A FLOCK of Wiltshire pool players will be crossing the Irish Sea this month as they prepare to take on the world.

No less than 11 county players will represent England at the European Blackball Association’s World Championships in Killarney, Northern Ireland, on October 11-16 and the subsequent 2016 Nations Cup in Coleraine.

Calne’s Joshua Stoneham will be playing for the England U15s A team at the Worlds, Trowbridge’s Daniel Winfield and Deb Burchell – a two-time world champion already – will be in the men’s and women’s competitions and Scott Lloyd, from Melksham, will be part of England’s special needs team.

Meanwhile, Danny Tallentire (Trowbridge), Owen Hill (Malmesbury) and the Warminster trio of Steve Borlase, Simon Webb and Stuart Prince will be in the England men’s team for the Nations Cup on October 20-23, with Trowbridge’s Kelly Egan competing as part of the women’s squad.

Completing Wiltshire’s compliment of international players is Alfie Lee, the son of Trowbridge snooker professional Stephen Lee, who is also in the England U15 squad for Nations Cup, but the junior section doesn’t take place until October 25-27.

Tallentire is pool rep for Wiltshire and says that he can’t remember a time when the county scene was so booming.

“I first got into the England team three years ago and there were probably one three or four England internationals but now we’re looking at 11,” he said.

“We’ve probably only got about 70 members. When you look at how big some of the northern counties are and how many players they’ve got, it’s a great achievement.

“Most of the players that are going play at Players club in Westbury – we don’t even have anybody from Salisbury or from Swindon, so they’re all local.

“The guys that are in the Worlds fly over on Sunday and some of us, like all us guys in the men’s team for the Nations Cup, will travel over together.

“Hopefully, we can all do well over there.”