Ryan’s Premier class

ALDERSHOT snooker hotshot Ryan Mears has captured the Cuestars Under-21 Premier Series crown.

Last season’s runner-up wrapped up the title with a semi-final finish at Salisbury SC at the fifth and final event of the South of England tour.

The 20-year-old did not drop a frame in the round-robin group stages but suffered a shock 3-1 defeat in the last four to 13-year-old Jordan Winbourne from Chandler’s Ford SC, near Southampton.

After missing the first tournament at Swindon, in October, Mears won the next three at Chandler’s Ford, in November, Bournemouth, in January, and Salisbury in March.

Mears is ranked 19th on the English Association of Snooker & Billiards Premier Junior Tour for the country’s top-48 under-21s and is 40th on the EASB Pro-Ticket Tour, a feeder for the professional circuit. He is based at Rileys, Aldershot.

Alex Dunkley claimed the £40 top prize at Salisbury by overcoming his Chandler’s Ford club-mate Winbourne 3-1 in the final with breaks of 67 and 61.

Mark Green, on his home tables, compiled a massive 108 in the groups while Winbourne posted a 71 against Daniel Woods.

BREAKS:

Mark Green: 108
Ryan Mears: 89
Jordan Winbourne: 71
Alex Dunkley: 67, 61, 51
Lee Roling: 57, 45, 42
Daniel Woods: 53
James Bolton: 44

RESULTS:

ROUND ROBIN, GROUP A: Ryan Mears (Rileys, Aldershot) bt Lee Roling (The Academy, Eastleigh) 3-0, Mears bt Ben Tanner (The Academy, Eastleigh) 3-0, Mears bt Alex Dunkley (Chandler’s Ford) 3-0, Dunkley bt Roling 3-1, Dunkley bt Tanner 3-0, Tanner bt Roling 3-2.

ROUND ROBIN, GROUP B: Mark Green (Salisbury) bt Jordan Winbourne (Chandler’s Ford) 3-2, Green bt Daniel Woods (Chandler’s Ford) 3-2, Green bt James Bolton (Salisbury) 3-0, Winbourne bt Woods 3-2, Winbourne bt Bolton 3-0, Bolton bt Woods 3-1.

SEMI-FINALS: Winbourne bt Mears 3-1, Dunkley bt Green 3-0.

FINAL (£40/£24): Dunkley bt Winbourne 3-1.

Tallentire eyes double

TROWBRIDGE cueman Daniel Tallentire has clinched the first half of a rare Cuestars snooker double.

Tallentire’s 3-1 last-16 victory over club-mate Simon Closman at the final event of the Under-21 Open tour at Salisbury SC was enough to distance him from the chasing pack.

After a shaky start to the season, Tallentire recorded three finals on the bounce. He won event four in Bournemouth, was runner-up in Gosport and won again at Salisbury, in March, to hit the front.

A semi-final appearance in Gloucester last month virtually sealed the title.

Now based at Player’s, in Westbury, following the closure of Trowbridge Snooker Club, Tallentire skippers ranking leaders Trowbridge A into battle on home tables at the final Cuestars Section Team Challenge tournament on May 31.

Sam Jefferson (Jesters SC, Swindon) climbed to fifth in the Under-21 Open rankings after claiming a first winners’ trophy of the season.

He defeated Lee Carlton (High Wycombe) 3-1 in the final.

Second-placed Lee Warner (Stoke SC, Gosport) won the Plate competition.

RESULTS:

LAST 16 (five points): Liam O’Shea (Jesters, Swindon) bt Lee Warner (Stoke SC, Gosport) 3-0, Daniel Tallentire (Trowbridge) bt Simon Closman (Trowbridge) 3-1.

QUARTER-FINALS (eight points): O’Shea bt Tallentire 3-1, Sam Jefferson (Jesters, Swindon) bt Jake White (Trowbridge) 3-2, Lee Carlton (Liberal Club, High Wycombe) bt Declon Shipperley (Liberal Club, High Wycombe) 3-0, Dean Matthews (Rileys, Reading) bt Carl Sidey (The Academy, Basingstoke) 3-1.

SEMI-FINALS (12 points): Jefferson bt O’Shea 3-0, Matthews bt Carlton 3-0.

FINAL (25/18 points): Jefferson bt Carlton 3-1.

PLATE

SEMI-FINALS (one point): Closman bt Shipperley 2-1, Warner bt White 2-1.

FINAL (five/three points): Warner bt Closman 2-0.

Chappell champion by one point

BOURNEMOUTH’S Bradley Chappell claimed the Cuestars Under-15 Open snooker championship by one point thanks to the player who beat him in the semi-finals.

The eight-tournament series across the South of England was decided on a tense final frame at Salisbury SC.

Chappell, based at the Green Baize club, was beaten 2-1 in the semi-finals by Matt Geer.

Meanwhile, title-rival Sam Streames, who needed to win the final to nick top spot, overcame Swindon’s Jodie Symes in the second semi.

But Geer, 14, triumphed 2-1 in a match decided by three flukes.

Geer, winner in Cardiff in December, went in off the black to gift Streames the first frame – but he fluked the black to level and the pink in the decider.

“It was a good day,” said Geer. “It was nice to round it off on a high.”

Cliff Goodchild, junior organiser at The Academy, said: “Matt’s been with us a long time. He took a long time to click but he’s certainly firing on all cylinders now.

“He deserves it; he’s got his feet firmly on the ground.”

Chappell only once failed to reach the quarter-final stage of an Under-15 tournament in this campaign – in Gosport in February.

Remarkably, it was a fifth Under-15 winners’ trophy this season for The Academy, in Eastleigh.

Two of third-placed Geer’s club-mates met in the Plate final.

Following a 2-0 first-round exit to Chappell, Lee Bell defeated Rob Henley 2-0.

RESULTS:

LAST 16 (five points): Sam Streames (Yate) bt Shane Sheehan (Reading) 2-0, Nathan Swanton (The Academy, Eastleigh) bt Ben Hatch (The Academy, Eastleigh) 2-0, Liam Burnet (The Academy, Eastleigh) bt Rob Henley (The Academy, Eastleigh) 2-0, Jodie Symes (Jesters, Swindon) bt Bradley Hatch (The Academy, Eastleigh) 2-1, Daniel Winfield (Trowbridge) bt Connor Probets (Jesters, Swindon) 2-0, Matt Geer (The Academy, Eastleigh) bt Luke Wandowski (Green Baize, Bournemouth) 2-0, Bradley Chappell (Green Baize, Bournemouth) bt Lee Bell (The Academy, Eastleigh) 2-0, Joe Moon (Jesters, Swindon) bt Paul Ives (Liberal Club, High Wycombe) 2-0.

QUARTER-FINALS (eight points): Streames bt Swanton 2-0, Symes bt Burnet 2-0, Geer bt Winfield 2-1, Chappell bt Moon 2-0.

SEMI-FINALS (12 points): Streames bt Symes, Geer bt Chappell 2-1.

FINAL (25/18 points): Geer bt Streames 2-1.

PLATE

QUARTER-FINALS: Bell bt Wandowski 2-0, Probets bt Sheehan 2-1, Henley bt Bradley Hatch 2-1, Ives bt Ben Hatch 2-1.

SEMI-FINALS (one point): Bell bt Probets 2-1, Henley bt Ives 2-1.

FINAL (five/three points): Bell bt Henley 2-0

Nine-year-old Lloyd banks Under-12 title

GOSPORT’S pint-sized potter Mark Lloyd was crowned Cuestars Under-12 champion after a nail-biting season finale at Salisbury Snooker Club.

Title-rival Jamie Perry needed to win the eighth tournament – and stop Lloyd from reaching the semis – to have any chancing of forcing a tie.

The pair were drawn together in the quarter-finals.

Perry (Jesters SC, Swindon) won 2-0 and went on to win the final.

However, Lloyd picked up the one point required to clinch the title by beating Reading’s Mason Sawyer 2-1 in the Plate semis.

After winning the Plate final, Lloyd finished five points ahead of Perry.

Based at Stoke Snooker Club, in Gosport, Lloyd made his Cuestars debut less than three weeks after his eighth birthday.

Last month, he had a first taste of pro-standard tables at the week-long junior festival at Pontin’s, Prestatyn.

The youngster stormed to the front of the Cuestars Under-12 rankings after back-to-back tournament victories – on home tables, in February, and in Salisbury, in March.

Perry overcame Jesters club-mate Oliver Parsons 2-1 in the final.

RESULTS:

LAST 16 (five points): Nathan Farmer (Stoke SC, Gosport) bt Joshua Lee (Jesters, Swindon) 2-1, Cameron Holt (Rileys, Reading) bt Mason Sawyer (Colours, Reading) 2-0.

QUARTER-FINALS (eight points): Holt bt Farmer 2-1, Jamie Perry (Jesters, Swindon) bt Mark Lloyd (Stoke SC, Gosport) 2-0, Joshua Brooker (Liberal Club, High Wycombe) bt Thyas Evans (Trowbridge) 2-0, Oliver Parsons (Jesters, Swindon) bt Joshua Hughes (Worcester) 2-1.

SEMI-FINALS (12 points): Perry bt Holt 2-1, Parsons bt Brooker 2-0.

FINAL (25/18 points): Perry bt Parsons 2-1.

PLATE

SEMI-FINALS (one point): Lloyd bt Sawyer 2-1, Lee bt Hughes 2-1.

FINAL (five/three points): Lloyd bt Lee 2-1.

Did you do something notable in the last Cuestars tournament? Or any other tournament? Have you just beaten your highest break? Have you got anything to say? E-mail me details at [email protected] and you could be on the Cuestars website.

Pictures by Kevin Legg:

Ryan Mears
Daniel Tallentire