OOSTERHOUT – Glenn Hofman's winning carom paved the way for a spectacular climax. After two days of finals in the play-offs, the Tilburg team Cues&Darts became the glorious champions in the Dutch premier league for teams this Saturday evening. The Kozoom league, named after its French namesake, had a fantastic winner after an exciting, high-quality competition. Henny Wezenbeek, speaking on behalf of the KNBB, honored the champions after the match, who only stopped their cheering briefly for the Dutch national anthem. The trophy goes to Tilburg, which is somewhat of a sensation, as Babbelz from Oosterhout had been at the top of the rankings throughout the entire competition.
The final gala in the play-offs, however, went in favour of Cues&Darts/Xtreme, which crowned the championship with Glenn Hofman (winner 2 out of 3 times against Caudron in the play-offs), Jef Philipoom, Huub Wilkowski and Joey de Kok. The other players who contributed to the title were Therese Klompenhouwer (9 matches played), Ruben Legazpi (8), Pierre Soumagne (4), Torbjörn Blomdahl (2), Robinson Morales and Burak Hashas (both 1).
Monique Wilkowski, the 41-year-old team leader, was overjoyed after winning the title and expressed her joy in an emotional speech at the billiard table. ‘We won the cup last year, now we are Dutch champions. That is a wonderful reward and crowning achievement for this team of friends,’’ said the team coach, who also showed her happiness in an interview shortly before the finals. The 35-year-old Glenn Hofman from The Hague didn’t only shine in the competition but also in the play-offs to become the figurehead of the team with high averages, many victories and two wins over Frédéric Caudron, the leader of Babbelz, in the final days.
Saturday evening was the final decision, when Cues&Darts needed only one more match point to become champions after the 4-4 draw on Friday evening and the 0-8 win on Saturday afternoon. The crucial victory was the result of a spectacular start by Hofman with runs of 10 and 14 in the first five innings. The Hague player achieved a magnificent average of 5,000 in those first five innings: 25-7!!! The Belgian captain came back to 36-28 and finally it ended 40-30 in 17. That liberating victory secured the championship for Cues&Darts.
The tension grew and intensified in the duel between the two best teams in the Kozoom league as the climax approached. On Saturday afternoon, Cues&Darts dealt a crushing blow to the team that had been at the top of the league throughout the competition with a 0-8 victory. Glenn Hofman, Jef Philipoom, Huub Wilkowski and Joey de Kok all won their matches against Frédéric Caudron, Dion Nelin, Savas Bulut and Davy van Havere. Saturday afternoon's match turned in Cues&Darts' favour after Jef Philipoom knocked out Dion Nelin in the most exciting match. The Belgian won 40-39 after 19-19 and 38-38 in the match and after the Dane had been close to match point. Philipoom finished first, Nelin missed his last point
The match went even better for Cues&Darts, as Huub Wilkowski was too strong for PBA pro Savas Bulut for the second time in two days: the Brabant player won 40-33 in 34 and brought the score to 0-4. Glenn Hofman and Joey de Kok delivered the final blow in the second session. Hofman took revenge for his earlier loss to Caudron and defeated the Belgian with runs of 10 and 8, among others, winning 40-32 in 20 turns. Joey de Kok also scored for his team: the Zeeland player beat Davy van Havere 40-19 in 32 innings.
The crowning glory came later in the evening with Glenn Hofman's victory over Frédéric Caudron. The title marks a season with many highlights, high averages and outstanding performances by nationally and internationally renowned players. The Cues&Darts ceremony on Saturday evening put the spotlight on the one and only champion.
The Tilburg team is the well deserved winner of the play-offs, in which Team Eekhoorn, Zundert and, in the finals, the teams from Babbelz and Cues&Darts competed for the top prize.
