2009 COORS NEWPORT POOL OPEN
For immediate release
Tuesday, October 13th, 2009
HEATHCOTE AGAINST RUTTLEDGE FOR NEWPORT OPEN HONOURS
NEWPORT (Shropshire): Newport will play Stafford in a dream final of the 2009 Carling Newport Pool Open. Local potter Anthony Heathcote will be bidding to become the first player in the popular tournament’s short history to win the title on two occasions and retain the shield, but he faces Stafford league player Brendan Ruttledge in what promises to be a thrilling contest over five frames at the Royal Navy Club, Bellman’s Yard, on Wednesday, October 21st.
Lady Luck shone on Heathcote during his much-vaunted and rather flattering 3-0 semi-final victory over Market Drayton Open champion, Brian Sumner. Sumner potted the black twice and still lost the match, as Heathcote benefited from a cruel in-off for Sumner in frames one and three, after he had cleared the table in frame two when Sumner fouled on two occasions.
“The score flattered to deceive,” admitted Heathcote. “Brian potted the black half-way through frame one, two consecutive fouls in frame two allowed me to clear up and there was a lot of safety play in the third rack before Brian potted five yellows and cut the black down the cushion, only for the white to drop in the middle bag. Now I have to make sure I don’t let the trophy go to Stafford!”
Sumner’s consolation will be a third-place play-off match against Newport’s Russ Woodhouse in the singles’ competition and a third-place play-off match with Whitchurch-based partner Cyril Evans in the Worthington’s Newport Doubles Open against Newport’s John Williams and Paul Trevor.
Woodhouse chose to play his semi-final match against Ruttledge at the Honeysuckle, but the Stafford player adapted best to the playing environment and brushed the Newport player aside in three straight frames. It was an anti-climactic end to Woodhouse’s run in the tournament, which had seen him end the dreams of both Mick Beech and Colin Pink.
Both third-place play-off matches will precede the Worthington’s Newport Doubles Open final between Hinstock’s Pink and Mick Manning and Newport’s Mick Collins and Ed Keenan. Pink is a former singles’ champion and Collins is last year’s beaten singles’ finalist, so the doubles match promises to be a fitting warm-up fixture for the Heathcote v Ruttledge showdown at the end of the night.
All four matches will be followed by the prize presentation and the handing out of an annual ‘Desert England Trophy’ to the ‘Most Improved Player’ of the Newport league and cup season. This new trophy and a signed copy of the football hooliganism fiction novel, Desert England, has been given to the Newport Pool League co-ordinator Neil Perkins by book author and media magnate David Williams.
The Royal Navy Club have kindly agreed to put on sandwiches and snacks during the evening and spectators are more than welcome to attend. Last year’s finals’ night attracted a sizeable audience and organisers would like to think that representatives from all the pool teams in the Newport & District Pool League will support the players who have reached finals’ night.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21st – ROYAL NAVY CLUB, BELLMAN’S YARD
ORDER OF PLAY
WORTHINGTON’S NEWPORT DOUBLES 3rd PLACE PLAY-OFF – 19.30hrs
Brian Sumner/Cyril Evans (Whitchurch) v John Williams/Paul Trevor (Newport)
CARLING NEWPORT SINGLES’ THIRD PLACE PLAY-OFF – 20.15hrs
Russ Woodhouse (Newport) v Brian Sumner (Whitchurch)
2009 WORTHINGTON’S NEWPORT DOUBLES FINAL- 21.00hrs
Colin Pink/Mick Manning (Hinstock) v Mick Collins/Ed Keenan (Newport)
2009 CARLING NEWPORT SINGLES’ OPEN FINAL – 21.45hrs
Anthony Heathcote (Newport) v Brendan Ruttledge (Stafford)
Ends
For further information:
Neil Perkins, NDP Publicity Services, Tel: 07831 123153
www.ndp-publicity.com