Shawn Agius, Thurston Grixti and Duncan Pisani are to represent the Malta Billiards and Snooker Association in the European Under 19 Snooker Championship in Riga, Latvia, between 2 and 8 April. The three players will also be taking part in the Baltic Cup which is open to every European player.

Among the participants in the European Under 19 will be world champion Michael White, Jamie Jones and many other famous semi-professional players.

Last year, Shawn Agius, who is 17 years of age, won the Malta Under 18 Championship and this year he played in the second division and won promotion to the first division by finishing in second place out of 73 participants.

This year, Thurston Grixti, who is only 15 years old and one of the youngest among the participants in the European Under 19 Championship, won the Malta Open Under 16 Championship and has already reached the quarter- finals in the Malta Under 18 Championship which is still underway.

Duncan Pisani, who is 18 years of age, won the Malta Under 16 Championship in 2003/2004 and is currently playing in the first division. Duncan Pisani, who is being coached by ex-world champion Pawlu Mifsud, is now ranked Malta’s number 33.

Maltese seniors lead Group D in Carlow

Malta's representatives in the seniors European Championship in Carlow, Ireland, took the lead in Group D after winning their second match 7-1.

They are just ahead of Belgium who have two points, while Wales, who have played just one match, have one point. France have no points and occupy the bottom place.

Malta's lead is emphatic in the frames won and lost with a difference of plus six.