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THE 2006 LONDON 8-BALL OPEN
Rileys American Pool & Snooker
35-43 High Street
Wealdstone
Harrow
Greater London
HA3 5DE
www.empirepooltour.com
www.rileysltd.com

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Saturday/Sunday 12-13 August 2006

ARTICLE UPDATED: Monday 9.30pm London time

THE FINAL AND PLAYER INTERVIEWS

The Empire Pool Tour's second event of the season, The London 8 Ball Open, attracted the very best cue talent from across the whole of Europe.

Snooker players, old and new, English Pool players, as well as American cue sports specialists all descended on Harrow, North West London for the greatest American 8 Ball pool tournament ever held on these shores.

Snooker legend Ronnie O'Sullivan led the torrent of superstar cueists, all vying for a piece of the action on offer. Professional snooker players from times gone by also made an appearance with Patsy Fagan and Bob Harris picking up sticks for the first time in years, to attend this prestigious event.

Click on "Read More..." for the results so far.

Players from the "small table" English 8 Ball Pool game were well represented in the field of 100 players with such luminaries as Carl Morris, Phil Harrison, Karl Boyes and Hitan Patel in attendance, as well as the upcoming World Cup of Pool team Wales representatives Rob McKenna and Ben "Ding" Davies.

The UK's American 9 Ball Pool player's comprised the majority of the field with the familiar names of Imran Majid and Raj Hundal leading the way.

The most surprising sector of the entrants had to be the astounding international contingent. Players from Scotland, Ireland and Wales often make the trip to the UK for the bigger events, but this event was flooded with players from Norway, Denmark, Spain, France and Belgium. There was even one player who only arrived from Hong Kong the night before, (Lee Chenman) and a single jet-lagged American too (Nigel Francis).

However, never was the phrase "never mind the quantity, feel the quality" more appropriate.

No less than thirteen full members of the multi-million dollar IPT American 8 Ball Tour were in attendance.

To say it was a star-studded event is an understatement, and a credit to the organisers who have managed to put together such a good format that it has attracted the big names in such a short space of time.

Fortunately, the regular "dogs of war" had a fair share of the prize money, and there was a fair bit of "giant killing" going on, as some of the big names were less experienced on the American style tables.

One can only guess at the stories being told down the pub tonight by Matt Hyden (who beat Marcus Chamat in the Last 16 stage) and surely Rob McKenna is secretly pretty pleased with his 10-5 win over Ronnie O'Sullivan too.

Indeed, day one belonged to Ronnie.

The staff at Rileys American Pool and Snooker in Harrow couldn't quite believe their eyes when Ronnie sauntered though the door.

Although the other international players drew spectators to their tables, Ronnie's matches drew a larger crowd every time, and there was a little electricity in the air just because O'Sullivan was there.

Few people believed that Ronnie could win this event, but everyone thought he would easily qualify for the second day, but it was not to be. Rob McKenna obviously wasn't as star struck as some others, as after a slow start and trailing 4-0, he changed gear and managed to bring his best game to the fore, dishing off his own break and dishing when Ronnie broke "dry". Ronnie only managed to win one more rack as McKenna dominated the table, eventually winning the match with an astounding 10-5 scoreline.

O'Sullivan wasn't the only big name to not make the second day, Karl Boyes, Lee Chenman, Darren Appleton and Imran Majid all lost in the same round.

Mika Immonen made a very long trip from Finland to play just two matches as he "got his marching orders" from an in-form Daryl Peach in only the second round of the competition.

Even worse, UK 9 Ball Pool champion Raj Hundal was disposed of in the very first round by English 8 Ball pool player Phil Harrison.

All in all, Day One of the London 8-Ball Open was one of the most exciting days in the history of American Pool in this country!

Day Two belonged to the finalists, as Daryl Peach and Neil Raybone carved their way through the last 16 players to reach the final.

Raybone retired Rob McKenna, Scotland's Jayson Shaw, and Matt Hyden, whilst Peach was tackling Paul Williams, Carl Morris and Pat Holtz.

The time for the final was nigh - the stage was set for the final - the referee, Chris Billings, made the final touches to the table, preparing it for the players.

Blackpool's finest, Daryl "Razzle Dazzle" Peach, a player with a passion for 8 ball and co-incidentally Co-Founder of The Empire Pool Tour must have been delighted to be in the final of this event, especially when so many international giants had fallen by the wayside.

Neil "Razor" Raybone, from Willinghall in the West Midlands has given up playing English Pool completely and only plays the American style game since qualifying for full membership of the big money IPT Tour.

Both players have big ambitions for the future of the sport and they are both full-time professional players practicing every day for hours. The audience can expect a quality final.

They lag for the break, Peach wins and gets the first break in this alternate break format final.

Daryl Peach *0 : 0 Neil Raybone

Peach breaks dry. Raybone steps to the table and runs the entire rack, pausing only for a minute, checking that the penultimate ball "goes" into the corner pocket.

It's a nomination game, which means all shots have to be announced, although in practice, player's merely state the non-obvious shots to the referee, and always the pocket for the 8 ball.

Raybone merely gestures to the corner pocket with his cue and sinks the black with ease.

Daryl Peach 0 : 1* Neil Raybone

One - nil, and with Raybone getting the break this time, it gives Neil a distinct early advantage, but he fails to capitalise on the advantage by breaking "dry" and not a single ball drops on his break!

Peach wastes no time getting to the tables and punishes Raybone for his poor break by dishing all the balls in a single visit.

Daryl Peach *1 : 1 Neil Raybone

Peaches break, and although he makes two balls on the "snap" - it's a very tough run-out considering the layout of the balls. However, he splits a cluster of balls by playing a combination shot and clears the entire table "at the double" once again.

Daryl Peach 2 : 1* Neil Raybone

The players have arrange a "rack-your-own" policy with the referee, so Raybone finishes racking and breaks from the left-hand-side of the table.

Remembering the results when he didn't make a ball last time Raybone is mindful of the consequences of the dry break.

Attempting to improve his chances of making a ball this time he adds a little more power, but increasing the power often affects the ability to control the cue ball, and that's exactly what happens here as the cue ball skitters directly into the left side pocket.

Disaster!

At this level handing an open table to your opponent invariably spells doom, as more than 90% of open racks will get dished by the top professionals - and an even higher percentage if they have ball-in-hand.

Fortunately for Neil, the run-out isn't simple and Daryl comes unstuck as he misses the final ball of his set, whilst bridging over an impeding ball.

With the vast majority of Daryl's balls out of the equation, Neil seizes the opportunity to run out his set with ruthless efficiency.

Daryl Peach *2 : 2 Neil Raybone

Daryl makes a ball on the snap but then he rattles the next shot. It was a long range shot but it's often a sign that the player is tired or struggling to concentrate, and sure enough he misses the next shot completely.

It's a very short range, straight-in shot to the corner pocket... Impossible to miss for all but the worst of players.

He instantaneously examines his tip and administers first aid with a brass "tip pick" as if he's damaged it, but it was only a medium paced shot.

Raybone runs a few balls but gets out of shape on the last ball of the set.

He makes the game look stupidly easy by making an awkward bank right into the dead-centre of the side pocket and sinking the easy eight ball.

Daryl Peach 2 : 3* Neil Raybone

Neil breaks dry!

Daryl makes yet another uncharacteristic unforced error missing a gentle, close range cut into the side pocket.

Did he play it a little faster than normal, or was it a lapse of concentration, either way it's a worrying sign that all is not right in the house of Peach.

After a brief exchange of safeties, it's Neil who first attempts to run-out, but he certainly wears his heart on his sleeve as he looks a more than a little down-hearted when he hooks himself full-ball on the one remaining ball.

He manages to escape the snooker with a full table length bank shot, but sells out the rack as Daryl plays well to get perfect position on the awkward eight.

Daryl Peach *3 : 3 Neil Raybone

Daryl breaks dry and Neil runs-out a fairly easy table!

Daryl Peach 3 : 4* Neil Raybone

Neil makes a ball but then makes his first bad mistake of the match, and then follows it up with another bad mistake.

The rack becomes even scrappier as Daryl proceeds to produce an even clumsier run-out, accidentally parking the cue-ball in the most inopportune of positions - TWICE!

At least he is able to have a wry smile to himself about it.

He misses a full table length bank shot and Neil puts the rack out of it's misery by clearing the table.

Daryl Peach *3 : 5 Neil Raybone

Daryl breaks dry, and with the balls spread all over the table, Neil breaks convention and takes a comfort break mid-rack, leaving the audience to fidget for a minute until he returns.

Ordinarily it is understood that players only take breaks on their own break, indeed it is mentioned in various tour rules.

This is to stop unsportsmanlike behaviour, cooling off your opponent when he's on a hot-streak, or letting your opponent stew over a bad miss or a dry break, for instance.

Sometimes it can be necessary to bypass these rules if the need is urgent, but with the alternate break format there are plenty of opportunities for both players to take a break.

Daryl wanders over and chats with Andy Worthington, his friend and practice partner. I wonder what advice he had for Daryl?

Neil returns and Daryl retakes his seat.

Without delay Neil runs out the rack at a good pace, only pausing on the final two balls which needed a little thought, and is rewarded with a little applause for a good shot on the eight ball.

Daryl Peach 3 : 6* Neil Raybone

With the scores at 6-3 to his advantage, and the break too, it looks like the writing's on the wall for a victory for Neil.

He's a real pleasure to watch playing. His turn of speed is quite refreshing, not too fast, but a very enjoyable pace.

Eight ball does require more thought than some other disciplines, but some of the earlier matches were tortuously slow, with player's seemingly unable to decide what shot to play, or even displaying some kind of nervous tick and playing like their life depended on each and every shot.

Seriously, three minutes on a shot is too long if the shots either side took a minute each too!

Raybone however, after the post break appraisal, plays with decisive confidence, really playing three shots ahead.

Unfortunately he misses his next shot, and now Daryl decides to repay the favour, taking a comfort break and letting Neil stew on his missed opportunity.

There's such a fine margin between players at the very top level that these tiny little "mind games" can make an enormous difference.

Daryl takes a little longer than Neil took for his break, but when he returns the referee calls both players together and has a word with them, explaining that there will be strict restrictions on the use of toilet breaks from now onwards.

Play resumes and Daryl runs-out the entire table rather effortlessly with a ice turn of speed.

Daryl Peach *4 : 6 Neil Raybone

Daryl prepares to break but Neil is unconsciously drying his hands with a largish white towel.

Daryl can obviously see the towel moving in his line of sight, and so he gets up and asks Neil to stop moving the towel around.

Neil stops, Daryl breaks... And dishes!

Daryl Peach 5 : 6* Neil Raybone

After a little "back and forth" Neil misses a long shot and Daryl, without a trace of the lack of concentration displayed earlier, dishes up to even the scores.

Daryl Peach *6 : 6 Neil Raybone

Daryl breaks and hits them a little harder this time.

He makes a ball, but the cue ball goes perilously close to the side pocket - only deflected by the pocket point.

Daryl is obviously dishing this rack and Neils body language is clear for all to see.

He is obviously feeling a bit dejected. His shoulders have slumped and he looks like he's brooding a little bit, perhaps ruminating on his fortunes, but as Daryl pots the eight ball, he leaps out of his chair with the added vigour of someone making a fresh start.

Daryl Peach 7 : 6* Neil Raybone

Neil breaks well and is running out when he misses a ball to the corner pocket.

Daryl dishes up as Neil slumps and slouches ever deeper in his chair.

Daryl Peach *8 : 6 Neil Raybone

Daryl slaps the chalk on the table and delivers the biggest break yet!

Success!!!

At first he makes it a little difficult, but then redeems himself with some top notch shooting to complete a break and dish!

Daryl Peach 9 : 6* Neil Raybone

Daryl sits like a statue in his chair as Neil runs out the rack and adds to his score for the first time in the last 7 racks!

Daryl Peach *9 : 7 Neil Raybone

Daryl breaks, pots, and dishes another rack - it's almost his signature, the number of times I've written that Daryl breaks and dishes the final two racks - it's always been that way at 9 ball, but he has obviously carried the trait to 8 ball too!

Daryl Peach 10 : 7 Neil Raybone

It's a great weapon to have in your arsenal, and a terrifying reputation to have too!

Just watch him the next time he's in a final... It won't be too long!

Neil Raybone collects the runner up prize for the London 8 Ball Open.

Neil Raybone Interview

Neil Raybone is based in Willinghall in the West Midlands and at 21 years of age has won the National Junior Championships, is the Home International Champion and has half a dozen regional tour titles all at the small ball game.

He is a full member of the multi-million dollar International Pool Tour and enjoyed playing in Las Vegas earlier this month.

Pro9 managed to grab a quick interview with him before his final match.

Neil Raybone, you're in the final of the EPT event here in London, how did you get so good?

Haha... Erm... I've been practicing a lot obviously because of the IPT and all the other tournaments, and I've had some close matches today as well, some 10-9 matches.

How do you practice?

I practice at the club, the Midlands Sports Club, I do a couple of routines and I practice with Rob Chiltern and Hitan Patel, so I've got good practice partners around me.

How much do you practice?

I practice, more or less, every day. Probably about 2 to three hours a day.

And you come from the little ball game don't you, how are you finding the big ball game?

It's a big adjustment, obviously I've had to get used to the new equipment and the size of the tables and balls, but all I do now is play American pool, I don't really play English Pool anymore at all.

Did you come here to win it?

Yeah, yeah... I've got to believe I can win it, or there's no point turning up, so I believe I can win it, definitely... Definitely.

Why do they call you "The Razor"?

It's just a nickname down the club, the owner said, "Razor Raybone" one of the days, because I'm sharp around the table and I'm really alert, and it just stuck really.

Out of the two other semi-finalists, who would you prefer to get?

Obviously I'm not too bothered, because the bottom line was to get there, either match will be a tough match, but the bottom line was to get past the semi-final.

What will you do with the money?

What will I do with the money...? Errr... I don't know, maybe have a little break away with my girlfriend. My girlfriend's here today watching me, so me and Kate might go away for a couple of days.

How happy would you be if you were to win this event?

I'd be over the moon obviously, because before I came to the tournament I knew it was going to be a really strong field this weekend, obviously the profile of the tour has gone up since the first event and I thought it was going to be a really tough event to win, so I'm over the moon to be in the final, and I'll be even more pleased to win it.

What was your toughest match?

To be honest I've had a couple. I was 9-7 down to Rob McKenna and I won that 10-9, and I played Jayson Shaw the match after and that was 10-9 as well.

He's a young lad that's done ever so well isn't he?

Yeah, he's done well, he's not been playing that long so he's got a bright future ahead of him I think.

What do you think the future of the EPT tour is going to be like?

I think it's going to be growing and growing, I think the future's bright to be honest, I think it's only going to get bigger and bigger. Obviously this is only the second event and you've got 100 runners here, so although it's not been going that long it's still fairly big now, so it can only get bigger.

Thanks for the interview, and very good luck!

Cheers mate!

Daryl Peach collect the big cheque from UKSportsManagement Director Mark Segal.

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