Gibbs in national final
CUESTARS has a player in the final of the English Under-14 Championship for the second year running – and it could be two!
Olly Gibbs (pictured) beat Jamie Wilson 4-3 from 1-0 down in the southern final at Pot Black Clacton.
The 12-year-old from Gosport will face the northern champion for the national title in Gloucester next year. And fellow Gold Tour player Aidan Murphy is in that yet-to-be-played northern final.
It was a nervous start by Gibbs, who will turn 13 next week. He lost his first group-stage match 2-1 to Evan Plummer (London) and scraped through 2-1 on the final black in his next against Jackson Song (London).
But a 3-0 victory over Nat Kidner (Ferndown) put him into the southern semi-finals where he overcame Oliver Sykes (Chandler’s Ford) 3-0.
Gibbs said: “I was nervous because I got knocked out in the groups last year. But once I got through I was more relaxed and I began to play well.”
Mum Louise said: “We are all really proud. He kept his focus at a slow and steady pace frame by frame.
“It was a much-needed boost as we lost a dear family member this year and he too would have been extremely proud.”
And she added: “Well done to Jamie Wilson.”
Last season’s runner-up Wilson, 12, from Havant, dispatched Plummer in the other last-four match.
Sykes is now ranked amongst the top-eight under-14s in the country after reaching the semis in Clacton – at the age of ten.
In the group stages, he won three of his four games and recorded a personal best 69 break against England international Mickey Joyce (Basingstoke), who did not qualify for the knockout.
SOUTHERN SEMI-FINALIST: Oliver Sykes
After watching six-time world champion Steve Davis in exhibition on the Saturday night, Sykes returned to the Pot Black Club the next day and won two of his four group-stage matches in the English Under-16 Championship.
“It was a great weekend,” said the young potter, following two days of snooker, a new high break, two nights in a hotel and an exhibition evening with one of the greatest players of all time.
In the Under-16 southern semis, Wilson went out to Reggie Edwards (Norwich) after beating Joyce 4-2 in the last-eight and Bradley Cowdroy lost to Luke Pinches (Norwich), the eventual southern champion and son of former professional Barry Pinches.
Pictures by Tim Dunkley.
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By Tim Dunkley (World Snooker coach)