Last year’s beaten finalist Chris O’Byrne managed to do one better in the Creed Memorial Cup this year, and take the trophy home*.
With no semi-finals played in this Handicap Advanced Association competition, Chris and Simon Ling both won their respective blocks, to set up an interesting match in lieu of Simon receiving 11 bisques.
Simon won the toss, and put Chris in first, who elected to play a supershot opening which seemed to be a good idea until he carelessly blobbed hoop 3. Simon shot from B Baulk and missed, and having ended up somewhat in no-man’s land with a choice of 7-8 yarders, and believing Chris’ balls to be wired from each other by hoop 3, decided to save his bisques. Unfortunately, Chris could run hoop 3 fairly easily, and took a break to rover leaving all 4 balls on various boundaries for the contact he was giving away.
Simon, remembering that bisques are for breaks, only needed to use 1 to get things in order, and proceeded to go to 4-Back with a Diagonal Spread using only 3 more bisques. However, Chris took the shot from A Baulk at Simon’s balls, hit, and managed to finish from there to win +17, with 7 of the bisques still standing.
The relatively quick finish to the game left various competitors standing around awaiting the next final, until a chaotic game of 5-Player One-Ball was ventured in the increasing rain.
* He didn’t actually take the trophy home, as it hadn’t been returned by the previous winner yet, so instead the photo is of runner-up Simon, with referee and club Chairman John Bristow presenting him with his trophy, while not letting him forget the bisques he had left over…