JOHN SKILLETT is the new island pool champion and he won the title in style. The 25-year-old claimed the £500 first prize with an 11-1 demolition of Andy Mildner in the final at Happy Landings – a result that took even Skillett by surprise.

‘I basically played as well as I could play. I did not miss much at all,’ he said.

‘For the first seven or eight frames I did not give him a chance. It was not that Andy was playing badly at all. He is a quality player as he showed in the semi-final when he beat Martyn Desperques 8-3; that was a great result. So he was playing well, but I just hit form at the right time.’

Skillett had overcome Tommy Simon 8-6 in his last-four clash, but that was far more of a battling performance.

‘I did not play well in the semi-final. Tommy and I both struggled and it was just a case that I pipped him to the line,’ he said.

This is the first time that Skillett has held the title although he did come close 12 months ago.

‘I got to the final last year and lost 6-5 to Tristan Ozanne, which was obviously disappointing, so it is nice to win it this time.

‘It was a really hard draw because there are so many good players over here. The winner could have been one of about 10 players.

‘Unfortunately, Jersey are suffering at the moment because a lot of their best players are leaving the island, so they have had to scrap the Channel Islands Championship which means that winning this is the biggest thing we have got to aim for at the moment,’ Skillett added.

Mildner also ended as a runner-up in the pairs competition.

He and partner Adam Shorto lost out to the 10-year pairing of Steve Moullin and Paul Duncombe 6-4.

It was the second time Moullin and Duncombe have claimed the title.

In the women’s section, Ruth Vaudin won her third island championship by beating Rachel Chandler in the final, restricting her opponent to just two frames in the best of 11 match.

The junior final was also the first to six and Jezz de la Haye retained his title against James Kirk 6-2.