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Having beaten Anthony at fewest four times since he took the Golden Sash in our last tournament, I (Colin) was keen to play a new tournament. Eventually, last week, we did: first we played a mini-tournament in which I, Tom and Anthony took part. After Anthony beat both Tom and myself, and I beat Tom, the final was (and we'll jump into third person now) between Colin and Anthony, a game that Colin won. However, he (probably) didn't take the Golden Sash, since Richard was not in the tournament, and the (as yet unconfirmed) rules state that the (as yet unnamed) Big Three must all take part for the Kitchen Champion to be decided. Anyhow, it mattered little, since a bigger tournament took place that very night, entered by the Big Three and David. Drawing lots, the two semi-finals were Richard vs David and Colin vs Anthony. The first was won by Richard, despite some good play by David, and the second… well, ladies and gentlemen, the second was possibly the most exciting Glassball match ever played. Hush, at the back there. Picture the scene: Colin is winning 18–12, and the players change ends… little did he know, when making the traditional overture joke, that he'd lose the next eight points in a row… if you'll pardon the pun, he bottled it. Sorry. Anyway, just as Anthony thought he had the game wrapped up, Colin pulled back the two points to take it to 20–20… and we went into setting. Alternate serves, and whoever took a two point lead would be the winner… after two points, Richard declared that Anthony had won, before both competitors pointed out to him that it was actually 21–21 (in Glassball, the referee's decision is, clearly, not final). And so it continued… it was a sparce crowd of Richard and David that watched what unfolded, but for a moment it seemed like we were in… I don't know, some big stadium where they play table-tennis… eventually, with the game at 27–26 to Anthony, Colin watched haplessly as his shot failed to meet the table, and we had a champion. Well… we had a finalist. Somewhat dazed and disappointed, Colin took his place in the third-place play-off against David, which he won, before attention turned to the final. At first it was close, but Anthony pushed through the pain barrier to reclaim his title as Kitchen Champion. Congratulations.

: 12 Feb 2005 10:33 |  Comments (0) |  Report a problem