ANDERNOS - What a delight it was to see the two world top guns Torbjörn Blomdahl and Marco Zanetti face each other in the French team competition this week. The two star players in their sixties met in a great match at the demanding tables. The Swede outplayed the Italian for most of the match and Zanetti came back slightly at the halfway point by a run of 10. Blomdahl reached 40 points in the 25th inning, Zanetti scored 3 points in the equalizer for a final score 40-37 in favour of Blomdahl, Laxou's leading player. Andernos (led by Zanetti) won the match 6-2. Andernos and Albert qualified for the final rounds in this Group B with four teams.
At the end of the 5th and penultimate day of the French championship in Pool B, Gravelines will be relegate from the top division. Andernos and Albert, winners this week against Laxou and Gravelines, play on the 6th day for first and second place in the group.
At Andernos-Laxou, Roland Forthomme won the Belgian clash against Jef Philipoom 40-31 in 31 innings, Jérôme Barbeillon beat Adrien Tachoire, who had not played an official match for two years, 40-33 in 34 and Leo Dubernet, Gwendal Maréchal's replacement, won 40-33 in 44.
Andernos played 1,171, Laxou 1,022.
Albert's team, with Peter Ceulemans and Jeffrey Jorissen in the leading positions, brilliantly clinched the ticket for the French final in Gravelines by an 8-0 victory. With 1,379 on team average (Albert's best of the season), the team proved extremely decisive and balanced with four wins in 26, 28, 29 and 33 innings. For Peter Ceulemans against Martin Spoormans, the scoreboard stopped at 40-32 in 26, Jeffrey Jorissen defeated Philippe Vandendriessche by great figures: 40-13 in 29, Cédric Melnytschenko against Frédéric Beghin was 40-35 and Thierry Roxo against Frédéric Roelants 40-23. Most notable were the three runs of 8 by leader Peter Ceulemans and the run of 10 by Jeffrey Jorissen!
Albert played 1.379 on average, the visitors from Gravelines 0.887.
The standings after the fifth round:
1 Andernos 9-32-1,350
2 Albert 7-28-1,235
3 Laxou 3-14-1,238
4 Gravelines 1-6-0,923
Sixth and final day: Albert-Andernos and Laxou-Gravelines on May 4 and 5.
Marco Zanetti (left) and Torbjörn Blomdahl (right) with the referee Nicolas Gérassimopoulos