Mooney produced a trademark steady performance to reduce the arrears and after Graham Jones had notched his 14th win in 17 outings, meaning he has already secured the Player of the Season award for most wins, everything rested on the final doubles leg.
And with the frame going down to the final black, it was the pairing of Jones and Mooney who emerged victorious by a nail-biting 62-56 scoreline.

Tansley Potters travelled to Bolehill Institute and the home team recorded their sixth win out of eight on their own baize courtesy of a 3-2 verdict.
Again it looked unlikely in the early exchanges with Joe Neville and Steve Hawkins taking the first two frames respectively before Simon Zoppi started the fightback with an excellent exhibition of potting.
Ian Birks levelled and then teamed up with Ricki Slack to seal the deal in the doubles.

The other match saw a convincing win for Edgefold No1 who defeated Crich Comrades 4-1. Duncan Harwood took both singles and doubles legs, latterly with Chris Taylor, while Ade Smith was on target for the Tramwaymen.

Harwood also excelled with Steve Clarke in the doubles semi final as they knocked out the holders Des Smith and Tom Broughton 3-0 and Belper Strutt Club's Justin Weller will contest the scratch final after a 3-1 defeat of Keith Robertson.

The last remaining Elliott Carpets Billiards League contest resulted in another win for runners-up Mayfield Institute, defeating Tansley Potters 12-7 with wins for Mark Jennings and Joe Neville respectively.
Snooker League week 17 results: Alfreton Palmer Morewood No1 2, Matlock Golf Club 3; Bolehill Institute 3, Tansley Potters 2; Edgefold Matlock No1 4, Crich Comrades 1.
Breaks (inc. comps): D Harwood 25; K Robertson 25; R Slack 24; R Neville 20.

Billiards League (re-arranged): Tansley Potters 7, Mayfield Institute 12.

T & M Motors Snooker League         P        W       L       Pts
Matlock Golf Club                              17        11        6       50 
Tansley Potters                                  17        13       4       49
Alfreton P Morewood No 2                15        11        4       47
Alfreton P Morewood No 3                16          8        8       41 
Bolehill Institute                                 17          6      11       41
Alfreton P Morewood No 1                17          7      10       38
Edgefold Matlock No 1                      15          6        9       36
Belper Strutt Club                              16          6      10       35
Edgefold Matlock No 2                      16          7        9       34 
Crich Comrades                                16          6      10       34
Leading breaks: S Donner 92, R Mulliss 67 & 60.
Leading wins: G Jones 14/17; J Neville & L Mooney 12/17.

Elliott Carpets Billiards League       P     W      D       L     Pts
Bolehill Institute                                 12     10       1       1    141
Mayfield Institute                               12       7       1       4    136
Whitworth Institute                             12       4       0       8    115
Tansley Potters                                  12       2       0     10    109
Leading breaks: J McCann 57, S Hawkins 46.
Leading wins: R Slack 10/12; J McCann 9/12.