Cowdroy claims Gold Tour title

BOURNEMOUTH’S teenage snooker ace Bradley Cowdroy (pictured) never really expected much green-baize success in his GCSE year.

But the 16-year-old is now celebrating on three fronts.

Cowdroy has already earned a place in the final of the English Under-16 Championship. He faces Ryan Davies (Oldham) in Gloucester in June – during his exam period.

Then he won promotion to the EASB Premier Junior Tour, an elite circuit for the best 32 under-21s in the country, by finishing third on the Regional Junior Tour South.

And now he has clinched the Cuestars South of England Under-21 Gold Tour rankings title.

Reflecting on the campaign, Cowdroy said: “Overall, it’s been a fantastic season.

“I could never have foreseen winning Cuestars, going up to the Premier Tour and being in a national final with the busy school year I’ve had. I couldn’t really have had a better year.”

Cowdroy – who has won four of the ten Cuestars legs, in Waterlooville, London, Bournemouth and Swindon – took a 15-point lead into the final event that was sponsored by Pitman Training Southampton at Chandlers Ford Snooker Club.

He needed to qualify for the knockout if second-placed Aidan Murphy (Bristol) won the event, which he did.

A self-confessed slow starter, Cowdroy kicked off with the day’s highest break of 87 in the opening frame of his first match against Connor Benzey (Eastleigh).

After four matches, he hadn’t dropped a frame and had secured a place in the knockout and, with it, the rankings title.

Having achieved his target, he lost his last round-robin match 2-1 to Ryan Hughes (Chandler’s Ford) and went down 2-0 to Murphy in the last-four.

Cowdroy, who is based at Greenbaize Snooker Club, was delighted to have hit the ground running for once.

“I changed the record today, which was nice,” he said.

“If you can get off to a good start, it gives you confidence going into the rest of the day.

“I was expecting a bit of a nervy day. It was a 15-point lead but it wasn’t as if I just had to turn up. I had work still to do.

“To win my first four group matches 2-0 and the way I played helped me get over the line.”

For more information about Pitman Training Southampton, go to www.pitman-training.com/our-centres/england/southampton.

Picture by Tim Dunkley

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Tim Dunkley (World Snooker coach)