RUMPT – The quartet of billiards players from Bousema in Lochem is defending the Dutch team cup this week in the annual eight-team cup final. This year, the location is Rumpt, a village in the Betuwe region with about a thousand inhabitants. BC Carambole hosts the eight teams from the top league, starting with the quarter-finals on Wednesday, April 1 at 12.00. The cup tournament concludes on Saturday with the final matches starting at 11.00. Bousema is one of the contenders for re-winning the cup and plays with Gökhan Salman, Jeffrey Jorissen, Johan Loncelle and Frans van Schaik. The Eekhoorn team is, in theory, the main challenger. The Brabant team, often cheered by a large group of fans, are hunting for their first major prize, as they have never won the title or the cup. The team's lineup is stronger than ever. European champion Peter Ceulemans is an unexpected addition, as the World Masters, which were scheduled to be played in Colombia this week, have been cancelled.
Team Eekhoorn has the Greek Nick Polychronopoulos as its captain and can also count on Eddy Leppens, the Belgian who plays in the Korean professional league. Kurt Ceulemans is the fourth man. The first match is an interesting encounter. Team Eekhoorn faces Aartsbouw, the team playing in the cup without Eddy Merckx. The Belgian captain was initially not selected due to his trip to Colombia, was eventually able to play just like Peter Ceulemans, but was not called up by the team manager. Aartsbouw held the top spot in the Premier League for weeks and was overtaken by Cues&Darts last week. Barry van Beers is the frontman replacing Merckx and plays with Ronny Brants, Wesley de Jaeger, and Tom Persyn. Roland Forthomme, who also stayed home from the tournament in Colombia, and Sam van Etten lead Van Baal's lineup, which starts against Burgmans Biljarts, that just barely managed to secure a spot against SIS/Vervoort.
In the Cues&Darts championship team, Pierre Soumagne is the captain with veterans Jef Philipoom and Huub Wilkowski and young Zeeland player Joey de Kok as the fourth man. The first opponent is Dallinga, featuring two Zeeland players and two Belgians. Berry Dallinga faces Joey de Kok, who will be joining the Zeeland team next season. Jean Paul de Bruijn is Pierre Soumagne's opponent; Soumagne has been struggling with a severe knee injury for several months. Paperclip is preparing for the first confrontation with the defending champion, including the match on center court between Dick Jaspers and Jeffrey Jorissen.
The matches will be broadcast live by Kozoom. On Wednesday, April 1, the matches are at 12:00, 14:00, 17:00, and 19:00. The teams ranked 3rd and 4th alternate, followed by the teams ranked 1st and 2nd. The schedule for Thursday is the same at the same times. Matches are played to 2 winning sets of 15 points. In the event of a tie in match points (4-4), a 15-point Scotch Double will be played to determine qualification for the semi-finals. On Friday, the winners of the first rounds will face each other in the semi-finals: also at 12:00, 14:00, 17:00, and 19:00. Matches to 2 winning sets of 15 points; in case of a tie, a Scotch Double will be decisive. Saturday, April 4, final, starting at 11:00. First, the numbers 1 and 2 of the two finalists play against each other, followed by numbers 3 and 4. This sequence repeats until one of the teams has won 9 sets. In case of a tie at 8-8 in sets, Scotch Double follows over 15 points.
The matches and the teams:
Aartsbouw/Domicili-Team Eekhoorn
Tom Persyn-Kurt Ceulemans
Ronny Brants-Peter Ceulemans
Wesley de Jaeger-Eddy Leppens
Barry van Beers-Nick Polychronopoulus
Van Baal-Kelderafdichtingen-Burgmans Biljarts
Rik van Beers-Marco Janssen
Thorsten Frings-Erwin Kivits
Sam van Etten-Bart Ceulemans
Roland Forthomme-Tom Löwe
Cues&Darts-Dallinga
Joey de Kok-Berry Dallinga
Huub Wilkowski-Koen Saver
Jef Philipoom-Peter De Backer
Pierre Soumagne-Jean Paul de Bruijn
Paperclip-Bousema/JBS
Peter van Lieshout-Frans van Schaik
Dan Breur-Johan Loncelle
Anno de Kleine-Gökhan Salman
Dick Jaspers-Jeffrey Jorissen