East Durham Poker Card Room

See Ham Claim Team Glory

East Durham Poker’s 5th Annual Team Game arrived yesterday, and in true EDP fashion it brought together poker, noise, food, chaos, questionable decision-making, and just enough actual card playing to make it look like we knew what we were doing.

A total of 14 teams entered the event, alongside one brave lone soldier who fancied taking on the room without a full squad. To keep things balanced, we allowed the first two eliminated players the option to rebuy and join him, taking us up to a full field of 15 teams. Whether that was good organisation or making it up as we went along is open to interpretation, but it worked, and that is the main thing.

The day itself had a bit of everything. There was some genuinely great poker played across the room, with players battling for both individual survival and team points. There was also, at times, behaviour more suited to a wildlife enclosure than a poker room, but that can sometimes be the very essence of pub poker. You take the hero calls, the bad beats, the table banter, the volume levels, and the occasional outbreak of complete nonsense, and somehow it all comes together into a cracking day.

Most importantly, everyone in attendance seemed to enjoy themselves. The atmosphere was lively, the competition was strong, and the food order was treated with the seriousness of a final table decision. Pizzas and kebabs arrived, and not a single scrap was left behind. If there was a team prize for commitment to takeaway consumption, the whole room would have chopped it.

As the tournament moved into the business end, the team race came down to the final four players. At that stage, the team prize was finally decided, with See Ham taking the title after captain Kris Swingbanks navigated his way into the position needed to guarantee the win for his side.

It was a proper captain’s performance from Kris, who did exactly what was required when it mattered. No need for fireworks, no need for glory hunting, just survive, score, and get the job done. Team poker may look simple on paper, but when the pressure is on and half the room are suddenly working out points like they are sitting a maths GCSE, it becomes a very different game.

While the team title went to See Ham, the individual tournament belonged to Ryan “Champ” Robson.

By the time the final stages arrived, Ryan was in total control of the chip stacks, holding the vast majority of the chips in play and looking very much like a man who had decided the tournament was his and everyone else was just borrowing seats. With the team prize already settled, a deal was agreed between the final four players, with Ryan taking just short of double the money received by the others.

Still left to decide was the Champion of Champions Final seat, and as part of the deal the remaining four players agreed to flip for it. When the dust settled, it was Martin Gibson who came out on top, securing his seat in the December final.

So, to recap, See Ham are your 2026 Team Game champions, Ryan “Champ” Robson was the dominant individual force on the day, and Martin Gibson booked himself a place in the COCF Final. Not bad for a day that also featured enough shouting, takeaway, and general carry-on to keep social services, environmental health, and possibly David Attenborough busy.

All in all, it was another brilliant yearly event. Yes, it may have been a little too loud at points. Yes, some of the behaviour was closer to zoo feeding time than the World Series of Poker. But the vast majority of players left in high spirits, and that is what these events are really about.

A massive thank you must go to GRASS ROOTS POKER CLUB for the photos used from the day. I was so run off my feet that I somehow forgot to take any myself, including pictures of the overall winner and the winning team. Thankfully, Craig was on the ball, which is more than can be said for the person organising the trophies.

Speaking of which, in a move that can only be described as bold, foolish, and completely on brand, I had also forgotten to order the trophies in the run-up to the event. I will be in contact with the winners to see if they would still like theirs, and then I will pretend this was all part of the plan.

Thank you again to everyone who played, supported, helped, shouted, laughed, dealt, ate, and made the day what it was. The Team Game remains one of the best days on the EDP calendar, and this year proved exactly why.