The Maltese snooker team, currently competing in the International Challenge Cup in Dunkirk, France, claimed a dramatic 14-13 victory over Scotland in their second match of the tournament. The result came down to the very last black ball in the final frame of the Masters category, keeping everyone on edge until the end.
The competition began with matches in the Men’s and Juniors’ categories, where Malta took an early lead. However, the Scottish Masters team gradually closed the gap, and by the final two matches, Scotland were ahead 13-12.
In the Men’s category, all four Maltese players, Chris Peplow, Joseph Casha, Isaac Borg, and John Farrugia, won their respective matches 2-1, defeating Robert Carlisle, Ross Vallance, Gavin Gillespie, and Craig MacGillivray.
In the Juniors, Xavier Rizzo lost 2-1 to Ayaan Iqbal in a high-scoring match. Rizzo started strong with a 52-point break, but Iqbal replied with an impressive 71 to take the win.
In the Masters category, Tony Mifsud lost 3-0 to Craig Barber, while Arthur Cachia was narrowly defeated 2-1 by Lee McAllister. With the score at 13-12 in Scotland’s favour, the final result came down to the last two matches, played by Philip Ciantar and Frans Mintoff, both tied 1-1 after two frames.
Philip Ciantar secured his 2-1 win over Paul Cairns by building a strong lead in the final frame. Meanwhile, Mintoff was up against Paul Shanks. After leading by 20 points, Mintoff saw his opponent level the frame at 31-31. Shanks potted the pink but missed the final black. After a tense safety exchange, Mintoff found the perfect position and calmly potted the final black into the middle pocket to seal Malta’s thrilling 14-13 win.
Elsewhere in the tournament on day two, two other matches also ended 14-13. Northern Ireland lost narrowly to the Republic of Ireland in the morning, but bounced back in the afternoon with a win over hosts France. In the final match of the day, Scotland beat defending champions Republic of Ireland 16-11.
After day two, with every team except Malta having played three matches, the provisional standings were:
1. Scotland – 47 frames
2. France – 44 frames
3. Republic of Ireland – 37 frames
4. Northern Ireland – 36 frames
5. Malta – 25 frames (with a game in hand)
On Saturday, the final day of this year’s Challenge Cup, Malta are scheduled to play against Northern Ireland and later the Republic of Ireland. Scotland will face France in a match between the two current leaders.
