Worcester hosted Stourbridge 'A' at Pershore Gentlemen's Club on April 5th for what would be Worcester's concluding group match. Despite Evesham and Stourbridge not having yet faced each other at all, Worcester's wins in all three previous group matches meant that any victory here would guarantee progression to the final, with narrow defeat still likely to leave them favourites.

Stourbridge, still smarting from a shock defeat at home in the group's first match - hosting Worcester - set out their stall from the off.

Karl Ashmore commenced proceedings with a comfortable 45 against Worcester's opener, Daz Bott, and controlled the frame from there. Daz had one or two opportunities to gain some sort of a foothold but, as is so often the case when frozen out for long periods of time, Daz was unable to convert and close the gap, allowing Karl to run out a comfortable winner - by 62 points.

Meanwhile, on table two, Antony George was doing his best to salvage something from the first round of matches for the Worcester boys. Unable to make enough of an impression in a frame where both struggled a little, however, his opponent - Ben Hall - eventually managed to notch the 'W' next to his name and give Stourbridge an ominous 2-0 lead, with another 28 points added to the margin.

For the third time in four matches, Worcester found themselves with backs to the wall, now needing all the remaining frames to register that all-important win and guarantee progression to the final.

Frame three saw Worcester's very own ace in the pack this season - Daz Cutler - take to the baize against Stourbridge's Phil Thompson. Enjoying the sort of fine matchplay form that anyone at Interleague or county level would be proud of, Daz never relinquished the hold he had over his opponent, dismissing Phil with relative ease, despite the frame's scrappy nature. 2-1, match back on, and 47 points back towards Worcester.

This would prove to be where the comeback would end, however, as both Worcester and Stourbridge captains faced each other in a rematch of their first leg. Worcester's Andy Barklam managed to punish Dave Thompson's break off, with a crisp long pot, finishing perfectly on the black. Missing the following black, however, would prove difficult to recover from. Dave grew in confidence from that moment on, and Andy struggled to re-establish any kind of fear in or control over his opponent. A number of jawed opportunities left Andy far adrift, and Dave managed to secure victory for the visitors with a frame to spare, winning by 45 points and increasing Stourbridge's lead to 3-1 and 88 points.

A huge final frame to follow then, as victory for Worcester would mean a 3-2 defeat and would still leave Stourbridge with a mountain to climb against Evesham to overturn the deficit to Worcester in the group, whilst 4-1 would leave Stourbridge's destiny much more comfortably in their own hands, despite Worcester's earlier dominance of the group.

Steve Dunn, Worcester's anchorman, took on Stourbridge's Darrell Payne, in that bid to make the defeat as narrow as possible. Both players struggled a little, with all eyes on them and a great deal at stake. It was Darrell who was able to make the most of his chances, punishing Steve's mistakes that bit more than Steve could manage in reverse. Darrell emerged the victor by 42 points, ensuring Worcester were sunk 4-1 and by 130 points.

Worcester still remained in strong contention in the group, but the points margin in Stourbridge's favour did now mean that a tie at the end of the group stage would ensure Stourbridge's progression. With Stourbridge and Evesham still to face each other twice, Worcester led the group on 13 points, with Stourbridge second on 7, and Evesham third on 4. It should be remembered here that points are earned for each frame won, with a bonus point for a match victory.

Days later, Evesham faced Stourbridge away from home and managed to notch a 3-2 victory. With Stourbridge still considered by most to be the best team in the group, this was just about as good a result for Worcester as could have been hoped for. With one match to play, the group now stood with Worcester on 13 points, Stourbridge on 9, and Evesham on 8. Worcester's narrow points advantage over Evesham would mean that only 5-0 would be good enough for Evesham to progress, whilst Stourbridge's superior points advantage over Worcester acutally meant that any win for them would now ensure their own progression. Incredibly, had Worcester managed to limit defeat to 3-2 rather than 4-1 in their last match, only a 5-0 Stourbridge win against Evesham would have been enough to topple Worcester. Small margins!!

Alas, it was not meant to be, as Stourbridge once again righted the wrongs they suffered at home, downing Evesham 4-1, away. This left the group as follows: Stourbridge - 14; Worcester - 13; Evesham - 9. Stourbridge 'A' progress to the main final.

The Worcester lads are, of course, bitterly disappointed not to have made the final but, with three wins out of four, and forcing Stourbridge to within a point of elimination, they have certainly not let themselves down. With the last two or three seasons having seen Worcester suffer a slump in the Interleague, other teams should now take note that Worcester are back in contention and will be hoping to go one better next season.

Andy would like to thank all the players who made the team the force to be reckoned with that it was. All the players would like to thank Neil Sheppard for his hard work and commitment in providing a venue of the highest standard for Worcester's home matches. Finally, thank you to the league, for their support in entering this competition and helping keep Worcester on the county map.

Firstly, just need to praise the work and assistance provided by:

1. Neil Sheppard – Neil always goes in Friday afternoon to prepare both tables at the Pershore Gents club to give the players such a great playing surface. It’s extremely appreciated by the players and done out of pure love for the game (and occasional offered pint!)
2. Paul Finch – I actually an filled with pure relief when I see Paul turn up! Paul went beyond the call of duty this week as he wasn’t feeling well and to concentrate reffing for a whole 5 frames in the double header the other week just fuels our admiration/thanks and again like Neil there’s no financial gain but done for the love of our sport.
3. Steve D for arranging the grub! Thankless task.