Wolverhampton On Cue For WDBS
The 2017 Open Disability Snooker Championship was successfully hosted last weekend in Wolverhampton by World Disability Billiards and Snooker (WDBS).
Held at the Golden Cue Snooker Club, the event saw players with a range of physical and learning disabilities battle it out to become champions in their respective categories throughout the three-day competition.
There was a new winner in the Group 1-2 wheelchair competition as Daniel Lee defeated WDBS newcomer Aslam Abubaker 3-1 in the event final. Having come through the group stage with four wins for the loss of just a single frame, Lee then whitewashed Danny Luton 3-0 in their semi-final before coming out on top against Abubaker.
In Group 3 Daniel Blunn defeated Clive Brunton in the final to regain the title that he first won back in 2015. Victory completed a dominant display from Sutton Coldfield’s Blunn who won all 14 of his frames during the weekend to extend his unbeaten run on the WDBS circuit which dates back to last year’s event in Gloucester.
Taking his first WDBS victory in the Group 4-5 competition was Norwich’s David Church who defeated Adam Leighton 3-0 in the title match. Previously runner-up at this year’s Manchester Classic, Church came through a nail-biting semi-final with debutant Gareth Ward in a deciding frame, before recording a comfortable win against Leighton to secure the gold medal.
There was also a new winner in Friday’s Group 6 competition for players with learning disabilities as Daniel Harwood defeated Leroy Jay Williams in a high-quality final. Finally, the Challenge Cup tournament for players not making it through to the knockout stages during the weekend was won by Andy Johnson, who defeated John Teasdale 2-0 in the final match of the event.
The event was well-supported by sponsors The Snowdrop Cakery, WPBSA World Snooker coach Andrew Highfield and J&S Trading, whose backing ensured that prize money was available to the players across all six groups.
Tony Hough-Allen, representing The Snowdrop Cakery said: “I would like to say a big thank you to the Golden Cue Snooker Club for looking after ourselves and WDBS. The event has been an absolute success and it has been a pleasure to sponsor it. Everybody enjoyed the Six Red Group 6 event held on Friday and there was some excellent talent on show during the main event during the weekend. Congratulations to all of the winners and we look forward to hopefully seeing you again soon!”
The final WDBS event of 2017 will be the 888lcd.co.uk Hull Open across the weekend of 10-12 November at the Tradewell Snooker Centre in Hull for players with learning, visual and hearing disabilities.
