Showing posts with label BSF Sofia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label BSF Sofia. Show all posts

Monday 20 June 2011

Superbly Organised Tournament

Daniel Wells - 2011 European Champion
So, the European Championships are over for another year. What a professional, slick enterprise this was and credit has to go to Oleg and the Bulgarian Snooker Federation. Looking back over the 12 days of the tournament I can remember the excitement, fun, tension and stiff competition that is a European Event. For Bulgaria to take on this event with just 16 weeks notice is a testement to the hard work put in by both EBSA and the BSF, something the players often overlook.

'Blue' Peter, me, Ger, Vic, and Sverrir 'Ashcloud' GarĂ°arsson
The standard of referreing has also improved and this was highlighted by Bernard McGuinness during his speech at the end of the event, well done referees. The closing ceremony was a fitting climax to a wonderful tournament., with estatic winners and gracious loosers. Although I didn't sample the 'Black Ram' whiskey (one of the sponsors) during the closing ceremony I have heard it is quite good, a bottle or two was exported to various parts of the European community no doubt.

I have made some wonderful friends and if I didn't get an opportunity to mention you on my blog (thank your lucky stars) there is always the next time. Sofia is not the easist place to reach in Europe and we had to get connecting flight from Paris both there and back. But thats not detracting from a wonderful venue and event.

Next year I am sure the host country will be a little more accesible with possible host countries ISRAEL, LATVIA, RUSSIA, DENMARK, GERMANY and N.IRELAND hoping to host the event. Watch this space and I will update the moment I hear anything.

For me it's back to the day job (I have some car trouble which means I can't get into work today as I write this) and my other passion which is Politics. The next election campaign will not be for another 3 years, so plenty of work lies ahead. If you are interested in what our party stands for, you can catch up via my website, which again will also be updated with various goings on. Click here.

Oh, and before I forget and get off the snooker theme completely, thanks for the t-shirt Janie. I like surprises and I LOVE SNOOKER!!

Friday 17 June 2011

McIntyre pays his bets - Confirmed

Well done Daniel Wells (Wales) on winning the 2011 European Snooker Championships. Daniel, who will be turning professional in the forthcoming season played extremely well, but proved to be too strong for his opponent Vincent Muldoon (Ireland) on the day. Unlucky Vinnie, you had a great championship.

I took a fiver of McIntyre - ha ha ha ha ha......
A Winning Bet
Just a little 'aside' to the snooker. During our enjoyable day on Vitosha Boulevard yesterday, John and I both discussed the merits of the Masters event, now that 'hot favourite' Darren Morgan was put out. Who was going to win the prestigious event now we wondered, and given that we had differing opinions,  we decided on a small 5 BGN wager, which wasn't going to break the bank, just for fun. John was off the opinion that 2008 winner Alan Trigg would be too tough an opponent.

For me, I stuck with my original pick Steve Judd (see my earlier postings for confirmation !!) and it was the Englishman who came good in the end, winning 6-4 in a tight match. The 5 BGN Lev was duly handed over this evening, Mr McIntyre pays his bets, let it be said :)

Thursday & Friday - Our time in Sofia is ending

A nice leisurely stroll to the Lions Bridge with my friend Janne from Finland where we stopped for a coffee at the nearby Papaya coffee house. Janne told be a lot about his country, and it sounds like an ideal destination for future Championships. I know his compatriot Jyri is a big fan of the idea, and is bending a few ears to the idea at this event. 

Later that evening we had a very enjoyable hour or two on Vituska Boulevard with the legend that is John McIntyre. He is one of the best 'travel companions' you could wish for and I for one hope this isnt his last trip away. Having said that if we are successful in hosting he 2012 European Championship in Northern Ireland, he will probably have one of the shortest trips imaginable. We spent the evening having a quiet drink and watch the pedestrians stroll up and down the Boulevard. The strangest thing we saw was an elderly man bedecked in flashing strobe lights from head to foot...John thought he had just witnessed a UFO landing!

Back to the hotel and I was summoned by Janie to her 'office' where she presented me with her t-shirt I had been admiring earlier and another as a gift. I won't be looking at it until I get home, I like surprises. A very nice touch from a lovely lady (even if she did give us a hard time for not attending the exhibition!)

A Special Request for Peter O'Brien
The evening wouldn't have been complete without a bit of 'ribbing' towards the experienced Irish referee Peter O'Brien. During the Mens Semi Final in which he was officiating he had a momentary lack of concentration, respoting the blue when McDonnell was clearing up the colours...his reaction once he realised was classic.....'oh fxxx' he says putting his hand up to his head before removing the blue again. He took it in good grace, an unusual lapse from a great guy. Don't think he appreciated my rendition of Phil Collins number which goes like this... 'When Im felling blue, all I have to do, is stop and think of you'....classic end to the night.

Friday Afternoon
I am writing this from the city centre, having had a quiet stroll this morning. Each day I decide to walk to Lavov Most (Lions Bridge) and get a bottle of water and maybe a slice of pizza. Once there I will decide if I can walk a little further, I continued on to the picturesqe Banski Square, sat down with my Ipod listening to Edel - 21 and watched the city go about its day to day business. As some stage in my excursion I finished up at the imposing NDK or National Palace of Culture (below).


National Palace of Culture, Sofia
Then I went up to Vituska boulevard again (I do love this pedestrianised Area of Sofia with its shops and outside eateries) before taking a detour and sitting down to write this update. Where I am I don't know and I'm not overly concerned. I have just enjoyed a nice chicken meal, washed down with a Latte, sitting in the shade of the Catcus Restuarant and Bar, there are affordable taxis applenty, so long as I remember the name of the hotel we are staying. Speaking of which, our closing ceremony is tonight, our last night in beautiful Sofia.

Wednesday 15 June 2011

The Masters - Its a knockout

For me my tournament ended with a 3-0 defeat to Allan Norvack from Denmark in the final 32. He played a very strong game and I was 2-0 down before I knew what was happening and despite trying hard in the third just couldn't get over the line. 
It would have been nice to have made a match of it, however when its not your day no amount of sweat and tears is going to get points on the board.

Other matches to note today:
Darren Morgan beat Stephen Merrigan 4-0 for a place in the quarter final. Stephen from Ireland was a semi-finalist in 2008 and I had him tipped to go one step further this year. Alas coming up against a player who made a 142 clearance earlier in the week was always going to be tough. I am continually surprised that the Welsh player continues to compete at this level when his game is undoubtably strong enough to compete in the main event. That is a question only he can answer. Jyri Virtenan from Finland was another one of my tips to progress but he lost out to Kurt Desplenter 4 frames to 3.

Given there was no snooker for me today, I spent the day doing some unplanned sightseeing (as suggested by Janie earlier in the week).
My intention was to walk to Lavov Most (Lions Bridge) for a slice of pizza and a bottle of water, then maybe chill at the pool. This didn't really go to plan and before I knew it I was having a meal and a glass of wine at Victoria Restaurant (Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd) having spent an hour or two viewing the sights nearby like the impressive Alexander Nevsky Memorial Church (right) and the nearby Russian Church of St Nicolas (below).

Sunday 12 June 2011

Day 6 - Snooker is for crazy people

That is for sure. It's a mad game, frustrating, difficult one minute, easy the next, and lady luck plays a hand as well. My match with Finland's Jyri Virtanen didn't get off to the best of starts, the match venue was changed and I didn't get the message so had a wasted trip and back to the club venue. Not to worry, I don't think my game was all there and it was always going to be a hard match against a very strong opponent. I lost the match 3-0 despite two close opening frames. I was disappointed not to give Jryi a better match, and I told him in the bar later on I would appreciate the opportunity to play him again, who knows we may meet in the knock out stages at some point. This was my first time meeting Jyri and I like him, a good guy.

When I am not playing this week, we have been talking snooker either in the lobby or at the practice tables. We had a very lively discussion on Wednesday night together with a cool beer.  Peter, Nico, Bernard, Janie and others, about ways to make the game more accessible for players and more. It was an enjoyable way to pass the evening, and I have to say some really good suggestions were put forward by Janie, her knowledge of the game immense.

Jager Mojito - very nice, yes
While it is ALL snooker  for the majority of the time, we are allowed to leave the confines of the Dedeman Princess Hotel on occasion and yesterday we did just that. It was a balmy Saturday in Sofia, why not. John and I found another fantastic little restaurant in the city centre, called the Funky Kitchen which was very enjoyable, although there was no music. From there we had a cocktail or two in the Bar Flight which makes one of the nicest Jager Mojito's I have ever experienced (it was my first one) lol.

Back to the hotel and Oleg has arranged a party bus to take all the players to Student City in Sofia. As it is only 10.30pm we have 1 hour travel around  the city, with some sights and some drinks servered on board. Once we arrived it was clear that this is a place that never, ever sleeps. There are a wide variety of clubs for all music tastes, from traditional Bulgarian music, hip-hop, dance and jazz. We decided on the hip-hop as it was closest to the bus and we were only going to stay for one...like that was going to happen. Our evening finished (I think) at around 05.00am this morning, thankfully my match is not until later tonight. 

What a way to spend a Saturday evening in Sofia, a very memorable experience and one I would do again. Oleg, you are a legend. Thank you my friend.

Wednesday 8 June 2011

Day 2 - Sports Minister breaks off

We had a VIP at the opening ceremoney today, Bulgaria's very own Sports Minister Svilen Neykov who 'broke off' to officailly anounce the start of this years European Snooker Championships.


Under no pressure whatsoever from the assembled press, in case your wondering no, he didn't miscue, although the cue ball did fail to reach the baulk cushion. It was a great start to the event though and a credit to the organising committee for securing such a high profile politician to officially open the tournament.

Svilen Neykov Bulgarian Minister of Physical Education and Sports tells the waiting press about the growth of snooker in Bulgaria, and outlines what  exactly went wrong with that break off.

My colleague John McIntyre has had a stressful days travel today, he couldn't make the trip yesterday as the flight was full, and instead had to travel on his own but thankfully made it ahead of his match with Darren Morgan of Wales. John lost 3-0 but it was a tough ask given just 30 mins to get prepared.

My tournament started at 5pm with a tough match against the gritty Marcel Bera from Romania. Marcel pots a lovely long ball and in truth I didn't give him enough respect, taking on too many 50-50 chances. He punished me like any good snooker player should. My 2-0 lead evaporated and he levelled at 2-2 before we were escorted off the table to make way for another match. The break was just what I needed, winning the decider comfortably.

John and I finished the evening with a glass or two of wine and some 'spag bol' before calling it a night. Another day over, just glad to get a win under my belt.

Friday 20 May 2011

Tourist in town....what to do?

Sent off for some brochures from Bulgaria Tourist Information during a quiet night in the election campaign, and today I received a town map, places to visit and some vouchers...feeling at home already. Got to give it to the Bulgarian Tourist Board for their efficiency. Having said that still trying to locate the Snooker clubs in town, which will obviously have to take a priority, given that there is a major snooker tournament on.

Given my past experience in EBSA International competition, it is fair to say that after the round robin matches there is a fair bit of 'leisure' time between matches. Have decided that my snooker cue can take the place of my 3 wood in this instance and I may take in the odd 9 holes. It's either that or spend my free time at the casino or in the bar (where is my 'brother' Brendan Thomas when you need him?).