Summary

I'm running out of superlatives so lets get straight to the match reports......

The Games

Mike (SL5) won 5 - 1 against a 2
Although Mike got to the 8 ball first in rack one his opponent managed to snatch it and was clearly a bandit SL2. From that moment on, needing 5 straight racks to win, Mike played an awesome match that in my mind was the foundation for the overall team performance last night - absolutely fantastic. In doing so, he also staged his own shot of the night competition: [ul] [li]Rack one: with two stripes left on the table and being slightly out of position Mike banked his penultimate ball across the table and between his last remaining ball and an opponents ball for a perfect pot and leave.[/li] [li]Rack 6: again, looking slightly out of position Mike cooly slotted a long green (frozen to the orange) the length of the table with perfect position.[/li] [li]Rack 6: at hill / hill and with each player having two balls left on the table, Mike refused a tricky pot with no position to lay a perfect snooker. It was a relatively simple shot in concept but the execution was all about pace and it was perfect![/li] [/ul]

Mini (SL4) won 3 - 2 against a 4
Don't know about anyone else but Mini has a habit of looking like he's not playing well and about to lose and then closing a match out. Last night was no different, at 2-1 down it was looking all over but he somehow forced the deciding rack and then an inspired timeout where we agreed to be attacking and go for the 8 ball bank (to leave it over the pocket if nothing else) proved decisive. Shot of the night candidates definitely need to include the length of table kick on the 9 ball to not only hit it but pot it and finish 'plum' on the 8 ball and take rack two!

Heather (SL3) won 3 - 0 against a 2
Probably Heather's most dominant performance to date, absolutely never in doubt. I am still in awe of the amazing long stripe with perfect position on the 8 ball. After calling a timeout (which made us all laugh!) Heather made the 8 ball and concluded a 5 ball run to take the second rack. Even more amazing, Heather's opponent enjoyed the match so much she even mentioned to Heather how much fun she'd had and how refreshing it was to play someone that wasn't afraid to applaud good shots. What can I say? A bandit SL3 and a genuinely great personality!

Darren (SL7) won 5 - 0 against a 5
Finally a comfortable result against a SL5, managing to put the 'go 2-1 down and need four in a row' demons to bed! Truth be told, I definitely had the run of the table in this one although I seemed to be playing reasonably well also. Hats off to my opponent who is clearly enjoying his first season of Wednesday night pool.

Lori (SL4) lost 1 - 2 against a 2
With the amount of SL2s on the team, there was always the possibility of one or two of us slipping up against under ranked players and unfortunately in this match the dubious honor fell on Lori's shoulders. Still, some very strong long potting showed that Lori was in good nick and more than able to make a fight of it. Either of the two racks lost could just have easily gone the other way. When it gets to the play-off's however, we may look back at this as one of the key results.... ......if the SL3 rating comes along :-)

Shot of The Night

Plenty to choose from this week.

Mike: Mike, rack one: with two stripes left on the table and being slightly out of position Mike banked his penultimate ball across the table and between his last remaining ball and an opponents ball for a perfect pot and leave.

Mike: Mike, rack 6: again, looking slightly out of position Mike cooly slotted a long green (frozen to the orange) the length of the table with perfect position.

Mike: Mike, rack 6: at hill / hill and with each player having two balls left on the table, Mike refused a tricky pot with no position to lay a perfect snooker. It was a relatively simple shot in concept but the execution was all about pace and it was perfect!. Darren (well, I like defense!)

Mini: Mini, rack 2: length of table kick on the 9 ball to not only hit it but pot it and finish 'plum' on the 8 ball.

Heather: Heather, rack 2: amazing long stripe with perfect position on the 8 ball (and a really funny timeout to follow!)

Worst Shot of The Night

Mike: No need for a vote on this one: Mike completely missing the 8 ball from eight inches... ....taxi for Mike please!.