Billiards CANTERBURY TITLE WON BY E. SIMONS

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30172, 2 July 1963, Page 15

Billiards CANTERBURY TITLE WON BY E. SIMONS

Withstanding a strong challenge in the late stages, E. Simons won his third Canterbury amateur billiards championship when he beat the title-holder, T. Yesberg, by 666 points to 586 last evening. It was

not a great final, although there were periods in which the play reached an excellent standard. Yesberg’s gallant 79 when his opponent needed only 21 points was the evening’s best break, Simons scoring the only two other breaks of 50 or more.

Yesberg, who has been Canterbury champion six times—.including the last three years in succession—was never in front, for Simons started magnificently, and he was nearly 300 before Yesberg scored 100. A quarter of an hour after the game began on a lovely table ait the Christchurch Working Men's Club, Simons began a succession of four fine breaks —65, 24 37, and 50—which gave him a commanding position for the rest of the match. Yesberg, a stouthearted fighter, took a long time to settle down, and he wa® still 137 points in arrears ait the half-way interval. In the second part of the maitdh Yesberg nibbled away steadily ait Simons’s lead, but was never closer than 67 pointe behind. Breaks of 39 and 31 by Simons then hinted the game was as good as over, but Yesberg’s best break was still to come. and interest in the matdi was sustained until the end.

Scoring Rates But the fluctuations in the standard of performances were reflected in the scoring rates: the match lasted I*4 minutes, end the players visited the table 85 times. Yet there was little defensive play; defence was never sought by either of them. Simone, who has the Mn Idiosyncracies of being lefthanded sod playing with a floating thumb at the buataew end of th* cue. was at his best when playing losing h*sard* His control of pace and position about the middle Pockets was masterly tn the early stages, and tin* lovely touch returned to him st a vital stage near tt>e end. He potted quite soundly for some tfite but later missed some relativefy easy one*, and he was not *W*. ,»*, often as volved problems of muW«however, dreervedhu success. He had to go through a period In the middle of the match when hl* confidence

seemed to have deserted hhn, but he struggled on, and once he was within 100 points of success, and still held a handsome lead, he looked in commanding form, with his important break of 39—a1l from the red—showing him at his best. Yesberg took a long time to get his pace under control when playing in off the red, but he brought off some extraordinarily fine shots. Simons had 11 breaks of 30 or more, Yesberg nine. The presentation of the association’s shield was made by the patron. Mr J. Mathison, M.P.. who wee introduced as the Parliamentary billiards champion. Mr Mathleon hastened to explain that he heM the title only because "the others couldn't plky."