All change in the SLKPA Premier Division

Before this week Hotshots and Sharks were tied at the top on 121 points, with Hotshots taking the top spot due to having won two more games. 

This week Hotshots went to sixth placed Bellegrove and Sharks took on Pickwick, who were hot on their heels and twelve points behind them in third. 

It’s always a tough and entertaining match between Bellegrove and Hotshots and this was no different, despite the high stakes. 

The home side made it difficult for the league leaders, nicking some scrappy frames, but it was Hotshots who were ahead, 3-2 at the end of the first set. 

Bellegrove managed to turn it around in the second set, stunning their opponents, 4-1 to go into the final set, 6-4 up. 

However, Hotshots wanted to hold onto top spot and won frames eleven and twelve to tie the match at six all with three to play. 

Danny Foley didn’t feel the pressure and dished from a dry break to nudge Bellegrove back in front and put them on the hill. 

Then Peter Whyte recorded his hat-trick to secure the win for Bellegrove and they went on to take the final frame for a, 9-6 triumph. 

An excellent victory, which made them the sixth team in the division to score over 100 points and become only the second team to beat Hotshots this season. 

With Hotshots dropping points, all eyes were on Sharks to see what they could do in their second versus third clash against Pickwick. 

This match was as close as their positions in the table suggest, with the first two sets going to the wire. 

Pickwick struck first, with Jamie Davis taking the opening frame, but Eno Idiong and Paul Cook won the next two frames to edge Sharks into the lead. 

Paul Gafa levelled the match, sending the set into a deciding frame, which teammate Dave Pile won to give Pickwick a, 3-2 first set lead. 

The second set swung one way then the other, with the first four frames being shared for another set deciding frame. 

This time Pile didn’t have a chance to match his heroics from the first set, as Richie Mitchell broke and dished to take frame ten, win the set and tie the match at five all. 

All to play for going into the final set and Davis, again got Pickwick off to a good start, taking the first frame of the set. 

However, Sharks had top spot in their sights and accelerated away with vu Son, Idiong, Cook and Derek Power winning the last four frames for a, 9-6 triumph. 

Idiong played some awesome pool, winning all three of his frames, as did Cook and Power was also unbeaten in his only frame. 

With two matches to play Sharks are the new league leaders, with a slender three-point advantage over Hotshots, so we have an exciting couple of weeks in prospect. 

Pickwick’s loss gave Bull Tavern the opportunity to close the gap on them and they seized that opportunity, thrashing bottom team Bears, 12-3 to go level on points with Pickwick. 

However, Bull leapfrog them into third, having played one less game and therefore a better frame difference. 

Just eight points behind Bull and Pickwick are The Cocked Hats who are tied with Bellegrove after narrowly beating second from bottom Eltham Terrace Nuthouse, 8-7. 

As Rugrats didn’t have a game this week Nuthouse did overtake them in the table, but only by three points, so it’s still a fight to the finish to see which two teams will be going down. 

Exciting times in the top division and now the lower divisions have finished their league season they turn their attentions to the League Cup which has a slightly different format this season. 

Instead of splitting the teams into random divisions with the winners going through to the knockout stages, the teams will be in one big division and play three matches drawn randomly, then the top two teams contest the final. 

There were some interesting ties drawn in the first round of matches including two derbies, but there was also the biggest gulf possible, as top of the first division, Falconwood Club travelled to wooden spoon winners and bottom of Division Two Bexleyheath Working Men’s Club and unsurprisingly thrashed them, 14-1. 

This put the two teams in very familiar positions in the League Cup table, top and bottom. 

One of the derbies was a repeat of the last league match of the season, but no change in the result, as New Stars thrashed New Boys, 13-2 to again take a familiar position behind Falconwood in second. 

It was a great all-round team performance from New Stars, with four hat-trick heroes, Paul Carroll, Steve Knight, Steve Pearce, and Ron Brown.

The other derby came at the Bellegrove, with Bellegrove A, who won promotion from Division One facing Bellegrove Flyers, who themselves won promotion into the first division. 

Considering their league positions, Flyers caused somewhat of an upset, beating their sister side by 9 frames to 6 to go joint fourth in the table. 

Just above them, in third are Fox & Hounds, after they pulled off a fantastic away victory at Farmhouse. 

The first set was extremely close, with the first four frames being shared after going one way then the other. 

Melissa Barnes took the deciding frame to give Fox a, 3-2 lead. 

This kickstarted a run of eight frames on the bounce for Fox, which included a whitewash of the second set. 

Nick Brown stopped the rot for `Farmhouse, but it wasn’t the end of their misery as Kerry Wyatt won the next frame, before Steven Jeffcoate got another consolation for Farmhouse, making the final score, 11-4. 

Fox ended the match with three unbeaten players, Melissa Barnes, who scored a hat-trick, Glen Ward on two out of two and Tom Wyatt, winning his only frame. 

Duke of Northumberland continued their winning run, beating Academicals, 9-6 to go into joint fourth. 

Also hitting joint fourth are Eltham Terrace Rack Pack after their match against Happy Hustlers. 

Happy Hustlers started the match with an all-female opening five and it seemed to have done the trick, as after losing the first frame to Chris Parlett, Angie Hobbs, Jade Holmes, and Claire Stork won the next three frames to take the set. 

Adam Watts won frame five to bring Rack Pack back to within a frame. 

Hustlers’ Captain Hobbs introduced a couple of males at the start of the second set but to no avail as Parlett and Tony Frost won to edge Rack Pack into the lead, 4-3. 

The Happy Hustlers smiles were turned upside down, as Rack Pack went on to whitewash the second set for a, 7-3 advantage. 

The misery continued as Frost and Watts won frames eleven and twelve to make it eight in a row for Rack Pack and an unassailable, 9-3 lead. 

Stork pulled one back for Hustlers, then the boys, Alfie Cambridge and Reece Stewart made amends for the previous set, making the final score a more respectable, 9-6. 

There was only one unbeaten player on the night, Rack Pack’s Adam Watts with a hat-trick. 

So, with two games to go teams from the first division occupy the top three places in the League Cup table, but there are some top second division sides putting the pressure on and breathing down their necks. 

For more information on the SLKPA, including league tables visit our website at www.slkpa.com or contact our Secretary, Paul Gafa on 07443 456662 or secretary@slkpa.com with any queries.

The league is always looking at potential sponsors and any interested parties can also contact Paul Gafa.