Yarmouth is nearly upon us, and this time, Waterloo will be represented by two teams, both itching to get out of the group stages and into the latter stages of the tournament. But as ever, navigating the way out of the groups is the toughest challenge. On Table 27, Waterloo I find themselves in a tricky group with two experienced teams – Cherry Tree from Nottinghamshire, and North Wolds from East Yorkshire. While I think Waterloo has the firepower to come through this group, it certainly won’t be a stroll in the park. Meanwhile, on Table 22, Waterloo II makes its debut as a team in the competition against two other debutant teams, but this is going to be an equally tricky group. Trent Trophies Tuesday carry the Trent Trophies name – the A team from that league boasts world champion Gareth Potts in its line-up – so clearly they are going to be capable enough players, not to be taken lightly, while Norwich A may be playing for the first time, but we are told that the team contains a number of Norfolk county stars so there’s plenty of quality there.
I won’t speculate on our chances further. Instead I’ll turn my attention to the other tables, and offer my predictions for the tournament as a whole. First, on Table 1, defending champions Sun Valley from Nottingham should have enough strength and experience to progress from a group that also features Cambridge Elite, and Tolworth II. Cambridge Elite will run them close, but the Notts boys, with Baydon Jackson leading the way, should do enough.
On Table 2, there’s a really tight group featuring three teams – Lye & Stourbridge from the West Midlands, Grove Elite from West Yorkshire, and Bracknell & Ascot B from Berkshire – who all have talent, even if none of them is likely to be holding the trophy aloft on Sunday. I’ll opt for Lye & Stourbridge to shade this group.
Similarly, on Table 3, none of the teams are pushovers, but Cambridgeshire’s Ely have real strength – especially if Phil ‘Farmer’ Harrison is on call – and are beginning to shake off the under-achiever tag. They should come out on top ahead of Bracknell & Ascot A, and Oxfordshire’s Bicester Select, but all the teams have the ability to progress.
Table 4 features three largely untested teams, so anything could happen. I’ll take pot luck and go for Cambridge Snooker Club to win ahead of Derbyshire’s Glossop, and West Yorkshire’s Macmillan.
Table 5 is another one that’s on paper too close to call. EHPL from Hertfordshire, and Pocket Rockets B from Northamptonshire, have both flattered to deceive, while Portsmouth’s return to the big stage after some years may end in disappointment. I’m opting for the greater experience of EHPL – just.
On Table 6, Bedfordshire’s Luton Elite have yet to live up to that elite tag, so could this be their year? I can’t seem them being troubled by Kent’s Folkestone or Cheshire’s Northwich, but Northwich went to the Interleague finals in March as first-timers and promptly won their group, so watch out.
Our friends Battersea A line up on Table 7. Poor Battersea, they have been handed a nightmare of a group, against two veteran teams – Coventry Reds, and Barking Phoenix. Coventry usually has enough firepower to progress, while Barking know a thing or two about the big stage. Our best wishes will be with Battersea …
Table 8 features one of the weaker groups. Harlow’s Riverside Elite are tough, but I’m sticking my neck out for Hampshire’s Andover in this one. Leek B, I think, will be the wooden-spooners.
Another relatively weak group lines up on Table 9, with Derby, East Leeds and Brighton M all some way down in the rankings. Brighton M return to Yarmouth, after receiving two 17-1 drubbings earlier in the year at the Interleague finals. Hopefully, they’ll do a little better. I’m going for Derby to win this group.
This year’s Interleague runner-up, the mighty Rochester – home to the two Ians, Kettel and Hubbard, plus Jordan Church and Dean Cole and numerous others – should wrap up the group on Table 10 easily enough. That’s a shame for Northamptonshire’s NVPLA, who are fast-improving. The third team is Lancashire’s Preston City.
On Table 11, I’m going for Brighton B to win, ahead of Penrith, and finally Leek A. I don’t fancy the overall chances of any of these teams, but Brighton’s second team might have enough to take them through.
Table 12 will see a shoot-out between two very good sides in Chesterfield and Surrey Warriors. I fancy Chesterfield to come out on top. Pity poor High Wycombe, newcomers and cannon-fodder.
Did I say cannon-fodder? Better whisper that term around folks from Redditch, who have been drawn on Table 13 (unlucky for some) in the group from Hell! Two teams full of superstars, genuine title contenders, slugging it out, and there’s Redditch, looking meekly on! The other two teams in this group are London’s Frank Smith, formerly Imperial, boasting our sparring partners Andy Breen, Dean Wisher, Rob McKay, Ramesh Gokhul, J.J. Faul, Sean Halligan, Neil Toms, Mark Thrussell, Rob Southey, Jack Pople, and Johnny Kelly himself, and Preston South, who boast the likes of Gareth Hibbott and Lee Clough in their team. There’s will be a classic encounter, and the winner genuinely has a chance of winning the title. I think Frank Smith have enough strength in depth to come through, and recapture that old Imperial winning habit. Come on boys!
Another contender is Brighton A – led from the front by Moray Dolan. The Sussex outfit has a pretty easy group this year – I can’t see Leicester Lions or Clitheroe giving them any trouble at all on Table 14.
Table 15 features a cracking group, really. Three evenly matched teams will be fighting for supremacy, in Ipswich, Kettering, and Gosport A. Earlier this year, at the Interleague finals, Ipswich got drawn in a similar group (with Sun Valley and Godalming) and ended up bottom! This time I think they will stamp their authority on the group and make it through.
Godalming A is in action on Table 16. At the Interleague finals, this team beat Sun Valley, so seeing off Leicestershire’s Hinckley and local boys Great Yarmouth (making their debut, curiously) really shouldn’t be too much trouble for the Surrey outfit.
Another top Surrey side is playing on Table 17 – Tolworth I. They have a tight group which also involves Derbyshire’s finest, Corn Exchange. I think Tolworth has just about enough to squeeze it. St Johns from Worcestershire will be propping up the group.
Last year’s surprise runner-up Colchester should have no problem winning on Table 18, against Nottinghamshire’s Newbold and Sussex’s Brighton S.
Old hands Weston A, from Somerset, with Russell Burgess in the side, should clean up on Table 19. Neither City of Leicester or Gravesham A are world-beaters.
Shropshire’s Dawley A certainly is a world-beater. The vociferous team that boasts top pro Craig Reynolds in its line-up will be hoping to cruise through its group as usual. But wait a minute – Leeds, another team in this group, hasn’t exactly set the world on fire, but all that could change this year, now that they have gone into the transfer market and picked up a couple of ex-Triangles, former national champion Andy Richardson, and, hmm, some fellow named Darren Appleton – world number one or something. Expect fireworks! Even so, I can’t see Leeds stopping Dawley A from winning the group. Gosport B is there to make up the numbers (but Chrystal Sedman and her team will certainly not see it that way!).
On Table 21, Trent Trophies enters the arena. Yes, that’s Gareth “I’ve just won my second world championship in three years” Potts, Carl “I’ve been a world champion too you know” Morris, and numerous other heavyweights of the game. Reds I, from the impressive Coventry Reds stable, will be keen to make a fight of it, but Trent Trophies should wrap this up easily enough, ahead of Reds I, and Berkshire’s Renegade B.
Over on Table 23, I think Shrewsbury B – which in recent years has made it through to the finals when the A team hasn’t – will finish ahead of Ipswich B and Manchester’s Chorton.
Table 24 sees another veteran contender, Walsall, start as favourites, but South Yorkshire’s Shakespeare could be a handful, given that Terry Hunt is in the side. The other team, Medway, also has a well-known winner in Barbara Taylor. I still think Walsall will edge it though.
Berkshire’s Renegade A is my tip for Table 25. Crewe A and the Worcester Hotshots don’t seem to have the strength in depth to worry the team that’s captained by England manager Rob Uzzell. Renegade are serious under-achievers and I really think a good run is due.
Over on Table 26, veterans Holderness and newcomers Riverside can’t have been happy knowing they were drawn to play the mighty P.J.’s Stourbridge, with Rob ‘Gravy’ Chilton and Neil ‘Razor’ Raybone heading its all-star line-up. Imagine how they felt when they learned that Stourbridge had recruited a new member to the team – a certain Mr Mick Hill, former world champion. This should be a breeze for the West Midlands giants.
On Table 28, expect another good battle between Wigan and Wolverhampton Wednesday B. Wolverhampton Wednesday is, of course, one of those truly famous names in Interleague circles – ranking right up there with now defunct giants such as Sheffield, Barking Elite, Triangle, Imperial, All’oas, and contemporary ones such as Trent Trophies and Leicester. But the glory days are long since over, and the A team has folded, leaving a new crop of players to try to recapture the glory. This is a good side, but I think Wigan will be too strong and win this group comfortably. Littlehampton will be left propping up the table.
Table 29 features the third, and strongest, of the three Coventry Reds teams – Reds Elite. They are up against Railway from South Yorkshire, and Braintree, from Essex. I’m ruling out Braintree, but Railway interest me, because they are in all but name the Mexborough team (minus Terry Hunt), which itself emerged from the ashes of that Sheffield side of years past. Railway will be no slouches, but I think on balance Reds Elite should win this interesting group.
Table 30 brings us slightly down to earth with a relatively weaker line up, but still an interesting one. I fancy Lowestoft Town Select to edge this group, ahead of Somerset’s Weston B, and Manchester’s Heywood.
The mighty Leicester are almost unstoppable at the moment. Last year they were surprisingly beaten in the semi-finals here by Colchester, but aside from that blip, Leicester players are current holders of the Knockout Cup (twice running), the County and Champion of Champions trophies. Phew. But then again, when you can call on the services of former world champion and top snooker pro Mark Selby, plus Tom Ford, Tommy Donlon and so on, it’s hardly a surprise. Nuneaton A have a good pedigree at the finals, so they will be cursing their luck at drawing Leicester, while Surrey’s Premier Pool League will be cursing more than that after the drubbings they could easily receive at the hands of these two experienced teams.
Finally, on to Table 32, where Dawley B, Milton Keynes A, and newcomers South Norfolk, are fighting to be top dog. This is a tough one to call, but I am leaning towards Milton Keynes A, who have some talented professionals and tour players in their ranks, to win through.
So, that’s the scout around the tables. Who has a chance of actually winning, in my humble opinion? Well, the usual suspects do come to mind, some with more of a chance than others. Sun Valley had their moment last year, and I can’t see them repeating the feat. Brighton A is a fair each way bet, although possibly not a win-only option. The same can be said for the ultra-consistent Rochester, who have made two major finals in recent years but lost out to stronger teams on both occasions. Preston South has the talent to do well, provided they make it out of the group, which will be no easy feat. Wigan are due a good run, so maybe they make a good dark horse for a semi-final spot. Naturally, Dawley A are always going to be in with a shout, and make no mistake, if other heavyweights start to fall around them, Dawley will be looking to take advantage. And you can never rule out Trent Trophies A, the all-star team with the best record of all the Yarmouth sides, but somehow, of late, they have slipped up on unexpected banana skins, and this event might provide another one. So, this basically leaves, in my view, three possible winners. First, you can never rule out Leicester, the dominant side of the moment. If a bookmaker was placing odds, make no mistake that Leicester would be firm favourites. Second, I have every confidence in the Frank Smith side, with its cream of London players, to be genuine contenders, just as their previous incarnation, Imperial, always was. If the mood is right, we could be celebrating a London win on Sunday. But there’s one other team that just seems to be ready for it in a big way, as if to say that the time is finally right for the big win, and that team, unsurprisingly, is P.J.’s Stourbridge. Maybe Mick Hill will add even more class to an outfit already oozing class, but it’s more than just the addition of Mr Hill that makes me feel that this year may be P.J.’s year. We’ll find out on Sunday.
