Malta falls to France in opening match of Snooker International Challenge Cup

The Maltese national snooker team began their campaign at the 2025 Snooker International Challenge Cup in Dunkerque, France, with a tough defeat against the tournament hosts.

This year’s edition follows a unique format where only the number of frames won counts, with each match consisting of 27 frames. The nation with the highest total number of frames across all matches will ultimately be crowned champions.

Malta battled hard but was defeated 16-11 by a strong French side that fielded some of the country’s top amateur players. Earlier in the day, France had also defeated defending champions Republic of Ireland 15-12, showing their strength on home soil.

Masters Category

Malta’s best performances came in the Masters division.

• Arthur Cachia was outstanding, completing a 3-0 sweep of Jérôme Chatet.

• Philip Ciantar and Frans Mintoff both secured 2-1 victories against Yann Lanvin and Jean Marc Beauchamp respectively.

• Tony Mifsud, however, suffered a 3-0 defeat to Greg Kopec.

Men’s Category

The men’s division proved more challenging for Malta.

• Chris Peplow earned Malta’s only win in this category, edging Nicolas Mortreux 2-1.

• Joseph Casha narrowly lost 2-1 to Yannick Poulain.

• Isaac Borg and John Farrugia were both defeated 3-0 by Fabian Monin and Neil Vincent.

  • Both Borg and Farrugia came agonizingly close to winning their final frames, but unlucky flukes by their opponents on the final colour balls denied them.

Juniors Category

In the Juniors match, Xavier Rizzo put up a strong fight but ultimately lost 2-1 to France’s Matéo Ochoiski.

Day 1 Results & Standings

In the other opening-day clash, Scotland claimed an 18-9 victory over Northern Ireland.

Standings after Day 1:

1. France – 31 frames (2 matches played)

2. Scotland – 18 frames (1 match played)

3. Republic of Ireland – 12 frames (1 match played)

4. Malta – 11 frames (1 match played)

5. Northern Ireland – 9 frames (1 match played)

Next Up for Malta

Malta’s second match will be against Scotland later today, where the team will aim to bounce back and add to their frame tally in this highly competitive tournament.