Superb effort at top of table
Improved display by Wilfred Axiak
By a staff reporter
Australian and world title holder Tom Cleary made his first appearance in the current World Amateur Billiards Championship at the Great Eastern Hotel on Tuesday night , defeating Wilfred Axiak of Malta by 1,965 points to 1,317 in four hours .
Though not seen at his best Cleary was often unlucky with several hazards which just failed to materialize while his calculations were sometimes upset by untimely off-cushion contact established between cue-ball and object-ball or between object-ball and red . Drop cannons which so often lay the foundation to big breaks , were often thwarted by these mishaps .
Axiak , doubtless gave his finest performance so far in the championship . He seems to improve with every game and his technique on Tuesday night was streets ahead of his first performance . He now plays top-table with all the aplomb of a veteran and as for his forcing hazards they border on perfection .
But nothing Axiak did was the equal of the quality and class of Cleary’s break of 431—the highest so far in the current tournament—compiled oddly enough in his 13th visit to the table . This was intrinisically top-table break and Cleary seemed set for a gigantic figure when his cue-ball crossed the baulk line at 366 . Under international amateur rules a player is required to cross the baulk line at least once in every four-hundred points .
For some minutes after he had passed the 400 mark it looked as if Cleary might go on indefinitely . He was working on his favourite pot-red-and-cannon gambit with the floating white at the top of the table when the real test came at 431 . The balls were awkwardly placed in this zone of opportunity and playing a difficult cut on the red he saw it strike the jaw and come to rest .
SIZABLE LEAD
On his second visit to the table Cleary chalked up 104 and took a sizable lead but Axiak shortened the gap with a smart break of 114 . Following up with 63 in his tenth visit Axiak got ahead-a lead which proved ephemeral . A missed drop cannon left Cleary an inviting position at the top of the table and the table and the champion went in to knock up his astonishing break of 431 . It took him 22min 26sec to compile .
At the end of an hour’s play Cleary led by 670 points to 225 but three good half-century breaks by Axiak put the Maltese champion right back in the game . Came a period when Cleary seemed a little subdued and could not get beyond a break of 55 . Not till the closing minutes of the first session did he get top position again and a break of 116 ended on a missed straight pot that was played a little too forcibly . And so at the interval , with Axiak 55 in play . Cleary led by 1001 points to 616 .
Axiak , on resumption , took his unfinished 55 to 62 to which Cleary replied with a break of 99 . In his 15th visit Cleary made a sweat and toil break of 106 . At 36 he succeeded with a difficult masse cannon off the top cushion and at 102 played a very steep losing hazard off the red into one of the top pockets . With an hour to go Cleary led 1397 to 994 .
But even another century break by Cleary did not deter Axiak who continued to score several useful breaks of quality and purpose . Then in the last 15 minutes Cleary regained it’s touch and went on to make a break of 258 which ended on a missed four-cushion cannon . When the end came the champion was in play with 31 and Axiak was a gallant loser .
BREAKS :
Cleary — (First session) 104 , 431 , 55 , 116 .
(Second session) 99 , 106 , 107 , 83 , 258 .
Axiak — (First session) 114 , 63 , 54 , 55 , 63 .
(Second session) 62 , 54 , 51 , 61 , 79 .
SNOOKER MATCHES
At the request of snooker fans the following two snooker matches have been arranged for today and tomorrow . Mr. R. Claude Harris , President of the Australia Amateur Billiards Council , has offered a Special Prize to the winner of the match .
Today’s match : Tom Cleary(Australia) v Wilson Jones(India) .
Tomorrow’s match : A. L. Driffield(England) v M. J. M. Lafir (Ceylon) .
Each match will consist of 13 frames to be played in two sessions commencing at 5-30 p.m. and 8-30 p.m. There will be six frames in the first session and seven frames in the second session
Improved display by Wilfred Axiak
By a staff reporter
Australian and world title holder Tom Cleary made his first appearance in the current World Amateur Billiards Championship at the Great Eastern Hotel on Tuesday night , defeating Wilfred Axiak of Malta by 1,965 points to 1,317 in four hours .
Though not seen at his best Cleary was often unlucky with several hazards which just failed to materialize while his calculations were sometimes upset by untimely off-cushion contact established between cue-ball and object-ball or between object-ball and red . Drop cannons which so often lay the foundation to big breaks , were often thwarted by these mishaps .
Axiak , doubtless gave his finest performance so far in the championship . He seems to improve with every game and his technique on Tuesday night was streets ahead of his first performance . He now plays top-table with all the aplomb of a veteran and as for his forcing hazards they border on perfection .
But nothing Axiak did was the equal of the quality and class of Cleary’s break of 431—the highest so far in the current tournament—compiled oddly enough in his 13th visit to the table . This was intrinisically top-table break and Cleary seemed set for a gigantic figure when his cue-ball crossed the baulk line at 366 . Under international amateur rules a player is required to cross the baulk line at least once in every four-hundred points .
For some minutes after he had passed the 400 mark it looked as if Cleary might go on indefinitely . He was working on his favourite pot-red-and-cannon gambit with the floating white at the top of the table when the real test came at 431 . The balls were awkwardly placed in this zone of opportunity and playing a difficult cut on the red he saw it strike the jaw and come to rest .
SIZABLE LEAD
On his second visit to the table Cleary chalked up 104 and took a sizable lead but Axiak shortened the gap with a smart break of 114 . Following up with 63 in his tenth visit Axiak got ahead-a lead which proved ephemeral . A missed drop cannon left Cleary an inviting position at the top of the table and the table and the champion went in to knock up his astonishing break of 431 . It took him 22min 26sec to compile .
At the end of an hour’s play Cleary led by 670 points to 225 but three good half-century breaks by Axiak put the Maltese champion right back in the game . Came a period when Cleary seemed a little subdued and could not get beyond a break of 55 . Not till the closing minutes of the first session did he get top position again and a break of 116 ended on a missed straight pot that was played a little too forcibly . And so at the interval , with Axiak 55 in play . Cleary led by 1001 points to 616 .
Axiak , on resumption , took his unfinished 55 to 62 to which Cleary replied with a break of 99 . In his 15th visit Cleary made a sweat and toil break of 106 . At 36 he succeeded with a difficult masse cannon off the top cushion and at 102 played a very steep losing hazard off the red into one of the top pockets . With an hour to go Cleary led 1397 to 994 .
But even another century break by Cleary did not deter Axiak who continued to score several useful breaks of quality and purpose . Then in the last 15 minutes Cleary regained it’s touch and went on to make a break of 258 which ended on a missed four-cushion cannon . When the end came the champion was in play with 31 and Axiak was a gallant loser .
BREAKS :
Cleary — (First session) 104 , 431 , 55 , 116 .
(Second session) 99 , 106 , 107 , 83 , 258 .
Axiak — (First session) 114 , 63 , 54 , 55 , 63 .
(Second session) 62 , 54 , 51 , 61 , 79 .
SNOOKER MATCHES
At the request of snooker fans the following two snooker matches have been arranged for today and tomorrow . Mr. R. Claude Harris , President of the Australia Amateur Billiards Council , has offered a Special Prize to the winner of the match .
Today’s match : Tom Cleary(Australia) v Wilson Jones(India) .
Tomorrow’s match : A. L. Driffield(England) v M. J. M. Lafir (Ceylon) .
Each match will consist of 13 frames to be played in two sessions commencing at 5-30 p.m. and 8-30 p.m. There will be six frames in the first session and seven frames in the second session