Brian Cini has won his four group games to advance to the Last 64 round of the European Under-21 Championships at the Dolmen.

Local snooker enthusiasts have a lot to look forward to over the next 10 days as the Dolmen Hotel is currently hosting the European U-21 Championships which are to be followed by the European Team Championships, starting on Friday.

The U-21 tournament enters a decisive stage today as the Last 64 round gets underway this morning.

Brian Cini has underlined his status as the home country’s best prospect of challenging for the title after cruising into the knock-out stages with maximum points from Group B.

Cini yesterday secured his fourth successive win after brushing aside Belgium’s Dennis Deroose 3-1.

The U-21 tournament reaches a climax on Thursday when the best-of-11 final is played, commencing at 10am.

The European Team Championships begin the following day as Alex Borg and Duncan Bezzina launch their bid to defend the title they won in Bucharest last year.

Apart from Borg and Bezzina, Malta will have five other teams in the senior competitions while in the masters tournament, the Malta Billiards and Snooker Association (MBSA) will be represented by four pairs.

Frans Bugeja, the MBSA president, told a news conference yesterday that the association has been working hard to ensure a smooth organisation of the European tournaments.

“Hosting the European U-21 and team championships is a huge test for the MBSA but I only have words of praise for the organising team as we have done everything possible to provide the perfect setting for these events,” Bugeja said.

“We have high hopes that Malta will excel in these competitions.

“Brian Cini is proving to be a great prospect in the U-21 championships while in the team event, we are sure that Alex Borg, Duncan Bezzina and Tony Drago will offer a lot of satisfaction to the home crowd.”

EBSA praise

Besides the U-21 and Team Championships, the Dolmen Hotel will also host the one-day SangSom 6 Red World Championship qualifiers on Sunday.

Here, Malta will be represented by Borg.

For his part, Maxime Cassis, president of the European Billiards and Snooker Association (EBSA), is pleased with the way the MBSA is handling the organisation of the championships.

“I must congratulate Frans (Bugeja) and the MBSA for the excellent job they have done so far,” Cassis said.

“We are assisting to high-level championships and the players have been provided with a perfect venue to express their talent.

“These tournaments are very important for the EBSA in its efforts to promote the game across the continent.

“Over the past few months, we have done a lot of work to increase the popularity of the game in Eastern Europe.

“In Malta, the game of snooker has a rich history.

“This country is lucky to have some great champions like Joe Grech, Paul Mifsud, Tony Drago and Alex Borg.

“My appeal to the MBSA is to keep working hard so that the popularity of the game continues to grow in this country.”

In the teams’ tournament, Drago is teaming up with Cini, the young prospect who has been training under the Tornado’s guidance in the last few months.

Drago, who has been a great ambassador for Malta on the professional circuit, is in no doubt that the 18-year-old has a great future ahead of him.

“Alex and Duncan may be ranked among the favourites but Brian and I will be doing our best to hopefully face them in the final,” Drago said.

“Playing with Brian is a great satisfaction for me. I have been following his progress for a few months and surely he has all the makings to become a professional player.

“I know that there are a lot of expectations for him to do well in the U-21 championships and so far he has delivered. But even if he doesn’t win the title, he has time on his side to earn the right to turn professional.

“Over the past months, he has had two very experienced sparring partners in Jimmy White and myself. I believe he has learnt a lot.

“For me, he is the future of Maltese snooker.”