Canavan is the Champion in Reading
Aaron Canavan defeated Andrew Norman 4-3 in the final of the seventh Race to the Crucible Series event at The Crucible Club in Reading, England.
The 2018 World Seniors Snooker champion boosted his hopes of a return to the flagship event at the Crucible Theatre by winning his first event of the season in Berkshire. The deciding frame victory for Canavan also denied Norman a fourth successive title in the Race to the Crucible Series.
Thirty-two competitors from five nations contested the two-day event and Canavan defeated Tam Mustafa (4-2) and former English Seniors champion Lee Stephens (4-3) to reach the final day.
A comfortable 4-1 defeat of Northern Ireland’s Billy Ginn earned a semi-final spot against World Seniors Snoooker’s world number one Wayne Townsend, who he overcame 4-2 to reach a final for the first time this season.
Norman’s seemingly unstoppable form continued over the weekend as he dropped just four frames in four games en route to the title match, last defeating Nigel Howe 4-1 at the semi-final stage.
In a high-quality final, the defending champion raced into a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven frame contest with breaks of 56 and 72. Canavan quickly rallied, however, to level before hitting a tournament high break of 111 to move one away from the title.
The two finalists went blow-for-blow as Norman once again hit back to deservedly force a deciding frame. Fittingly, the title was ultimately decided by a single point as Canavan made a half-century to win the seventh frame by a scoreline of 62-61.
Back-to-Back Super Seniors Titles for Harris
Anthony Harris beat David Brock 2-1 in the final of the Super Series event to win a second consecutive title.
The event is open to all cueists over the age of 55 and was held on Sunday alongside the main Race to the Crucible series event.
The 56-year-old from England was one of 15 cueists involved in the one-day competition and beat Neil Carroll (2-1) and Karl Townsend (2-1) to reach the last four.
His semi-final opponent was the current Super Seniors number one and this season’s double-event winner John Hunter. Harris’ fine form continued as he ran out a 2-1 victor with a top break of 56 to reach the title match.
Fellow countryman David Brock had dropped just a single frame en route to the final and took the opener in the best-of-three frame contest. Harris hit back, however, to force a decider before taking frame three to secure a third Super Seniors title of the campaign.
The penultimate Race to the Crucible Series event will take place on 7-9 March at The Crucible Club in Reading, England. Enter now.
