Week 17 of the DVARD summer league saw the knockout handicap group qualifiers concluded.
The semi-final fixtures confirm two former county champions booking their tickets and a potential father and son final.
Defending champion Kevin Basnett (Scr) of Seaton secured his semi-final slot from group A with the win he required, a 4-1 victory over Darren Lawson (+45) from Workington.
Basnett compiled breaks of 60, 40, 33 and 30, but topped a solid performance with the highest break of the season to date, a 112 to record his third century break of the summer campaign. Lawson claimed a consolatory fourth frame to prevent the whitewash.
In group B former county champion Kevin Kirkham (+20) required a single frame to qualify, so despite ending up the 3-2 loser against Workington’s Dave Chapman (+40), booked his place in the semi-finals.
Chapman took a 2-0 lead before Kirkham clawed the tie back to level-pegging. Chapman was able to come out on top as victor but required a whitewash and to turn around a superior average points per frame score of Kirkham.
Workington’s Geoff Smith (+60) was rewarded for his consistent good form in qualifying group C taking his fifth win from six matches against Seaton opponent Stephen Jackson (+40).
Any form a win for Smith would secure his qualification. A black ball opening frame from Smith was immediately responded to by Jackson, including a 34 break from the current second placed second division player.
Smith then regained the lead at 2-1 with a further black ball frame win. The Workington Cons player, spurred on by this compiled his highest break of the season in a 31 to secure the win. Jackson took a closely fought final frame for a 3-2 reversal.
Group D qualification completes the semi-final line up with Richard Kirkham (+60) of Whitehaven needing to take just one frame from Workington’s Peter O’Hagan (+15) who needed the whitewash to qualify.
O’Hagan took the opening frame, but Kirkham pulled the match back level, in the process securing the crucial point for his semi-final place. O’Hagan went on to take the match 4-1, constructing breaks of 67, 56, 39 and 30 for an impressive win. However the damage had been done in frame two.
The semi-final line ups:
Kevin Basnett (Scr) v Richard Kirkham (+60), Kevin Kirkham (+20) v Geoff Smith (+60), both ties to be played at a neutral venue that participates in the league week commencing Monday October 3.
Two of the possible outcomes for the final could see father and son battle it out in Richard and Kevin Kirkham or two former county champions go head to head in Kevin Kirkham and Kevin Basnett.
Next week sees a return to league fixtures.
