Nt Eight Ball Juniors come away with two runner-up awards at the 2020 Australian Eight Ball Junior Nationals in Albury

NT Eight Ball had two outstanding performances at the 2020 Australian Eight Ball Junior Nationals in Albury last week with Jason Yu and Emily Sanders both finishing runner-up.

NT Eight Ball had two outstanding performances at the 2020 Australian Eight Ball Junior Nationals in Albury last week with Jason Yu and Emily Sanders both finishing runner-up.

Sanders, 17, went undefeated until the girl’s final winning 16 rounds in a row.

But she lost 2-6 to Queensland’s Tamika Jenkins in the tournament decider earning herself second place for the second year in a row.

Yu, 11, also impressed in the under-12 category making his way to the final where he would lose 1-6 to multiple-time Australian under-18 champion Lilly Meldrum

Team manger Melanie Sanders was proud of the efforts of the entire NT team with juniors from across the Top End representing eight-ball clubs including Tennant Creek and Litchfield.

“I’m extremely proud, they all performed well and had a fantastic time forming good rivalries with players from other states,” Sanders told the NT News.

“Emily may have had a disappointing finish but she played beautifully up to that point. She came runner-up last year so wanted to do one better this time.

“This was Jason’s first time at this level and he just managed to get in the top four through countback. He did really well, this will have been a great experience for him.”

Yu also exhibited sportsmanship beyond his years when he twice alerted the unaware referee that he had committed a foul in the final.

Also representing the NT were Trent Wilson, Rowan Sanders and Liam Dickman in the under-18s who will now set their sights on qualifying for the senior divisions.

Liam Taylor, Ciaran Dempsey and Jack Page all performed well in the under-15s category. Violet Meldrum also competed in the girls singles, while Roxie Cooper earned some valuable experience after competing in the under-12s.