AN EIGHT-YEAR-OLD boy has taken part in an adult snooker league.

Casey Turner, from Burgess Hill, is the youngest ever player in the Brighton and Hove snooker league, which has been running since 1906.

Kai Michael, snooker coach and manager of the Brighton Castle Juniors Club, explained that he got permission from the league to enter a children’s team into the adult’s league - something unheard of in its history.

Casey took to the table at the Castle Snooker and Sports Bar in Castle Street, Brighton against an experienced player on the team, and only narrowly lost in an extremely close match.

Kai said: “He could barely reach around the table but he’s quite talented. For an eight-year-old to be playing in a men's league that has been going for over 100 years is unbelievable.”

Casey is the youngest of several children to be taking part, including a 13-year-old and several 17-year-olds.

“Obviously, a lot of parents won’t allow them to play on a Monday night, because they have school, but Casey’s dad brought him along and it’s been fantastic,” Kai said.

The appearance of the eight-year-old playing the match drew the eyes of several of the others at the pub, he explained.

“Everyone stopped to watch him - it was great, he had quite a lot of people watching him,” he said.

A spokesman for the snooker league said: "While most of our members have been adult and male, there's nothing in the rules against juniors or women taking part.

"However, one aim of our constitution is to actively promote the sport and encourage new members to take up the game.

"Casey is the youngest to date and hopefully this will encourage a whole new generation of players to pick up a cue for the first time."

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