[<<] [>>] by Mark Gooding
30th June 2003 (AC)

Saturday was hot - sunburn, hay fever and Pimms seemed to be the main order of play. The first round was quick. The player known as Donkey was eliminated after failing to turn up on time. He had promised the manager that he would make it by 11am at the latest, but arrived shortly after 1pm. The darts match against Cambridge hadn't been the soberest of affairs for him! However it saved Michael Blackwell the effort of beating him. Mark Gooding quickly dispatched Martin Prickett, who had turned up expecting a handicap tournament. But Donkey was able to give Martin a less one-sided game in the plate. The second round saw a close match between Stuart Romeril and Michael. The first two of their games were very similar: One player doing the 4-back peel and pegging out their ball in the turn that time was called, requiring their opponent to hit in and finish a peel and a three-ball break to the peg just to level the game. In neither case was this achieved, but they alternated who won. The last game was less contested but Stu was content with one win. Despite being the clear favourite when the tournament started, Michael was looking beatable, choosing hoops 5, 6 and 2-back as his favourite spots to "set a leave". Mark Snow completed the new Harry Potter book as Mark G completed the second match of the semi-finals. A few random plate games occurred; Mark G notably embarrassing himself after too much sun and Pimms against Donkey.

Sunday was slightly cooler to start with allowing a better standard of play - only slightly better though! Michael's attempt to TPO Mark came to grief at hoop 5. Mark's subsequent attempt to double peel himself also came to grief at hoop 5, leaving Michael to finish what he had started. Michael then managed to roquet the peelee while going through rover and failed to peg it out. So Mark had the joy of pegging out Michael's ball leaving a 3 ball ending with Michael on 2-back (again) and Mark on 5 (still). After a spat of nerves at penult, Mark took the final victory in the various attempts to lose the game and lost by 4. Michael finally started to play well in the last game of the knockout and finished nicely in 3 or 4 breaks, but not without giving Mark two opportunities to show how to destroy a 4 ball break!

Mid-way through the final Michael went to Mass, so Stu and Mark played a plate game, which Mark won. After Mark's ineptitude in the first game again Michael, Stuart's tirade started along the lines of: "Why aren't you so crap against me? Against anyone else you can't hold a 4-ball break together for more than two hoops, and you blob every other hoop you try to run. Gifted the opportunity to win, you spanner it up! You even lost to Donkey! Yet against me, you do perfect breaks and fail to blob any hoops. I didn't do anything wrong in our game and you still win, but against Michael you are rubbish! etc., etc., etc.". Is the 4:1 previous record starting to get to Stu?

However Stu did win the (paper) plate event, beating Donkey in the final; but at the student championship everyone's a winner:
Plate winner = Stu
Peeling comp winner = Mark G.
Greatest index increase = Donkey
Most sporting player = Martin
Longest mallet throw = Mark S.

First Round

Gooding bt Prickett +20

Second Round

Blackwell bt Romeril +10(T),-11(T),+18
Gooding bt Snow +12,+16

Final

Blackwell bt Gooding +4,+23

Plate

Romeril bt Snow +26
Donkey bt Prickett +6 (T)
Donkey bt Gooding +6
Donkey bt Snow +15
Gooding bt Romeril +9
Romeril bt Donkey +18

Pre-Tournament Handicap Changes

Snow to 7 from 10
Donkey to 10 from "a large number"

Post-Tournament Handicap Changes

Gooding to 2.5 from 4
Romeril to 1.5 from 3

Gooding achieved the Silver merit award (at last!!)