Champion Of Pool
Me and Mark won a trophy. For playing Pool.
I don't think I've ever won anything before now. Mark has but he was even more chuffed to bits than me.
Gaz asked us the day before if we could play Pool for the inter-college championships. I said we hadn't played in a while but were up for it.
We turned up, beat the other three teams, smashed them actually, and took the trophy. Our college got the overall trophy on the day and I was so glad for Gaz. We won also in Squash and 11 a side football.
To be honest we played out of our skins. Both me and Mark wanted to win so bad. We're not bad Pool players, though we have our ups and downs and we neither of us played consistently well in the pub league last year so this was a big vindication for something we just enjoy offhand, not even as much of a hobby. But we knew we were good. We just needed a stage to show it.
My long potting, which had been fantastic a couple of weeks ago, was abysmal, fortunately my short game was damn good. We played nine games overall and won six. We lost our first doubles match (To Cookie of all people) and each lost a singles game to a guy called Gavin who was the kind of player who covers all the pockets and then snookers you constantly until he gets a chance to down everything.
Somehow it came down to his team having to beat us three times in a row in order to win because we'd been phenomenal in our first flush. Despite his snookering style and his team mates potting, we took the trophy with a game to spare. Wasn't easy. Last game, He's on the black, makes a mistake. We have four balls and the black still on the table, any mistake and he will win, the black being over a pocket. Mark steps up. Nerves of steel, I dunno how, and neither does he, but he puts down a five ball clearance. Incredible. It was fortunate that I'd managed to put all our balls into pottable positions on my last go. I'd just taken to smashing the balls around to break up chances of the guy snookering us.
Paul Simpson, Player Manager of Carlisle Utd, presented us with the trophy which was great. He said, "I presume you're the guys who spend all your time in the pub then". I was too happy to care.
I've never won anything in my life before. It didn't seem like much, but it meant such a hell of a lot.
I don't think I've ever won anything before now. Mark has but he was even more chuffed to bits than me.
Gaz asked us the day before if we could play Pool for the inter-college championships. I said we hadn't played in a while but were up for it.
We turned up, beat the other three teams, smashed them actually, and took the trophy. Our college got the overall trophy on the day and I was so glad for Gaz. We won also in Squash and 11 a side football.
To be honest we played out of our skins. Both me and Mark wanted to win so bad. We're not bad Pool players, though we have our ups and downs and we neither of us played consistently well in the pub league last year so this was a big vindication for something we just enjoy offhand, not even as much of a hobby. But we knew we were good. We just needed a stage to show it.
My long potting, which had been fantastic a couple of weeks ago, was abysmal, fortunately my short game was damn good. We played nine games overall and won six. We lost our first doubles match (To Cookie of all people) and each lost a singles game to a guy called Gavin who was the kind of player who covers all the pockets and then snookers you constantly until he gets a chance to down everything.
Somehow it came down to his team having to beat us three times in a row in order to win because we'd been phenomenal in our first flush. Despite his snookering style and his team mates potting, we took the trophy with a game to spare. Wasn't easy. Last game, He's on the black, makes a mistake. We have four balls and the black still on the table, any mistake and he will win, the black being over a pocket. Mark steps up. Nerves of steel, I dunno how, and neither does he, but he puts down a five ball clearance. Incredible. It was fortunate that I'd managed to put all our balls into pottable positions on my last go. I'd just taken to smashing the balls around to break up chances of the guy snookering us.
Paul Simpson, Player Manager of Carlisle Utd, presented us with the trophy which was great. He said, "I presume you're the guys who spend all your time in the pub then". I was too happy to care.
I've never won anything in my life before. It didn't seem like much, but it meant such a hell of a lot.
posted by Caractacus at 17:19
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