GUERNSEY’S team snooker domination at inter-island level came to an abrupt end when they were thoroughly outplayed by an inspired Jersey team at the Mechanics’ Institute. A 7-3 win was no more than Karl Le Fevre’s team deserved, as he later acknowledged: ‘On the night, we were the better team, but we know that it could easily go the other way another time.’
In accepting the trophy for the first time since 2000, Le Fevre alluded to the team spirit gained through a pre-match lunch and team huddle, citing that it gave them a frame advantage before the first ball had been struck.
Certainly, Guernsey have much to ponder as all three team inter-insular trophies have now left their shores.
Galvanised by their togetherness, the job still had to be done on the table and in sending three-times CI winner Gary Britton on first, Jersey sent out a strong message of their intention to put the visitors under early pressure.
Playing on a single table format for the first time in many years, the first frame unsurprisingly turned out to be the longest as Britton and Adrian Holley both struggled with early nerves.
Britton was first to put points on the board, a break of 17 helping him to amass a 20-point lead which he carried to the colours before clearing up to pink.
By contrast, the second frame was to be the quickest of the night as Britton pounced on a Holley error to make a 35 break, which ended when he failed to split the pack.
But when Holley’s failed attempt at a tough red into the centre left Britton on again, he made no mistake in securing the frame with the first half-century of the night.
Holley’s disappointment at not getting Guernsey off to a good start was plain to see, magnanimously admitting later that he unusually felt the pressure.
If Guernsey were going to get into the match, they needed a strong performance in the second match. And in Adam Shorto they had the man to do it.
Playing Chris Alexander, he fell behind early on, but when a break of 23 ended with a missed black while cannoning into the last three reds, Guernsey at least had their first foothold in a frame.
But Alexander responded with a fine 24 to enter the colours five ahead before laying a couple of snookers that saw Shorto concede 29 points and ultimately the frame.
His second frame bucked the trend of the match to date as for once it was a Guernsey player who put sizeable points on the board first with a break of 28. Shortly after, an unlikely plant sent him on his way again and at last the Guernsey supporters had something to cheer about.
Eight reds with colours saw Shorto at his best with a classy 54 to reduce Jersey’s lead to 3-1.
Match three saw Adrian Lihou return to inter-insular action against Aaron Canavan and after a seven- minute safety exchange, the Jerseyman drew first blood with three reds and three blacks.
Lihou responded with a 22, breaking down when going for a tight red in favour of a simpler pot to the centre.
While that did not prove costly, a miss on a straightforward black moments later did, with Canavan stepping in for a best of the night 56, only missing out on a clearance with a rash attempt on the final black.
The start of the next frame saw Lihou again miss on the black, albeit a more difficult one, but it was met with equal punishment from his opponent.
A break of 36 continued the tone of Jersey getting in first. It was soon backed by a 17 as Canavan punished Lihou in arguably the best individual performance of the night. He amassed 149 points in his two frames, taking 13 blacks with 19 reds potted.
At 5-1 down, Guernsey skipper Ian Platt entered the arena to play Ray Kilmartin, knowing that he could ill afford any mistakes.
But again Jersey took the lead as the left-hander opened with five red/pinks before going in off. Kilmartin’s play defied the fact that this was his first inter insular, with Platt seemingly in trouble on every visit to the table.
The final nail came when a break of 19 to brown sealed a dream 68-15 debut win for an unassailable 6-1 lead that had the Jersey players patting each others’ backs.
With the match won, the final three frames lacked intensity, but there was still much to play for with Jersey eager to ram their advantage home and Guernsey looking for respectability.
Platt was able to enjoy greater success in a nip-and-tuck second frame which he eventually won to make way for Martyn Desperques’ match against Karl Le Fevre in a repeat of the previous weekend’s CI final.
An unusual first frame saw Desperques get no higher than a break of eight on the reds before winning it with a 22 clearance, but the second went Le Fevre’s way courtesy of an early 31 break, despite Desperques’ response of 27.
After six years of largely comfortable victories, it wasn’t the Guernsey captain lifting the trophy.
‘We were outplayed - simple as that,’ said Platt.
It is true to say that the much heralded return of Jersey’s top players has provided the sort of wake-up call needed for Guernsey’s elite.
Article posted on 1st May, 2007 - 12.00am
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