Cork's rising snooker star Aaron Hill is the U18 European champion

AARON HILL from Cork is the 2019 EBSA European U18 Snooker champion following his 4-3 victory over Dylan Emery from Wales in Eilat, Israel this week.

Hill, from Cathedral Road, in Cork City is the first Cork snooker player to win a European title.

And, as you can imagine, the celebrations in the Irish camp went on well into the night as the talented snooker player won the deciding frame with a magnificent 83 break to send the Irish supporters into ecstasy.

Hill, who celebrates his 17th birthday this week, was left almost speechless as he was presented with the European Cup.

“This is what I came out here for, I am thrilled and I just don’t know what to say, but I have won the European title and I want to thank everyone at home who have supported me, I couldn’t have done it if it wasn’t for them,” Aaron Hill said.

Hill, currently ranked number two in the Irish senior rankings will also contest the European U21 and Men’s championship in Israel and is a serious contender both of these events.

Hill had to win his way out of his group first in Eilat, where he surprisingly dropped a match, but this was the wake-up call he needed before defeating Belgian number one Julien Leclerque in quarter-final, then Austrian number one Florian Nuble in the semi and then he took out the Welsh star in the final and put in a stunning performance.

As the match was streamed live on ebsa.tv the family celebrations began immediately at home with Aaron’s parents Stephen and Doreen thrilled and very proud of their son.

For those in the world of snoo,ker this will not come as a major surprise, because the young man from Cork has already impressed all over Europe, at home and on the World stage.

Hill came agonisingly close to sealing a World U16 title in St Petersburg in Russia last October, losing out on that occasion by a single frame, something that wasn’t lost on the new European champion when he added after this win,  “I had a bad experience in Russia last October and I wasn’t going to let that happen again.

"I was determined to win and I did.”