Malcolm Keenor Trophy Semi-Final second leg results
Rumney British Legion 0 v 2 Fairwater Cons Mack
(Fairwater Cons Mack win 6-1 on aggregate)
Taff’s Well 4 v 1 Mackintosh Snooker
(Taff’s Well win 6-4 on aggregate)
CDSA Plate Semi-Final second leg results
The Cons 0 v 2 RBL Warriors
(RBL Warriors win 6-1 on aggregate)
Fairwater Cons 3 v 2 Caerphilly Cons
(Fairwater Cons win 6-5 on aggregate)
Breaks
Twm Sion Jones 51 (Fairwater Cons)
Rob McKenna 40, 37 (Fairwater Cons)
Fairwater Cons Mack are through to the Malcolm Keenor Trophy final after two frames was enough to beat Rumney British Legion 6-1 on aggregate. They had a 4-1 lead from the first leg, and Alan Hurley’s win on the pink against Paul Chichester left them one frame from victory, with Brian Rees finishing off the match after a close win over Alex Ellis. The final will give Ronnie Allen’s side the chance to defend the trophy they won last season and with it the opportunity to win a second successive league and cup double.
Their opponents in the final are Taff’s Well after a tense match saw them defeat Mackintosh Snooker 4-1 and overturn a first leg deficit to win 6-4. Ian Purnell won the opener against Billy Connors after a clearance following a fluked brown, and another final ball decider saw Jimmy Llewellyn beat Nathan Dunne to make it 2-0. A very good performance from Mike Nessbert kept his side in the match with victory over Rhys Carpenter, but some solid potting from Rob Hayes put Taff’s Well 5-4 ahead on aggregate after defeating Stephen Connors. With the prospect of a playoff frame to decide the match if the scores were level, Glyn Jones and Eassa Din played out an edgy frame that went to the colours, but a good blue and pink saw Jones take the lead and he sealed the match on the black to send Taff’s Well into the final.
The CDSA Plate saw a very similar set of matches with one being decided early on and the other going the distance. RBL Warriors had a 4-1 lead going into their second leg against The Cons, and Dave Rideout’s defeat of David Standage saw them one frame from victory. Luke Shepherd’s win over John Hicks gave them the win, meaning Chris Johnson’s side now have the chance to win their second Plate title after their victory in the 2019-20 season.
The match of the night, and one of the games of the season, saw Caerphilly Cons take a 3-2 lead into the return leg of their semi-final against Fairwater Cons, but Steffan Davies drew his side level with an excellent 31 clearance against Dai Berkinshaw in the opening frame. Tony Williams made it 1-1 on the night after he beat Shaun O’Connell, but breaks of 37 and 40 from Rob McKenna helped him defeat Dai Rideout and see Fairwater level the match at 4-4 on aggregate. An excellent 51 break from Twm Sion Jones saw him win a pivotal frame against Dan Bridle, but Mike Pardoe beat Terry Garland on the black to make it 5-5 and take the match to a playoff. With both captains able to choose who would contest the frame, it was left to Rob McKenna and Dan Bridle to decide the match, and a tense frame was decided when Bridle snookered himself on the brown after potting the green. He managed to escape but left a chance for McKenna, with Fairwater’s ex-professional holding his nerve and sending his side through to the final.
