Back from the Pontin’s Autumn Festival 2009, having notched up another couple of convincing first round exits. The Festival provides all entrants with two separate competitions – first, the main Open tournament and then one of the age-specific competitions (pick from the under 20s, the Twenty40s, the Masters, and the Super Sixties as appropriate). I’ve got a few years of Twenty40s left in me yet, despite definitely looking like an old Master! It’s a great tournament to be involved in, organized and officiated by some familiar faces, including the great John Williams, and it’s an absolute privilege to play on some of the best snooker tables in the world. The facilities are excellent in the Pontin’s World Snooker centre and it’s a great chance to catch an early glimpse of some of the sure-to-be stars of the future. On previous occasions I have won the odd match in this festival, but, this time round in the main event, I was drawn against a highly talented young Welshman, David Donovan, who, having dispatched me 4-0 with the absolute minimum of fuss, went on to narrowly miss out on the top prize, eventually losing the Final against another pro player Michael Georgiou. So I’m not too upset on that score! Prior to the Twenty40s, I ran into my first round opponent, Chris Hart, in the practice room, and carelessly corrected him when he said that he’d see me for battle at 5:30pm – we were scheduled to play at 5:15pm. Under the strict time-keeping rules of the competitions, I would probably have been given a two-frame start for his lateness, had I just mumbled a ‘yes’! In the event, our scrappy tussle ended 3-2 in his favour, but we both know that he would probably have won the game more convincingly if he’d managed to find his way back to his chalet from the bar any earlier than the 4am he actually achieved. :-) Anyway, hopefully I’ll be back there next year, to catch up with all the familiar faces and enjoy some more of that snooker community spirit…