Haines leads Cardiff whitewash

LUKE Haines edged out club-mate Munzir Sadiq 3-2 on home tables in the final of the third Cuestars Under-21 Open tournament at Rileys SC, Cardiff.

Runner-up at Chandler’s Ford, the young Welsh dragon took a clear lead in the rankings over second-placed Sadiq, who triumphed at Swindon after beating Haines 3-2 in the last four.

In fact, the Welsh are threatening to dominate the eight-event series across the South. Kishan Hirani, who posted the day’s top break of 68, lies third after a quarter-final defeat by Haines.

And to complete a Cardiff whitewash, James Kidwell beat Andrew Dyer, from Trowbridge, in the Plate final.

BREAKS: Kishan Hirani 68, Will McMullin 64, Lee Roling 57.

RESULTS:

LAST 32 (three points): Lee Roling (Eastleigh) 3 Liam O’Shea (Swindon) 1, Ryan Gavin (High Wycombe) 3 James Kidwell (Cardiff) 2, Sam Jefferson (Swindon) 0 Andy Mayell (Trowbridge) 3, Matthew Guy (Gloucester) 3 Will Gilbert (Reading) 1, Ed Topham (Cardiff) 1 Kishan Hirani (Cardiff) 3.

LAST 16 (five points): Roling 3 Gavin 1, Mayell 0 Guy 3, Hirani 3 Jake White (Trowbridge) 1, Luke Haines (Cardiff) 3 Andrew Dyer (Trowbridge) 0, Lee Warner (Gosport, Stoke SC) 3 Nick Bone (Basingstoke) 1, Dean Matthews (Reading) 3 Daniel Tallentire (Trowbridge) 1, Lee Carlton (High Wycombe) 0 Will McMullin (Gloucester) 3, Ben Tanner (Eastleigh) 2 Munzir Sadiq (Cardiff) 3.

QUARTER-FINALS (eight points): Roling 3 Guy 0, Hirani 2 Haines 3, Warner 3 Matthews 2, McMullin 0 Sadiq 3.

SEMI-FINALS (12 points): Roling 0 Haines 3, Warner 0 Sadiq 3.

FINAL (25/18 points): Haines 3 Sadiq 2.

PLATE

LAST 16: Topham beat Tallentire, Kidwell 2 O’Shea 1, Bone 0 White 2.

QUARTER-FINALS: Topham 1 Kidwell 2, White 2 Gilbert 1, Jefferson 2 Carlton 0, Dyer 2 Tanner 1.

SEMI-FINALS (one point): Kidwell 2 White 1, Jefferson 0 Dyer 2.

FINAL (Five/three points): Kidwell 1 Dyer 0.

Top Geer

EASTLEIGH’S Matt Geer clinched a first ever tournament win at the Cuestars Under-15 event in Cardiff.

And the 13-year-old did it in some style

Geer motored to victory without dropping a frame in all five matches and beat runaway rankings leader Bradley Chappell (Bournemouth) in the final. Both frames went to the colours and Geer wrapped up a famous win on the green.

“It feels really great,” he said. “It’s given me a real confidence boost.”

Geer first picked up a cue aged seven. He made his Cuestars debut in an Under-12 event at Jesters SC, Swindon, on October 8, 2006. Cardiff was his 21st Cuestars tournament.

Mum Sue said: “We’re very, very proud of him.”

Geer climbed to joint second in the Under-15 rankings level with Thomas Hilborne (Trowbridge) who made a quarter-final exit. Chappell has appeared in all three finals this season.

After a first-round exit to the tournament winner, Jack Dady picked up valuable points in the Plate. The Basingstoke youngster beat Michael Clifford in the final.

In The Academy’s December rankings, Geer edged out Robert Henley 2-1 in a marathon two-and-a-half hour match. All three last-16 frames were decided on the black.

BREAKS: Cory Johnson 52, Bradley Chappell 41.

RESULTS:

LAST 32 (three points): Lee Bell (Eastleigh) beat Nat Day (Reading), Sam Streames (Yate) beat Michael Simms (Cardiff), Matt Geer (Eastleigh) beat Jack Dady (Basingstoke), Cory Johnson (Gloucester) beat Shaun Connors (Cardiff), Oliver Williams (Cardiff) beat Tom Trigg (Gloucester), Bradley Hatch (Eastleigh) beat Michael Clifford (Gloucester), Daniel Winfield (Trowbridge) beat Che Dimauro (Cardiff).

LAST 16 (five points): Streames beat Bell, Geer beat Johnson, Williams beat Hatch, Winfield beat Cameron Russell (Swindon), Bradley Chappell (Bournemouth) beat Simey Connors (Cardiff), Adam Bartlett (Basingstoke) beat Paul Ives (High Wycombe), Thomas Hilborne (Trowbridge) beat Kieron Hall (Gloucester), Johnny Connors (Cardiff) beat Gary Bagshaw (Basingstoke).

QUARTER-FINALS (eight points): Geer beat Streames, Williams beat Winfield, Chappell beat Bartlett, Johnny Connors beat Hilborne.

SEMI-FINALS (12 points): Geer beat Williams, Chappell beat Johnny Connors.

FINAL (25/18 points): Geer beat Chappell.

PLATE

LAST 16: Clifford beat Bagshaw, Hall beat Simey Connors, Trigg beat Shaun Connors.

QUARTER-FINALS: Clifford beat Hall, Simms beat Trigg, Ives beat Russell, Dady beat Day.

SEMI-FINALS (one point): Clifford beat Simms, Dady beat Ives.

FINAL (five/three points): Dady beat Clifford.

Evans above

SUDDENLY it’s all come good for Trowbridge youngster Thyas Evans.

Competing in his 14th Cuestars tournament, Evans clinched a first winner’s trophy of his career and heads into Christmas top of the Under-12 rankings.

Evans defeated club-mate Oliver Hilborne in the final of the third Under-12 event in Cardiff.

Swindon’s Jamie Perry dropped to second after a first-round exit and then lost in the Plate final to home player Rhys Zarb.

RESULTS:

LAST 16 (five points): Oliver Hilborne (Trowbridge) beat Jerry Connors Jnr (Cardiff), Cameron Holt (Reading) beat Suraj Singh (Cardiff).

QUARTER-FINALS (eight points): Hilborne beat Holt, Mark Lloyd (Gosport, Stoke SC) beat Joshua Lee (Swindon), Oliver Parsons (Swindon) beat Jamie Perry (Swindon), Thyas Evans (Trowbridge) beat Rhys Zarb (Cardiff).

SEMI-FINALS (12 points): Hilborne beat Lloyd, Evans beat Parsons.

FINAL (25/18 points): Evans Beat Hilborne.

PLATE

QUARTER-FINAL: Zarb beat Singh.

SEMI-FINALS (one point): Zarb beat Connors, Perry beat Lee.

FINAL (five/three points): Zarb beat Perry.

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