POOL CLUB
Business House League (seasonal) – Monday to Wednesday (as required) – 7.00pm start
Mini-league round-robin competitions before and after the Business House League season.
Inter-club and Club Champs (seasonal) – Sunday – Start times vary.
For all inquiries please contact Dave on 027 754 9961
Email: David.Ollason@hotmail.com or pool@warkworthrsa.co.nz
POOL REPORT - INTERCLUB - HIBISCUS COAST @ WARKWORTH - SUNDAY 4th May
On Sunday we hosted 15 players from the Hibiscus Coast team at Warkworth. We had 14 (5 men and 9 women) so we made it 16 a side.
Although we have been playing this team for many, many years, on Sunday there were at least three players who had never played at our club before - they were suitably wowed by their first experience of our tables and their welcome and will certainly be back next year.
We started with the doubles and the games were well contested with many black ball games and many matches going to 3. Hibiscus had the upper hand after the doubles, winning 5 of them, but I was happy that it could so easily have been 4:4.
Heading into the singles, we got off to a great start, winning the first 3, but Hibiscus fought back and after the first 8 singles the scores were tied at 4:4 and we were still 2 behind overall and still in with a shout. Unfortunately Hibiscus started to turn the screw from that point forward and we suffered the pool equivalent of a batting collapse, winning only one more singles game of the back 8, so to speak.
The overall score was a hefty defeat at: Hibiscus Coast 16:8 Warkworth
It is a bitter pill to swallow, but on the positive side, it was still a great day of pool with some good people, both familiar faces and some new ones.
We thanked each other and Hibiscus's new captain, Dave Addy, made special mention of the food, which was as always absolutely fabulous - thanks to all who were involved with the food.
I'd like to make a special mention to both Trish and Gary for winning their singles games 2:0 against two of Hibiscus's best players, Jenny & Toby - Well Done!
It's Mothers Day next weekend and the week after we have Wellsford away. The Wellsford fixture is limited to 12 players and is currently full, but there is space to write your name as a reserve in case anyone pulls out.
Cheers
Dave
POOL REPORT - 29th April 2025
Hibiscus Coast playing us here on 4th May Sunday muster is 12noon.
BUSINESS HOUSE POOL
Please note that team Rangi have withdrawn from the Business House Pool B Division league. For the calendar any team scheduled to play against team Rangi should treat this match as a BYE.
Enquire NOW TO SEE IF THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR A LAST MINUTE TEAM ENTRY
The business house pool draw has been finalised and can be viewed on our website or by clicking on the LINK ABOVE
SUMMER CURRY LEAGUE 2025
On Monday we had the last week of the Summer Curry League.
The Curry League is heaps of fun with just a sprinkling of competition and everyone had a great time this summer.
Going into last night's matches, there were two clear front runners and Butter Chicken were just a single point ahead of Bhuna - everything to play for.
It was a great match and I saw Trout get a fabulous black but wondered why Gary's head was in his hands as I hadn't seen the white go in. The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune strike again.
Bhuna had a great night and ended up reversing the score deficit to become the winners.
We have prizes and will present them as part of the Business House Prize giving.
9 BALL OPEN - Sunday 13th April 2025
On Sunday we had a whopping 22 players for the 9 Ball Open tournament, 9 women and 13 men. This was our largest tournament turnout and testament to the growing popularity of the 9 Ball format which Tony started several years ago.
We decided to run two qualifying sections of 11 best of 1 frame. After a rules check we got going at 9am and the format proved to be a huge hit. We were flying through the games and players had very little wait time between matches, and it proved to be a winning formula with everyone engaged throughout.
After the first 5 rounds there were some clear patterns emerging. In section 1, Jo, Storm and Rachelle were leading the pack with 4 wins, but Tony & Thrax were not far behind on 3. Similarly in section 2, Marcia & Jimmy out in front with 5 wins and Jim and Jennie on 3.
Largely speaking, these leading players continued their winning ways but we also saw Bob & Dave H, come into contention and Tony cementing his position after a slower start.
We broke for afternoon tea at 1pm and, as is always the case but perhaps particularly so on Sunday, the food was absolutely fabulous! I'd like to thank JJ for doing the BBQ and to everyone who spent the time and effort bring food and helping to lay out and tidy up afterwards. It was next level and really helped to add to the day.
In the quarter finals were Jo/Jim, Marcia/Storm, Bob/Tony and Jimmy/Rachelle and it was great to see so many women qualifying. Both Jo and Marcia progressed to set up a semi-final clash and in the other half it was Tony vs Jimmy, thus guaranteeing a woman in the final!
That woman was Jo who prevailed over Marcia and she was up against Tony who had the better of Jimmy.
The final was best of 5 and Tony got the first but then Jo got the second with an excellent clearance of the last three balls. Tony then showed why his name is on the trophy multiple times with some great clearances to take the match 3:1.
Huge congratulations to Tony, but also very well done indeed to Jo.
Perhaps it was to do with the 9 Ball format, or the two sections of 11, or the amazing food and atmosphere, or perhaps a combination of them all, but Sunday's tournament really was fantastic!
Thanks to everyone.
Rodney Rams Home Sunday April 6th
This time a year ago, we played the Rams in their first ever foray into interclub. We had a fabulous day, but the Rams being a newly formed team, were understandably nervous and lacked confidence and the final score was 21:9 to us. However, as a direct result of that match, the Rams entered a team into the B Div of the Business House and they went on to win it!
On Sunday we hosted the Rams and I wondered to myself what difference a year will have made.
The answer, quite frankly, is it had made a HUGE difference, visible from the get go when 13 relaxed, confident and smiling players arrived.
No need to review the rules (Rams have adopted ours) and with 16 a side, we got stuck into it with the doubles. The first four were evenly shared and then we took an edge in the final four making it 5:3 to us at the end of the doubles.
But it was in the singles that the Rams really started to fire, winning 6 of the first 8 singles!
Afternoon tea was absolutely fabulous, as it always is, and huge thanks to all who were involved in the cooking, laying out and cleaning up - Jill, Rach, Marcia and Jennie, to name a few.
As we approached the pointy end and with the final 4 singles games on, we had caught up and the score was nicely poised at 10:10. There were nail-bitters, in-offs and near misses, but in the end we split these last 4 games evenly too and the final score was 12:12.
Quite honestly, the score was a great reflection of the pool on the day, and as the Rams' captain Geoff mentioned in closing, it's not about the score, it's about the vibe and having fun amongst great company.
From a Warkworth perspective, many congratulations to:
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Myself, Gary and Ash for winning both singles and doubles
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And to Trish and JJ for also winning both, but as a partnership
Well done all!
Here's hoping that this fixture continues for many years to come.
Next Sunday is the 9 Ball Open.
Cheers
Dave
Birkenhead Away Sunday March 30th
On Sunday, after the AGM, 14 of us headed down to the Birkenhead RSA for our away game.
Birkenhead is a large club with a very strong and active pool and snooker section, and the coordinators, Paula & Tina, had amassed an impressive 23 players, meaning that many of our players and one of theirs played twice.
Given the size of the field and the slightly later than normal start, we decided that the doubles would be best of 3 and the singles sudden death.
Myself and Marcia were up against one of their top players, Maurice, partnered with Mitchell, a youngster (14) who is being coached into the team and was playing his first interclub match. It went to 3, but ultimately Maurice's experience won out. Unfortunately, this was repeated across all 4 of the first matches and we had to wait for Jim & Rach to restore some pride with our first win.
Although the matches were close, with many going to 3, we only had another two wins in the doubles and were left staring at an unflattering 3:9 score line as we moved into the singles.
Our woes continued in the singles, where we took only 3 of the first 12 singles before heading to afternoon tea. But we were treated to some lovely Chinese food, which certainly brought smiles back to our faces and set us up for the second half of the singles.
Perhaps knowing that the match was lost put the team in a more relaxed frame of mind, because we came back swinging and won 7 of the final 12 singles matches . It was still a hefty defeat:
Birkenhead 23:13 Warkworth
But a modicum of pride was restored and we had all had a great day, as you can see below.
I'd like to make a few special mentions:
Gary for his excellent win in singles against Moloi (Their top player)
Rach for winning the last match of the day, under intense pressure with everyone watching.
Shirley for winning her singles and to Trish and myself for being the only partnership to win both singles an doubles.
Well Done All!
As we wrapped up and were thanking the teams, Tina made special mention of the fact that it was great to see so many ladies playing for Warkworth.
This is a sentiment that I share and have expressed in these reports before - Go Warkworth Ladies!!
Cheers
Dave
Onehunga Away Sunday March 23rd
On Sunday, 15 intrepid potters made their way to Onehunga RSA for our first interclub of the 2025 season.
Onehunga also had 15 players so one player on each team (myself and Wazza) played twice making a round 16 a side.
After a very warm welcome and a run-through of the rules - Onehunga, like Papatoetoe, play the Northern area or National rules, which are quite different - we started with the doubles.
After the first 4 matches, Warkworth had only one win - Well done Marcia & Gary - against three losses. A pattern was emerging and one that would continue into the next four matches where, again, we had only one win - The two Daves. It wasn't that we were playing badly - most games were going the distance to three frames - but we were struggling with the rules a little and needed to settle into it. The score at the end of the doubles was Onehunga 6:2 Warkworth.
Perhaps our fortunes would change in the singles round? And indeed, things were looking a little better with the singles tied at 4:4 after the first half of the matches.
We broke for afternoon tea at 3pm, which was a lovely chicken burger and chips and looked to capitalise with renewed energy. Sadly, however, the last half of the singles was a 2:6 loss making the final score Onehunga 16:8 Warkworth.
It was disappointing, but I was reminded of the fact that the exact same thing happened last year where we got thumped Away but then thumped even harder on the Home game and came away with the trophy. Here's hoping we do the same again this year!
I do want to thank both Keanau and JJ for playing this event for the first time, and also to call out Gary, Marcia and Dave Harvey for having won both their singles and their doubles - well done!
We handed the trophy over for safe keeping until the return match, when we very much hope to return it to its rightful place on our shelf.
A reminder that this coming Sunday is Birkenhead Away and we will leave as soon as the AGM is over.
Cheers,
David
Scotch Pairs Sunday March 9th
The RSA 2025 pool tournament season kicked off on Sunday with the Scotch Pairs, and what a fantastic opening to the season it was!
We divided the 12 teams into two pools of 6 and kicked off the round-robin at 9am. A huge welcome to Storm's son Marshall (12) who was playing with Dad in his first tournament - we were all keen to see how he would go. Like a duck to water, was the answer, taking out their first two matches in style!
As the round-robin phase was drawing to a close, we broke for lunch. This year we have decided to make the tournaments $5 entry plus $10 or a plate for food, and we had a great mix of lovely plates plus some BBQ sausages and steak cooked by Dave Harvey - thank you Dave and everyone for the food.
It was Malcolm Kidd's (Trout) birthday, and we wished him all the best in the traditional manner, and here he is enjoying his cake with chocolate fish - Happy Birthday Trout!
At the end of the round-robin, it was clear that in both sections there was a natural break between the top 4 and the bottom 2 teams, so we decided to start the knockout stage with a quarter final.
Tony & I were lucky to squeeze past Storm & Marshall in the quarters and even luckier to make it past a very in-form Trout & Jennie in the semis. Both matches we 2:1 nailbiters.
And Kev & Noelene had a similarly tough journey to final via Thrax & Milly and Jo & Murray. Again, both tight matches.
We had lost in the round-robin 1:2 and were out for revenge in the final. And it was looking very good for us with an initial 2:0 lead in the best of 5, needing only one frame from 3. But Noelene & Kev had other plans and played really well to bring the score level at 2:2 and set us up for a decider. Not only a decider, but one that went to the black which took a few attempts both sides, before falling to Kev for the decisive pot.
Well done to Kev & Noelene as the 2025 Scotch Pairs winners, thoroughly deserved!
