3-Cushion
KAPELLE - At the end of four days play-offs the champion showed his pride in the spotlights of the billiardroom. Dick Jaspers gleamed with the trophy, even after his loss in a match of very high level against Frédéric Caudron, which was not important anymore for winning the title. Torbjörn Blomdahl and Martin Horn enjoyed intensely and Jean van Erp walked around with a broad smile on his face.
The team of Van Donge en De Roo from Barendrecht is again the champion of the Netherlands and has remained unbeaten in the league, the cup and in the playoffs. The strongest, the best and most chastened team climbed in De Vroone in Kapelle to the top of the podium.
Whatever happens with the rules and the play-offs for next year: the Dutch league deserves to have this top team in the competition next season, especially now Crystal Kelly is disappearing from the scene after many successful years because the sponsor has stopped.
Frédéric Caudron makes a transfer to Delta/Frans Bevers in Sluiskil, Frans van Kuijk to Vlaardingen, Raimond Burgman to A1 biljarts and Raymond Ceulemans will play in the wonderful new billiard place in Kapelle where the play-offs were held.
Frédéric Caudron gave his team a masterly final farewell with a match in eleven innings against Dick Jaspers this afternoon. ,,How long did it actually take to finish'', the Belgian just wanted to know after his impressive performance. It was a demonstration of high class with Caudron in the highlights with an average of 4.545 and the losing Jaspers of 3.182.
The world record match average (50 in nine innings) was within reach for a moment, but after the starting run of fifteen the score stopped at 50-35 in eleven: certainly a world class match. Four times a player has played the world record: fifty in nine innings. Caudron did it twice: the first time against Arie Weijburg, the second against Jérémy Bury. ,,I've never thought about the record during the match'', he said, ,,because the chance that you break it is very small. Then everything has to role perfectly.''
The new and the old champion of the playoffs in the Netherlands was the strongest in average and match points, by far the best in the mutual matches and found himself under a floral tribute at the end of the ceremony. ,,I would like to enter Europe with this team'', said Peter Luck, but it is for others to decide about that.
According to the team leader, it is far from certain whether Van Donge en De Roo will play in the Dutch league next year. The threat not to register for the next competition, if the system of the playoffs wil also obtain for next year, any way must be taken seriously. ,,We keep our word not to participate if they play a competition with play-offs at the end''said Piet Luck. Dick Jaspers had indicated the opinion of the team as well in an interview that appeared in regional newspapers.
How to proceed without the champion? ,,I can not imagine that the federation doesn't take our requirements seriously''said Luck. ,,It would be crazy that we, with this top team, would not play in the Netherlands anymore.'' The players have announced to play in this composition for the European Cup next year, but in that case they have to seed in the Dutch premier league.
Santos Chocron, chairman of the Dutch section of three-cushion billard, has already announced that the competition will be played again according to the system of play-offs next year. The federation speaks at the end of this mounth with the team leaders.