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A recent nationwide poker league championship will be remembered for an impeccable display from some steely Yorkshire policemen
A poker team of policemen who play at a club started in Barnsley Police Station Bar have triumphed in the Great Britain & Ireland Poker League Championships (GBI PLC), held at Dusk Till Dawn in Nottingham.
The four-strong team put in a very strong showing on the day, and were by far the most successful of the 23 four-man teams that took part.
A good number of the teams came from the Live Pub Poker League, often featured in these pages, but the event is expected to grow and showcase the cream of poker leagues nationwide in the years to come.
Texas Ming’s Poker Club, the club originally run out of the Barnsley station and now housed at the Lycorum bar in the town centre, has been running for six years and has over fifty members. They entered three separate teams from the club’s two leagues into the GBI PLC.
But it was one team in particular that stole the show – featuring Mark ‘Jack the Lad’ Ramsden, John Wrigglesworth (the only non-policeman, a manager of one of Sheffield’s few remaining steel firms), Duncan ‘Slam Dunc’ Cadman and Richard ‘Ming’ Sainsbury, three of whom work as policemen in their day jobs.
“We learned about the event through the PokerOccasions.com website,” says Cadman, who used to work for Coral and knows a good bet when sees it. “There were teams from Scotland, Newcastle, Leeds, Stoke, London. I’m sure with the right publicity it will be a complete sell-out in years to come.”
Sainsbury, known as ‘Ming’ due to his uncanny resemblance to the Emperor Ming from Flash Gordon, was the first to bust out of the event, in 46th place. He was rather unlucky, after having to fold his queens to aces with a good deal of his chips in the pot. It was a good fold though, and one that proved important in helping his team to the championship.
As numbers crept down to 20 players, some tight play saw the lads at times folding hands like A-K and A-K suited, as they waited for enough others to be eliminated for them to secure the title.
The remaining three Texas Ming players, incredibly, all made the final table – the only team with more than one player left as final table action began. The title was in the bag; now they could play for themselves. Cadman finished eighth, while Ramsden and Wrigglesworth would go on to fourth and fifth places respectively. A highly commendable day’s work from the whole team.
The team were presented with their trophy at 3.30am by Dusk Till Dawn’s live poker director – and poker pro in his own right – Simon Trumper.
Of his team’s victory, Cadman said: “We are no shrinking violets and not easily intimidated, because of the jobs we do. And given we’re all aged between about 40 and 50, maybe its not a young man’s game?”
One thing is for sure; at the GBI PLC it was the long arm of the law that enjoyed the upper hand. Congrats to all at Texas Ming’s Poker Club.
Texas Ming’s will be defending their crown at the GBI PLC in 2010 – and players from any poker league can take part. Visit PokerOccasions.com for details and the opportunity to knock a few bobbies’ hats off! |
