This year saw the inaugural Warwick Awards Night Commemorating Eight-ball's Rising Stars, or WANCERs. The Graduate was booked out and anybody who was anyone came to celebrate an amazing year of all things pool. With 16 awards up for grabs, there was plenty to be won! Lets see who our lucky winners were...
Player of the Year: Anthony Church
This award was for the best and most consistent pool player in 2017/18. It was voted for on the night by members present and was awarded to the Antony Church (pictured on the right with his spectacular medal). Special mention to Matt Ross who narrowly lost out coming second.
Fresher of the Year: Sam Olley
Awarded to the best addition to the pool club in 2017/18; not just in ability but overall presence (but in this case his ability isn't too shabby!). This was the only other award voted for on the night and was awarded to Sam Olley (pictured right below). Special mentions to Matt Ross who again came second in this too.
Captains Pick: Joe Wall
Awarded to the captains pick in 2017/18, this is the player who has contributed most to the club overall - not just in competitive tournaments. The outgoing Club Captain Sammy Valder picked Joe Wall for all his contributions over the year.
Thursday Tournament Award: Martin Barltrop
Awarded to the player who won the most Thursday tournaments in the year 2017/18. This year it was Martin Barltrop.
Best Frame: Aashish Tanna
Awarded to the player who participated in the best frame throughout the competitive season. The nominations were:
Aashish Tanna - For his Break dish against Leeds Captain Paul Allen at the Cov Open
Rob Keogh - For keeping Warwick alive against Bristol and Exeter
Sammy Valder - For his break dish against UCL at EEUPC
Sam Olley - For beating individual champion Rory Kinney in the team event at BUCS
Bo Liu - For the winning frame at EEUPC including that difficult black.
Most Improved Player: Matt Ross & Jonathan Ede
Awarded to the player who has made the most improvement from the beginning to the end of the 2017/18 season. The nominations included Will Muraszko, Daniel Ball, Sam Olley, Jonathan Ede and Matt Ross, with the latter drawing for most votes.
Most Debatable Shot: Jonathan Ede
Awarded to the most memorable bad shot throughout the 2017/18 campaign. The nominations were:
Daniel Hunter - Against Leeds in the Semi-Final of Cov Open for choosing to play a simple straight shot to middle with so much side he misses the pot and the cue ball bounces off the same side cushion, and because of the side, going into the opposite middle pocket.
Barri Matharu - Against Lancaster at BUCS - For turning a position where the black is over the pocket and all the opponents balls are behind it, to a position where all his balls are open and all Barri's balls are now behind the black AND then to pot the black a couple of shots later illegally.
Sam Cooper - Individuals at BUCS - Any shot played in the multiple frames he didn't realise he had no tip on his cue.
Jonathan Ede - Individuals at Northampton - For choosing to the put the cue ball anywhere he liked on the table when having ball-in-hand instead of behind the baulk line.
This was a very close call but Jonathan disregard for the rules won him this coveted prize.
BUCS Player of the Year: Richard Whitfield
Awarded to the best performance by a player at a BUCS event in 2017/18 which was voted to be Richard Whitfield.
BUCS Moment of the Year: Samuel Cooper
Awarded to the funniest and most memorable moment of BUCS 8-Ball this year. The nominations:
The best game of Deal or No Deal ever played - Rob Keogh refusing to listen to Matt Ross' shouts to pick the number "THREE!!!" and then ignoring him at the swap to win the JACKPOT PRIZE!
Sam Cooper - For chalking up his cue for 3 frames straight despite the tip having broken off.
Cascada - For inspiring the 1st team.
Speed Pool 1st Team - The less said about this performance the better.
This was won by Sam Cooper and his tip (or lack off).
Vladimir Klitschcue Award: Aashish Tanna
Awarded to the player with the most dangerous break. The nominations were:
Aashish Tanna - For hitting Daniel Hunter in the gentlemen's area off the break in Cambridge.
Sammy Valder - For almost killing an Under-23s England player with a break that almost hit the ceiling.
Matt Ross - Literally every break he's ever done.
Best Nickname: Barri Potter
Awarded to the best nickname. This was well fought between Barri “Potter” Matharu, Sammy “Lord Valdermort” Valder, Joe “Bring on the” Wall, Dan “Potting Every” Ball, Julian “The Juicebox” Schmid, Matt “The Boss” Ross and Aashish “Aadish” Tanna but Barri took home the prize.
Sleeping Cuetie Award: Sam Burgess
Awarded to the sleepiest player. This was contested by Sam Burgess, for falling asleep in the middle of match play at Northampton Open, and Daniel Ball, for falling asleep throughout a whole day of play in the Cov Open. Sam Burgess took home the prize we all wanted really.
Team of the Year: BUCS 1st Team
Awarded to the best performing team of the year. The nominations were:
BUCS 1st Team - Silver medal at BUCS
EEUPC 2nd Team - EEUPC Trophy Champions
EEUPC 3rd Team - EEUPC Vase Champions
The 1st Team's outstanding run at BUCS won them this award.
Outstanding Commitment Award: Martin Barltrop
Awarded to the player who has shown the most commitment and attendance to the regular Thursday and Sunday sessions. The nominations were Martin Barltrop, Tom Miller, Sam Olley and Sam Cooper, with Martin taking the top prize.
The Sat-Nav Award: Sam Burgess Awarded to the player with the "best" sense of direction. The nominations were: Matt Ross - For getting lost on the way back from Subway at Northampton (it was basically on the same road as the venue) Anthony Church - For getting lost on his way home from Rileys, Coventry -> Leamington. Sam Burgess - For not being able to find his way around a simple gate at BUCS Sam Burgess won this taking his second medal of the night.
The Cuesain Bolt Award: Julian Schmid Awarded to the "fastest" player of 2017/18. The nominations were: Matt Ross - "Don't hit the cue ball of the table Matt...!" At BUCS speed pool
Sammy Valder - For spending 40 seconds on the final ball at BUCS speed pool
Julian Schmid - For singlehandedly causing the Coventry Open to never finish