Final bow for Peakers in revived tournament
THE Yorkshire Inter District Billiards League seems to have run its course after more then 70 years.
The Huddersfield Number 1 Billiards team had won the league for the past three years up to the last year it was played in the 2017/2018 season.
The Yorkshire committee was anxious for some aspect of Team Billiards to continue and therefore the inaugural Yorkshire Billiards Team Knock-out was formed.
The format was effectively a pairs competition, which was limited to six pairs from across the different towns and cities in the county.
The teams were drawn into two separate groups with matches comprising of two singles and a doubles. Teams gained one point for every 25 points scored, plus a bonus point for the winning player/pair – with all matches timed at 45 minutes.
The Huddersfield team were represented by father and son, David and Matthew Peaker, from Brockholes BC.
Their first match was against Wharfedale who included former multiple times Yorkshire Champion Steve Crosland. It was Matthew who faced Crosland with David taking on Andy Blamire. Both Huddersfield players got off to the better start making breaks of 47 and 48 in the opening exchanges, Crosland came back at Matthew with a couple of breaks in the 40s but a late 55 break helped him run out the winner 226-129.
A further three breaks over 30 helped David to a very consistent performance and comfortable victory by 254-79. It was a similar story in the doubles match, Matthew posted breaks of 64, 48 and 40 as the Huddersfield pair won 238-99 to help them to an overall 31-11 win over Wharfedale.
Next up was the Bradford pairing of Steve Kershaw and Paul Devitt.
Matthew faced Devitt and David was up against Kershaw. Matthew got off to the perfect start when he posted an 81 break on his first visit to the table, he quickly followed it with another one of 40.
Devitt left Matthew in again and he duly accepted, playing out time with a fantastic 102 break.
Kershaw got off to the better start making a 42 break. David hit back with a couple of breaks in the 30s and played out time to take a narrow 178-156 win.
The doubles match was a lot more tactical. The Bradford side eventually taking the win 152-124. Overall however, the Huddersfield side took their second win 25-15 to top the group and progress to the final where they would face Harrogate.
The Harrogate side included Matthew’s Yorkshire team-mate from the counties national success, Johnathan Marwood, along with Tom Halliday.
Matthew was up against Marwood and David faced Halliday.
Both players had made breaks over the century mark and Marwood got in first, making exactly 50 to which Matthew responded with 55.
The Harrogate went on to make the day’s highest break with 116 to help him run out the winner 222138. Halliday was also in first making the early running with a couple of 30-odd breaks.
David responded with one of his own but it wasn’t enough as Halliday took the game 157-89 to leave them 16-8 in front with only the doubles to play.
Unfortunately for the Huddersfield side Marwood got in first and made a couple of 40-odd breaks to open up a lead that they kept until the end as they recorded a 192-147 win and an overall win of 24-13 points to become the first ever Yorkshire Billiards Team Knock-out winners.