First loss for a while....New cue arriving soon

This week has been slow on the snooker front, had a few things going on off the table like being back at uni etc and recovering from going to Forest away at Chelsea in the F.A Cup!

Played yesterday though, still with my hybrid cue, although i ordered a new one. I've gone for a Peradon Edwardian cue 3/4 and a screw in telescopic extension. Looks better than my jimmy white signature one which was cracked and taped up.

I chose it as it looks nice and traditional, along with 3/4 cues are generally heavier, which I feel should improve my game and enable me to get through the ball better. Off the table i might do some work at home. I've decided to drop hitting balls on my pool table, i don't think it helps my game too much. I might just practice cueing, so it feels like a natural motion. I felt a bit strange last night having not played for a week, but my cueing was up to scratch within a frame or two. It's back to feeling natural, but as is my nature, i think it can get better.

I want to get back practicing, as i've never done that at the pegasus club. I reckon if i can get around half an hour a day for a week or two it will help me immensely. That would ensure in the working week i could knock up 2 and a half hours on my own, and possibly throw in some match time too. Even when i'm at uni i could still get in an hour and a half in the local club, or a couple hours in Derby on a table for £5 all day with my mate.(A little less organised, but more social and more enjoyable, which you need from time to time!)

Anyway, back to yesterdays action. I went 1-0 down in a close frame, where the oppo played better. both got well into the 30's and if memory serves me right only won on the last couple of colours, i think i stuck a few up for him aswell.

More determined today though, i knew i could kick start my game and wanted to hit a psycological blow and regain a lead from behind. I always find my head drops when someone is coming at me from a lead.

The second frame I played some great stuff, and raced to a lead in the 20's within a couple of visits to the table, we got to the colours and I polished off them all to secure the frame. Not in one visit but still played some good stuff and rode my luck. 1-1.

This frame I was unstopable from start to finish, attacking snooker, safety was pretty poor but i never gave him a look in. I scored well and got well into the 40's overall, even polished off the colours well and was unlucky not to get in amongst the black spot. Again around the black spot I was good, after last week i was a bit rusty, i'm very confident around the black spot and my positional play is getting better around this area.

This frame has to go down as the return of my long potting. My position away from the black spot was quite bad, but i put that down to inexperience around that end of the table, and of course you have to work harder to get on the yellow,brown, green from that end in my opinion. Anyway a particular shot stands out showing my confidence, attitude, cueing and ability. I had my hand on the table and a long straight red. I knew if i put a little backspin on it i could free up for the blue to the middle, or at worst, leave a long straight red. I potted the red nicely, clean in the centre, using my technique of eyeing the object ball last as i strike the cue ball. I missed position on the blue for the middle, but thought "oh well i'll just have to stick it in the other pocket". I cued this one well and it went clean into the same pocket.

This gave me a belief which lasted the entire night in my long potting. It seems as though however that when i get my long potting going, my short range potting gets inconsistant.

So i took the third frame, making it 2-1. I'd hit my psychological blow and taken the lead from behind. The snooker animal came out in me, i wanted to win the next, and try hammer my opponent again. It was nice to feel the NEED to win again, but i kept my head by saying that i'm playing well and just go and do my thing. I think i'm maturing as a player, at a great rate since returning to the table, things are starting to click physically and mentally.

The next frame i'd raced to another great lead, and had him as we neared the colours. But he landed a decent snooker with no natural angle to escape. I'd taken my foot off the pedal and my attempts to get out were going nowhere near. He put me in again 3 times and regained some ground, eventually taking this frame and levelling up 2-2. I was furious i let it slip, and am right now as i write this match up.

I lost the next one aswell, my game was dropping as he came at me. I was still potting enough balls to feel content with my play, and still think i was unlucky to lose this one. I think we drew and went to a black ball game which he took after a few shots and i stuck him up. I remember thinking "it's quite easy, but the way he's playing he could miss". So yea, i was gutted to lose this one.

The next frame was the last one, to save some money really! I was still playing quite well and i think he got one or two snookers in to get the edge. He took it, to make it 4-2, flattering to say the least as i played the better snooker i think. After we talked a bit and he mentioned that he'd lost 3 in a row, so i took that as comfort, and would like to think it's a one off! if i can go another 3 games with 3 wins i'd be happy with that!

I think the key is to ensure i win next time we play, put him back in his place! although i'll have a new cue, and must remember to give a couple of months to settle with it. I fully expect my next few weeks results to be eratic, but with enough practice should be able to bed my new cue in quickly enough

During the last two frames i started to think while off the table about my aspirations in snooker. When i first started i'd set two objectives if you will. 1) win a trophy of some sort and 2) play for the club team. The way i'd played tonight i saw some kind of possibility that both could well happen. A man i saw practicing the other week was on a break of 89, so i need to be getting around that sort of potting standard, or have a bloody good safety game!

i realised this will not happen overnight, and could be 10 years or so away. It helped me keep my feet on the ground and realise that i've been playing properly for about a year and a half. So my 30 break best keeps me well on track. A new goal, Goal number 3) achieve a century break by the time i'm 30.

I know i said i wouldn't set goals, but i feel i need to. They are very long term goals however and put me under no pressure what so ever.

My Goals:
1) Achieve a century break by the time i'm 30
2) Play for a club team
3) Win a trophy