Eastwood Open 8

The Eastwood Open made a welcome return after a ten year absence and attracted 13 entrants, including 5 players new to 2019 ‘Nottingham Snooker’ tournaments.  A total of 48 players have now competed in ‘Nottingham Snooker’ tournaments since its relaunch back in April.

The main tournament was won by Nav Hussain (West Bridgford) who defeated the much improved Ashley Dobb (Hucknall) 2-1 in an enthralling final.  The in-form Hussain came through a tough match against Bash Maqsood (Bobbers Mill) in the quarter-finals.  He also faced a tough test in the semi-finals against Karl Jones (Hucknall).  Jones is another player who improves with every tournament and he is very likely to make a final before the year is out.

Dobb’s route to the final proved to be a little more straightforward, with a bye in round one, followed by a whitewash of 70 year old debutant William Byard (Whatstandwell) in the quarters.  Dobb faced his good friend Danny Cresswell (Hucknall) in the semis and he was expecting a tough match with Cresswell flying high thanks to whitewashes of Cary Davies (Mapperley) and Sam Burton (Watnall) in the previous rounds.  But it was Dobb who came out on top to set up his final against Hussain.

The final was very close, Dobb taking a 1-0 lead after sinking frame ball black.  Hussain switched up a gear in the second frame, three scoring visits of 28, 62 and 15 doing the damage to level the match at 1-1.  The decider highlighted just how much Dobb’s shot selection has improved.  He correctly turned down a risky pot to lay a great snooker and this led to Hussain conceding 18 points in fouls to put Dobb 33 ahead with 35 left on the table.  Hussain then laid a snooker of his own which Dobb failed to escape from and then Hussain proceeded to make a terrific 35 clearance to steal the match from Dobb’s grasp.  So close for Dobb who was playing in his first, but definitely not his last, final.

Special mentions to:

Callum Hodgman (Hucknall) who defeated the dangerous Karl Barrett (Sutton-in-Ashfield) 3-0 in round one
Sam Burton who, making his debut, defeated the excellent Tom Walker (Nuneaton) 3-2, also in round one.

The Plate tournament saw debutant Glyn Williams (Codnor Park) beat another debutant, 16 year old Ben D’Sa (Underwood) in round one.  Williams then pushed Walker very close in the semi-finals, only losing by the odd frame.  Barrett defeated Byard in the other semi-final to set up a final against Walker.  The final was also very close, but it was Walker who emerged victorious.  Barrett’s performance was very impressive though, considering he played the whole tournament with a rack cue!

MAIN TOURNAMENT

Round 1

Nav Hussain (0) 3-1 Ben D’Sa (42)
Bash Maqsood (0) 3-0 Glyn Williams (42)
Tom Walker (0) 2-3 Sam Burton (49)
Cary Davies (14) 0-3 Danny Cresswell (63)
Karl Barrett (14) 0-3 Callum Hodgman (70)

Quarter-Finals

Nav Hussain (0) 3-2 Bash Maqsood (0)
Sam Burton (49) 0-3 Danny Cresswell (63)
Callum Hodgman (70) 1-3 Karl Jones (42)
William Byard (42) 0-3 Ashley Dobb (42)

Semi-Finals

Nav Hussain (0) 3-1 Karl Jones (42)
Danny Cresswell (63) 1-3 Ashley Dobb (42)

Final (£50 / £25)

Nav Hussain (0) 2-1 Ashley Dobb (42)

Final Scoreboard

PLATE TOURNAMENT

Quarter-Finals

Ben D’Sa (42) 0-2 Glyn Williams (42)
Tom Walker (0) 2-1 Cary Davies (14)

Semi-Finals

Glyn Williams (42) 1-2 Tom Walker (0)
Karl Barrett (14) 2-0 William Byard (42)

Final (£20 / £10)

Tom Walker (0) 3-1 Karl Barrett (14)

 

High Breaks

Nav Hussain £5 73,62,35
Bash Maqsood 49,48,46
Tom Walker 44