2015 Cumbria County Doubles Championship (08/03/2015)

Basnett & Sim Claim Tenth County Doubles Title

Workington’s Kevin Basnett & Whitehaven’s Robert Sim have successfully defended their Cumbria County Doubles Snooker Championship to claim their tenth title in the last fifteen years with a 4-1 victory over Workington duo Steve Garroway and Paul Graham at the Portland Club, Carlisle this week.

A repeat of last year’s final produced some sizzling snooker as the big breaks flowed. In the first frame both pairs had chances to take control but it was Graham and Garroway who made the most of their opportunities to win fairly convincingly.......(frame score).

Frame two started slowly but as Basnett got in amongst the balls he constructed a well thought out break of 81 to take the frame (frame score) and tie the match at 1-1.

In the next it was Robert Sim’s chance to shine and as he developed the balls the he went on to make a magical 112 break only missing green with a possible 137 on.

At 2-1 to the defending champions a great safety shot by Sim yielded an opportunity for Basnett and in wasting no time the Workington cueist quickly made 94 with the break only ending on an unlucky split of the last two reds with another 137 break beckoning.

Frame five proved to be a tame affair in comparison but with Graham and Garroway hardly having seen a ball for the last three frames in was the nine time champions who did just enough to add another title to their impressive tally with a (frame score) win.

In the first of the semi finals the Graham and Garroway defeated Workington’s Mark Tunstall and Shaun Ayre 4-3. A fine performance by last year’s finalists saw them battle hard as Tunstall and Ayre refused to go away. In the decider Graham and Garroway got their tactics just right and by taking an early lead which they were never to surrender their entered their fourth final.

The second semi final saw Sim & Basnett go 2-1 against Workington brothers and two time champions Peter and Stephen O’Hagan. Nevertheless with the defending champions moving 3-2 ahead the O’Hagan’s were up against it. This did not deter Stephen O’Hagan in any way as from the break off in frame six he constructed a superb break of 67. A spirited effort of 38 in reply by Sim threatened to nick the frame but it was O’Hagan’s contribution that proved to be enough to take it into a decider. The decider saw the first chance go to Peter O’Hagan but in missing a simple red to the corner pocket, on a break of 8, Basnett and Sim were buoyed. Two visits later and a 50 point lead to boot proved to be a hill too big to climb for the O’Hagans as the multiple went through 4-3.

Thanks to County Snooker secretary Andrew Mitchelhill for putting on yet another great day and to Ron and to Ron & Mary Wilson of the Portland Club, Carlisle for providing an excellent venue.

Results

Semi finals

Paul Graham & Steve Garroway (Workington) beat Mark Tunstall & Shaun Ayre (Workington), 4-3

Kevin Basnett & Rob Sim (Workington/Whitehaven) beat Stephen O’Hagan & Peter O’Hagan (Workington), 4-3

Final

Kevin Basnett & Rob Sim (Workington/Whitehaven) beat Paul Graham & Steve Garroway (Workington), 4-1

County Singles Championship 2014

 Preliminary Round and Last 32 Report.

         The reigning County Champion, Kevin Basnett, has started the defence of his county title in much the same form as the way he won it. After making history last year winning the tournament without losing a single frame throughout, he has now won his first two matches by the same 4-0 score-line. His first match set him up against first time entrant Clive Lister from Workington. Lister could have hoped for a better draw and did show signs of perhaps making life difficult for Basnett, but with each mistake he made he was punished severely. Basnett was in no mood to take his opponent lightly and with breaks of 63 and 80 he quickly despatched the newcomer.

            Basnett then faced another previous county champion in Alan Moore, who had progressed after beating Workington’s Andrew Mitchelhill 4-2. Although the frame scores were much tighter the same 4-0 scoreline prevailed. Basnett took the first frame 58-33, and then with breaks of 39 & 32 he took the second frame 71-28. Again a small 28 break gave Basnett the advantage to win the third frame 68-13. A close fourth frame score of 59-30 gave Basnett his second whitewash of this years’ tournament to go through.

            Last year’s runner-up, Kendal’s Andrew Milliard, had a tougher task of progression after being drawn against Carlisle’s Paul Wright. Wright, last years doubles winner, pushed Milliard all the way as he levelled at 3-3 in the best of seven frames match. Milliard eventually closed the match out with a 71 clearance to ensure his place in the next round where he hosts Barrow’s Russ Posstlethwaite.

            First time entrant, Whitehaven’s Mike Walker, defeated the youngest entrant in Millom’s Kevin Kirkham. It was not plain sailing as Walker went 2-0 down to eventually claw himself back and take the match 4-2. Walker then faced Barrow’s Tom Millington and again he battled well to make it a close match at 3-3 but a 50 break from Millington secured victory to end Walker’s progression.

            3 times county champion Robert Sim did not enter last year but this year started with a 4-0 victory over Maryport’s Shaun Moore with several 30+ breaks. Barrow’s Danny McDonald had a convincing 4-0 win over Workington’s Thomas McCarthy which included a break in each of his four frames, constructing breaks of 59, 35, 38 and then a 67 break in the final frame. Barrow’s Alan Eaton made it through to the next round by defeating Keswick’s John Thwaites 4-0 which included a 41 break by Alan. He was then given a walk-over by last years semi-finalist Neil Harrison from Carlisle who could not manage to play due to work commitments. Another semi-finalist from last year, Keswick’s Lee Crookes also had to give his match to Carlisle’s Mike Griffiths due to work commitments. Workington’s Dave Chapman made it safely through to the next round with a 4-1 win over fellow Workington player Mark Tunstall. Workington’s young player Ryan Ismay was the victor of a scrappy match against Stephen O’Hagan with Ryan winning 4-2. Barrow’s Tony Mason made it through in style by defeating multiple county champion John Airey from Penrith. He won 4-0 aided by several breaks in the 30’s and 40’s and restricting the ex-champion with some excellent safety play.

Keswick’s Andrew Austin had a close game against 2-times county champion Mike Dawson. Mike is the oldest player in the tournament and still shows he has got what it takes but the younger player took the final frame to win 4-3 and go through. Barrow’s Martin McDonald had a tidy win over Workington’s Steve Garroway. Martin set off the better player but Steve came strong in the end making a 59 break but unfortunately it was all too late as Martin went through winning 4-1. Workington’s Allan Stephenson made it through via a 4-1 win over Keswick’s Lindon Bolton. Stephenson now has a home draw fixture against Barrow’s Kyle Brown.

            Previous finalist Peter O’Hagan managed to overcome Richard McCarthy 4-2 in a tight contest. McCarthy a previous champion himself made O’Hagan work hard for his win. Workington’s Mike Park made short work of Carlisle’s Martin Goodhead winning 4-0 and finally Keswick’s Vince Peet made it through to the last 16 with yet another 4-3 scoreline showing that there isn’t that much difference between most of the entrants.

Last 16 Report.

             The County Snooker Championship sponsored by Workington Comets is now at the quarter finals stage but the reigning champion’s name will be not amongst the list of title contenders for 2014.

            Workington’s Kevin Basnett travelled all the way to Barrow’s British Legion Club to face Tony Mason in a match that swung to ad fro from start to finish. Mason took a safety conscious first frame 62-26 before a better second frame was finally secured with a 27 clearance by Basnett to win 54-63 and level the match. Mason made a well constructed 43 break early on in the third frame to ensure he regained a 2-1 advantage. The fourth frame included a 22 break from Basnett that gave him a slight advantage. He maintained this slim lead until the colours and eventually took the frame 39-59 to again level the match at 2-2. It looked as though Mason would re-take the lead as he made a small contribution of 23 and took small chances to increase his lead with only 3 reds left on the table. That was enough points for Basnett though and a very well constructed clearance of 43 concluded the frame to win 32-69 and take the lead in the match for the first time. At 3-2 down Mason couldn’t afford any mistakes. He set off with a 22 break to give him some breathing space, but this was immediately followed by a 26 from Basnett. The frame continued this type of battle throughout and Basnett had the chance to take the match on the colours. He pots yellow and green but misses the brown into the middle. Mason then pots the brown and blue but misses the pink to take the frame. After a few safety shots Mason finally pots a good pink down the cushion to take the frame 66-48 and level the match at 3-3. The final frame gave both players chances but both failing to take control until Mason finally struck first with a 38 break which ended unluckily as when potting his sixth red he ended up touching the black and so ending his break. The frame was starting to get away from Basnett as Mason led 68-25 with the colours remaining. Basnett managed to get a few snookers to make the finale very uncomfortable for Mason but he held his nerve and eventually took the frame 81-46 and the match 4-3.

            Mason was joined in the Quarter Finals by two other Barrow players in Danny McDonald and Kyle Brown. McDonald beat namesake Martin McDonald from Ulvertson 4-1. Breaks were the norm for Danny who made 2 x 40+ breaks, a 58 and finally a 62 in the final frame. Brown beat Workington’s Ryan Ismay 4-2 to add to the Barrow contingence.

            Carlisle’s Mike Griffiths travelled to play Workington’s Mike Park and made short work of the match winning 4-0. Whitehaven’s Robert Sim also travelled to Barrow to play Tom Millington but he also went through comfortably winning 4-0 to put the previous champion into the quarter finals. There were two players left from Keswick. Vince Peet hosted Workington’s Peter O’Hagan. O’Hagan took the first frame and Peet levelled the match at 1-1 but the O’Hagan raised his game and played some excellent snooker to take the match 4-1. Keswick’s only other representative made amends and beat Workington’s Dave Chapman 4-2. Chapman won the first frame comfortably but Austin took the next 3 to have a commanding lead. Chapmen then fought back to pull one back at 3-2 and looked on the way to levelling the match but in potting the yellow he went in-off handing the initiative to Austin who needed no second invitations and cleared the table to win the match.

            The only match left was last years Runner-Up, Kendal’s Andrew Milliard who defeated Barrow’s Alan Eaton at The Cemetery Cottages Club.  Milliard produced breaks of 30, 40, 50, 68 and ended the match on a high taking the final frame with an 88 break to make it through comfortably with a 4-0 win to enforce the reason why he was in last years final.

Quarter Finals  Report.

             The County Snooker Championship sponsored by Workington Comets is now at the Semi-Finals with all four players representing various areas of the County.

            Within days of the quarter finals draw the fixtures were set and all played within six of each other ending on Friday 12st March with Workington’s Peter O’Hagan defeating Barrows’ Tony Mason 4-1. O’Hagan made the better start on his table and with small but decent contributions went 2-0. Mason had already defeated multiple champion John Airey and current champion Kevin Basnett to reach this stage and was not phased but his slow start to win the third frame with a small 30 break himself. However, on his home table O’Hagan had enough to quash any thoughts of a comeback and with a couple of small 30 breaks himself managed to take the next two frames to win 4-1.

            A day earlier Kendal’s Andrew Milliard travelled to Carlisle to face a strong opponent in Mike Griffiths. Mike’s form had been excellent in recent weeks and was hopeful of a good result but he soon found himself 2-0 and struggling to find his form. He managed to take the third to pull a frame back but as Milliard took frame four he needed his form to return sooner rather than later. Although the fifth frame was tactical it was Milliard who produced the break to finish off his opponent and reach the semi-final stage two years running.

          As the first arranged match was cancelled due to work commitments Danny McDonald went through as Andrew Austin could not make it. The spectators were not to be disappointed though as a second tie was arranged immediately after between  Barrow’s Kyle Brown and Whitehaven’s Robert Sim. This match lived up to more than was to be expected. Multiple County champion Sim produced steady snooker to take the first three frames and although not at his best was looking comfortable to progress. Brown’s from improved and he took frame four in what was thought to be a consolation point. However this seemed to spur on the Barrow cueist and managed to secure frame five with strong steady snooker without anything spectacular and he took the next frame to make it 3-2. The unbelievable then became the probable as brown managed to level the match at 3-3 taking the sixth frame again playing all the right shots when it mattered. The deciding frame swayed to and fro and both players had chances to take it by the scruff of its neck but after a valiant effort by Brown it was Sim who managed to sink the final pink to ensure yet another semi-final for himself.

            The County Snooker Championship sponsored by Workington Comets now has the names of our two finalists who will battle it out for the 2014 title of County Snooker Singles Champion. The first semi final between Workington’s Peter O’Hagan and Barrow’s Danny McDonald was played at Grasmere Social Club on Thursday 10^th April.

            The match set off at a great pace and McDonald was in first with a small contribution before playing safe. O’Hagan potted a great red to pull back the score line before being forced to play safe. At this point both players had a 100% pot success rate and both looked determined. However one loose safety by O’Hagan left McDonald in for the first blow as he progressed to a make a tidy break of 37 to put him in command. This was enough to seal victory in frame one. The second frame was of much the same vein and as O’Hagan had chances it was McDonald who potted a cracking long red to set him off to produce another well constructed break of 62. McDonald’s pot success rate at this point was 92% and looked in no mood to hang about as he took the first two frames in 13 minutes and 15 minutes respectively.

            O’Hagan needed to halt McDonald’s flow and frame three took nearly half an hour as tactics raised its head. A 22 break by O’Hagan gave him a slight advantage but McDonald showed he can produce the tactical side of the game too and hauled himself in front leading 55-37 with 25 left on the table. McDonald had an easy green to leave O’Hagan requiring a snooker but uncharacteristically he missed the pot. This was O’Hagan’s chance to steal the frame and proceeded to pot green to pink to set him up on the black but not ideally. The pressure pot eluded him but left quite some distance between the balls. McDonald was in no mood to mess about and potted the long black to make it 3-0 to the good and put him well in command in the match.

            Frame four was yet another tactical frame. O’Hagan missed a good chance to be only one frame behind but had to put that out of his mind and continue to play the match one frame at a time. This showed as his concentration ensured he tried to make life difficult for the young Barrow cueist. Again the frame went down to the colours and it was O’Hagan who potted an excellent brown and then a good blue only to find the cue ball go in-off.  The frame score was now 32-34 to McDonald with 18 left and after a few tactical exchanges it was O’Hagan who potted blue and pink to secure his first frame on the board winning 43-34.

            The fifth frame was to be the last as once again tactics prevailed. A low scoring frame ensued with the frame score being 18-28 to McDonald with four reds left. Both players were starting to miss the odd ball now and the frame could have gone either way. At 40-41 in McDonald’s favour with 22 remaining. The safety play gave each players problems and a few fouls occurred but with McDonald potting blue and pink he had the black at his mercy for the match but alas he was to miss it and give O’Hagan a life line with the frame score at 55-51 to O‘Hagan. A few safety shots ensued but O’Hagan attempted the black down the cushion but misses. The black sailed up towards the yellow pocket and leaves McDonald a tricky long pot with the cue ball close to the bottom cushion. He took no time at all to set himself and sink the match ball black to put him into his very first county final.

            The second semi-final between Kendal’s Andrew Milliard & Whitehaven’s Rob Sim turned out to be a classic when at one point it looked to be over in a flash. Milliard had the first chance in frame 1 but broke down on 16 and his miss let Sim in to make a 47 break. It was nip and tuck to the colours but it was Sim who potted the remaining colours to go on to win the frame 70-48. It was Sim with the first chance in frame 2 but again a missed pot left hi with only a 25 break to show for his efforts. Milliard replied with a 28 break before having to play safe. At 48-38 with one red left it was turning into a tactical battle but Milliard pots the final red and colour and proceeding to finish with a 24 break to take the frame at 64-38 and level the match at 1-1. Again Sim had first strike and made a 32 break before missing an easy red into the middle. Milliard had the chance to reduce the deficit but broke down on 12 and this started a string of missed chances for both players. However Sim managed to give himself the advantage going 46-36 in the lead with only pink and black left. He made was looked like a reasonable safety shot but Milliard made a full length table pot look easy and set himself up on the black to clinch the frame 49-46 and lead the match 2-1.

            Frame 4 was a better start by both players with Sim making 25 before being forced to play safe and Milliard replying with 24 with the same outcome. The frame took a twist as both players began to make uncharacteristic errors but it was a 38 clearance by Milliard that helped him to a 3-1 lead winning the frame 75-38. Sim now required all the remaining frames but Milliard was in the ascendancy and so stemming the tide would be an uphill struggle. Both players were struggling a little with the pace of the table and although some excellent pots were made, not may could be strung together. However this was to produce a close battle and as the frame unfolded Milliard had the chance to win the match. He produced a well constructed 28 break and was now required a green which was match ball. An unfortunate dreaded kick on the green gave Sim a lifeline which he took albeit with a touch of fortune. He pots the green but an uncharacteristic miss on the brown looked to hand the match back to Milliard until both players watched the brown travel the length of the table and land in the black pocket. Sim continued regardless to clear the table and win the frame 55-51 and pull a frame back trailing 3-2. Milliard looked a bit dejected after knowing he should be on his way home now looking forward to the final, but instead he knew he had a fight on his hands. He dug deep though and he made a 38 break to put himself in charge of frame six. Milliard led 42-22 with 27 points left and played a good safety shot. Sim knocked in a full length yellow down the cushion and proceeded to clear the table to pull the match from the jaws of defeat yet again to level the match at 3-3.

            The deciding frame went right to the wire and once again Milliard had first strike making 23 but missing a straight forward black with reds beckoning. Un-phased he again dug deep and managed to create a 50-13 lead. It looked bleak for Sim yet again but a difficult 22 break left him 54-35 behind with 27 left and requiring all the balls if he wanted to win. Milliard had his chance yet again though but misses an easy yellow when the match looked over. Sim now had his chance to win the match at the next visit potting yellow to pink and leaving himself a fairly long black but one he would expect to pot. However whether it be the pressure or just his form on the night he missed the black and left it tight on the side cushion for Milliard to attempt. It wasn’t an easy pot though and Milliard had already missed to match balls and this was to be his third and final miss as his attempt rattles the jaws and leaves what looked like an impossible cut for Sim to attempt. After much deliberation with himself Sim finally attempts the pot and sinks the black for what was a remarkable comeback and giving the crowd some excellent entertainment.

County Doubles Championship 2014

The County Snooker Doubles Champions 2014 sponsored by Workington Comets are Robert Sim & Kevin Basnett after defeating last years’ runners up Steve Garroway & Paul Graham. The enthralling final was topped off with some excellent break building with Robert Sim’s century break being the icing on the cake to the delight of all lucky enough to see it develop.

            A fantastic turn out form the West of the County mixed with others meant a great contest was to occur at The Portland Snooker Club, Carlisle, especially when the two favourite pairs were drawn out together in the first round. 8 times winners Basnett & Sim were hoping to make it 9 when faced up against multiple champions Peter & Stephen O’Hagan. Although some close tactical battles occurred it was Sim & Basnett who were soon through winning 3-0.

           Garroway & Graham had a much rougher ride in round 1 against first time entrants Stuart Ryan & Ryan Warwick. Garroway & Graham took an easy first frame but Ryan & Warwick soon took a 2-1 lead with two convincing frames themselves to put the future finalists under pressure. They were up to the task though levelling the match with a 54-23 win and then a comfortable 71-19 final frame to go through 3-2 winners.

        Keswick’s county singles quarter finalist Andrew Austin paired Keswick’s Chris D’Leny and they made short work of Mark Tatton & Paul Mostyn with frame scores 68-30, 51-23 & 60-51 to win 3-0. Other Keswick players John Thwaites & Vince Peet faced Dave Chapman & Andrew Mitchelhill. A 28 break from Mitchelhill secured frame 1. Being nearly 40 points behind in frame 2 looked like it would be all square but Chapman & Mitchelhill dug deep to take the frame 70-50 and a 28 by Chapman finished off a 65-9 frame score to win 3-0. Mark Tunstall & Alan McLeod beat Ryan Mandale & Darren Key 3-0 with 2 breaks of 25 by Tunstall and a 31 break by McLeod. Chris Hunter & Mark Robertson beat Ben Challenger & Mark Little 3-0 but the first two frames being very close indeed.

            In the quarter finals Garroway/Graham again were pushed hard until they moved up  a gear against Leigh Musgrave & Karl Newton to win 3-1. Keswick’s Austin & D’Leny moved on in good form to after defeating Tunstall McLeod 3-1 with a 31 break from D’Leny and Chapman & Mitchelhill continued through to beat Mike Walker & Tom Thompson 3-1 after losing the first frame by some margin. Basnett & Sim beat Robertson & Hunter 3-0 with breaks of 40 by both players in the first frame to win it 80-0 and then continued in this rich vein of form winning 60-21 and 53-10 with a 38 break from Basnett.

           The first semi-final was to be a classic battle of attrition between Garroway/Graham & Austin/D’Leny. Again Garroway & Graham were pushed all the way as the match dragged on and became 2-2. The final frame was close until Garroway constructed a small teen break to leave the Keswick pairing requiring a snooker with 18 remaining. After a few safety exchanges Garroway mopped up to secure their place in the final just as they did last year.

            Basnett/Sim faced Chapman/Mitchelhill and the favourites had a shock losing the first frame all day 75-43. This only seemed to spur the pair on and Basnett replied with a 78 break to win level the match at 1-1. The third frame was much closer and a couple of missed chances by the underdogs cost them severely eventually losing out 46-63 and Basnett/Sim took the fourth frame with considerable ease 77-41 to secure yet another final for themselves winning 3-1.

            The final was great display of potting and tactics with Basnett/Sim hitting a pot ratio of 83% and a 69% safety success with Garroway/Graham hitting a pot ratio of 79% and a safety success of 56%. These are fantastic figures for amateur players.

           The first frame was over in 15 minutes as Basnett constructed a 51 break to put the favourites 1-0 to the good. Frame 2 seen Sim make 28 and give the favourite control but Garroway/Graham had other ideas and pulled the frame from the death wining it on the pink to level the match. Basnett was first in amongst the balls in frame 3 making 24 but had to play safe. After a few more safety exchanges Garroway was left in a difficult position in baulk but a great long pot on a red was the catalyst for an excellent 54 break which secured the frame at 73-34 and put them 2-1 up. Sim/Basnett changed tactics not allowing their opponents easy starters and both made high 30 breaks of any mistakes to secure frame 4 and level the match at 2-2.

            Frame 5 was the icing on the cake for all who were lucky enough to see it as it only took just over ten minutes. Graham broke off and looked to be a very respectable break. With Sim not having a simple safety shot to return to baulk he took on a very long red and sunk it beautifully. He then proceeded to pot all fifteen reds with 5 blacks, 5 pinks and 4 blues to make the magic century break and unluckily went in off the final black with a possible 134 break looming. A great display of potting and superb entertainment for all to see. Garroway potted the final 27 in colours for practice to make the frame 100-34.

            The 6^th frame turned out to be the final and as expected it was difficult to aspire to the heights of the previous frame and once again tactics took over. This frame took over 30 minutes proving that neither pair wanted to lose this but it was the safety of Basnett & Sim that really made the difference in the final frame and they took it 65-29 and the match 4-2 to win the Doubles Championships for their 9^th time.

            With the number of entrants being so good a plate was held which was won by Peter & Stephen O’Hagan beating Mike Walker & Tom Thompson 3-1 in the final. Both winners and runners up of the plate received prize money for their efforts.

           I would like to thank all the players who travelled through and played all day (some 7 hours of snooker) and especially the staff of The Portland Club for allowing us use of their facilities and providing food and to Andrew Mitchelhill for assisting me on what is a really long and hard day but also so worthwhile.

County Trebles Championship 2014

2015 Cumbria County Singles Championship

Basnett takes second title

Workington’s Kevin Basnett has taken his second Cumbria County Singles title in three years with a 5-3 win over Kendall’s three time former champion Andy Milliard.

The Portland Club, Carlisle proved to be the ideal venue to host Cumbria’s premier Snooker event and the quality of play certainly didn’t disappoint as a flurry of breaks including some fine safety play thoroughly entertained everyone.

First out of the starting blocks it was Milliard with breaks of 43 and 31 and even though Basnett managed to pot a few balls at the end to get his cue arm going it was Milliard who won the frame convincingly, 93-23.

A small contribution of 28 enabled Basnett to gain some confidence in frame two but as Milliard stepped in with a break of 67 a 2-0 scoreline looked likely. Basnett stuck in, however with the last five colours all in tricky positions the Workington cueist was up against it. Forging an opportunity from a good safety shot Basnett held his nerve to clear the last five balls to pinch the frame 78-71.

Frame three turned out to be a one sided affair as Basnett with a break of 31 plus two other smaller contributions allowed him to take the frame, 69-11 for a 2-1 lead.

In the next it was Basnett again this time with a top break of 38 interspersed with some excellent safety play that ended up being too much for the Kendall player with the 2013 champion moving further ahead with a 76-39 victory.

A 3-1 up Basnett looked determined and after winning a small safety exchange he was in amongst the balls. A 70 break later a 4-1 scoreline looked a certainty with just 75 points remaining. Nevertheless former professional Milliard coolly delivered probably the best clearance the 60 year old championship has ever seen with a break of 72 to take the frame 72-70 and pull the score back to 3-2.

The confidence gained from his previous frames’ heroics was visible in Milliard demeanour in the next and in three visits, topped with a break of 38, the Kendall cueist drew level at 3-3 with a thumping 77-18 frame win.

At this point the pressure had well and truly mounted on the 2013 champion. However in putting the previous two frames to the back of his mind Basnett stepped in and with an early break of 52 he eventually went onto win the frame 82-4 for a 4-3 scoreline.

A break of 31 by Basnett in frame eight gave him a useful lead but Milliard wasn’t finished and a 53 break later the Kendall player looked like taking the match to a decider. Facing a tricky brown to the middle Milliard forced the position on the blue only to see brown hit the jaw and leave Basnett a half chance of a clearance. Holding his nerve Basnett slotted in the brown, blue and pink to take the frame 72-58 to the delight of his travelling support for a satisfying county title victory.