Southampton pool player Drew Farminer will have the tough task of balancing family life with a newborn baby and playing professional sport.

The England international pool player is celebrating the birth of his third child, Ronnie, coupled with reaching new heights in his sport after finishing 21st in the amateur division of the International Pool Tour (IPA).

That means he is eligible for a place on the professional IPA tour next year, which was his target at the beginning of the campaign.

Farminer will have to cut a fine balance between family time and devoting hours to practice as he looks to acclimatise to the step-up in quality.

“This is a huge step up and I must practise a lot harder now,” he said. “I may need a pool table at home.

“I don’t know what the missus will say to that,” he laughed. “Especially after a few crazy weeks – we’ve just had a new addition to our family.

“I am very confident I can make the transition from amateur to professional. I know I have the ability and I also know it’s not all about that alone; I must be a professional in every way.”

Farminer is seeing out 2014 the same way he started it – winning tournaments. He has just been crowned champion of the English Blackball Pool Federation Central South Tour, where he beat fellow England international Adam Brown in the final.

And he was part of the England B1 side that qualified from the group stages of the Nations Cup in Northern Ireland, where they were eventually knocked-out by Wales in the semi-final 17-9.

Farminer ended the tournament with the best individual stats overall, with an impressive 22 wins from 28 frames.

Meanwhile, another local player, Mark Benzey from Eastleigh was also called up to England for the Nations Cup.

He played for the B2 side, who failed to qualify from the group stage.

Winchester’s Catherine King captained the ladies B2 side that made it to the semi finals.