Monday, 01 June 2026 / Published in Billiards

North regain North-South Trophy.

The annual Billiards International North-South Challenge Tournament took place at the Reading Rooms, Bangor, Northern Ireland on Saturday and Sunday, 23rd and 24th May 2026. The format of the event was that each team of eight was divided into two groups of four, so that each player met four opponents from his corresponding group, with the consequence that all benefited from the variety of games the format provided.

Play started at 10.30 on Saturday morning, the first session producing an early pointer to the tournament when the Northern team took an early 6-2 lead. Hopes for the Southern team were revived when the second session was shared 4-4. This revival was short lived however when the Northern team, playing solid billiards, took the third session 7-1. When the fourth session also produced a 7-1 result in favour of the North the writing was very clearly on the wall for the visiting Southern team, leaving them with an almost insurmountable overnight deficit of 24-8.

When play resumed on Sunday morning any possible hint of a revival for the Southern players was dashed when they lost the first of the day’s sessions 5-3. The next session produced yet another sessional defeat, assuring the Northern side of the 2026 title with two sessions to spare. As though to underline their dominance of this year’s event, the Northern side were victorious in each of the final two sessions.

Tournament results:

Session	Format	Northern Ireland	Republic of Ireland
1 Saturday 10:30	400 up, 90 minute time limit (4 x 2 points)	6	2
2 Saturday 12:30	400 up, 90 minute time limit (4 x 2 points)	4	4
3 Saturday 14:30	2 x 150-up (4 x 1 point per game)	7	1
4 Saturday 16:30	2 x 150-up (4 x 1 point per game)	7	1
5 Sunday 10:00	400 up, 90 minute time limit (4 x 2 points)	5	3
6 Sunday 12:00	400 up, 90 minute time limit (4 x 2 points)	6	2
7 Sunday 14:00	2 x 150-up (4 x 1 point per game)	5	3
8 Sunday 16:00	2 x 150-up (4 x 1 point per game)	6	2
Final scores		46	18

Our thanks are due to Mark, John and Keith for the excellent playing facilities they provided at the Reading Rooms and for the welcome they extended to the players all of which did so much to contribute to the success of the tournament.

Congratulations to the Northern team on a well deserved victory and commiserations to the South whose play was perhaps not justly reflected in the final score line.

Northern Ireland Team	Republic of Ireland Team
CHRISTIAN KIRK	WAYNE DOYLE (Captain)
PAUL LINDSAY	AIDAN MURRAY
KENNY CAMPBELL	LARRY DRENNAN
STEWART GORDON	ROSS DOYLE
KEITH McCREADY	JASON DOWLING
ALASTAIR McDONALD	CIARAN DOYLE
DOM HALLIGAN (Captain)	DARREN RYAN
GERARD CATNEY	ROBERT McCRUM