THIS FRIDAY, 26th May, sees the third round of the 2023 LONGONI 9 BALL LEAGUE as the final group matches take place at the Tampere Exhibition and Sports Centre. With four matches taking place over the course of the evening, each of the four groups will complete their fixtures.
The semi-finalists from two of the groups – A and C – are already determined with Poland and Norway respectively, already through with two wins apiece. The remaining matches in those groups though, still have meaning as the losing teams will be dumped out of the competition for 2024.
The other two groups are wide open with possible outcomes being a clear winner through to the last four or alternatively, all teams level and advancing to a three-way play-off at the next Euro Tour stop in Slovenia in July. Scotch doubles is always entertaining and the Longoni 9 Ball League plays to a race-to-seven alternate break format.
The competition involves 12 national teams divided into groups of three. Each team plays the other once and th country which tops each table moves forward into the semi-finals.
All competing players are selected on a match-by-match basis with the two highest-ranked players from competing nations in attendance in Tampere making up the team.
THE MATCHES (All commence at 21.30 local time)
GROUP A
Austria vs Turkish North Cyprus.
With Poland achieving two wins from their two matches, they are already through to the semi-finals which means that the loser of this match will be relegated from the competition for 2024.
Previous Results:
Poland 7 – 3 TNC
Poland 7 – 2 Austria
GROUP B
Spain vs Czech Republic.
Spain can seal their spot in the semi-finals with a win. Should the Czechs prevail, it will mean all three teams finishing the group with a win each. The group would then be determined with a three-way play off at the next Euro Tour in in July in Slovenia.
Previous Results:
Spain 7 – 1 Estonia
Estonia 7 – 6 Czech Republic
GROUP C
Bosnia & Herzegovina v Switzerland.
Like Group A, this match is a battle to avoid relegation from the competition for the following year. After winning their opening match in a decider against Switzerland, the Norwegians were gifted the points and with it a semi-final spot, when Bosnia forfeited their Round 2 match.
Previous Results:
Norway 7 – 6 Switzerland
Norway FF v Bosnia & Herzegovina
GROUP D
Hungary vs the Netherlands.
The final group is balanced on a knife edge. A win for the Dutch wouldsee them through to the final stages and if Hungary prevail it would push the group into a three-way play-off, joined by Germany.
Previous Results:
Netherlands 7 – 2 Germany
Germany 7-3 Hungary
All matches and groups are contained within the attached graphics and all matches can be viewed at https://www.reelive.de/stream-preview/streams
Live scoring can be found at www.epbf.com