George Pyrich Allegro Newport
by Ray Flood
Here is the story of Joshua Croft's impressive sealing of the overall George Pyrich Memorial Championships with a very fine victory in Newport.
If we can be a bit partisan, we can also commend Ansh and Jim for Dundee taking three of the top four slots! Impressive performances too from James Bouin and Jonathan Kemp, particularly considering Jonathan had to play three of the top four! Ed will be disappointed, especially after starting with three wins, but then he has won the title three times in its current format!
But Josh takes the stage with an unbeaten 4½/5, dropping a half only to Ed. Following a 5/5 performance in Kirkcaldy, it's clear the Fife air has a certain appeal for him, though he obviously didn't do too badly in the other venues either! He takes over from Shubham Lakudkar who has been otherwise engaged for most of the season, and follows in the footsteps of great TAFCA luminaries, Andre Babin, Jacques Ophoff, Alastair Dawson & Alan Borwell, as well as Ed Spencer. Joining a fine club.
As ever, many thanks to Newport Knights for hosting such a fine evening yet again. The forerunners of making this event perhaps the most enjoyable on the circuit, with great premises, not to mention the excellent food and drink(!) It was a great night from them, and an especially good night from Josh.
Congratulations!