The Guernsey A side finished as runners-up after an 11-8 defeat at the hands of Isle of Wight B, so nearly reclaiming top spot of a Jersey-hosted competition they had last won in 2015.
Captain Miles Plumley admitted to the mixed emotions at Planet Pool and Snooker, having led 8-6 before a succession of lost frames saw it slip from their grasp.
‘In the moment, we were very disappointed,’ he said.
‘But on reflection, we are all quite rightly really proud of what we achieved.
‘When we look at the bigger picture, Guernsey pool has great momentum. We are still in a building stage.’
As part of last year’s resurgence for the long-inactive Guernsey Pool Association, a representative team had put in a mighty effort at the 2025 tournament, losing out to IoW opposition in the final on that occasion too.
Not only did Guernsey back that up – with a better scoreline this time – but they underlined their growing strength in depth by sending a second team who got to the quarter-finals.
Miles Davies’ B team had claimed several excellent results to reach that stage before losing 8-4 to Jersey.
Even then, they put up a real fight, having led 4-3 before an inspired comeback by the Caesareans.
Guernsey A were more fortunate, overcoming Yeovil 8-3 to make the semi-finals.
There, they beat a spirited IoW A team 8-4 in come-from-behind fashion.
Guernsey had been 4-1 down but rallied hard, led by captain Plumley winning both of his frames, and a determined fine cut black along the rail for Danny Marquand sealed the match.
The final against IoW’s supposed seconds team unfolded in quite different fashion, with Guernsey battling into the lead and seeming poised to take the win.
However, their opponents made a concerted push to deny the Sarnians the silverware they had worked so hard for.
Plumley admitted they had suffered from ball bouncing out in two different frames, with the two resulting losses shifting the momentum away from them.
‘That was massive. We could have been 10-6 up and needing one win to lift the trophy.’
Reflecting on the wider tournament, he added: ‘We dug deep, and I’m really proud of the guys for how we brought it back after day one.
‘Day one was a long, tough day for us, and we did not get out the blocks as quickly as we would’ve liked.’
Guernsey A’s tough opening day had included an 11-6 loss in the Jersey match that doubles as the inter-insular.
However, that same day, Guernsey B did have the joy of beating Jersey’s second team 8-4.
The final day’s competition consisted of a singles tournament that was ultimately won by Jersey’s David Snell.
Recent Commonwealth Championships representative James Kirk went the furthest of any Sarnian, making the quarter-finals, where an agonising missed double on the black allowed IOW’s Jake Larkins to go on and win 5-3.
Larkins, also the reigning champion, ultimately fell 6-3 to the Jerseyman, who had also won in 2024.
