EDGEFOLD CLUB TAKE THE SPOILS IN MATLOCK DERBY

DUNCAN HARWOOD had a successful evening for Matlock's Edgefold Club.

THE all-Matlock derby saw Edgefold Club score an impressive 4-1 victory over the Golf Club which leaves them still in with a shout of the runners-up spot in A Division.
New signing Jason Ankers, recruited from the local pool circuit, had a mightily impressive debut against twice Derbyshire champion Graham Jones and then Rob Muxlow scored an equally meritorious win over Chris Parker before Duncan Harwood made the game safe in frame three.

Visiting captain Nick Kay pulled one back but Harwood and Ankers completed a successful evening for the home team by taking the concluding doubles leg.

Still holding second spot are Bolehill Institute No 1 who edged a cracking battle with Belper Strutt Club No 1 3-2 on a re-spotted black in the final doubles contest with Ricki Slack and Ian Birks winning both frames they contested. Steve Bullock and Justin Weller had twice put the visitors ahead prior to that.

Leaders Marehay Miners Welfare fell 3-2 at home to Matlock's Gladiators Social Club. Dave Gastrell edged out Ben Monk on the black in the opener and Vinnie Dennis and Mark Gwynne-Jones added the decisive points later on.

In between those, Andrew Gratton struck breaks of 45 and 32 to defeat dual Derbyshire Under-21 champion Troy Brett while Ben Monk's run of 51 in the doubles constitutes the highest A Division break so far this season.

Eleswhere, the remaining Belper teams enjoyed resounding victories.
Strutt Club No 2 took maximum points against Matlock Club, with Chris Stubbs top scoring whilst Jaxx Q Club triumphed 4-1 over Bolehill Institute No 2, the highlight of which was Steve Robinson's 36 break.

League week 15 results: Edgefold Matlock 4, Matlock Golf Club 1; Bolehill Inst No 1 3, Belper Strutt No 1 2; Marehay MW / PJ'z 2, Gladiators SC Matlock 3; Belper Strutt No 2 5, Matlock Club 0; Jaxx Q Club Belper 4, Bolehill Inst No 2 1.
OMYA Cup Individual Scratch semi finals: Ben Monk (Marehay) 3, Graham Jones (Golf Club) 0 (at Jaxx); Jimmy Gratton (Jaxx) 3, Richard Ferguson (Edgefold) 0 (at Golf Club).
Breaks: B Monk 51,41,39,39,38,36,29,25; A Gratton 45,32; J Gratton 41,32;
S Robinson 36; R Ferguson 31; C Stubbs 24; R Slack 24; S Bullock 22;
R Muxlow 22; D Needham 20.

A Division                        P      W      L      Pts
Marehay MW / PJ'z        14      10      4       46
Bolehill Institute No 1      15       9       6       42
Edgefold Matlock            15       8       7       39
Matlock Golf Club           14       7       7       35
Jaxx Q Club Belper        15       9       6       33
Leading breaks: B Monk 51 & 47; A Gratton 45.
Leading wins: R Slack 13; B Monk 12; A Gratton 11.

B Division                        P      W      L      Pts
Belper Strutt No 1           15       9       6       41
Gladiators SC Matlock    15       8       7       41
Belper Strutt No 2           15       6       9       37
Bolehill Institute No 2      15       6       9       34
Matlock Club                   15       2     13       21
Leading breaks: T Brett 58 & 54; S Bullock 45.
Leading wins: C Stubbs 10; W Shooter, I Peacock & M Newby 9.

ALL-BOLEHILL CUP FINAL CREATES LEAGUE HISTORY

HISTORY was made this week when for the first time ever, both teams from Bolehill Institute will contest the Captains Cup Team Aggregate final, ensuring a fitting end of season tribute to the memory of the late club president and chairman Alan Hopkinson.
First up in the semis were current holders Bolehill No 1, who faced a tough assignment at Belper Strutt Club against league leaders Marehay Miners Welfare, who had  been on course for a Grand Slam of all four team trophies.

RICKI SLACK got Bolehill No 1 off to the best possible start.

The opening joust saw Ricki Slack triumph in the battle of the captains against ace counterpart Ben Monk by an 80-31 scoreline with some impressive long-potting being the catalyst.

Andrew Gratton set about reducing the deficit with an early 29 break but unluckily knocked in the pink when potting the green and this had a profound effect on the frame later on with Colin Marchington taking pink and black to take it 79-69.

Lee Whatton did make some inroads in the next though as he saw off Simon Zoppi 69-42 before Ian Birks, battling through illness, scored a doughty 74-31 win over Andrew Beardsley in frame four to increase the aggregate margin to 75pts with just the doubles to play.

And though Monk briefly raised Marehay hopes with an early contribution of 34, the bar was ultimately set too high by this stage and Bolehill held on for a 41-point victory.

Bolehill No 2 took on Matlock's Edgefold Club the following day at Jaxx Q Club, but were on the receiving end in the opener as Richard Ferguson (breaks of 24 and 22) defeated Martin Forster 86-40.

IAN PEACOCK turned the game on its head for Bolehill No 2.

The game was turned on its head in the next though as a barnstorming effort from Ian Peacock saw him earn a 93-22 success over Rob Muxlow and then Keith Robertson took pink and black to pip Duncan Harwood 60-59.

Neil Parkinson put the match right back in the balance by defeating Mick Bunting 71-46 to leave Bolehill just 1pt up going into the doubles.

But Robertson (24 break) and Peacock were in no mood to falter and scored a 38-point victory to earn their team a final place with the clock ticking rapidly towards midnight.

Elsewhere, a thrilling Jimmy Harper Plate encounter saw Belper Strutt Club No 2 edge out Matlock Golf Club by 298-278.

Dave Needham and Chris Stubbs won both their singles and doubles frames while Ian McKay was in fine form for the visitors.

And in the sole League match this week, Jaxx Q Club of Belper saw off Gladiators Social Club of Matlock 3-2 on the final black after Guy Shirley inadvertently snookered himself on the pink when potting frame ball blue.

The escape attempt failed to bear fruit and then Kevin Holmes took pink and black for what had looked an unlikely success.

Steve Robinson with a couple of 25 breaks had levelled the scores at 2-2 after Mark Gwynne-Jones had put the hosts ahead prior to that.

Captains Cup Semi Finals: Bolehill Inst No 1 325, Marehay MW / PJ'z 284 (at Strutt); Bolehill Inst No 2 291, Edgefold Matlock 252 (at Jaxx).
Jimmy Harper Plate 1st round: Belper Strutt No 2 298, Matlock Golf Club 278.
League: Gladiators SC Matlock 2, Jaxx Q Club Belper 3.
Breaks: B Monk 34; A Gratton 29; S Robinson 25,25; R Ferguson 24,22;
K Robertson 24; R Slack 23; I Peacock 22; M Gwynne-Jones 20.

MAREHAY EDGE THE BATTLE OF THE LEAGUE LEADERS

THE leaders of A and B Divisions clashed this week due to the integrated nature of the fixture list and normal service was resumed for Marehay Miners Welfare after last week's blip as they earned a narrow 3-2 victory at Belper Strutt Club No 1.
Ben Monk (breaks of 35 and 30) and Andrew Gratton (36 and 20) were in no mood to offer any second chances as the visitors bossed the early proceedings.

MARK NEWBY replied in kind with a 30 break for Belper Strutt No 1.

However, Mark Newby, with a 30 break of his own, and Paul Jarrett fought back well to level matters before Monk and partner Andrew Beardsley re-assumed authority in the deciding doubles frame.

Matlock's Edgefold Club, fresh from taking maximum points last week, took the first four frames against Belper Strutt Club No 2 with Duncan Harwood top scoring and Rob Muxlow edging the fourth on the black.

But the visitors did get on the board in the concluding doubles, with Chris Stubbs notching a run of 25 for good measure.

The Bolehill teams had contrasting fortunes with the No 1 team losing 4-1 at Matlock Golf Club, their solitary point coming via Ricki Slack's black ball win over Graham Jones after even that looked a forlorn hope from around 40 adrift with just three reds left.

Chris Parker remained undefeated in the few games he has played  for the hosts this season, after Chris Drabble's quadruple on a re-spotted black had tipped the balance their way in frame three.

There was better news for Bolehill No 2 as they  overcame Matlock Club 4-1 at home.
Keith Robertson edged out Paul Holmes on the black in the opener and after the in-form Graeme Wood had levelled matters, Ian Peacock's narrow win in frame three proved to be the springboard for the success.

And in the Jimmy Harper Plate competition first round, Jaxx Q Club of Belper defeated Gladiators Social Club of Matlock, the highlight of which was a superb break of 70 from Mark Jones which went a long way towards deciding the aggregate-points format on the evening.

League week 14 results: Belper Strutt No 1 2, Marehay MW / PJ'z 3; Edgefold Matlock 4, Belper Strutt No 2 1; Matlock Golf Club 4, Bolehill Inst No 1 1; Bolehill Inst No 2 4, Matlock Club 1.
Jimmy Harper Team Plate 1st round: Jaxx Q Club Belper bt Gladiators SC Matlock (agg pts).
B Div Individual Handicap semi final: K Holmes (Jaxx Q Club) 2, D Martin (Gladiators SC) 1.

Breaks: M Jones 70; A Gratton 36,20; B Monk 35,32,30,30; M Newby 30;
K Holmes 29; C Stubbs 25; R Muxlow 21; A Winson 21.

A Division                        P      W      L      Pts
Marehay MW / PJ'z        13      10      3       44
Bolehill Institute No 1      14       8       6       39
Edgefold Matlock            14       7       7       35
Matlock Golf Club           13       7       6       34
Jaxx Q Club Belper        13       7       6       26
Leading breaks: B Monk 47 & 44; I McKay 44.
Leading wins: B Monk & R Slack 12; A Gratton 10.

B Division                        P      W      L      Pts
Belper Strutt No 1           14       9       5       39
Gladiators SC Matlock    13       7       6       36
Bolehill Institute No 2      14       6       8       33
Belper Strutt No 2           14       5       9       32
Matlock Club                   14       2     12       21
Leading breaks: T Brett 58 & 54; S Bullock 45.
Leading wins: C Stubbs, W Shooter, I Peacock & M Newby 9.

BOLEHILL No 1 DEDICATE THEIR WIN TO FORMER CAPTAIN

ALAN HOPKINSON, long term servant of the Darley Dale & District League.

PLAYERS and officials are deeply saddened to hear the news that Alan Hopkinson, long-standing player, secretary and treasurer of the Darley Dale & District League, passed away last Wednesday morning. Condolences go out to his family and many friends; he likewise will be very much missed by those at Bolehill Institute and also Belper Strutt Club where he often played his grandson, along with all who have enjoyed his presence on the local snooker circuit ever since his playing days way back yonder, a very sad day for us all.

It was fitting in the circumstances that Bolehill Institute No 1 team, whom Alan captained for many years, should turn on probably their best performance of the season resulting in a 4-1 win at A Division leaders Marehay Miners Welfare, which they immediately dedicated to their former captain on hearing the bad news.

It started out looking like just another day at the office for the hosts with Ben Monk taking the opening frame thanks to breaks of 28 and 23, but that didn't tell the whole story as reserve Keith Robertson had been very unlucky to pot the blue when in with every chance only for the cue ball to drop into a pocket having all but rested on the lip initially.

Simon Zoppi mopped up from yellow to pink to make it 1-1 in the next and then Ricki Slack took yellow to blue to make it 2-1.

Thereafter Ian Birks with a 63-30 win sealed the deal in frame four and then he and Ricki took the final doubles match courtesy of a re-spotted black after Ben had potted a stormer to level the scores at 55 apiece.

Bolehill's No 2 team were also well poised as they took a 2-0 lead over Belper Strutt Club No 1, Martin Forster and Mick Bunting doing the business.

However, the B Division leaders fought back strongly to take a 3-2 win thanks to Mark Newby and Steve Bullock remaining undefeated in the remaining singles and doubles frames.

The No 2 team from Strutt were edged out 3-2 by Matlock's Gladiators Social Club, with the pivotal frame being the doubles clash, as Troy Brett and Dwayne Martin came from the snookers required stage on pink and black to take it against all the odds.

Matlock Club couldn't maintain their recent upturn in fortunes as they lost 5-0 at home to Matlock Golf Club, who fielded six players on the night, all of whom were in fine form, Graham Jones (40 break) and Ian McKay (29 and 22) particularly so.

And there was also an excellent 5-0 success for Matlock's Edgefold Club at Jaxx Q Club of Belper. Robert Muxlow top scored on a night which featured a strange conclusion with the Jaxx players drifting out one by one until Kevin Holmes was left on his own and unable to find a partner to play the doubles frame with!

He had gained some compensation earlier in the night with a 3-2 win over team-mate Paul Ogden in the Open Handicap semi final, highlighted by a break of 37.

League week 13 results: Marehay Miners Welfare / PJ'z 1, Bolehill Inst No 1 4; Bolehill Inst No 2 2, Belper Strutt No 1 3; Belper Strutt No 2 2, Gladiators SC Matlock 3; Matlock Club 0, Matlock Golf Club 5; Jaxx Q Club Belper 0, Edgefold Matlock 5.
Open Handicap semi final: K Holmes (Jaxx Q Club) 3; P Ogden (Jaxx Q Club) 2.
Breaks: G Jones 40; K Holmes 37; I McKay 29,22; B Monk 28,23; P Ogden 27;
R Slack 22; S Zoppi 20.

A Division                        P      W      L      Pts
Marehay MW / PJ'z        12       9       3       41
Bolehill Institute No 1      13       8       5       38
Edgefold Matlock            13       6       7       31
Matlock Golf Club           12       6       6       30
Jaxx Q Club Belper        13       7       6       26
Leading breaks: B Monk 47 & 44; I McKay 44.
Leading wins: B Monk & R Slack 11; A Gratton 9.

B Division                        P      W      L      Pts
Belper Strutt No 1           13       9       4       37
Gladiators SC Matlock    13       7       6       36
Belper Strutt No 2           13       5       8       31
Bolehill Institute No 2      13       5       8       29
Matlock Club                   13       2     11       21
Leading breaks: T Brett 58 & 54; S Bullock 45.
Leading wins: C Stubbs & W Shooter 9; I Peacock & M Newby 8.

NEW HANDICAP RATINGS

THE latest handicap adjustments are as follows:
Andrew Beardsley (Marehay Miners Welfare / PJ'z) goes from -10 to -5
Wayne Shooter (Belper Strutt Club No 1) goes from Scratch to -5
Steve Hawkins (Gladiators SC Matlock) goes from Scratch to -5
Kevin Holmes (Jaxx Q Club Belper) goes from Scratch to +5
Charlie Hodgkinson (Matlock Golf Club) goes from Scratch to +5
Dave Potter (Matlock Club) goes from Scratch to +5
Ian Burgoyne (Jaxx Q Club Belper) will be off -5

The above players have reached the trigger percentages for moving up or down a bracket so the new ratings will come into play with immediate effect.

If you wish to print out the full list of up to date handicap ratings, please click on the link on the right hand side of the webpage, thanks.

MATLOCK CLUB GETTING THE WIND IN THEIR SAILS

MATLOCK CLUB'S stock continued to rise this week with a second successive 4-1 league win, this time over B Division title contenders Gladiators Social Club.
Graeme Wood, Mick McFall and Paul Holmes crucially all won black-ball frames to put the hosts into an unassailable lead and despite Mark Gwynne-Jones (21 break) getting the visitors onto the board, Keith Manlove and partner Holmes rubber-stamped the triumph in the concluding doubles frame, yes you've guessed it, via another black ball decider!

Gladiators made amends later in the week as a re-arranged home clash with Belper Strutt Club No 2 resulted in a 3-2 victory.

Derbyshire Under-21 champion Troy Brett, with breaks of 54 and 22, proved the difference in the deciding pairs clash after Dave Needham had levelled the scores at 2-2 with a doubled black.

The previous night Strutt No 2 had edged out Bolehill Institute No 2 3-2 with Needham and Chris Stubbs winning both their singles and doubles frames whilst Keith Robertson top scored for the visitors.

PAUL JARRETT (Belper Strutt No 1) ... cruel luck after potting the deciding black.

The all-Belper derby saw Jaxx Q Club defeat Strutt Club No 1 also by the minimum margin as Paul Jarrett knocked in the deciding black in the closing doubles frame, only to see the cue ball cruelly disappear into the pocket soon afterwards, enabling Paul Ogden and partner Mark Jones (who each had runs of 24) to take the spoils instead.

Bolehill Institute No 1 remain in the runners up spot in A Division after a 4-1 home win over  Matlock's Edgefold Club.

Ricki Slack notched breaks of 32 and 21 to put the hosts on the front foot as they surged into a 3-0 lead before Neil Parkinson replied with the sole riposte for the visitors.

League week 12 results: Matlock Club 4, Gladiators SC Matlock 1; Belper Strutt No 2 3, Bolehill Inst No 2 2; Jaxx Q Club Belper 3, Belper Strutt No 1 2; Bolehill Inst No 1 4, Edgefold Matlock 1; Gladiators SC Matlock 3, Belper Strutt No 2 2; Matlock Golf Club v Marehay MW / PJ'z postponed.

Breaks: T Brett 54,22; A Gratton 43; R Slack 32,21; K Holmes 30; P Ogden 24; M Jones 24; C Stubbs 24; M Forster 22; M Gwynne-Jones 21.

A Division                        P      W      L      Pts
Marehay MW / PJ'z        11       9       2       40
Bolehill Institute No 1      12       7       5       34
Jaxx Q Club Belper        12       7       5       26
Edgefold Matlock            12       5       7       26
Matlock Golf Club           11       5       6       25
Leading breaks: B Monk 47 & 44; I McKay 44.
Leading wins: B Monk & R Slack 10; A Gratton 9.

B Division                        P      W      L      Pts
Belper Strutt No 1           12       8       4       34
Gladiators SC Matlock    12       6       6       33
Belper Strutt No 2           12       5       7       29
Bolehill Institute No 2      12       5       7       27
Matlock Club                   12       2     10       21
Leading breaks: T Brett 58 & 54; S Bullock 45.
Leading wins: C Stubbs & W Shooter 9; I Peacock 8.

BOTH BOLEHILL TEAMS PROGRESS TO SEMI FINALS

ANDREW BROUGH put in a stellar performance for Bolehill No 1.

THE quarter finals of the Captains Cup team aggregate competition took place this week and thankfully all emerged unaffected by the wintry weather.
Holders Bolehill Institute No 1 continued their defence with a home tie against Jaxx Q Club of Belper and Andrew Brough put in a stellar performance first up to win 90-52 against Steve Robinson.

Ricki Slack then came from well adrift to edge out Paul Ogden thanks to a tricky black down the side cushion whilst Mark Jones scored his own black ball win over Simon Zoppi for the visitors in the next.

Ian Birks defeated Kevin Holmes 66-44 in frame four which gave Bolehill a healthy lead going into the final doubles and they eventually prevailed by 319-257 overall.

Also through are Bolehill's No 2 team who overcame Belper Strutt Club No 1 308-248.

Ian Peacock (25 break) and Keith Robertson (28) started off in rocket-propelled mode, building up a 66 point lead after the opening two frames.

Paul Jarrett eroded the deficit somewhat with a 33-point win in the third but Mick Bunting's 63-28 verdict in frame four put the hosts in a commanding position which they did not relinquish.

Matlock Club, fresh from opening their League account the previous week, looked set to carry on their change of fortunes with Paul Holmes and Graeme Wood taking the opening two frames in their local derby at the Edgefold Club.

This gave them a 33 point advantage on the aggregate, but Duncan Harwood's 96-23 success in frame three turned the game on its head and there were no further scares as Neil Parkinson won his own singles match (albeit narrowly) and then the concluding doubles frame partnered by Harwood.

And Six Red Cup finalists and League leaders Marehay Miners Welfare are still poised for the Grand Slam after a convincing 389-254 triumph at Matlock Golf Club
.
Amongst the breaks were Andrew Gratton (41), Ben Monk (34) and Lee Whatton (31) as the Amber Valley cueists found probably their best form yet of the season.

Highest break of the week came from Jimmy Gratton with an excellent 66 in the Hartshorne Cup 2-man team event.

Captains Cup Team Aggregate competition quarter-finals: Bolehill Inst No 1 319, Jaxx Q Club Belper 257; Bolehill Inst No 2 308, Belper Strutt No 1 248; Edgefold Matlock 340, Matlock Club 247; Matlock Golf Club 254, Marehay MW/PJ'z 389.
Breaks: J Gratton 66,33; A Gratton 41; H Jones 35; B Monk 34; L Whatton 31;
K Robertson 28; I Peacock 25; D Harwood 22.