The recent decision taken by its operators to close Pontins Blackpool Holiday Park before the annual pool finals of the British Association of Pool Table Operators were played there could have caused problems for the association who had been anticipating a record turnout for its annual finals this month. Since the refurbishment of Bridlington's Spa Royal Hall had caused the move to Blackpool three years ago the event had taken on a new lease of popularity with over 100 teams having registered for this month‘s contest by mid-October.

This year has not been a happy one for pool equipment manufacturers and operators although most of them appear to have come to terms with the current nature of the industry. Simply Pool amd Excel Leisure's decision to amalgamate seems to have borne success both at home and in Europe where the euro/pound situation has brought needed business to UK manufacturers. McKenna indicated the Irish Republic, France and Spain as good markets.

The pool industry from table makers to players is a fairly placid industry, whose major discontents seem to become applicable in the good times but which vanish speedily during hard times.

Pool table operators and others who have been disappointed by the non-appearance of the much vaunted new range of Superleague pool tables have been asked to be patient for a little longer.

Pool  table manufacturers might find brighter times are ahead, according to Simply Pool's commercial director, Stan McKenna. He told Euroslot the late summer and the autumn were serious times for pool table manufacturers who needed to gear up for the new pool season. His own company had made sure it had adequate stocks of cloth and tables because, although it was difficult  to predict what might happen in the future, the general climate appeared to be a little more encouraging. He expected to sell more football tables by Christmas and had to make sure stocks were adeqiate.

Pool had reached such a height of popularity in the early 1980s that some of its better players decided to emulate some of the leading snooker players by turning professional. Despite a certain degree of opposition from those, including many leading members of the British Association of Pool Table operators who regarded pool mainly as a pub game, players started to forgo other forms of gainful employment in order to play pool for a living.

A wet August with pools of water lying all over the roads and pavements might give way to an eagerly anticipated improved climate for pool at manufacturing, operating and playing levels during September.

Stan McKenna,commercial director of the Oldham-based pool  table manufacturers, Simply Pool Ltd., believes that some of the current problems facing pool in the UK might be eased if table operators and players combined forces to arrange more of the smaller type of pool  competitions that have done so much for the sport in France.

The new members' helpline started by BAPTO to give its members assistance with business problems is moving slowly forward. Liam Barrett said: "It started at the suggestion of one member, an experienced operator, who found himself being approached more and more by fellow members for advice on some of the present day problems which they had never before encountered. So it was decided to form the helpline to enable the association to provide help and advice on a number of topics as and when it was approached. It was hoped, he said, that this would improve communications between members and information could be disseminated for the benefit of all.

SAM Leisure has introduced a  practical solution to what might be seen as a dearth of new pool tables caused by the licensed trade's pub and club closures. Admittedly people talk about warehouses crammed with tables taken off-site from shutdown pubs, etc., but sometimes the operator finding a new site finds also that its owner wants a new table at what might be roughly termed a used price. SAM can consider any reasonable requests, said Barrett, with its new Infinity mechanical table built to meet the needs of a market from which rents and table income are currently being squeezed.

Over 1200 French men, ladies and under-16s took part in the ninth AFEBAS individual and team finals held from May 30 to June 1. This figure, which about equals the total number of players who attend the European Blackball Masters event in April and the BAPTO Finals in November, brings further evidence of the growing popularity in France of the blackball game.

Pool tables are better made these days than they were about 30 years ago when such items as inferior cushions could determine the course of a tight game. From the operators' points of view there were no such things as electronic coin-acceptors or adjustments that could be made to the price of play during busy and less busy parts of the day.

Following a number of queries about which tables are currently being made by Simply Pool Ltd following its merger at the start of this year with Excel Leisure the company's commercial director, Stan McKenna, has confirmed to Euroslot that a full complement of both parties' tables are available.

Business if improving for Sam Leisure in family entertainment centres and bowling alleys where the company's air hockey tables and American pool tables are popular. Liam Barratt, Sam Leisure's PR, told Euroslot: "Pub business in pool is tough but we have been able to switch to places like FECs and bowling alleys with our air hockey tables and American pool tables. New developments and investments in such places have brought some increased sales for us and although we still think it  will be a tough year we are quietly satisfied with the progress so far".

The French Men's A team were runners-up to the Welsh Men's A team after an exciting final  at the European Blackball Association's annual Masters Championships held at the recently refurbished Bridlington Spa Royal Hall during April. Wales, widely regarded as the champion pool country among UK entries, beat the Frenchmen by 17 frames to 16. Which speaks for itself on how close the the contest was.

The British Association of Pool Table Operators has decided to increase its services to members by updating the scope of its activities to offer them support in all matters relating to coin-operated equipment and not just to pool tables.

The Elvis pool table which Excel Leisure undertook to make on behalf  of Lordsvale is still very much alive and its progress has not been affected by the merger with Simply Pool. Stan McKenna, of Simply Pool, told Euroslot: "The table is still very much on our agenda and we recently launched a new website, www.elvispooltable.com, which features a non-coin operated version of the branded table. We feel this is where the future of the table lies."

With the merger between Simply Pool and Excel Leisure now established the benefits of it were starting to show with brisk business being done by Simply Pool Ltd., with its range of tables in the home market as well as in Ireland and France. During a visit to an exhibition in Malaga, McKenna had  started discussions with a new customer  in Spain which would, he hoped, eventually result in sales of tables in  that country. He said the Malaga exhibition was not a pool orientated event but it provided a good opportunity to meet and talk to operators and distributors of pool equipment.

The European Blackball Association returned to the recently and expensively refurbished Spa Hall in Bridlington on April 5 - 12 for its World Masters' Pool Championships, an annual event held in the Yorkshire coast resort since the year 2000. The event was initially held in the Spa Royal Hall but moved to the Leisure World complex three years ago when the Spa refurbishment started.

Stan McKenna, who since the merger of Excel Leisure and Simply Pool has been made the commercial director of Simply Pool Ltd., has confirmed to Euroslot that Excel tables will continue to be made alongside Simply tables and that they willl be badged with the Excel logo.

Liam Barratt, of Sam Leisure, told Euroslot in early April that the company was "hellish busy" because everybody wanted their stuff before Easter. But even that degree of sales pressure did not blind Barratt to the fact that there were other considerations to take into account once the rush was over.

Some years ago I bumped across an old friend who was spending a week's holiday on the Yorkshire coast with his family. The teenage son, a rather ill-mannered young man, kept interrupting my conversation with the words: "Let's play pool."

Eric Lewis, director of Hazelgrove Superleague. has confirmed to Euroslot that his company enjoyed a successful and worthwhile Intergame Show in the Ibis Hotel, London at the end of January. He said: "Our electronic table, in particular, created a lot of interest and we received some complimentary remarks. More to the point, perhaps, we took some orders to which we are giving attention and continuing to watch that our products are deserving of the Superleague name." 

Following the decision by the Aston-uinder-Lyne based Excel Leisure to merge with Simply Pool, of Oldham, the former company moved to the latter's offices and workshops at Unit 2, Austerlands Mill, Huddersfield Road, Austerlands, Oldham OL4 2GB on March 16. The new company which incorporates Excel Leisure, will be called Simply Pool Ltd. Stan McKenna and Dave Tippman have joined Bob Underhill, Simply Pool's dales director, in Oldham where Tipman will continue to be involved in sales but McKenna will be mainly concerned with the commercial aspect of the new company and its business development both at home and overseas.

This feature mentioned a few weeks ago that Alan Marshall, whose Universal Pool Promotions introduced international pool competitions to Bridlington's Royal Spa Hall, was instrumental in encouraging pool to be played in the town's establishment for those with learning difficulties.