Aylesbury Invitation Pool League
The AIPL started in 1978 as the R.T. Major Pool League with Mr Len Disbury as the league chairman and 14 teams competing in a Premier and the Knock Out Cup, both which were both won by the Aylesbury Ex-Service-men's 'A'. The player Singles and Doubles competitions were also held.
The first season was successful and the AIPL grew in size over the years with teams entered not just from Aylesbury but from the surrounding villages too. At the peak of its popularity the AIPL ran 4 league divisions, 2 cup competitions and 4 player competitions.
The Premier has at times been dominated by one or two teams. John Kennedy A won the title for 4 consecutive seasons between 1999 and 2002, a feat matched by Shoot Vetz who won it between 2013 and 2016.
The 2021 - 2022 season is underway featuring three divisions (Premier, Division 1 and Division 2) alongside the usual two team cup knockout competitions - Knock Out Cup and Plate Cup - and three player competitions - the Singles, the Doubles and the Anytime Singles Knockout
News
2022-23 Premier Round-Up
The 2022-23 Premier went all the way - coming down to the final ball in the final frame, and it was SP Blacks who were eventually crowned champions for the second time in their history. Sharks and Bullets both signed off for the season with wins too, and New Zealand 'A' moved into 7th with their final day victory as well.
Posted: 12 May 2023 00:00
2022-23 Division 1 Round-Up
The Division 1 title race was over a while ago, but Dirty Ari continued their impressive form, winning their final match of the season 11-1 to claim the Division 1 title by a massive 22 points. Also in the final game week, Shootpool got the win they required to claim second spot ahead of Shootpool Blues, and 4th placed The Roths ended their season a high with a win as well..
Posted: 11 May 2023 20:45
2022-23 Division 2 Round-Up
Weavers' Beavers & Balls were crowned AIPL Division 2 champions of 2022-23, winning their final game to win the title by 18 points over Hot Shots, who finished 2nd, and Ari Potters in 3rd. Nomads replaced The C Team in 4th spot on the final day. Misfits in 6th and Dairy Maid Krazies in 7th played out a draw, and The Feathers finished ahead of The Ari Chicks at the bottom of the table.
Posted: 11 May 2023 17:00
AIPL Week 17 Round-Up
In the penultimate week of the league season, Blacks took a big step towards the title with a 10-2 win, moving 4 points clear of NZB, who only won 7-5, with Sharks, Shoot A and The Vic all picking up wins on the night too. Dirty Ari wrapped up Division 1 without even playing, as Shootpool and Roths drew 6-6. Shootpool Blues, and Wonky Shot both won their matches too. Weavers won 7-5 to claim the Div 2 title, with the next three sides, Hot Shots, Ari Potters and C Team all claiming wins too..
Posted: 04 May 2023 23:30
AIPL Week 16 Round-Up
Blacks and NZB are now just a point apart in the Premier title race, after NZB beat Sharks 9-3 and Blacks won 8-4 against The Vic Club. Bullets drew with NZA and there were wins for Rothschild Arms and Brickslayers. In Div 1, Dirty Ari are now 21 clear and only have to turn up to the final match to mathematically win the league, with Shootpool and Top John also securing wins. In Div 2, Weavers are on the verge of the title after another win, and Ari Potters Nomads and Misfits also picked up wins.
Posted: 17 April 2023 10:15
AIPL Week 15 Round-Up
In the Premier, NZB won 9-3 while Blacks won 8-4 to reduce the gap between the top two to just 2 points, with 3 matches left to play. Sharks and Bullets drew 6-6, and there was wins for The Vic and Honey Bee too. In Division 1, Blues took a step towards a top 2 finish by beating leaders Dirty Ari 7-5, while Shootpool beat Kennedy, and Roths and Dairy Maid drew. In Div 2, Ari Potters, Misfits, Nomads and leaders Weavers all enjoyed 7-5 wins, as Weavers extended their lead at the top to 14 points.
Posted: 11 April 2023 11:15
AIPL Competition Round-Up
Review of the AIPL Singles, AIPL Anytime Singles, and AIPL Doubles Quarter-Finals, AIPL Knock Out Cup and the AIPL Plate Cup Semi-Finals, as well as all the draw information for the Cup, Plate, Singles, Doubles and Anytime Singles, and also a review of the 2022-23 Mixed Doubles event, which took place this Sunday.
Posted: 04 April 2023 18:15
AIPL Week 14 Round-Up
SP Blacks’ lead at the top of the Premier is down to 3 after they won 9-3 vs Bullets, while NZB won 10-2 vs Honey Bee. Sharks and Shoot A drew, and 7-5 wins for Rothschild Arms and Brickslayers. In Division 1, Dirty Ari won 8-4 vs Top John to move 14 points clear with a game in hand. 2nd placed SP Blues were held to a 6-6 draw by Kennedy GC, and Dairy Maid picked up a win too. And in Div 2, there was 8-4 wins for the top two and the Krazies, and Feathers picked up their first win of the season.
Posted: 20 March 2023 00:00
AIPL Week 13 Round-Up
In the Premier, Blacks beat Sharks 8-4 in the big game, while NZB closed gap at the top to just 4 points with a 9-3 win. There was also wins for Bullets, Shoot A and NZA. In Division 1, Dirty Ari got an 8-4 win to extend their lead to 11pts with a game in hand, as everyone else either drew 6-6 or didn't play. And there was a shock in Division 2 as leaders Weavers' Beavers & Balls were beaten for only the 2nd time, but Hot Shots only draw as well. Nomads and Misfits also recorded wins too.
Posted: 14 March 2023 11:15
Cup & Plate Quarter Final Round-Up
Three Premier teams made it through to the KO Cup SF's this week as Sharks, Blacks and New Zealand A all got through close matches, with one Div 1 team guaranteed qualification in next week's game between Dirty Ari and Shootpool. In the Plate QF's, Premier sides Honey Bee and Bullets made it through, and will be accompanied by Division 1 sides Top John and Blues in the SF draw.
Posted: 23 February 2023 13:15
AIPL Week 12 Round-Up
The top three in the Premier all won big this week, to keep the title race ticking along nicely, and there was also wins for SP Bullets and The Vic Club. In Division 1, Dirty Ari extended their lead as their win was coupled with 2nd placed Shootpool Blues losing to 3rd placed The Roths, with Top John winning also. In Division 2, Weavers Beavers Balls won the top of the table clash vs Hot Shots, with Ari Potters and Misfits also picking up wins.
Posted: 21 February 2023 18:00
AIPL Week 11 Round-Up
SP Blacks go 5 clear by beating Rothschild Arms, but chasing pair NZB and Sharks picked up wins too, and Shoot A and Honey Bee moved up the table with much-needed wins. Division 1 title race blew open after Dirty Ari lost against Shootpool, while Blues and Roths both won this week, and JFK got their first league win by beating Dairy Maid A. In Division 2, Weavers beat Krazies but saw their lead cut to 6 as Hot Shots swept aside Ari Chicks. Misfits beat Ari Potters and C Team were awarded a 9-0.
Posted: 13 February 2023 14:30
Standings
Scores
Fixtures
No upcoming fixtures
Upcoming Schedule
Current Seasons
Competitions
Knockout Cup
The Knockout Cup competition has been an ever-present competition since the AIPL began in 1978, with Aylesbury Ex-Service-men's 'A' defeating Stoke Mandeville Hosptial 'A' in the first final.
Each season features all teams from all leagues entered into an unseeded Qualifying Round draw.
John Kennedy A dominated this competition at the end of the 1990's, early 2000's, winning the competition four times in a row, with the last three of those triumphs paired with the Premier Division trophy for the double.
More recently, The Vic won it for three consecutive seasons in 2013 - 2014, 2014 - 2015 and 2015 - 2016 as part of an 18 match unbeaten run in the competition that spanned just over 4 years and 3 months - or 1560 days.
Plate Cup
The Plate Cup competition is made up of teams that lose in the Qualifying Round of the Knockout Cup.
This competition has run from at least the 2001-2002 season.
As the identities of the teams change year on year, depending on who loses in the opening round(s) of the Knockout Cup, there has not been a successful defence of the trophy since Victoria Club 'A' won it for three consecutive years between 2002-2003 and 2004-2005.
Player Competitions
Although the AIPL is team-based with the leagues, it has run player competitions since it begun in 1978.
The Singles competition has been an ever-present competition and the entire history of all previous champions can be viewed on this site here. Keith Jones has won the trophy 9 times, including this past 2017-2018 season.
The Doubles competition is likely to also have been an ever-present competition throughout the history of the AIPL.
Except for a 3 year gap between 2008 and 2010, the Ladies Singles has run as a single day competition since 1995.
The Mixed Doubles tournament has run uninterrupted since 1995-1996.
Presentation Evenings & Photo Albums
Each year, the Aylesbury Invitation Pool League hosts an end of season Presentation Evening to thank the players, teams and venues that participated. It is also an evening of celebration as the winners are rewarded with trophies for their success throughout the latest season.
Here you can have a look back on the photo albums and reminisce about years gone by, or put faces to names of players in the league, both past and present.
Player Rankings
The AIPL has been running for 41 seasons, with around 15 years of information on this website, and you can compare yourself against other players in the rankings or just see which players have won the most games.
Association
Premier
Division 1
Division 2
Division 3
Committee
The AIPL has a committee that is voted in at the AGM each year and the members are tasked with running the season, organising cup draws, handling complaints and organising the end of season presentation night amongst a lot of other tasks.
Blackball / World Rules
The World Rules ruleset is part of the World Eightball Pool Federation (WEPF) founded in 1992 by England, Australia and New Zealand. It is an international pool governing body overseeing international (principally Commonwealth) tournaments and rankings. It was already 20 years old by the time the AIPL adopted World Rules.
WEPF competes for authority and membership with the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) which produces its own tournaments and slightly different rules under the game name Blackball which were intended would unify the various existing British-style rulesets (presumably also including the WEPF rules) although this has not yet happened. Blackball rules (ruleset) were first released on 29th September 2005 onto the WPA's web site with the new rules coming into force on 1st January 2006.
For many years different versions of rules caused unnecessary confusion amongst players and antagonism between self-appointed 'governing bodies' which had sprung up to administer 8ball pool. When the Blackball rules were first discussed and compiled, there were approximately 19 different sets of rules played in Great Britain alone, and the anticipated outcome of the new Blackball ruleset was that, given the recognition and support of the World Pool Association, national pool organisations would for the first time be able to unite under a single World structure and everyone could play the game to exactly the same rules.
World rules are no longer played at the professional level, since the International Professional Pool Association (IPA) swapped to WPA blackball rules in 2012 (again note this was before the AIPL adopted World Rules for their league), and around the world, World Rules are used less and less with more countries and leagues playing Blackball. However, the UK is one of the countries with the strongest remaining support for World Rules.
For the 2017 AIPL AGM, Amber Carter was asked to give a presentation on the differences between Blackball and World Rules, with a view on taking a vote at a future AGM about moving the AIPL onto Blackball rules. This presentation can be viewed or downloaded here.
It was also decided at the 2017 AGM that the league would organise some Blackball tournaments to help those who wanted to learn Blackball rules or learn the differences between Blackball and World Rules. Contact James Connor for more information (contact details on the committee page).
Update 18th July 2018: Blackball rules were voted to be introduced for the 2019-2020 season at the 2018 AGM.
