Good morning, good afternoon and good evening!
As a sports officer, I can definitely be considered as a relatively ‘competitive’ person. Competing to me is fun in every strand of life, and the only thing better… winning. I think a good introduction blog for me would be to go over one of my competitive (and in this case shining) moments, the BUCS 8 Ball Championship 2024.
This was my first time in attendance of the tournament, captaining a team of four. Getting the team to the tournament was an achievement from the start, Bath have not had a women’s team at BUCS 8 ball for nearly five years, when we won the team championships in 2019. At the start of the year, the team was just me, but some heavy prospect and talent came through- and come February we were driving up to Stoke to take part, have fun and obviously- win.
My expectation of myself was high in both the team and individual tournaments. This blog will cover my run in the individual championships. My first match was in the last 64 and disaster struck immediately; I could not pot a ball, and I was watching my opponent sink the first black and take the first frame. Was it nerves? Almost definitely. If you go into something expecting to win, it can easily consume your concentration and leave you with a shell of your full potential. However, reassurance from other Bath players relaxed me and I won the match by winning the next three frames in succession.
Everything then began to start clicking and my form picked up dramatically. 3-0 in the last 32. Up against the second seed in the last 16, another 3-0 dispatched in 15 minutes, the fastest victory of the tournament. I was on a high, jumping from one victory to another. I was beginning to truly feel like the tournament was mine to win.
Taking things for granted can definitely take a turn on you. Brimming with quiet confidence, I started my Quarter Final match against a high-profile player from Keele. 10 minutes in, and I’m 2-0 down. What was happening? For the first time since the first match, my nerves were back. A lucky steal in the third and a reverse dish in the 4th saw me level the scores, but she took the 5th to go 3-2 up. At this point, I was on the brink of defeat. Any mistake made could very well easily be my last. I had to turn it on, or I was going home. 10 minutes. 2 frames. A 4-3 victory. I was in the semi-finals.
The semi finals took place the next day. The break in between matches gave me lots to think about, time to stabilize the endless amounts of pressure I was laying on myself. In my mind, winning that quarter finals had propelled me into a strong place in the tournament, I had been pushed to perform at my best, and I managed to reach it, so here we go. Two more matches for victory, and all the glory (and bragging rights to bath cue sports) with it. A breezy 4-1 victory sealed my spot in the final, and by this point, I was not nervous- I was purely excited.
The wait before the final seemed to take forever. In reality, it was no more than 30 minutes, but I just wanted to get out there- I wanted to play, and I wanted to win. I could feel the eyes of the onlooking Bath audience and I wanted to make them all proud. Before the match, I made an executive decision and asked them to not cheer me on, as I was always scared that it would elevate the pressure on me. In match that was first to 5, I did not start well, losing the first 2 without threatening my opponent in the slightest. On the brink of losing the third, I remember the unfortunate mistake she made, as it allowed me back into the frame, and potting that black seemed like a massive relief. I then decided to go against my decision and asked Bath to cheer me on again, as much as I thought I knew what I wanted, the sense of community a sport can bring can be seen as the greatest weapon of them all. I had my first frame, the pressure of getting whitewashed is gone. The cheers from Bath started fueling me, as I quickly won the next two frames. Looking good. Losing the 6th was a setback, but my determination was unfaltered, taking the 7th and with a few deep breaths, I potted the black in the 8th, securing myself my first ever BUCS Championship gold.
That moment will always be one that I will remember, not just for winning, but being able to celebrate with my friends and have a warming pay off to all the practice I had put in going into the tournament. It would probably have been the best moment of my sporting life at Bath, had it not have been for the team championship gold the next day, winning alone is something but getting to win with other people? That truly is unbeatable.
Joining a sports club here at Bath was one of the best decisions I have ever made. Whoever you are, whatever your aspirations may be- reach for them. You may just end up surprising yourself.
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