The two Club Lithgow sides Miscues and Jiggers were sporting new shirts and the usual thing that happens is any new shirt unveiling those teams normally loses their first game.

This did not happen as both teams won and with the song What’s My Theme blasting in the background Jiggers and Miscues became the Hoodoo Gurus.

Defending premiers Pockets started their title defence abysmally when Helmets gave them a touch up. Miscues scraped home to win in their game against Red Sox it actually came down to the very last ball to get a winner. Jiggers beat Tall Timbers and 3 games were in the balance with the result being 4 points and less.

Lithgow Valley Storage Helmets v Williams and Sons Butchery Pockets: Ian Miles put up a good effort in his game against Brett Holt only to be pipped at the post. Holt was at his best and even though Miles scored an 18 break Holt held him off for a 55-53 win.

Brett Bradley started his year on a positive note when he played Michael Wellings and it was a walk in the park for Bradley. Wellings tried hard but it was the consistency of Bradley who prevailed 72-39.

Dallas Thurlow exploded into action and gave Todd Bates a bit of a snooker lesson. Thurlow was unstoppable as he brought his A game to the table and Bates was left floundering as Thurlow powered ahead to win 60-26.

The battle of the females was next when Dianne Stait played Sharon (Russell) Holt. Stait was in a good place and it was reflecting in her game as she was potting all in front of her.

Holt was doing her best but things were going wrong and Stait was relentless as she left Holt in her wake 72 – 33. Michael Tonkin gave his opponent Luke Morris a 26 start and he quickly eliminated that by scoring a 23 break.

Tonkin was completely dominate as everything went right for him and Morris had some good moments that faded into the ether as Tonkin easily won 93-54. Paul Hewitt played Shane Eagle and this was an open style of game without much safety involved. It was close for a while until Eagle scored an 18 break and went onto win 62-30. Helmets won 5-2 and the players of the match were Michael Tonkin and Brett Holt.

Hunter Mining Methods Miscues v C&W Printing Red Sox: Brian Nightingale kicked off his team’s first game for 2017 against Aaron Engeler in a very slow game.

It was a game Nightingale would like to forget as it was a nightmare as opposed to Engeler who had a dream run. Engeler took no prisoners as he surged to an easy 69-23 win.

Matt Tattersall played Jeff Stait and this also was another game that started slowly. Tattersall eventually found his groove and was potting brilliantly and Stait though he tried could no match his opponents potting. Tattersall won 73-36 balancing out Nightingale.

Garry Bender received an 18 point start from Tom Gaynor and in the end it was too much to catch. Both were missing some easy shots and before you knew it Bender was 40 points in front from small breaks. 

Gaynor was making the difference up when on the colours but to no avail Bender was too good 66-44. Ritchie Bilby and Rod Denley carried on like the previous games with being sloth like in duration to get a result. This was a close game throughout with neither setting the world alight and laced with missed opportunities.

The result came down to the last three balls and Denley just did enough to secure a close 41-37 win. Kevin Slaven had a healthy 27 start in his game against Garry Nolan and with Slaven potting really well early in the game Nolan had to be patient. Nolan eventually caught Slaven and it was going to be close but when Slaven sunk the pink it was game over with Slaven a 56 – 51 winner.

Possibly the best game of the night was when Allan Piggott played John Lyons in a classic finish. Both played well and Lyons was back to his best chasing down 32 points and taking the lead on the colours. With only the black to go Lyons was in front by 12 points with the game won but both needed the black for their team to win on the night. Lyons sunk the black and unfortunately also the white winning the game 67-63 therefore giving Miscues a sigh of relief. Miscues won 4-3 and the players of the match were Allan Piggott and Aaron Engeler.

Carpet One Tall Timbers v Welch’s Highway Smash Repairs Jiggers: Leon Rust was unlucky in his game against Troy Clarke as he had to chase 27 points to even get near Clarke. Rust was catching his opponent and Clarke was doing enough to stay ahead. In the end the heartbreak kid Clarke won another very close game 60 – 59.

Keith Morris played Jamie Glencorse and this was a close tussle and it was only one break that was the difference in the final score. Both were going shot for shot when suddenly Glencorse got a 22 break which took him to the lead and onto a 46-33 win with a good game by both players.

Maurie Smith played a very good game when he played Wayne Lewis who also played very well. It was close throughout the game with neither getting ahead too much. Smith recently had medical procedure done to his eyes but never less was potting well.

Lewis did very well to hold out Smith in a well-deserved 50-46 win. Aaron Vandermeer made his debut to Tuesday night snooker when he played the well rounded Dave Adams. Vandermeer had to give the experienced Adams 16 start and Vandermeer played like someone with a lot more years’ experience. Adams relied too much on safety and Aaron was looking around like a Vandermeerkat for his next shot.

Vandermeer played very well and won 69-56 on debut. Frank Wawn played Greg Sutton in a fairly entertaining game that came down to the black for a result either way. Wawn was chasing 23 points and was making inroads with some small breaks and leaving nothing for Sutton.

Sutton only came good at the end of the game and sunk the blue and pink to take back the lead. Sutton played a terrible shot on the black and Wawn did not miss to scrape home 57-55. Michael McCosker played Ian Bulkeley and this had a lot of good and safety shots by both players. McCosker was bashing himself saying he played a stupid shot but in reality it was just one mistake and it was all Bulkeley needed as he scored a 19 break and surged ahead to win 58-29. Jiggers won 5-2 and the players of the match were Ian Bulkeley and Maurie Smith.

Pointscore: Helmets & Jiggers 5, Miscues 4, Red Sox 3, Pockets & Tall Timbers 2, Outlaws 0

Regal: A.Engeler, M.Tonkin, D.Stait, M.Tattersall, D Thurlow, B.Bradley, S.Eagle, I.Bulkeley

Tonight’s games at Club Lithgow Miscues v Tall Timbers and at The Workies Helmets v Jiggers and Outlaws v Pockets and Red Sox have the bye.