World Snooker Championships

One of the highlights of the UK sporting calendar begins on Saturday, in arguably one of the greatest venues in all sport. 17 days of thrills, spills and high drama and I, for one, can't wait.



First Round draw was made by Sir Trevor McDonald and Lulu this morning and has thrown up some belting ties (highlights for non snooker followers in bold).

Stuart 'Ball Run' Bingham v 'The Captain' Ali Carter

'On Fire' Stephen Maguire v 'Angles' Alan McManus

Ricky 'The Walnut' Walden v 'Let me Entertain you' Robbie Williams

'The Wizard of Wishaw' John Higgins v 'Dynamite' Ryan Day

'Mr Haircut 100' Judd Trump v 'Pot Noodle' Liang Wenbo

'The Pinner Potter' Martin Gould v 'Enter the Dragon' Ding Junhui

'The Welsh Wonder' Mark Williams v 'The Pocket Dynamo' Graeme Dott

'The Thunder from Down Under' Neil Robertson v 'The Hitman' Michael Holt

'The Magician' Shaun Murphy v 'Maggie May' Anthony McGill

'Hong Kong Fuey' Marco Fu v Peter 'The Force' Ebdon

'The Hawk' Barry Hawkins v 'Mighty Mouse' Zhang Anda

'The Rocket' Ronnie O'Sullivan v 'Gibbo' David Gilbert

'The Pistol' Mark Allen v 'Macho Man' Mitchell Mann

'The Gentleman' Joe Perry v 'The Warrior' Kyren Wilson

'Lightning' Michael White v Sam 'The Blade' Baird

'The Jester from Leicester' Mark Selby v Robert 'The Milkman' Milkins


Lets get the boys.....on the baize!!!

Really? Not for me can't drum up any enthusiasm for this sport. Hope you enjoy it.

It's that amazing time of year. The birds are singing, the sun is out, the blossoms are blooming, the bank holidays are plentiful and the best competition in sport starts...


****ing love the snooks ... Defo my fav one off sporting competition along with the masters. The first May bank holiday weekend, the bi

Spring sport is the best...

marshy68 said:

Really? Not for me can't drum up any enthusiasm for this sport. Hope you enjoy it.

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Love the snooker, there's not many sports that have had a top 5 chart hit written about them. This years edition could be a classic, Ronnie as always the man to beat but I feel he can be ground down in this marathon matches and there's at least half the field who will feel they have genuine chances of lifting the holy grail of the Championship trophy.

'Gibbo' David Gilbert

Due to some terrible tag dancing in which moves like The Loon ,The Monkey and Flick were born, to go with outrageous drinking sessions in and around Tamworth, Gilbert struggled to progress in his career in the early years. Thankfully the bad influence that was Johnny Stevens and Lee Brownhill, moved away from Tamworth, enabling the youth to train properly, and look at him now.

Nice bit of Wikibombing there!

Lost a bit of interest after the 80's when snooker was more popular.

The characters of Alex Higgins, Jimmy White, replaced by Steve Davis clones?

O'sullivan though has always been great entertainment, and will definitely go down as the greatest player who has played the game, even if he doesn't equal Hendry's 7 titles.

If I could watch one sport on telly for the rest of my days then it would be snooker.

Endless fascination. Consecutive frames are rarely even similar in the way they unfold.

Am I right in saying that the World Snooker Championships is open for women to compete in?

The nicknames are ****ing awful. Let darts continue the circus it works well for them. It feels like snooker is trying to hard to be cool and ends up looking like Timmy Mallett.

Who did Mark Davis lose to in qualifying?

symyjym said:

Am I right in saying that the World Snooker Championships is open for women to compete in?

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Yes it is, Crafty Ken almost went out to the Women's World Champ last year in qualifying, he came through 10-9.

Pot noodle

ManOfSussex said:

Who did Mark Davis lose to in qualifying?

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10-6 to Ken Doherty in the first round.

big nuts said:

The nicknames are ****ing awful. Let darts continue the circus it works well for them. It feels like snooker is trying to hard to be cool and ends up looking like Timmy Mallett.

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I was just thinking that some terrible nicknames there....as Sheebo mentions Pot Noodle

"The Milkman" and "The Walnut".....but the worst has to be "Angles"......jeeez that is awful, it hardly strikes fear into an opponent that nickname does it.

simmo said:

I was just thinking that some terrible nicknames there....as Sheebo mentions Pot Noodle

"The Milkman" and "The Walnut".....but the worst has to be "Angles"......jeeez that is awful, it hardly strikes fear into an opponent that nickname does it.

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It does when you get into a safety battle, only one winner.

Bingo said:

10-6 to Ken Doherty in the first round.

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Cheers. I saw him shopping in Priory Meadow in Hastings just before Christmas - If you want to qualify for the World Championship Snooker Finals you've got to choose better than there for your Christmas shopping, in my opinion.

simmo said:

but the worst has to be "Angles"......jeeez that is awful, it hardly strikes fear into an opponent that nickname does it.

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He acquired that nickname from his fellow players because of his pinpoint accuracy in being able to get out of snookers.

simmo said:

I was just thinking that some terrible nicknames there....as Sheebo mentions Pot Noodle

"The Milkman" and "The Walnut".....but the worst has to be "Angles"......jeeez that is awful, it hardly strikes fear into an opponent that nickname does it.

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"Hong Kong Fuey" is a pretty cool nickname you have to admit though.

Stuart 'Ball Run' Bingham v 'The Captain' Ali Carter
No first time champion has ever successfully defended their title at the Crucible and Bingham's been handed a nasty draw if he is to buck that trend, coming up against a 2 time runner-up and one of the best unseeded players in the draw who is only ranked so low because he was out of the game for a while with serious illness. Carter has also beaten Bingham the last 6 times they've played each other, so definite possibility of the defending champ going out on day 1.

'On Fire' Stephen Maguire v 'Angles' Alan McManus
An all Scottish affair between 2 players who regularly practise together. McManus has had a bit of a resurgence in recent years while Maguire is a bit of an unfulfilled talent, let down at times by his temperament. He's hitting a bit of form in time for the Crucible though which should carry him through this match.

Ricky 'The Walnut' Walden v 'Let me Entertain you' Robbie Williams
Not the fat dancer from Stoke, but the guy who ran Stuart Bingham close in round 1 last year before Bingham went on to win the title. Walden is a hot and cold player, but has reached the final in the last 2 tournaments he has played in so is hitting form at the right time and is in a part of the draw where things could open up for him if he takes care of business here.

'The Wizard of Wishaw' John Higgins v 'Dynamite' Ryan Day
The last time these 2 met at the Crucible, Day knocked Higgins out when he was the defending champion. A few years ago now and neither player is consistently as good as they were back then. Higgins has had a decent season though while Day has shown signs of form in the past few weeks. Not sure Higgins has the stamina to last 17 days here any more but still has the quality on his day, but Day could certainly cause him some problems if he isn't at his best.

'Mr Haircut 100' Judd Trump v 'Pot Noodle' Liang Wenbo
Potentially great match here between 2 explosive players. Wenbo beat Trump in the UK Championship earlier in the season when Trump was miles in front at one stage and Wenbo went all the way to the final. Trump will be out for revenge and comes to the Crucible in form having won the last tournament in China. The last time he won in China, he made the final at the Crucible that year. The long frame format suits him and if he's in the mood, he could go a long way this year.

'The Pinner Potter' Martin Gould v 'Enter the Dragon' Ding Junhui
Ding Junhui is the unseeded player here, having dropped out of the top 16 after a couple of poor seasons. He had to play 3 qualifying matches to get to the Crucible, but only lost 7 frames across those 3 matches. That suggests he's been given the wake-up call he needed. He's underachieved in Sheffield in the past, but the draw has been fairly kind to him. Gould's had a good season but if Ding brings his qualifying form, he should be too strong.

'The Welsh Wonder' Mark Williams v 'The Pocket Dynamo' Graeme Dott
2 former world champions who are now in the autumn of their careers. Williams still has the shots on him, but he seems to have lost some self-belief in the past few years which has taken the edge off his game. Dott has 2 ways of playing, but he's at his best when he goes on the attack. This probably won't be the prettiest match to watch, but it could go the distance.

'The Thunder from Down Under' Neil Robertson v 'The Hitman' Michael Holt
The Aussie Robertson is many people's pick to be champion this year and that's not surprising when he has won a couple of big tournaments during the season. It's 6 years since his only win at the Crucible and a player of his quality and with his all-round game might have expected to have doubled his tally by now. Holt's an experienced opponent and has recorded a win over Ronnie O'Sullivan this season so Robertson shouldn't expect everything his own way.

'The Magician' Shaun Murphy v 'Maggie May' Anthony McGill
This is a repeat of the quarter-final last season when McGill ran Murphy close before eventually losing. But he had already knocked out Mark Selby who was defending his title before getting that far. Hasn't quite kicked on this season in the way he was expected to, but looked good in qualifying. Murphy has had a strange season, losing some tight matches where he'd played quite well. Tends to save his best for the Crucible though having been in 3 finals, so expect another strong showing from him this year.

'Hong Kong Fuey' Marco Fu v Peter 'The Force' Ebdon
Ebdon's style of play makes him a bit of a Marmite figure, but he's certainly resilient. He trailed 9-3 in one of his qualifiers before coming back to win 10-9. Anyone who plays him will know to expect a war of attrition. Fu is a very talented player but also quite unpredictable. He's been in the semi-finals at the Crucible before so he can go well in long matches. This might be one that runs late into the night.

'The Hawk' Barry Hawkins v 'Mighty Mouse' Zhang Anda
Hawkins has been very good in this tournament over the past 3 years, losing in the final to Ronnie 3 years ago and then making the semis in each of the last 2 years, beating Neil Robertson in an epic quarter-final last year. He's had a quiet season so comes in under the radar, but the bad news is he'd likely have to play Ronnie again in round 2. His Chinese opponent took Stephen Hendry to a deciding frame the first time he played at the Crucible.

'The Rocket' Ronnie O'Sullivan v 'Gibbo' David Gilbert
On paper, this looks like a routine stroll for O'Sullivan. He's not playing every tournament these days but is saving himself for the big tournaments and he's won a couple of big events this season, including the Masters. When he's switched on, he's still the man to beat. His opponent Gilbert reached the final of a tournament in China earlier in the season where he lost to John Higgins, so he can hold his own, but this was his nightmare draw.

'The Pistol' Mark Allen v 'Macho Man' Mitchell Mann
Mitchell Mann is the only player who has never played at the Crucible before in this year's field. I think he might need to get to the 2nd round in order to be sure of retaining his tour card because of how low ranked he is. That will be a tall order against the Northern Irishman Allen who tends to play his best when he's been riled by criticism. He took exception to some comments Steve Davis made earlier in the season and then went and won the next tournament. He's in good nick and in a decent part of the draw.

'The Gentleman' Joe Perry v 'The Warrior' Kyren Wilson
This could be a close match. Joe Perry is playing the best snooker of his career now that he is in his 40s. He must be the 3rd oldest player in the tournament this year. He's up against 1 of the best young talents in Kyren Wilson who won 1 of the Chinese ranking tournaments earlier in the season. Along with Ding and Ali Carter, Wilson would've been the unseeded player others would've wanted to avoid, so Perry has got a match on his hands here.

'Lightning' Michael White v Sam 'The Blade' Baird
Michael White made the quarter-finals 3 years ago and big things were expected of him after that which have been a bit slower to materialise, but he is now in the top 16. The draw has been good to him though, drawing him against one of the lesser fancied qualifiers who has only played the Crucible once before so he should at least make the 2nd round.

'The Jester from Leicester' Mark Selby v Robert 'The Milkman' Milkins
It's difficult to know what to expect from Mark Selby as he pulled out of the last 2 tournaments he was due to play in and has not had a particularly good season overall, even though he is still ranked world number 1. That said, he had a similar campaign 2 years ago when he ended up winning the world title. Milkins is a dangerous opponent if Selby's coming in cold though. The qualifiers will have got him match sharp and he has beaten Neil Robertson here before, so Selby will have to be on his guard.

Unbelievable first weekend. The Champ is already out, Ball Run GONE!!! Incredible drama and tension on Saturday night, firstly Bingham showing balls the size of Brazil to close from 8-5 down to 9-8 up the stuff World Champs are made of but he couldn't close the deal and Carter heroically fought back to snatch it 10-9.