Tuesday 26 October 2010

It's all go !

Sorry i've not posted anything on here for a few months , but i have had so much going on in my life.
I've been very busy at work. I've also moved house 6 weeks ago , so i have been trying to get all organised there!
The new snooker season has started. We are currently 2nd in the league after week 6. Individually , im not having the best start to the season i've ever had , but as a team were doing really well. Im still practicing up at The Oldham Snooker Academy as the match table up there is different class! Im going up there tonight watching a player i've known for years , Andrew Higginson. He is doing an exhibition there. He's also doing really well on the circuit , he's currently ranked no.29 in the world...
Carl Bailey has been my practice partner of late. My good friend Pete Stanyer has been really busy of late playing in different leagues & he has also been very busy at work , so we've not seen alot of eachother lately , but still kept in touch. I will be attending his Bonfire party in a few weeks time.

Brandon & Steph have been behaving themselves. We've been doing allsorts when i've not been working , however we haven't been to watch our football team in a while , Manchester City. I will be getting some tickets for a match very soon. We are a little sore however after our 0-3 home loss against Arsenal at the weekend (OUCH!) Were currently 4th in the league. Im also going to get some tickets soon to go & watch Hyde Utd with my kids. I've lived in Hyde all my life , but never been to see my home town team play (shame on me i know)

There is lots & lots of stuff i've not mentioned on here tonight as it's been very hectic lately , but i will add it all now im updating my blog again!

I'll sign off for now but will update my blog regulary again from now on.

Saturday 24 July 2010

R.I.P. Alex "Hurricane" Higgins

It is with great sadness today that the news was announced that Alex Higgins has passed away. He was one of our games great Legends & will be deeply missed by our great game. My thoughts go out to his family , friends , fellow players & everyone else that knew him.
Goodbye Alex "Hurricane" Higgins & thank you for the memories. They will live on forever...

R.I.P. Alex

Monday 26 April 2010

Inter-League Final

We lost tonight for the second consecutive year in the Inter League Championship Final.
Apart from Michael making a 50 break , the standard was poor to say the least. The less said about it the better really.
Maybe next time ...

Tuesday 20 April 2010

Inter-League Semi Final

Tonight's semi final was between two teams full of experienced quality players. A close match was expected. Our opponents were Manchester & District "A" .
Our first player was a good friend of mine & fellow ex-pro Michael Wild. After a missed chance early on , Michael got another chance & knocked in a superb 86 clearance. 1-0.
Up next for us was myself. Our captain chose different tactics tonight & put his strongest players on early on instead of later. His tactics worked perfectly. I played another experienced amateur. We both had a few chances but it was me who ended out winning by 45pts. 2-0. Were now +110 on aggregate.
Next up for us was our Irish friend Jamie McCardle. He's a great potter Jamie & has had a good season knocking in some sizeable breaks in all competitions. It turned out to be a scrappy affair but ultimately Jamie won extending our lead to 3-0 & + 140 on agg.

Mid-session interval ...


It all seemed plain sailing , but snooker is a funny game with lots of twists & turns.
Our next player Darren didn't have the best of nights & to be fair his opponent played really well as he had to otherwise the match was over. There captain was Darren's opponent & he played very well winning by 80. The atmosphere changed in an instant as now from an almost impossible position they could actually snatch victory away from us. 3-1 & +60 agg.
I had a discussion with our captain & agreed to play our representative from Oldham. Saj is a very good potter & is also left handed like myself. It was a cagey opening with some good safety. There player knocked in a good 30 break for starters. We were now only 30pts infront. We couldn't possibly lose from being 3-0 up & 140 infront could we?
You bet we couldn't ! Saj dug deep & made a 45 break to extinguish any hope they had of winning.

It was a great nights snooker with lots of quality players on show. We ran out easy 6-1 winners in the end.

Our final opponents are Bolton "A" who beat the 2007 champions Urmston by the same score line 6-1.

The final will be played next Monday 26th April @ Withington Bowling Club , Derby Rd , Withington. It's a 745pm start. Anybody wanting any information or directions for the night ,send me an email.

Sunday 18 April 2010

World Championships

Today is the start of the 2010 World Snooker Championships at The Crucible Theatre in Sheffield. It's the first year i won't be sharing watching it with my Father but im sure you'll be watching it from above Dad. x
Aswell as the snooker starting i had a full day planned with my family. Firstly the alarm went off at 8am as we were going to the City Academy in Fallowfield where Brandon plays with children his own age on Saturday mornings from 930-1130. Snooker & Football are his favourite sports so he had the best of both worlds today!
We collected Steph on the way also as she was spending the day with us too. After we had finished at the football , we made our way over to my Mother's where we all had a bite to eat. We had arranged to go to Stockport after eating & listening to the football on the radio. City lost 1-0 in injury time & Spurs won 2-1 so it's going to be tough now finishing in 4th spot at the end of the season...
Off to Stockport we went. Brandon had some new Nike Trainers , Steph had some new Sandals & i treated myself to the Argentina National Team football t-shirt with Tevez printed on the back. Im saving it for the World Cup which starts in June. Were all really looking forward to that starting. Whilst we were out , we popped into a fancy coffee shop & all had a drink with some cakes too , happy days.
I dropped Mum off at 6pm then took Steph back to her mums. Next me & Brandon went to Roseanna's to have our hair done. He loves going there as he gets to see Rose's two lads Alex & Luca. We both had our hair done , he had a play & me and rose had a catch up on everything.
We arrived home around 9pm after a full day to say the least. We watched some snooker & eventually went to bed around midnight.

It's the Inter-League semi final Monday night. The venue is at the Barrfield Club in Salford. I will update the result on Tuesday as to how we got on ...

Tuesday 13 April 2010

Inter-League Quarter Final

Tonight was the quarter final of the Inter League competition. Our captain Mike Thorpe informed me before the match started that two of our stronger players were unavailable due to other commitments so we were going to have to dig deep with a weakened team. What a topsy turvy match it turned out to be.
We lost the first frame by 40. Second up for us was Jamie. He managed to nick the win on the colours. 1-1. After the third frame we found ourselves 2-1 down & 62 behind on aggregate. Mike & myself were the remaining two players left. Which way would he play it...?
Mike put himself on fourth & what a performance he made. He potted almost everything he went for & trounced his opponent by 69pts!
The pressure was now reversed onto me going on last. We were 7pts infront now on aggregate. The previous night i had made a 120 break in my Cup competition , but with all my vast experience i've learnt over the many years i've been playing , i knew today was another day...
It turned out to be a fragmented tactical battle with a place in the semi's riding on the outcome. It was never going to be a one visit win with the balls going awkward. It turned out to be proper nail biting stuff. We both had half chances to win it on the colours even though they were placed quite awkwardly. I ended up potting a 6ft Pink into the Green pocket to seal our semi final spot!
What a great ending to a tension filled night. Roll on the semi final...

Monday 12 April 2010

Ton-up Club


After a 10hr day at work today , i set off to Rileys Belle Vue which is just a 5 minute drive from my work place.
I was playing Adrian Ladkin in the 4th round of the Presidents Cup at 8.45pm. He was receiving +44 off me. He is capable of knocking a break in so i knew i had to keep things tight with him receiving a big start.
The first frame was a tactical battle with not much scoring. I had a 30+ break but the frame came down to the colours. I managed to pot a good Brown & Blue then a safety exchange developed on the Pink. After several length of the table safety shots by both of us , Adrian misjudged his next shot & i cut it back into the middle bag to win the first. 1-0.
The second frame i rolled back the years. After a safety exchange , i was left a long pot knowing if it went in i was right in amongst the Black area. It duly went in & i compiled a magnificent 120 break. I was always in close control around the Black spot. The table was nice & fast which suits my "touch" game. I played a crowd pleasing exhibition shot on the final Black doubling it the full length of the table which was the only ball i missed with a total clearance on.
If not next season , then the season after im going to have another tilt on the circuit as i know i can still compete at the highest level.
My game is in very good shape. I will be contacting some of my old practice partners in the near future to sharpen up my match play as well as continuing to have practice sessions with my very good friend Pete Stanyer. He's a diamond is Pete & a very accomplished player in all Cue Sports

Inter-League tomorrow night , would be nice to knock another ton in then too ...

I've added a picture of Adrian & Me here taken about 8yrs ago.

Friday 9 April 2010

MSL Updates & Upcoming Fixtures

Tuesday 30th March i played Mark Gorman in the 3rd round of the Presidents Cup @ Denton Liberal Club.I was giving him +20. The first frame was a scrappy affair with the balls going awkward.It came down to the last Black & i played a back double into the Black pocket making sure the cue ball went safe.Played it perfectly , 1-0. The 2nd frmae was totally different with me compiling a 61 break thus winning the frame in two scoring visits. Won 2-0.
Thursday 1st April our league fixture was against Rileys Belle Vue "B" at the Crucible. In my match i had to give my opponent +42. I have only lost 1 league match at home all season , a record im proud of & wanted to keep intact. After a safety exchange i was gifted a great chance & took full advantage of it by making a nice 62 break , but missed a quarter ball cut on the blue when right in! There were 4 reds around the black & for sure if i hadn't missed that blue it would of been a 100+. After he potted a couple of balls he let me in again. I finished the match off & our team sealed a 5-2 the following frame.
Thursday 8th April we were visiting the league leaders , Oldham Snooker Academy. We lost the 1st match on the black but that was there only success all night. After 4 matches we were 3-1 ahead. I played there captain giving him +18. It was a tactical battle type frame with no breaks of note. It was settled on the colours with me potting the last 4 colours two of which were tricky 6ft pots with the rest. There were quite alot of spectators gathering for the climax & all in all it was a great night with a good atmosphere. Won 6-1.
Monday 12th April im playing against Adrian Ladkin in the 4th rd of the Presidents Cup @ Belle Vue 845pm giving +44. Should be interesting...
Tuesday 13th April its the quarter final of the Greater Manchester Inter League. Were playing against Levenshulme @ Frames in Hyde 8pm.
I will post updates of all these comps.when completed.

Technical

Since my last post on the 24th March , i've experienced some technical difficulties gaining entry onto my Blog. Fortunately for me , Adrian who is the captain of the Thursday night team i play on along with Rob who also plays on the same team resolved my problem. There very clued up when it comes to computer issues. Just a click here & a click there and it was sorted.Thanks guys.
Right , alot has happened since i last posted. After City's poor showing against Everton at home , we have managed back to back win's against Wigan 3-0 & Burnley 6-1 !! Thats more like it Blues. Were currently in 4th position in the table which is where we want to be. Keep it going lads...
Birmingham at home this coming Sunday 4pm k.o.

Man.Utd. won there second leg against Bayern Munich on Wedsnesday night at home 3-2 but went out on the away goals rule after the tie finished 4-4 on aggregate.
It's the first time in 7yrs England dont have a team left in at the semi final stage.

Wednesday 24 March 2010

Man.City 0-2 Everton

Took Brandon & Steph to watch a Premier League match on Wednesday night , we were at home against Everton. What a poor performance by our beloved Manchester City we witnessed. We were the only team left in the league with an unbeaten home record. This was surrended with ease to a determined Everton team. City just looked unorganised all night , only creating a few half chances. The usually busy Tevez & Bellamy struggled to make an impact as they usually do. Stephen Ireland was taken off before half time , a tactical change by our Italian manager. Superman looked dejected. Me & my kids left very dissapointed by there very poor performance. If City still think they can finish fourth in the league & gain Champions League status , a vast improvement is required on the run in. I hope we can do this , but time will tell ...

Tuesday 23 March 2010

Oldham

I spent all of my day in Oldham today , barring about an hour at tea time where i popped to see a friend in Hyde.
On my way to Oldham Tuesday morning i called to see Bruce at The Snooker Shop in Levenshulme to have my tip re-shaped. I wasn't happy with the shoulders on it , they were still very square & needed shaping. I was running late so it was a brief visit calling on Bruce. Once he had seen to my tip , i was on my way again. Thanks Bruce. I will call round for a brew later in the week i told him as i left his shop.
I arrived at Michael Wild's house about 1055am. Terry , Michael's Dad had the bacon on under the grill. We always have a bite to eat together when i visit there place.
After breakfast & a chat , we went into his Snooker Room & started our practice together. After 4 frames we went back into the lounge & had a cuppa with Terry and chatted some more about allsorts. Back in for more practice , Michael showed me some new techniques to do with the technical side of the game. Plenty of food for thought i told him , stuff to work on! I left there place around 415pm after a great day.

After calling back to Hyde to see a friend of mine briefly , i headed off to the Oldham Snooker Academy. I had a practice session arranged with Pete Stanyer. I arrived before Pete so i grabbed a bite to eat. Pete arrived around 650pm & we had just under 3 hours practice which isn't as long as we usually play for. Pete was in work in the early hours so we finished early. We had a chat about things as we always do then it was time to go. Pete headed off to work & i headed off home. It was a full day to say the least , very enjoyable ...

Sunday 14 March 2010

David Beckham to miss World Cup

BREAKING NEWS... News just in via Match of the Day 2 , David Beckham pulled up in agony tonight whilst playing for AC Milan , unchallenged & nobody near him. He has torn his Achilles Tendon ! It was in the 90th minute too. What a cruel twist of fate. In the same week he celebrated his return to Manchester Utd after leaving 7 years ago this happens. He will now miss the World Cup which starts in just 8 weeks time. Apparently Fabio Capello has already spoken to Beckham to say how sorry he is.
Life can be so cruel...

Sunderland 1-1 Man.City

Typical City display today. After our last away performance against a superb Chelsea side which we demolished on there own pitch 4-2 , we struggle to a team we should be eating for breakfast ! A very poor performance in the first half is followed by a better display in the second , Mancini must of had some Italian words at half-time. Adam Johnson our newest signing continues to impress & came on as a sub. In injury time he received the ball on the edge of the box & curled in a beautiful ball right into the top corner. What a great signing he is turning out to be.
Our bitter rivals Man.Utd won 3-0 against Fulham. Hate saying it but Wayne Rooney is world class , he's fantastic. Roll on the World Cup Rooney...

Saturday 13 March 2010

Blackpool Pleasure Beach

Today is the day of our trip to Blackpool Pleasure Beach ! I had pre booked the tickets online a couple of weeks ago. Ordering online entitled you to 50% discount. Bargain i thought & so did hundreds of people who were there also today. The day started off with myself & Brandon collecting Steph around 945am and heading off to Grandma's for our "full breakfast" before our journey. Around 1115am , we decided to head off , dropping my Mum off in town on the way. Brandon & Steph played against each other on there DS's on the way there. Arriving on the Promenade around 1230pm i found a perfect car parking spot as a car was just pulling away as i was passing. We had an hour in the Arcades & Brandon saw his "Midget" friend Tony there too. We had a great 4 or 5 hours of fun in the Pleasure Beach before heading home around 6pm. We stopped off at KFC in Levenshulme on the way back & duly demolished a family feast between us. Steph looked totally worn out when she got out of the car heading towards her mums house. Must of been the sea air. Great day , arriving home safe and sound around 815pm totally shattered , that sea air really does make you tired...

Tuesday 2 March 2010

Chelsea 2-4 Man.City

On Saturday we inflicted Chelsea's first home defeat in 15 months in some style. With the returning Carlos Tevez & Craig Bellamy , which are by far the best two players of the season so far for the Blues. After falling behind early , we completely dominated the game & made Chelsea look pedestrian. Our two stars scored a brace each. Ferguson said Tevez wasn't worth £25 million , thats why he didn't buy him. He must of been watching somebody else , idiot. Myself , Brandon & Steph were over the Bluemoon with this fantastic win.
It's just a pity Shay Given isn't English to solve our goal keeping crisis with have with the national team. He's by far the best goalkeeper in the Premiership. Mark Hughes , once a red , always a red , but it has to be said , you did make some great signings for us before you were unfairly dismissed.

Inter-League : 2nd Group Game "VINTAGE"

The venue for our second group game of the 2010 campaign was Swinton Conservative Club. I like this venue & have plenty of happy memories from previous visits over the years in the Inter-League competition. Our first player lost by 40 pts. Our captain Mike Thorpe called upon me to get my cue out as he wanted me on earlier than usual to stem the tide. After several safety shots , i made the first real opening but broke down on 27. My opponent replied with a well made 57 break. After his visit , i was 47 behind with 51 remaining. I called upon all my years experience & managed to produce in two scoring visits , one of the best recoveries i've made for some time , winning on the black !
Awesome , Outstanding , Vintage , were some of the words my fellow peers & snooker friends expressed to me after my win. It really was a great atmosphere.
Dennis Mellor & Barry Urmston came along to give our team some support. Thanks to you two guys.
We eventually ran out 5-2 winners , thus topping our group on 10pts.
Final group game is on the 29th March @ Withington Bowling Club.

Friday 26 February 2010

Doubles victory

Last night , myself & my good friend Peter Stanyer had a doubles match in the 3rd round of the Manchester Snooker League competition. The past 3 seasons we have made the quarter finals falling at that hurdle.
I could tell after a couple of shots that Pete was really up for this important match tonight. Our opponents were both capable players so we had to be on our toes from the off. There wasn't a break above 30 made , but there was some very good tactical play made by all 4 players involved especially in the 2nd frame. We ended up winning the match 2-0 thus progressing to the quarters for the 4th year running. We will be trying our best to lift the trophy this season. If we play like that in the next round , we have every chance.

Wednesday 24 February 2010

Talisman Tip


On Monday , i called in to see Bruce who owns The Snooker Shop in Levenshulme. He's been there for many years & is known Worldwide for his excellent sales & service with all Cuesports products. Whenever i have any tip problems i always call round to see him for a chat & he re-tips my cue for me. About 6 months ago , i tried a new type of tip , a Talisman. It's made of 11 layers of pig skin. These layers can be seen by the naked eye on close inspection. I can honestly say it's the best tip i've ever had fitted in my life. The reaction from it is very accurate. However , recently i miscued & took a slight nick out of the side of it. Unfortunately i couldn't get the shape back on it , so decided to call on Bruce again for a new one. After an hour chatting about all the latest news including the upcoming World Quals.my new tip was all ready & shaped perfectly.
I have a Pairs 3rd Round match Thursday with Peter Stanyer & we will have a session after the match so i will have a chance to knock my new tip in!
Monday 1st March we have the 2nd round of Group matches in the annual Inter-League Competition.
News to follow next week on our progress...

Brandon's 7th Birthday




I've not put anything on my blog for a couple of weeks as i've been very busy with work patterns & other commitments!
Anyway , last Wedsnesday was Brandon's 7th Birthday. I was off work too that day & both Brandon & Steph were off school , so it worked out perfectly really.
After calling round to my mothers with them for an hour & Brandon opening his presents , we headed off for our favourite treat , Pizza Hut!
They both love it there , but i have to admit , i do too!
After we were filled up with Pizza & all side bits we had , we headed off to CineWorld to watch : Chipmunks II The Squekquel. Pick n Mix aswell. They had a great time. The film was great & it was packed in there.
Finally , before we took Steph home , he beat me up at Snooker!
He's coming on in leaps & bounds . A future World Champion in the making maybe one day ... ?

Saturday 6 February 2010

My First Billiards Match

On Thursday 3rd February 2010 i played my first ever competitive Billiards match. The venue was Park Bridge Institute which is situated off Oldham Road which is in between Ashton-under-Lyne & Oldham. A nice venue with a real coal fire burning in the Snooker room which created a different atmosphere. For some unknown reason with me being new to this cuesport , i found myself giving a 70pt start. I think it must of been something to do with me being a decent Snooker player. I really enjoyed my experience playing my first Billiard match and im also enjoying mixing playing this game with my Snooker. It's a pity my mentor Peter Stanyer wasn't there to witness my first ever match. He had to shoot off to another match somewhere shortly after we arrived. I dont know how he fits it all in. He would of been proud of me on my debut match. We play our first Pairs match of the season this coming Thursday for another tilt at the title.

Wednesday 27 January 2010

Carling Cup Result : Man.Utd 3-1 Man.City (Agg.4-3)

Sadly , we were beaten by our arch enemies Manchester United 3-1 on the night , so we lost 4-3 on aggregate. Im very dissapointed we lost at this stage as i was expecting us to progress to the final after our first leg performance. I've received some sarky & indeed abusive text messages off some of my Man.Utd friends tonight , cheers for that lads. We will have our vengance soon...

Winning start to 2010 Inter-League Campaign

Our campaign in the annual Inter-League Tournament got underway on Monday with a 5-2 victory over Preston "A" . As yet , there is no update on the official tournament site so i can't add the link for you to follow all the stats. I will post it as & when it's updated.

Tuesday 19 January 2010

Greater Manchester Inter League 2010

Our annual campaign in the Greater Manchester Inter League Competition gets under way next Monday 25th January. The last time we were victorious in this competition was way back in 2000. Last 3 yrs results: 2007 semi's , 2008 semi's & 2009 finalist. Hopefully this term we can win it again. With myself & Michael Wild being the backbone we have a great chance.
I will post results with league tables including other groups when i receive updates.Also i will add a link when i receive it so you can browse all the information yourself.

Carling Cup 1st Leg Result: Man.City 2-1 Man.Utd

After falling behind to a goal from one of Man.Utd's many ageing players , Ryan Giggs ( Sports Personality of the Year 2009) what a joke !!!

After there temporary lead , it was time to bring on the "Carlos Tevez Show" .

Once again it was our best signing for many a year that turned the tie in our favour with another two goals to add to his magnificent haul already this season. I think thats 17 goals upto now in just as many games. OUTSTANDING ! What a magnificent player Tevez is. My son is over the Blue Moon too as Tevez is Brandon's favourite player!

Lets make it a double over them in the second leg next Wednesday , then roll on Wembley. Villa or Blackburn in the final , should be a piece of cake...

Monday 11 January 2010

Wolfie wins second World Title

Mine & Brandon's favourite dart player Martin "Wolfie" Adams wins his second world title , adding to his 2007 triumph , securing a 7-5 over unseeded Dave Chisnall. Wolfie also collected £100,000 in prize money + £3000 for his magnificent 170 check-out in the final , the first time this has been achieved in the Final itself , class.Well done Wolfie.

Wednesday 6 January 2010

Tuesday 5 January 2010

Exhibition Qualifying Competition

This Thursday , January 7th , i will be competing in a Qualifying Competition with a chance to play a Top 32 player in Ricky Walden. The one & only time i've played Ricky was in a Pro-Am about 8 years ago @ Cuemasters in Walkden. Ricky has come on alot since those days & i look forward to catching up with him if i qualify with the main event taking place on the 21st of this month. There use to be a comp. everyweek @ Cuemasters and some great times were had there with the charasmatic Dave Wright running the show.

Note: This comp.was cancelled due to very heavy snow fall , with players unable to travel to the club with surrounding road closures for safety. I will update with the revised date when its available.

Carling Cup Semi-Final Postponed !

Due to extreme weather conditions with about 15 inches of snow falling , tonights Carling Cup Semi-Final against of bitter rivals Manchester United has been Postponed ! United will be happy about this as they would of been in for some stick from our fans after there weekend loss at HOME in the 3rd round of the F.A.Cup to a team TWO Divisions below the Premier League !!
Re-Arranged date is now : Tuesday January 19th.

Phil Taylor

Congratulations to Phil Taylor on his 15th World Championship title. What a sportsman he has been over almost two decades now. MBE for Mr.Taylor this year...?