YOUNG Keighley pool players dominated the West Yorkshire junior team -- which came close to taking the County Championship crown.

Two players from Pilky's Snooker Centre and four from the Reservoir Tavern team joined the 15-strong West Yorkshire Under-18s team after playing their way through selection matches.

In groups sections of the competition they beat Bedfordshire and Essex and in the semi-finals swept the West Midlands aside with a 23-12 victory.

They met Gloucestershire in the final and played out after a titanic battle which saw the match go into a play-off after the scores were locked together at 22-22.

West Yorkshire eventually slipped to a 23-24 defeat, but had put up the best ever performance in the competition from the county side.

The Keighley players in the squad were Ian Holmes, Phip Garbutt, Dave Green, Stefan Risidi, Kyle Richmond and James Pearson.

"They produced a superb performance, it was a fantastic achievement," said Junior team manager Amanda Speight.