18 months ago Martin O'Donnell was at Q School and fighting for his professional playing rights having just dropped off the tour.
Now though he has achieved a career high in the world rankings by getting into the top 64 and his career is firmly heading in a positive direction after an excellent 2018 that has seen him make the Shoot-Out semi-finals, two other ranking quarter-finals and he comes into the UK Championship in fine form having just made the last 16 in Belfast.
It is fair to say that the next thing on his list of targets would be a good run in York to continue climbing the rankings and really put his name out there.
"The UK Championship is always an exciting time. It's the first BBC event of the season and there's a lot of high profile and attention around the event", O'Donnell states.
The first hurdle for him to get over is a match against young Chinese player Xu Si. Xu has not had the best of seasons, failing to get beyond the last 64 in any ranking event, but his run to the semi-finals of last season's Indian Open shows that he is a big threat and will not provide an easy game for O'Donnell.
"I haven't seen loads of Xu before. From what I have seen he is a dangerous player on his day, but is vulnerable if things don't go his way. I'll just be trying to focus on myself. It's a game I can obviously lose but I'm feeling good at the moment".
As good as his current form may be, there is little getting away from his York record. Since the tournament became 128 at the venue in the flat structure, O'Donnell has failed to win a game, so he certainly has a duck to break at the Barbican this year.
"I don't think I've won at the UK Championships since it's moved to York - and that's nothing against York because it's a lovely city. As it's the second biggest event of the year I have probably tried too hard, wanting to win too much and adding pressure onto myself. I'm having a good season though and my tour card is looking safe (for next season) so there's not too much pressure on this year", O'Donnell believes.
The security of his tour place for next season has come courtesy of a fine run of form in this campaign. Two quarter-finals at the China Championship and International Championship as well as the last 16 run in Northern Ireland have seen him show some excellent play and pick up some big results, but O'Donnell does not feel that there is one overwhelming factor in this success.
"There's not one thing in particular that has caused my recent form, it's a combination of different factors. I have been trying hard to change my approach to the game. In the past I have been too cautious but I have been working hard with my coach Ian McCulloch to become more aggressive and that's been working so far. I've also moved clubs and I'm now just a few minutes from home. It's perfect - the conditions are good, they let me get on so there are no distractions and because of that I get a better quality of practice. My home life is good too. I had a baby a year ago and now I'm more relaxed at home and not thinking about the game too much".
It all kicked off with the quarter-final run at the China Championship, but none of the victories over Luca Brecel, Tom Ford or Liang Wenbo at the venue would have been possible without a turn around in fortunes at the interval in his last 128 qualifier.
"I had been struggling at the start of the season and it was in the qualifiers for the China Championship that I turned a corner. I was 3-1 down to Elliot Slessor and I sorted things out at the interval with my coach and I played well after the break and have done ever since. Me and Luca had a great game (in the last 64 in China). There were lots of breaks, almost a break in every frame and I think my safety made the difference in that one. Tom Ford played really well to get back into our match in the next round. I had gone ahead early but then had to play well from 4-3 down and ended up winning on the re-spotted black in the decider", O'Donnell explains
"Then against Liang Wenbo the first frame was massive. He was in first but broke down and I was able to get in and steal the frame on the black and then make make a big break in the next. In the space of 15 minutes or so I went from looking like going 1-0 down to leading 2-0 and I was able to dominate from there. I have started dominating games recently which is pleasing. I have realised that you have to dominate games to far in tournaments, because you don't want to use a lot of mental energy in the early rounds", the world number 59 added.
If the results in Guangzhou were impressive then the run he went on at the International Championship in Daqing was absolute brilliance. From 4-2 down in his last 64 match against Peter Lines, O'Donnell proceeded to win 16 of his next 17 frames to make it through to the quarter-finals.
"I was on a great run of form there really. I played great at the end against Peter winning three frames in one visit and having another 50 in there. To beat Ford 6-0 and David Gilbert 6-1 you've got to play well as they're both class players and Gilbert is high up on the one-year list so he's having a great season. All parts of my game are coming together. My scoring needed work but now I'm scoring when I'm getting in and playing great safety. It can turn around quickly and now this has happened I know this sort of form is in the locker".
The run ended at the last eight stage in heartbreaking fashion, losing out in a final-frame decider to Matthew Stevens, with some bad fortune of going into the reds from the blue and knocking a red into the corner. Without that it could have been a very different tale.
"I was a bit gutted about that match. I went into my shell halfway through and let Matthew dominate. He had some bad luck potting a red and going in-off in the middle before I had my bad luck in the decider. It was disappointing to do it because I'd woken up in those last couple of frames and could've won it from there. I'd had my fair share of luck getting to the quarter-final though and perhaps a lack of experience on the TV table cost me as well in that match".
The combined £41,500 the 32-year-old has made from getting to those two quarter-finals has helped him get to a tally of £51,500 for the season which currently has him in 20th position on the provisional World Grand Prix list and £17,900 clear of 33rd place with just three events to go before the cut-off.
"It's quite funny really because that was my target at the start of the season. I know I'd never been near qualifying for the Grand Prix before but if you don't set these targets you never know what you can achieve. I won't look too far ahead. I need to beat Xu Si in York or I could look less comfortable on the list. I would be delighted to qualify".
While natural instinct may tell him to look over his shoulder, O'Donnell could put himself in the frame for Player Championship qualification, with the gap between him and 16th standing at just £3,725 if his fine recent spell continues, but O'Donnell does not want to get ahead of himself.
"That'd be an unbelievable achievement. It's obviously the next target if I qualify for the World Grand Prix. I've never been in the top 64 before so just getting into the top 32 on the one-year list would be massive. I'm trying not to let it distract me. I've played well for a good period and I don't want to add pressure on myself and just carry on enjoying my snooker. These are all bonus events and I'm just focused on the main ranking events".
Whether people believe it should be a ranking event or not, the facts will show that O'Donnell is a ranking event semi-finalist and the run he had earlier this year on home turf at the Shoot-Out was an enjoyable experience despite the nerves that come with it.
"You need a bit of luck in the event but there's no pressure like it. Being in Watford it was a local tournament for me and I had a lot of friends and family there supporting me, we had a laugh and a good time. It's so enjoyable but anything can happen. You're just thinking 'Do. Not. Miss' when you're in because you won't have time to make up for it. You need a bit of bottle too, to stay calm. Even 24 is a big lead in that format".
It's a format that has caused much debate since it came on to the calendar and particularly since it gained ranking status in 2017, but O'Donnell gives a very honest explanation of why this tournament should have it's place and what it provides for the players.
"Most players are in agreement that it shouldn't be ranking because of the different rules to normal events and it could cost someone their tour card at the end of the season. There is a place for it on the calendar though. There's so much pressure on tour and most of the tour are worried about something so this is a chance to go out and enjoy it and remember that snooker's a great game. Tournaments should be enjoyable to play in and you can see the players get a big buzz at the shoot-out. I see a lot of guys on tour under pressure and not looking like they're enjoying events and wins are hard to come by".
The pressure of the Shoot-Out is more of an enjoyable pressure for the players. The pressure O'Donnell was under in May 2017 when he was fighting for his career and then left to rely on the results of others on the final day of Q School to gain a tour card via the Order of Merit is the exact opposite.
"That Saturday was one of the worst days of my life. I was looking at the final round matches and needed two out of three games to go my way. I had a slice of toast in the morning but other than that I was too nervous to eat anything until it was all over. I needed Paul Davison to win against James Cahill and Paul had already qualified (via the order of merit). He deserves a lot of credit for still trying in that match, especially after going 2-0 down in a race to four. I still owe Paul Davison a drink for winning his game. It was a sliding doors moment because I probably would've got a job otherwise. Q School is a horrible place to be and I wouldn't wish it on any player and afterwards I said to myself 'You are not putting yourself in this position again for a long time'".
So far, O'Donnell is making good on the promise he made to himself, having climbed into the top 64 on the ranking list after just 18 months of his guaranteed two-year tour card. Nothing he has achieved would have been possible without the fortune he had on May 20 2017, but now is not the time to sit back, as the left-hander now wants to kick on further.
"My first target is to win a match in York!! I'd love to get back to Berlin for the German Masters. I qualified in my first year on tour but haven't done since and it's a great event. Getting to the Crucible is another big goal. It sounds silly but I also just want to finish as high as possible in the rankings. To get in the top 48 would be a nice target. It's not easy to win matches but I'm confident and my game is in great shape. I'd love to get to a semi-final or final now having had the two quarter-finals but I also might not reach another quarter-final all season. My main goal is to keep improving. It takes a lot of hard work but it's worth it".
His top 48 target is already looking good, as he currently lies 40th on the provisional end-of-season ranking list. Now he has found his groove on tour though there could be plenty more to come from Martin O'Donnell and I would like to wish him all the best as he starts his UK Championship campaign against Xu Si on Tuesday 27 November at 2.30pm.
Sunday, 25 November 2018
Saturday, 24 November 2018
Fantasy Snooker Update: Northern Ireland points and UK Championship info
After Judd Trump's success at the Northern Ireland Open there have been a few slight changes in the Fantasy Snooker table prior to the season's first double points event, the UK Championship, where the deadline for picks is 2.30pm on Tuesday.
Defending Fantasy Snooker champion Kellie Barker is still on top of the table, but moves have been made by TungstenDarts who has picked a winner and two finalists from the last three events, while Daz Muckian has had the winner of the last two events to move up to second spot.
Here is how the table stands after events in Belfast:
Kellie Barker 495
Daz Muckian 471
Tungsten Darts 453
Ryan Duckett 450
Matt Butler 439
Rob Chipp 437
LTD Syndicate 436
Daniela Reich 414
Phil Mudd 403
Phil Robinson 400
Stephen McCabe 397
Rob Francis 393
The Cue View 391
Andy (APB147) 373
Cluster of Reds 373
Voihelevettisua 372
Dani M (esnukero) 369
Anatole Compton 367
Shaun Hunt 365
Steven Bunn 364
Munraj Pal 360
Andrew Devonshire 354
Martin Pearlman 351
Square Sausage 346
Chris Watts 335
FAM147 324
Kim Kristensen 316
Alex Abrahams 309
Markus 307
Debbie Dymott 304
Anthony (antow73) 279
Kelvin Platten 231
Pete Tscherewik 226
Daniel Gavin 216
Don't forget the deadline for the two picks for the UK Championship is Tuesday 27 November at 2.30pm before the first set of last 128 matches gets underway in York. Good luck to all the players ahead of this huge event.
Defending Fantasy Snooker champion Kellie Barker is still on top of the table, but moves have been made by TungstenDarts who has picked a winner and two finalists from the last three events, while Daz Muckian has had the winner of the last two events to move up to second spot.
Here is how the table stands after events in Belfast:
Kellie Barker 495
Daz Muckian 471
Tungsten Darts 453
Ryan Duckett 450
Matt Butler 439
Rob Chipp 437
LTD Syndicate 436
Daniela Reich 414
Phil Mudd 403
Phil Robinson 400
Stephen McCabe 397
Rob Francis 393
The Cue View 391
Andy (APB147) 373
Cluster of Reds 373
Voihelevettisua 372
Dani M (esnukero) 369
Anatole Compton 367
Shaun Hunt 365
Steven Bunn 364
Munraj Pal 360
Andrew Devonshire 354
Martin Pearlman 351
Square Sausage 346
Chris Watts 335
FAM147 324
Kim Kristensen 316
Alex Abrahams 309
Markus 307
Debbie Dymott 304
Anthony (antow73) 279
Kelvin Platten 231
Pete Tscherewik 226
Daniel Gavin 216
As aggressive as some players may want to be with their selections for the first double points event of the season, please remember that you can only select a certain player three times over the course of the season. The following is a warnings list for each participant of players they have already picked twice or more:
Kellie Barker: Ding x2, Carter x2, Higgins x2
TungstenDarts: Lisowski x2, Trump x2, O’Sullivan x2
Ryan Duckett: Selby x2, Hawkins x2
Rob Chipp: Ding x2, Robertson x2, Bingham x2, Lisowski x2,
Allen x2
Daniela Reich: N. Robertson x2, M. Williams x2, Brecel x2,
Allen x2
LTD Syndicate: Murphy x2, Carter x2
Phil Mudd: Lisowski x2, O’Sullivan x2
Phil Robinson: O’Sullivan x2, Allen x2
Stephen McCabe: Ding x2
Andy (APB147): Allen x2
FAM147: N. Robertson x2, Allen x2
Daz Muckian: Brecel x3, O’Sullivan x2
Dani M (esnukero): Bingham x2, Trump x2, Allen x2
Steven Bunn: Walden x2, Bingham x2,
Rob Francis: Hawkins x2, Williams x2, O’Sullivan x2, Allen
x3
Matt Butler: Hawkins x2, Allen x2, Ding x2, Day x2
The Cue View: Trump x2
Shaun Hunt: Allen x2
Voihelevettisua: K.Wilson x2, Trump x2, O’Sullivan x2
Munraj Pal: Trump x2, Allen x2
Square Sausage: Allen x2, Hawkins x2
Andrew Devonshire: Trump x3, N. Robertson x3, Hawkins x2
Martin Pearlman: O’Sullivan x2
Chris Watts: Hawkins x2, Selby x2, Allen x2
Kim Kristensen: Ding x2, Trump x2
Markus: Trump x2, Selby x2, O’Sullivan x2, Allen x2
Debbie Dymott: Allen x2, Hawkins x2, Trump x2
Alex Abrahams: Hawkins x2, Ding x2
Anthony (antow73): K. Wilson x2, Day x2, Hawkins x2
Daniel Gavin: Hawkins x2, Williams x2, Lisowski x2
Pete Tscherewik: Robertson x2
Kevin Platten: K. Wilson x2, Williams x2, Robertson x2
David Lilley Interview
Being the number one player on the Q School order of merit is a strange honour to have. Falling agonisingly short of gaining a place on the main tour, but likely to compete in most of the season's ranking events due to non-entries.
This season the man with that curious 'honour' is David Lilley and so far he has made the most of it. Coming into the UK Championships he has won his last 128 tie in five of the six complete ranking tournaments that he has entered.
If he adds another victory to the list in York, Lilley will have caused a major upset by defeating 2011 UK champion and recent Northern Ireland Open winner Judd Trump in what is Lilley's first ever appearance at the UK Championships.
"This may sound a little over the top but it's kind of like a dream come true. I never thought I would get the chance to compete in any professional events a few years ago, never mind the UK Championship, as I thought I'd left it too late, but hard work has paid off and I can't wait to play on Tuesday night", Lilley exclaims.
His first appearance at the UK Championship brings with it the honour of playing in the main arena at the York Barbican on one of the two main tables against one of the game's greats so it's a world of new opportunities for Lilley.
"It's my first time, I've never even been in the York Barbican before so there are new experiences all round".
Not only that but one of Lilley's leading memories from recent York UK Championships features his opponent Trump in one of the classic finals back in 2014.
"The 2014 final between Trump and Ronnie O'Sullivan that finished 10-9. It was a big fightback from Trump before losing the decider. There was some crazy potting and I love it when it goes close and twitchy. I much prefer the twitchy play than the all the centuries and big breaks flying in".
While he is a well-known name in the game and among die-hard fans who follow every snooker event and the amateur scene, the UK Championships offer Lilley and other lesser known players a chance to really make a name for themselves on a bigger stage.
"For me personally the BBC events are all huge. Prize money amount doesn't always dictate the “size” or “importance” of the event. Doing well in BBC events raises your profile especially in the UK. The crowd sizes also appear much bigger and more passionate which adds more to the twitchy play".
With only 127 players currently holding tour cards (with three of those players currently suspended) Lilley will be able to enter any event he wishes throughout the remainder of the season, despite not actually having professional status, but the chance to play and the experience that comes with that is something the 43-year-old has relished.
"I've loved it. I wish I was on the main tour and I'm working hard this year to try and achieve that for the next two seasons. I will be entering every event I can apart from those that clash with the European Amateur Championship (which is in Israel in 2019) or the WSF Championship (in Dubai) both of which the winner gets a tour card. The pro and amateur calendars clash quite a bit so I need to take a close look to ensure I don't miss out on any opportunities".
As mentioned above Lilley has certainly made the most of the opportunities given to him so far. He has won just under 50% of his games played so far this season, with a best finish of the the last 32 of the International Championship. In all he has picked up £19,000 and is 56th on the money list for this season so far, level with Anthony McGill and just behind Shaun Murphy.
"There have been some ups and downs when looking at individual games but on the whole I'm delighted with the season to date. My goals are to achieve a tour card for the 2019/2020 seasons either by achieving that through the one year list (if World Snooker retain that as a qualifying criteria) or via the international events. There a few different ways, I've just got to keep focused on the goal".
In that period Lilley has completed victories over former International Champion Ricky Walden and Ben Woollaston in the International recently, on top of a win over Tom Ford in the English Open, but he insists that every win is pleasing in it's own right.
"I honestly don't have a stand out win. I played well in all of those games and I've deserved the wins. It’s so difficult to get over the line when the games are so close and I’ve been good, at times, in closing out games. That's what I think I've been happy with the most".
The possible catalyst for some of this form may have come as early as two years previously, when Lilley competed at the 2016 Indian Open. In that tournament he picked up wins over Tian Pengfei, Mike Dunn, Mark Williams and Robert Milkins to make the quarter-finals before losing narrowly to Shaun Murphy.
"Financially it was huge, I received £9,000 which basically paid off the Q School debts (that were put on a credit card) for that preceding season, and it also contributed to my snooker expenses over the last 18 months. I've always been quite a confident person and I've tried not to look at who my opponent is and what their reputation is. I remember at the time just telling myself to play the table and not the person. Getting to the quarter-finals in my first ever pro competition gave me so much belief and confidence and I keep going back to those memories when I've got a pro qualifier coming up".
From there he was so close to taking the next step and earning his pro card at this summer's Qualifying School in Burton. In the three events he lost in the penultimate round each time, first to Sam Craigie, then Micthell Mann (both of whom had just dropped off the tour) and then to Simon Bedford, but Lilley believes it did not take much getting over.
"It didn't hurt too much as I thought I would still get through (until the last event of course). It took me about an hour to get over it as I try not dwell on things. I think I went for a beer with my wife after the drive home from Burton, and tried to think of the positives, such as being number 1 on the order of merit and getting the chance to compete in some events. I didn't beat myself up too much".
Losing to two players that had just dropped off the tour raises the question once more of how much of an advantage players in that situation have over other amateurs, because of the familiarity with the tables and playing conditions, a point which Lilley backs up.
"This year I've learned that playing and competing regularly on the STAR tables is a massive advantage to those that aren’t. That's the biggest difference I think. From an ability perspective I don't think there is that big of a gap between those dropping off and those trying to get on. 'Know how', self belief and adapting to the pressure situations is what makes the difference".
The next target for Lilley though is to make his experiences of playing on Star tables this season count by securing his tour card before or during the 2019 Q School.
"I'd like to think so but I'm hoping not to have to endure Q School. I'll be trying my socks off to achieve a tour card beforehand but if I have to go through Q School again then so be it. Its a tough gig and not an easy place to compete. The warm weather last year made the playing conditions really difficult".
Lilley has also filled the gaps between pro competitions by playing in anything he can and that has included some appearances on the newly formed Challenge Tour, which as well as offering two tour cards after the last of 10 events this season, also provides valuable playing time to non-tour players, in an attempt to bridge the gap between the pro and amateur circuits.
"From a competing perspective I don't think it can bridge the gap as the Challenge Tour is still amateurs against amateurs just like the Q School. There is a massive gap when you play on the main tour there's no doubt about it, but at the moment the only way to bridge the gap is to learn on the job when you’re on the main tour and hopefully try to get a few wins early to get the confidence up. Then take it from there".
From the Challenge Tour events that Lilley has been involved in, he has managed to pick up one of the titles and the £2,000 first prize that goes with each event. With victories over ex-tour pros in Mitchell Mann and Sydney Wilson over the quarter and semi-finals, before a victory in the final against Brandon Sargeant (who has made at least the semi-finals in five of the seven CT events this season) Lilley claimed victory in the fifth event of the Challenge Tour run.
"I was delighted with the win and I’m aiming to try and win each of the last three events to ensure I get automatic tour qualification. It's not unachievable but it will be difficult to win all three. I'm kicking myself I missed three events earlier in the season".
Another tour which Lilley is a part of is the English Amateur tour, where he won the first event in the EA season, before finishing as a runner-up in the second to Simon Bedford. With criticism in the game that English amateur players are not coming through at the same rate as their Chinese counterparts, it was interesting to get Lilley's insider opinion.
"I haven't really heard statements like this but I do see lots of young men and women getting coaching in the local clubs which is great to see. The EASB are doing their best to encourage grass roots snooker which is there for all to see too. There are coaching clubs all over the UK but I don't think I could name any young players as I'm not that close to it. From a challenge tour perspective I think Brandon Sargeant is a young lad doing well".
Finally, Lilley has outlined his goals for the rest of the season and his masterplan to finally gain a full professional tour card.
"My plans are to continue to practice and compete in every event I can. My target is to achieve a tour card whether that be via an international comp (European Championships or the WSF Championship), the Challenge Tour, by my performances on main tour or Q School. One last thing I’d like to mention are my sponsors GoSkippy Insurance and Gateshead Snooker Centre. I wouldn't be able to compete in these events without their support and I want to say a big thanks to them for helping me out and giving me this opportunity".
I'd like to wish David all the best for his upcoming match against Judd Trump in the last 128 of the UK Championship which is coming up on Tuesday November 27 at 7.30pm UK time and will be available to watch live on the Eurosport Player, as Lilley aims to pull off an upset.
This season the man with that curious 'honour' is David Lilley and so far he has made the most of it. Coming into the UK Championships he has won his last 128 tie in five of the six complete ranking tournaments that he has entered.
If he adds another victory to the list in York, Lilley will have caused a major upset by defeating 2011 UK champion and recent Northern Ireland Open winner Judd Trump in what is Lilley's first ever appearance at the UK Championships.
"This may sound a little over the top but it's kind of like a dream come true. I never thought I would get the chance to compete in any professional events a few years ago, never mind the UK Championship, as I thought I'd left it too late, but hard work has paid off and I can't wait to play on Tuesday night", Lilley exclaims.
His first appearance at the UK Championship brings with it the honour of playing in the main arena at the York Barbican on one of the two main tables against one of the game's greats so it's a world of new opportunities for Lilley.
"It's my first time, I've never even been in the York Barbican before so there are new experiences all round".
Not only that but one of Lilley's leading memories from recent York UK Championships features his opponent Trump in one of the classic finals back in 2014.
"The 2014 final between Trump and Ronnie O'Sullivan that finished 10-9. It was a big fightback from Trump before losing the decider. There was some crazy potting and I love it when it goes close and twitchy. I much prefer the twitchy play than the all the centuries and big breaks flying in".
While he is a well-known name in the game and among die-hard fans who follow every snooker event and the amateur scene, the UK Championships offer Lilley and other lesser known players a chance to really make a name for themselves on a bigger stage.
"For me personally the BBC events are all huge. Prize money amount doesn't always dictate the “size” or “importance” of the event. Doing well in BBC events raises your profile especially in the UK. The crowd sizes also appear much bigger and more passionate which adds more to the twitchy play".
With only 127 players currently holding tour cards (with three of those players currently suspended) Lilley will be able to enter any event he wishes throughout the remainder of the season, despite not actually having professional status, but the chance to play and the experience that comes with that is something the 43-year-old has relished.
"I've loved it. I wish I was on the main tour and I'm working hard this year to try and achieve that for the next two seasons. I will be entering every event I can apart from those that clash with the European Amateur Championship (which is in Israel in 2019) or the WSF Championship (in Dubai) both of which the winner gets a tour card. The pro and amateur calendars clash quite a bit so I need to take a close look to ensure I don't miss out on any opportunities".
As mentioned above Lilley has certainly made the most of the opportunities given to him so far. He has won just under 50% of his games played so far this season, with a best finish of the the last 32 of the International Championship. In all he has picked up £19,000 and is 56th on the money list for this season so far, level with Anthony McGill and just behind Shaun Murphy.
"There have been some ups and downs when looking at individual games but on the whole I'm delighted with the season to date. My goals are to achieve a tour card for the 2019/2020 seasons either by achieving that through the one year list (if World Snooker retain that as a qualifying criteria) or via the international events. There a few different ways, I've just got to keep focused on the goal".
In that period Lilley has completed victories over former International Champion Ricky Walden and Ben Woollaston in the International recently, on top of a win over Tom Ford in the English Open, but he insists that every win is pleasing in it's own right.
"I honestly don't have a stand out win. I played well in all of those games and I've deserved the wins. It’s so difficult to get over the line when the games are so close and I’ve been good, at times, in closing out games. That's what I think I've been happy with the most".
The possible catalyst for some of this form may have come as early as two years previously, when Lilley competed at the 2016 Indian Open. In that tournament he picked up wins over Tian Pengfei, Mike Dunn, Mark Williams and Robert Milkins to make the quarter-finals before losing narrowly to Shaun Murphy.
"Financially it was huge, I received £9,000 which basically paid off the Q School debts (that were put on a credit card) for that preceding season, and it also contributed to my snooker expenses over the last 18 months. I've always been quite a confident person and I've tried not to look at who my opponent is and what their reputation is. I remember at the time just telling myself to play the table and not the person. Getting to the quarter-finals in my first ever pro competition gave me so much belief and confidence and I keep going back to those memories when I've got a pro qualifier coming up".
From there he was so close to taking the next step and earning his pro card at this summer's Qualifying School in Burton. In the three events he lost in the penultimate round each time, first to Sam Craigie, then Micthell Mann (both of whom had just dropped off the tour) and then to Simon Bedford, but Lilley believes it did not take much getting over.
"It didn't hurt too much as I thought I would still get through (until the last event of course). It took me about an hour to get over it as I try not dwell on things. I think I went for a beer with my wife after the drive home from Burton, and tried to think of the positives, such as being number 1 on the order of merit and getting the chance to compete in some events. I didn't beat myself up too much".
Losing to two players that had just dropped off the tour raises the question once more of how much of an advantage players in that situation have over other amateurs, because of the familiarity with the tables and playing conditions, a point which Lilley backs up.
"This year I've learned that playing and competing regularly on the STAR tables is a massive advantage to those that aren’t. That's the biggest difference I think. From an ability perspective I don't think there is that big of a gap between those dropping off and those trying to get on. 'Know how', self belief and adapting to the pressure situations is what makes the difference".
The next target for Lilley though is to make his experiences of playing on Star tables this season count by securing his tour card before or during the 2019 Q School.
"I'd like to think so but I'm hoping not to have to endure Q School. I'll be trying my socks off to achieve a tour card beforehand but if I have to go through Q School again then so be it. Its a tough gig and not an easy place to compete. The warm weather last year made the playing conditions really difficult".
Lilley has also filled the gaps between pro competitions by playing in anything he can and that has included some appearances on the newly formed Challenge Tour, which as well as offering two tour cards after the last of 10 events this season, also provides valuable playing time to non-tour players, in an attempt to bridge the gap between the pro and amateur circuits.
"From a competing perspective I don't think it can bridge the gap as the Challenge Tour is still amateurs against amateurs just like the Q School. There is a massive gap when you play on the main tour there's no doubt about it, but at the moment the only way to bridge the gap is to learn on the job when you’re on the main tour and hopefully try to get a few wins early to get the confidence up. Then take it from there".
From the Challenge Tour events that Lilley has been involved in, he has managed to pick up one of the titles and the £2,000 first prize that goes with each event. With victories over ex-tour pros in Mitchell Mann and Sydney Wilson over the quarter and semi-finals, before a victory in the final against Brandon Sargeant (who has made at least the semi-finals in five of the seven CT events this season) Lilley claimed victory in the fifth event of the Challenge Tour run.
"I was delighted with the win and I’m aiming to try and win each of the last three events to ensure I get automatic tour qualification. It's not unachievable but it will be difficult to win all three. I'm kicking myself I missed three events earlier in the season".
Another tour which Lilley is a part of is the English Amateur tour, where he won the first event in the EA season, before finishing as a runner-up in the second to Simon Bedford. With criticism in the game that English amateur players are not coming through at the same rate as their Chinese counterparts, it was interesting to get Lilley's insider opinion.
"I haven't really heard statements like this but I do see lots of young men and women getting coaching in the local clubs which is great to see. The EASB are doing their best to encourage grass roots snooker which is there for all to see too. There are coaching clubs all over the UK but I don't think I could name any young players as I'm not that close to it. From a challenge tour perspective I think Brandon Sargeant is a young lad doing well".
Finally, Lilley has outlined his goals for the rest of the season and his masterplan to finally gain a full professional tour card.
"My plans are to continue to practice and compete in every event I can. My target is to achieve a tour card whether that be via an international comp (European Championships or the WSF Championship), the Challenge Tour, by my performances on main tour or Q School. One last thing I’d like to mention are my sponsors GoSkippy Insurance and Gateshead Snooker Centre. I wouldn't be able to compete in these events without their support and I want to say a big thanks to them for helping me out and giving me this opportunity".
I'd like to wish David all the best for his upcoming match against Judd Trump in the last 128 of the UK Championship which is coming up on Tuesday November 27 at 7.30pm UK time and will be available to watch live on the Eurosport Player, as Lilley aims to pull off an upset.
Thursday, 15 November 2018
Ronnie O'Sullivan continues strong form to make Northern Ireland quarter-finals
Ronnie O'Sullivan has continued his good run of form to breeze into the quarter-finals of the Northern Ireland Open after two comfortable wins on day four in Belfast.
First in the afternoon's last 32 action he whitewashed Tom Ford with breaks of 51, 62 and 79 though Ford had his chances in that contest and O'Sullivan was not at his complete best. That set up a last 16 tie in the evening with Zhou Yuelong, who had beaten Michael Holt on a re-spotted black in the deciding frame of their last 32 encounter.
Zhou started well by taking the opening frame but would only score another two points in the next three frames as O'Sullivan hit top form. A run of 83 in the second frame was followed by an excellent 132 in the fourth to put him 3-1 ahead. Zhou had chances in the fifth to extend the match, but O'Sullivan won the match after an extremely brave and well-executed pot on the black into the right middle pocket.
Also through to the last eight is the world number one Mark Selby. The Englishman was an easy 4-0 winner in the last 32 against Pakistan's Hamza Akbar who offered little resistance to Selby's strong form. Selby opened up with a break of 86 before making his first century of the match, a 101, in frame two. Akbar had a decent chance in the third but a break of 67 from Selby put him within one of a victory that he would soon seal courtesy of an excellent 122 break.
That put him into a last 16 tie with Martin O'Donnell who was looking for his third quarter-final of the season. O'Donnell came from snookers required to win the first frame on a re-spotted black, though Selby took the next three frames to move 3-1 ahead with contributions of 63, 66 and 81. O'Donnell kept himself in the tie by winning the fifth frame but a closing run of 57 from Selby ensured his place in the quarter-finals.
There were two big name casualties on the day as Neil Robertson and Ali Carter bowed out. Robertson was unable to curb his trait of slow starts and failed to recover on this occasion, falling 4-0 in the last 32 to Li Hang who would ultimately then lose 4-1 to Peter Ebdon, who also overcame English Open runner-up Mark Davis 4-1 in the last 32 on the way to booking his quarter-final place.
Ebdon will now play Eden Sharav who backed up his 4-2 win over Joe Swail, a win that ended the hopes of the final home player left in the tournament, by defeating Ali Carter in a deciding frame. Carter had beaten Xiao Guodong in the last 32 and looked set for a spot in the quarters when he took a 3-1 lead on Sharav. The sixth frame proved a big blow for Carter after he opened up with a break of 56, before Sharav cleared with 67 to force the decider which he would end up winning comfortably.
Judd Trump saw off two strong names to book his place in the quarter-finals on Friday. Trump opened the day with a whitewash win over his good friend Jack Lisowski who was unable to bring the sort of form that took him to the semi-finals of the recent International Championship, while Trump had high breaks of 57 and 112 in the contest.
He got a much greater fight from Belgium's Luca Brecel, but ultimately the former China Championship winner was unable to reach his first ranking event quarter-final of 2018. Trump opened with a break of 71 but was soon 2-1 down after Brecel cleared to win the second on the black and followed that with a fine 82 in the third. From there though, Brecel would fail to trouble the scorers as Trump registered 316 unanswered points including a break of 115 as well as two 51 breaks to clinch a 4-2 win.
Trump will now face Ryan Day, the man who put him out of the English Open at the last 16 stage. Day was very fortunate to overcome Robin Hull in the last 32 on Thursday morning. Hull won each of the first, third and fifth frames to ensure Day would not lead at any stage until winning the deciding frame. After missing a simple red on virtually match ball, Day left Hull the chance to clear but he snookered himself on the final red which would end up costing him the match. Things were much more comfortable in the evening as the Welshman whitewashed Andrew Higginson compiling breaks of 62, 63, 69 and 73 in the process.
The final two quarter-finalists are Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, who lost just one frame from his matches against Chris Totten and Robbie Williams, making breaks of 65, 74 and a high break tying 145 against Totten, before a sublime spell of form against Williams that included breaks of 138, 104, 99 and 65 in a match that lasted just 37 minutes. David Gilbert is the other after defeating Matthew Stevens 4-2 in the last 32 prior to a 4-0 whitewash of Lu Ning.
Last 32 results:
Ali Carter 4-2 Xiao Guodong
Eden Sharav 4-2 Joe Swail
Li Hang 4-0 Neil Robertson
Peter Ebdon 4-1 Mark Davis
Judd Trump 4-0 Jack Lisowski
Luca Brecel 4-2 Gary Wilson
Ryan Day 4-3 Robin Hull
Andrew Higginson 4-2 Billy Castle
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-0 Tom Ford
Zhou Yuelong 4-3 Michael Holt
Lu Ning 4-2 Hammad Miah
David Gilbert 4-2 Matthew Stevens
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-1 Chris Totten
Robbie Williams 4-1 Sanderson Lam
Martin O'Donnell 4-1 Scott Donaldson
Mark Selby 4-0 Hamza Akbar
Last 16 results:
Eden Sharav 4-3 Ali Carter
Peter Ebdon 4-1 Li Hang
Judd Trump 4-2 Luca Brecel
Ryan Day 4-0 Andrew Higginson
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-1 Zhou Yuelong
David Gilbert 4-0 Lu Ning
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-0 Robbie Williams
Mark Selby 4-2 Martin O'Donnell
Quarter-Final draw: (Picks in bold)
Peter Ebdon Vs Eden Sharav
Judd Trump Vs Ryan Day
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs David Gilbert
Mark Selby Vs Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
The first quarter-final on Friday will be that of Mark Selby against Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in what should be a great match. Selby looks to have really hit his stride this week with some high scoring and pretty comfortable victories. So far he has beaten Anthony Hamilton, Jimmy Robertson, Hamza Akbar and Martin O'Donnell for the loss of just three frames and he's cueing so sweetly that the possibility of a Selby Vs O'Sullivan semi-final is of great appeal. Thepchiaya will have something to say about that though. The Thai has only lost one frame all week in victories over Robert Milkins, Ross Muir, Chris Totten and Robbie Williams. He has the joint high break of 145, and won a match in 37 minutes with two further centuries and a break of 99 included in there. He showed some signs of this form in the English Open with a maximum break early in the week before losing a tight last 32 clash against Stuart Bingham and I expect him to give Selby as tight a game in this one.
Next up will be Judd Trump and Ryan Day. These two met recently at the English Open and Day was in sublime form in winning that one but would go on to lose in the quarter-finals, just as he had done at the European Masters, so he will be looking to put those defeats behind him and march on here. Day has survived two massive scares this week, coming from behind to beat Zhang Anda in the last 64 and getting a huge slice of luck against Robin Hull to win that one in a decider. Trump meanwhile has had some tough opponents but has still only dropped four frames in his four matches and looks to have been inspired by some of the comments made about him after his loss to Kyren Wilson in the Champion of Champions. It is tough to say that someone who has won as much as Trump already has, has something to prove, but comparisons between him and Wilson have been made and comments in his one of his post-match interviews this week would lead you to believe that he thinks he is miles better than Wilson and he is determined to show that in Belfast.
Then in the evening, Ronnie O'Sullivan will face his toughest match of the week so far against David Gilbert. O'Sullivan has had a simple passage to the quarter-finals this week, losing just two frames in his matches against Soheil Vahedi, Mei Xiwen, Tom Ford and Zhou Yuelong and at times he has not even been that close to his best. That should have helped him to conserve a bit of energy ahead of the final push this weekend, having just won the Champion of Champions in Coventry. Gilbert meanwhile has overcome Fergal O'Brien, Chen Zifan, Matthew Stevens and Lu Ning as he looks to force himself into contention for a Masters spot. There would be no better way of signalling his Masters credentials by beating O'Sullivan and it is worth remembering that Gilbert pushed him hard at the Crucible in 2016, though he has never beaten the Rocket thus far in his career. After his run to the World Open final he should have more confidence to make a win here possible, but O'Sullivan still has a couple of unused gears that he could move up into if Gilbert starts to push him.
The final quarter-final, that will be played on table two in the evening and broadcast solely on the Eurosport Player, features Eden Sharav and Peter Ebdon. This will be the first meeting between these two players and the first ranking quarter-final in Sharav's career so a big day lies ahead for him. Ebdon meanwhile is showing similar form to the Paul Hunter Classic at the end of August where he reached the final. Sharav is in good form too and was only denied by O'Sullivan at the last 16 stage of the English Open and has beaten the likes of Carter and Michael White this week as well as defeating Stuart Bingham in the International Championship. Ebdon though has scored really well this week also and has defeated Lee Walker (who overcame Kyren Wilson), English Open runner-up Mark Davis and Li Hang (who had whitewashed Neil Robertson earlier in the day). It is great to see him still challenging at the latter stages of competitions at the age of 48 and this extra bit of experience in the latter stages of tournaments could be a decisive factor, particularly if Sharav shows any early nerves.
All of the quarter-final matches will be played over the best-of-9 frames, with places in the best-of-11 semi-finals up for grabs.
First in the afternoon's last 32 action he whitewashed Tom Ford with breaks of 51, 62 and 79 though Ford had his chances in that contest and O'Sullivan was not at his complete best. That set up a last 16 tie in the evening with Zhou Yuelong, who had beaten Michael Holt on a re-spotted black in the deciding frame of their last 32 encounter.
Zhou started well by taking the opening frame but would only score another two points in the next three frames as O'Sullivan hit top form. A run of 83 in the second frame was followed by an excellent 132 in the fourth to put him 3-1 ahead. Zhou had chances in the fifth to extend the match, but O'Sullivan won the match after an extremely brave and well-executed pot on the black into the right middle pocket.
Also through to the last eight is the world number one Mark Selby. The Englishman was an easy 4-0 winner in the last 32 against Pakistan's Hamza Akbar who offered little resistance to Selby's strong form. Selby opened up with a break of 86 before making his first century of the match, a 101, in frame two. Akbar had a decent chance in the third but a break of 67 from Selby put him within one of a victory that he would soon seal courtesy of an excellent 122 break.
That put him into a last 16 tie with Martin O'Donnell who was looking for his third quarter-final of the season. O'Donnell came from snookers required to win the first frame on a re-spotted black, though Selby took the next three frames to move 3-1 ahead with contributions of 63, 66 and 81. O'Donnell kept himself in the tie by winning the fifth frame but a closing run of 57 from Selby ensured his place in the quarter-finals.
There were two big name casualties on the day as Neil Robertson and Ali Carter bowed out. Robertson was unable to curb his trait of slow starts and failed to recover on this occasion, falling 4-0 in the last 32 to Li Hang who would ultimately then lose 4-1 to Peter Ebdon, who also overcame English Open runner-up Mark Davis 4-1 in the last 32 on the way to booking his quarter-final place.
Ebdon will now play Eden Sharav who backed up his 4-2 win over Joe Swail, a win that ended the hopes of the final home player left in the tournament, by defeating Ali Carter in a deciding frame. Carter had beaten Xiao Guodong in the last 32 and looked set for a spot in the quarters when he took a 3-1 lead on Sharav. The sixth frame proved a big blow for Carter after he opened up with a break of 56, before Sharav cleared with 67 to force the decider which he would end up winning comfortably.
Judd Trump saw off two strong names to book his place in the quarter-finals on Friday. Trump opened the day with a whitewash win over his good friend Jack Lisowski who was unable to bring the sort of form that took him to the semi-finals of the recent International Championship, while Trump had high breaks of 57 and 112 in the contest.
He got a much greater fight from Belgium's Luca Brecel, but ultimately the former China Championship winner was unable to reach his first ranking event quarter-final of 2018. Trump opened with a break of 71 but was soon 2-1 down after Brecel cleared to win the second on the black and followed that with a fine 82 in the third. From there though, Brecel would fail to trouble the scorers as Trump registered 316 unanswered points including a break of 115 as well as two 51 breaks to clinch a 4-2 win.
Trump will now face Ryan Day, the man who put him out of the English Open at the last 16 stage. Day was very fortunate to overcome Robin Hull in the last 32 on Thursday morning. Hull won each of the first, third and fifth frames to ensure Day would not lead at any stage until winning the deciding frame. After missing a simple red on virtually match ball, Day left Hull the chance to clear but he snookered himself on the final red which would end up costing him the match. Things were much more comfortable in the evening as the Welshman whitewashed Andrew Higginson compiling breaks of 62, 63, 69 and 73 in the process.
The final two quarter-finalists are Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, who lost just one frame from his matches against Chris Totten and Robbie Williams, making breaks of 65, 74 and a high break tying 145 against Totten, before a sublime spell of form against Williams that included breaks of 138, 104, 99 and 65 in a match that lasted just 37 minutes. David Gilbert is the other after defeating Matthew Stevens 4-2 in the last 32 prior to a 4-0 whitewash of Lu Ning.
Last 32 results:
Ali Carter 4-2 Xiao Guodong
Eden Sharav 4-2 Joe Swail
Li Hang 4-0 Neil Robertson
Peter Ebdon 4-1 Mark Davis
Judd Trump 4-0 Jack Lisowski
Luca Brecel 4-2 Gary Wilson
Ryan Day 4-3 Robin Hull
Andrew Higginson 4-2 Billy Castle
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-0 Tom Ford
Zhou Yuelong 4-3 Michael Holt
Lu Ning 4-2 Hammad Miah
David Gilbert 4-2 Matthew Stevens
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-1 Chris Totten
Robbie Williams 4-1 Sanderson Lam
Martin O'Donnell 4-1 Scott Donaldson
Mark Selby 4-0 Hamza Akbar
Last 16 results:
Eden Sharav 4-3 Ali Carter
Peter Ebdon 4-1 Li Hang
Judd Trump 4-2 Luca Brecel
Ryan Day 4-0 Andrew Higginson
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-1 Zhou Yuelong
David Gilbert 4-0 Lu Ning
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-0 Robbie Williams
Mark Selby 4-2 Martin O'Donnell
Quarter-Final draw: (Picks in bold)
Peter Ebdon Vs Eden Sharav
Judd Trump Vs Ryan Day
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs David Gilbert
Mark Selby Vs Thepchaiya Un-Nooh
The first quarter-final on Friday will be that of Mark Selby against Thepchaiya Un-Nooh in what should be a great match. Selby looks to have really hit his stride this week with some high scoring and pretty comfortable victories. So far he has beaten Anthony Hamilton, Jimmy Robertson, Hamza Akbar and Martin O'Donnell for the loss of just three frames and he's cueing so sweetly that the possibility of a Selby Vs O'Sullivan semi-final is of great appeal. Thepchiaya will have something to say about that though. The Thai has only lost one frame all week in victories over Robert Milkins, Ross Muir, Chris Totten and Robbie Williams. He has the joint high break of 145, and won a match in 37 minutes with two further centuries and a break of 99 included in there. He showed some signs of this form in the English Open with a maximum break early in the week before losing a tight last 32 clash against Stuart Bingham and I expect him to give Selby as tight a game in this one.
Next up will be Judd Trump and Ryan Day. These two met recently at the English Open and Day was in sublime form in winning that one but would go on to lose in the quarter-finals, just as he had done at the European Masters, so he will be looking to put those defeats behind him and march on here. Day has survived two massive scares this week, coming from behind to beat Zhang Anda in the last 64 and getting a huge slice of luck against Robin Hull to win that one in a decider. Trump meanwhile has had some tough opponents but has still only dropped four frames in his four matches and looks to have been inspired by some of the comments made about him after his loss to Kyren Wilson in the Champion of Champions. It is tough to say that someone who has won as much as Trump already has, has something to prove, but comparisons between him and Wilson have been made and comments in his one of his post-match interviews this week would lead you to believe that he thinks he is miles better than Wilson and he is determined to show that in Belfast.
Then in the evening, Ronnie O'Sullivan will face his toughest match of the week so far against David Gilbert. O'Sullivan has had a simple passage to the quarter-finals this week, losing just two frames in his matches against Soheil Vahedi, Mei Xiwen, Tom Ford and Zhou Yuelong and at times he has not even been that close to his best. That should have helped him to conserve a bit of energy ahead of the final push this weekend, having just won the Champion of Champions in Coventry. Gilbert meanwhile has overcome Fergal O'Brien, Chen Zifan, Matthew Stevens and Lu Ning as he looks to force himself into contention for a Masters spot. There would be no better way of signalling his Masters credentials by beating O'Sullivan and it is worth remembering that Gilbert pushed him hard at the Crucible in 2016, though he has never beaten the Rocket thus far in his career. After his run to the World Open final he should have more confidence to make a win here possible, but O'Sullivan still has a couple of unused gears that he could move up into if Gilbert starts to push him.
The final quarter-final, that will be played on table two in the evening and broadcast solely on the Eurosport Player, features Eden Sharav and Peter Ebdon. This will be the first meeting between these two players and the first ranking quarter-final in Sharav's career so a big day lies ahead for him. Ebdon meanwhile is showing similar form to the Paul Hunter Classic at the end of August where he reached the final. Sharav is in good form too and was only denied by O'Sullivan at the last 16 stage of the English Open and has beaten the likes of Carter and Michael White this week as well as defeating Stuart Bingham in the International Championship. Ebdon though has scored really well this week also and has defeated Lee Walker (who overcame Kyren Wilson), English Open runner-up Mark Davis and Li Hang (who had whitewashed Neil Robertson earlier in the day). It is great to see him still challenging at the latter stages of competitions at the age of 48 and this extra bit of experience in the latter stages of tournaments could be a decisive factor, particularly if Sharav shows any early nerves.
All of the quarter-final matches will be played over the best-of-9 frames, with places in the best-of-11 semi-finals up for grabs.
Wednesday, 14 November 2018
Ali Carter defeats Mark Williams in Northern Ireland Open last 64
Defending Northern Ireland Open champion Mark Williams has been defeated at the last 64 stage in Belfast after Ali Carter came from 3-1 down to defeat Williams 4-3.
Carter is the 17th seed so the pair can count themselves unlucky to be meeting in the second round of a tournament but it seemed as though things would go the way of the World champion until he missed a simple enough red when he was in to win the match 4-1. Carter went on to win that frame and Williams never recovered as his poor form continued to end his defence early. Next up for the Welshman is the UK Championships in York.
Ronnie O'Sullivan did make it through comfortably 4-1 against Mei Xiwen. That was despite O'Sullivan looking quite erratic in parts and not looking at his best. Mei failed to take advantage though and let O'Sullivan off the hook on far too many occasions to have any chance of winning matches against players at that level.
World number one Mark Selby though was flawless in his defeat of Jimmy Robertson in the second round. The European Masters champion Robertson actually ended the 4-0 defeat with a pot success of 100% having not actually missed a ball, but also hardly being given a chance by Selby's exceptional play that saw him close the match with a pot success of 98%. Selby would compile breaks of 128, 127 and 90 in the final frames to make a big statement, especially given the amount of top players that have exited the tournament early on.
Neil Robertson was just about able to avoid an early exit for the second night running. Having come from 3-1 down to defeat Ben Woollaston in the last 128, this time he had to turn things around from 3-0 down to defeat Norway's Kurt Maflin in a final frame decider, making his one chance in the decider count with a break of 125 to complete a magnificent comeback.
Ryan Day also turned things around, coming from 3-1 down to defeat Zhang Anda 4-3 in a high scoring encounter. Zhang had made breaks of 64, 93 and 100 to go 3-1 up before back-to-back tons of 140 and 126 from Day forced the decider, which he would then win with a run of 70.
Judd Trump was on high scoring form as he whitewashed Stuart Carrington in less than an hour, opening up with a 137 before further breaks of 51, 53, 55 and a closing 69. Luca Brecel was also a 4-0 winner in his match against Ian Burns, while Jack Lisowski held on to beat Liam Highfield 4-3 having previously led 3-1 and missing match ball to win the match a frame earlier.
2016 Northern Ireland Open champion Mark King is out though as Michael Holt came from 2-0 behind to defeat King in a final frame decider, while the last remaining Northern Irish player is Joe Swail who booked his place in the last 64 with victory over Nigel Bond while Gerard Greene lost to Matthew Stevens.
Last 64 results:
Ali Carter 4-3 Mark Williams
Xiao Guodong 4-3 Akani Songsermsawad
Joe Swail 4-2 Nigel Bond
Eden Sharav 4-2 Michael White
Li Hang 4-2 Sam Craigie
Neil Robertson 4-3 Kurt Maflin
Mark Davis 4-1 Luo Honghao
Peter Ebdon 4-3 Lee Walker
Judd Trump 4-0 Stuart Carrington
Jack Lisowski 4-3 Liam Highfield
Luca Brecel 4-0 Ian Burns
Gary Wilson 4-3 Daniel Wells
Ryan Day 4-3 Zhang Anda
Robin Hull 4-1 Tian Pengfei
Andrew Higginson 4-3 Yuan Sijun
Billy Castle 4-1 Rory McLeod
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-1 Mei Xiwen
Tom Ford 4-3 Chris Wakelin
Michael Holt 4-3 Mark King
Zhou Yuelong 4-0 Kishan Hirani
Lu Ning 4-1 Alan McManus
Hammad Miah 4-0 Niu Zhuang
Matthew Stevens 4-1 Gerard Greene
David Gilbert 4-2 Chen Zifan
Chris Totten 4-3 Sam Baird
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-0 Ross Muir
Robbie Williams 4-2 Peter Lines
Sanderson Lam 4-3 Sean O'Sullivan
Scott Donaldson 4-2 David Lilley
Martin O'Donnell 4-1 Chen Feilong
Hamza Akbar 4-3 Alexander Ursenbacher
Mark Selby 4-0 Jimmy Robertson
Xiao Guodong 4-3 Akani Songsermsawad
Joe Swail 4-2 Nigel Bond
Eden Sharav 4-2 Michael White
Li Hang 4-2 Sam Craigie
Neil Robertson 4-3 Kurt Maflin
Mark Davis 4-1 Luo Honghao
Peter Ebdon 4-3 Lee Walker
Judd Trump 4-0 Stuart Carrington
Jack Lisowski 4-3 Liam Highfield
Luca Brecel 4-0 Ian Burns
Gary Wilson 4-3 Daniel Wells
Ryan Day 4-3 Zhang Anda
Robin Hull 4-1 Tian Pengfei
Andrew Higginson 4-3 Yuan Sijun
Billy Castle 4-1 Rory McLeod
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-1 Mei Xiwen
Tom Ford 4-3 Chris Wakelin
Michael Holt 4-3 Mark King
Zhou Yuelong 4-0 Kishan Hirani
Lu Ning 4-1 Alan McManus
Hammad Miah 4-0 Niu Zhuang
Matthew Stevens 4-1 Gerard Greene
David Gilbert 4-2 Chen Zifan
Chris Totten 4-3 Sam Baird
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-0 Ross Muir
Robbie Williams 4-2 Peter Lines
Sanderson Lam 4-3 Sean O'Sullivan
Scott Donaldson 4-2 David Lilley
Martin O'Donnell 4-1 Chen Feilong
Hamza Akbar 4-3 Alexander Ursenbacher
Mark Selby 4-0 Jimmy Robertson
Last 32 draw: (Picks in bold)
Ali Carter Vs Xiao Guodong
Eden Sharav Vs Joe Swail
Neil Robertson Vs Li Hang
Mark Davis Vs Peter Ebdon
Judd Trump Vs Jack Lisowski
Luca Brecel Vs Gary Wilson
Ryan Day Vs Robin Hull
Andrew Higginson Vs Billy Castle
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Tom Ford
Zhou Yuelong Vs Michael Holt
Hammad Miah Vs Lu Ning
David Gilbert Vs Matthew Stevens
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh Vs Chris Totten
Robbie Williams Vs Sanderson Lam
Scott Donaldson Vs Martin O'Donnell
Mark Selby Vs Hamza Akbar
Eden Sharav Vs Joe Swail
Neil Robertson Vs Li Hang
Mark Davis Vs Peter Ebdon
Judd Trump Vs Jack Lisowski
Luca Brecel Vs Gary Wilson
Ryan Day Vs Robin Hull
Andrew Higginson Vs Billy Castle
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Tom Ford
Zhou Yuelong Vs Michael Holt
Hammad Miah Vs Lu Ning
David Gilbert Vs Matthew Stevens
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh Vs Chris Totten
Robbie Williams Vs Sanderson Lam
Scott Donaldson Vs Martin O'Donnell
Mark Selby Vs Hamza Akbar
The big name exits have not left us short of intriguing matches in the draw. The first that jumps out is that of comeback king Neil Robertson against Li Hang. Robertson has started slowly this week, falling 3-1 behind to Ben Woollaston and 3-0 down to Kurt Maflin before coming through, but you have to believe his luck will eventually run out if he keeps leaving himself that much to do in matches. Li was 2-0 down in the last 64 to Sam Craigie before a barrage of breaks saw him come through 4-2, making the new high break of the week - a 145 - in the process. Given his two great comebacks though I expect Robertson to now kick on and have a big run again this week having just made the International Championship final.
For the third event in a row, Jack Lisowski will face off with Judd Trump. These two being as friendly as they are cannot be enjoying the fact that they keep having to play each other, but that is the way the draw has kept panning out. In the last 32 at the English Open, Trump turned around a poor start to come through, but he could not do the same at the International Championship where Lisowski ultimately won comfortably. I believe that Lisowski is going to win a ranking title sooner rather than later and if he can beat Trump in this one, the possibility of this being his week to do so becomes very realistic. Lisowski has looked a bit more loose in the first couple of rounds than Trump, but form almost goes out of the window when these two come up against each other, because they know they have to raise their games.
Ryan Day will meet Finland's Robin Hull at this stage of the Northern Ireland Open for the second year in succession. Aside from Hull's victory over Day on the way to his 2016 Snooker Shoot-Out victory, the pair have met twice, with Day winning in deciders while Hull could have won both matches quite easily. In the 2017 German Masters last 16, Hull was 3-0 up to Day before the Welshman won 5-4, while in this event 12 months ago the Finn took a 3-1 lead before Day again turned things around. Hull has had two nice wins this week and will know that he is more than capable of putting himself in position to beat Day, so perhaps at the third time of asking his luck will change and he will be able to avenge those two previous losses.
Ronnie O'Sullivan's next opponent is Tom Ford. The recent Champion of Champions has had an easy ride this week so far but can expect a tougher challenge against Ford who has overcome Rod Lawler and Chris Wakelin in deciding frames so far this week. Realistically, if Ford does not get a frame on the board early then he will be blown away without a trace, but if he stands up to the pressure of playing O'Sullivan everyone knows that he is capable of pulling off the upset, especially if O'Sullivan's form is as erratic as it was at times against Mei Xiwen.
Michael Holt will be looking for his third victory of the week against someone seeded higher than him in the draw when he faces Zhou Yuelong. Holt was a 4-2 winner on day one against Stephen Maguire before coming from 2-0 down to defeat Mark King and those results will increase his confidence which has probably suffered a little in recent times. Zhou has had two fairly easy matches by comparison against Lukas Kleckers and Kishan Hirani, and while his record against Holt is strong, the Chinese youngster is going to need to be close to his best which he has not been much of late.
David Gilbert takes on Matthew Stevens in another very interesting game. Both of these players are outside of the top 16 but are capable of being at that level and have had success out in China this season. Gilbert was of course a finalist at the World Open and is only just outside of the top 16, a mark he could climb a lot closer to this week given how the draw has opened up. Stevens meanwhile looks to have his form and confidence back after making it to the International Championship semi-finals and looking like his old self. Already this week both players have had tough ties, Gilbert beating Fergal O'Brien in round one while Stevens saw off Ricky Walden 4-3 at the same stage. This match could be just as close and it is tough to give either player the edge.
Mark Selby meanwhile will be a massive favourite after his sublime performance against Jimmy Robertson. He looks to be cueing like a dream, having also beaten Anthony Hamilton 4-1 this week so far and was only denied by Neil Robertson in the last two tournaments, making a 147 against him in the most recent at the Champion of Champions. His third round opponent here is Pakistan's Hamza Akbar who has had two nice victories against Ashley Hugill and Alexander Ursenbacher. Life on tour has been incredibly tough for Akbar with his continuous visa problems, while the opportunities this has taken away have left him low on funds at times so no-one can begrudge him of the £3,500 that he is already guaranteed this week and the chance to play the world number 1 on the main TV table. This is only his second appearance in the last 32 of a ranking event, matching his effort in this year's Shoot-Out. Realistically, his chances against Selby are very slim but in sport these underdog stories are always possible.
All of the last 32 matches will be played over the morning and afternoon sessions on Thursday in Belfast, over the best-of-7 frames, while the last 16 ties will follow on Thursday evening and once again these will be over the best-of-7 frame format which a selection of matches on Eurosport TV and the Eurosport Player throughout the day.
Tuesday, 13 November 2018
Top players tumble out of the Northern Ireland Open
The first round of the Northern Irish Open has produced shock after shock over the first two days of play in Belfast. Less than half of the top 16 seeds have made it through to the second round with Ronnie O'Sullivan and Mark Selby the only members of the top 16 left in the entire bottom half of the draw.
Monday afternoon saw the exit of home hope Mark Allen. The recent International Champion could not get going against Niu Zhuang as his recent good form failed to show in a surprise 4-1 loss to Niu. Former Northern Ireland Open runner-up Barry Hawkins was taken down in a deciding frame by Chen Zifan, who beat Hawkins in last year's English Open as well as thrashing Murphy in this event 12 months ago.
The million pound dream ended on Monday evening when English Open champion Stuart Bingham lost out 4-2 to Peter Lines, meaning the £1 million bonus for any player that could win all four Home Nations events is safe for another year. Champion of Champions runner-up Kyren Wilson also exited on Monday evening, starting his match with Lee Walker less than 24 hours after the heartbreaking 10-9 loss to Ronnie O'Sullivan. Walker won the last two frames of the contest to triumph 4-3.
English Open semi-finalist Stephen Maguire also fell at the first hurdle, losing 4-2 to Michael Holt in what was a tough draw for both players. Fellow Scotsman John Higgins was also left packing his bags earlier than expected as he fell to a 4-2 defeat against Rory McLeod, who gained a much-needed win for his tour survival hopes. Anthony McGill and Graeme Dott completed a bad Monday for the Scottish players, with McGill being whitewashed by Alexander Ursenbacher, while Dott lost out in a decider to Billy Castle.
Tuesday's play saw the shocks continue as Chen Feilong gained his first ever win as a tour professional by defeating Marco Fu 4-2, with the Hong Kong player's poor form continuing. There was also another disappointing first round exit for Shaun Murphy who succumbed to Sam Baird. Baird had beaten Murphy just last month 6-0 in International Championship qualifying and this time won frames four and five on the black to come from 2-1 down to win 4-2.
Judd Trump needed to win the last three frames of his match with Matthew Selt to come through 4-2 and avoiding following the over big names out of the tournament in round one. World Champion Mark Williams came through a tricky match 4-2 against Alfie Burden to continue his title defence, but last year's runner-up Yan Bingtao was another of the first round losers, with Zhang Anda winning that all-Chinese clash in a deciding frame.
World number one Mark Selby came through comfortably 4-1 against Anthony Hamilton, while recent Champion of Champions Ronnie O'Sullivan whitewashed Soheil Vahedi to progress to Wednesday's last 64. Meanwhile, recent International Championship runner-up came back from 3-1 down to avoid being another big name casualty, seeing off a good performance from Ben Woollaston to win 4-3.
Last 128 results:
Mark Williams 4-2 Alfie Burden
Ali Carter 4-1 Paul Davison
Akani Songsermsawad 4-0 Fan Zhengyi
Xiao Guodong 4-3 Harvey Chandler
Joe Swail 4-1 Luke Simmonds
Nigel Bond 4-2 Joe Perry
Michael White 4-0 Mark Joyce
Eden Sharav 4-3 Li Yuan
Sam Craigie 4-0 Adam Duffy
Li Hang 4-3 Zhang Yong
Kurt Maflin 4-0 Ashley Carty
Neil Robertson 4-3 Ben Woollaston
Mark Davis 4-3 Noppon Saengkham
Luo Honghao 4-2 Lu Haotian
Peter Ebdon 4-0 Patrick Wallace
Lee Walker 4-3 Kyren Wilson
Judd Trump 4-2 Matthew Selt
Stuart Carrington 4-1 Xu Si
Liam Highfield 4-2 James Wattana
Jack Lisowski 4-0 Hossein Vafei
Luca Brecel 4-1 Raymond Fry
Ian Burns 4-1 Farakh Ajaib
Daniel Wells 4-1 Zhao Xintong
Gary Wilson 4-3 Adam Stefanow
Robin Hull 4-1 Jordan Brown
Tian Pengfei 4-3 Mike Dunn
Zhang Anda 4-3 Yan Bingtao
Ryan Day 4-1 Michael Georgiou
Yuan Sijun 4-1 Jamie Clarke
Andrew Higginson W/O Liang Wenbo
Billy Castle 4-3 Graeme Dott
Rory McLeod 4-2 John Higgins
Ali Carter 4-1 Paul Davison
Akani Songsermsawad 4-0 Fan Zhengyi
Xiao Guodong 4-3 Harvey Chandler
Joe Swail 4-1 Luke Simmonds
Nigel Bond 4-2 Joe Perry
Michael White 4-0 Mark Joyce
Eden Sharav 4-3 Li Yuan
Sam Craigie 4-0 Adam Duffy
Li Hang 4-3 Zhang Yong
Kurt Maflin 4-0 Ashley Carty
Neil Robertson 4-3 Ben Woollaston
Mark Davis 4-3 Noppon Saengkham
Luo Honghao 4-2 Lu Haotian
Peter Ebdon 4-0 Patrick Wallace
Lee Walker 4-3 Kyren Wilson
Judd Trump 4-2 Matthew Selt
Stuart Carrington 4-1 Xu Si
Liam Highfield 4-2 James Wattana
Jack Lisowski 4-0 Hossein Vafei
Luca Brecel 4-1 Raymond Fry
Ian Burns 4-1 Farakh Ajaib
Daniel Wells 4-1 Zhao Xintong
Gary Wilson 4-3 Adam Stefanow
Robin Hull 4-1 Jordan Brown
Tian Pengfei 4-3 Mike Dunn
Zhang Anda 4-3 Yan Bingtao
Ryan Day 4-1 Michael Georgiou
Yuan Sijun 4-1 Jamie Clarke
Andrew Higginson W/O Liang Wenbo
Billy Castle 4-3 Graeme Dott
Rory McLeod 4-2 John Higgins
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-0 Soheil Vahedi
Mei Xiwen 4-0 Zhang Jiankang
Chris Wakelin 4-1 Thor Chuan Leong
Tom Ford 4-3 Rod Lawler
Michael Holt 4-2 Stephen Maguire
Mark King 4-0 John Astley
Zhou Yuelong 4-1 Lukas Kleckers
Kishan Hirani 4-3 Jak Jones
Alan McManus 4-0 Allan Taylor
Lu Ning 4-3 Craig Steadman
Hammad Miah 4-2 Basem Eltahhan
Niu Zhuang 4-1 Mark Allen
Matthew Stevens 4-3 Ricky Walden
Gerard Greene 4-0 Oliver Lines
David Gilbert 4-1 Fergal O'Brien
Chen Zifan 4-3 Barry Hawkins
Sam Baird 4-2 Shaun Murphy
Chris Totten 4-3 Dominic Dale
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-0 Robert Milkins
Ross Muir 4-1 Elliot Slessor
Peter Lines 4-2 Stuart Bingham
Robbie Williams 4-0 Simon Lichtenberg
Sean O'Sullivan 4-1 Andy Lee
Sanderson Lam 4-3 Joe O'connor
David Lilley 4-2 Duane Jones
Scott Donaldson 4-1 Ken Doherty
Martin O'Donnell 4-3 Jimmy White
Chen Feilong 4-2 Marco Fu
Alexander Ursenbacher 4-0 Anthony McGill
Hamza Akbar 4-2 Ashley Hugill
Jimmy Robertson 4-1 James Cahill
Mark Selby 4-1 Anthony Hamilton
Mei Xiwen 4-0 Zhang Jiankang
Chris Wakelin 4-1 Thor Chuan Leong
Tom Ford 4-3 Rod Lawler
Michael Holt 4-2 Stephen Maguire
Mark King 4-0 John Astley
Zhou Yuelong 4-1 Lukas Kleckers
Kishan Hirani 4-3 Jak Jones
Alan McManus 4-0 Allan Taylor
Lu Ning 4-3 Craig Steadman
Hammad Miah 4-2 Basem Eltahhan
Niu Zhuang 4-1 Mark Allen
Matthew Stevens 4-3 Ricky Walden
Gerard Greene 4-0 Oliver Lines
David Gilbert 4-1 Fergal O'Brien
Chen Zifan 4-3 Barry Hawkins
Sam Baird 4-2 Shaun Murphy
Chris Totten 4-3 Dominic Dale
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 4-0 Robert Milkins
Ross Muir 4-1 Elliot Slessor
Peter Lines 4-2 Stuart Bingham
Robbie Williams 4-0 Simon Lichtenberg
Sean O'Sullivan 4-1 Andy Lee
Sanderson Lam 4-3 Joe O'connor
David Lilley 4-2 Duane Jones
Scott Donaldson 4-1 Ken Doherty
Martin O'Donnell 4-3 Jimmy White
Chen Feilong 4-2 Marco Fu
Alexander Ursenbacher 4-0 Anthony McGill
Hamza Akbar 4-2 Ashley Hugill
Jimmy Robertson 4-1 James Cahill
Mark Selby 4-1 Anthony Hamilton
Last 64 draw: (Picks in bold)
Mark Williams Vs Ali Carter
Xiao Guodong Vs Akani Songsermsawad
Nigel Bond Vs Joe Swail
Michael White Vs Eden Sharav
Li Hang Vs Sam Craigie
Neil Robertson Vs Kurt Maflin
Mark Davis Vs Luo Honghao
Peter Ebdon Vs Lee Walker
Judd Trump Vs Stuart Carrington
Jack Lisowski Vs Liam Highfield
Luca Brecel Vs Ian Burns
Gary Wilson Vs Daniel Wells
Robin Hull Vs Tian Pengfei
Ryan Day Vs Zhang Anda
Andrew Higginson Vs Yuan Sijun
Rory McLeod Vs Billy Castle
Xiao Guodong Vs Akani Songsermsawad
Nigel Bond Vs Joe Swail
Michael White Vs Eden Sharav
Li Hang Vs Sam Craigie
Neil Robertson Vs Kurt Maflin
Mark Davis Vs Luo Honghao
Peter Ebdon Vs Lee Walker
Judd Trump Vs Stuart Carrington
Jack Lisowski Vs Liam Highfield
Luca Brecel Vs Ian Burns
Gary Wilson Vs Daniel Wells
Robin Hull Vs Tian Pengfei
Ryan Day Vs Zhang Anda
Andrew Higginson Vs Yuan Sijun
Rory McLeod Vs Billy Castle
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Mei Xiwen
Tom Ford Vs Chris Wakelin
Mark King Vs Michael Holt
Zhou Yuelong Vs Kishan Hirani
Alan McManus Vs Lu Ning
Niu Zhuang Vs Hammad Miah
Matthew Stevens Vs Gerard Greene
David Gilbert Vs Chen Zifan
Sam Baird Vs Chris Totten
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh Vs Ross Muir
Robbie Williams Vs Peter Lines
Sean O'Sullivan Vs Sanderson Lam
Scott Donaldson Vs David Lilley
Martin O'Donnell Vs Chen Feilong
Alexander Ursenbacher Vs Hamza Akbar
Mark Selby Vs Jimmy Robertson
Tom Ford Vs Chris Wakelin
Mark King Vs Michael Holt
Zhou Yuelong Vs Kishan Hirani
Alan McManus Vs Lu Ning
Niu Zhuang Vs Hammad Miah
Matthew Stevens Vs Gerard Greene
David Gilbert Vs Chen Zifan
Sam Baird Vs Chris Totten
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh Vs Ross Muir
Robbie Williams Vs Peter Lines
Sean O'Sullivan Vs Sanderson Lam
Scott Donaldson Vs David Lilley
Martin O'Donnell Vs Chen Feilong
Alexander Ursenbacher Vs Hamza Akbar
Mark Selby Vs Jimmy Robertson
The one thing that stands out now is how big an opportunity is out there for all of the players that are left in the competition, especially in the bottom half of the draw where only two top 16 players remain.
At the top end of the draw we will see a last 64 encounter between defending champion Mark Williams and 17th seed Ali Carter. Williams has not found things easy in the last three tournaments and could well be up against it against Carter, who has made back-to-back ranking quarter-finals and looks to be finding some form in recent weeks. If Williams is not quite on top of his game here then Carter is certainly playing well enough to put his name into the draw for the last 32.
Judd Trump faces Stuart Carrington 12 months after a day he will want to forget. On the brink of defeat, he conceded the match halfway through a frame at 3-2 down by smashing the reds open with his cue, having just flown back from the Shanghai Masters. His head should be in a better place on this occasion and he will surely recognise the opportunity that has already presented itself this week with so many big name casualties. If he is not quite on the money then Carrington is more than capable of putting up a stiff challenge and matching Trump when it comes to heavy scoring.
Jack Lisowski's 4-0 first round win was quite flattering given the quality of his match with Hossein Vafei and he will need to up his game against the dangerous Liam Highfield. Things could have been very different at the International Championship if Allen had not found his form at the right time against Highfield, who had almost shut Allen out on the way to a 4-0 lead and he is more than capable of doing the same to Lisowski over a shorter format. The one thing that has been impressive with Lisowski in the last year or so is his consistency. No longer are there just flashes of brilliance from him and he is looking like a real tournament contender all the time.
Luca Brecel is a player that could potentially take advantage of the big boys falling early on in Belfast to end his recent poor form with a good run. However, his form has shown no signs of improvement in recent months and it is the games like the one he faces against Ian Burns that he has been losing all to regularly. As a top 16 player Brecel is expected to win these matches and reach the latter stages of tournaments but it just has not happened for him and it has been a year since his last ranking quarter-final appearance. If he does not up his game then Burns has every chance of adding to the Belgian's woes.
Ryan Day will be quietly feeling good about his chances of success in Belfast. He will not be sad to see Yan Bingtao lose to Zhang Anda, having lost to him in this event last year and in the last ranking event. Zhang still provides a real threat and is someone who I still believe has a lot of unfulfilled potential. Day is trending the right way though, having made quarter-finals at the European Masters and English Open and given Zhang's lack of consistency, the Welshman will be heavily fancied here.
In the bottom half, Ronnie O'Sullivan takes on China's Mei Xiwen. O'Sullivan will be very confident of getting the job done here in the sort of match that he has made to look very easy in the last year, making it to the quarter-finals in four of the last five Home Nations events, negotiating these best-of-7 frames matches better than the majority of top players. Mei offers a threat but whether he can produce the heavy scoring against O'Sullivan on the TV table is another question entirely.
Former Northern Ireland Open champion Mark King takes on Michael Holt in a cracking last 64 tie. King was a 4-0 winner against John Astley in the first round while Holt picked up a nice 4-2 victory against Stephen Maguire. In the recent International Championship Holt showed signs of a return to form in a 6-4 victory against Luo Honghao, just after Luo had reached the quarter-final of the English Open, as Holt made three centuries in the process there. King meanwhile was a semi-finalist last month at the European Masters so is clearly playing well himself, making this a tight one to call and a match that could go the full distance.
The final match that needs a strong mention is that of Mark Selby against European Masters champion Jimmy Robertson. In the first round, Selby was a 4-1 victor in a tough draw against Anthony Hamilton while Robertson scored heavily with two centuries, one of which was a maximum attempt that saw him miss the yellow on 120, in a 4-1 win against James Cahill. Robertson is clearly cueing well and will never be more confident than he is now after winning the title in Lommel last month. As for Selby, he is most vulnerable over the best-of-7 frame matches and his record in the Home Nations series is one of the few things that the world number one could improve. All in all, this is a very tough last 64 match for both players and like the King/Holt clash it has the potential to go the distance.
All last 64 matches will be played on Wednesday over the best-of-7 frames with a selection of matches on both Eurosport TV and the Eurosport Player, with the potential for even more upsets.
Sunday, 11 November 2018
Fantasy Snooker: Champion of Champions points and Northern Ireland reminder
With Ronnie O'Sullivan winning the Champion of Champions in Coventry there are plenty of benefactors in the Fantasy Snooker league.
Most of all is defending champion Kellie Barker who has extended her lead at the top of the standings heading into this week's Northern Ireland Open.
A week previously, Barker had hit the front after selecting International champion Mark Allen, so that's two winners in a row a feat that has been repeated by Matt Butler, Rob Francis and Phil Robinson.
Here are how the standings now look after the last two weeks:
The next event as I have mentioned is the Northern Ireland Open and again it is a short turnaround with the deadline for picks falling on November 12 at 10am.
A full updated 'warnings list' will be issued prior to the UK Championship with all participants being reminded of players they have either selected two or three times, remembering of course that each Fantasy Snooker entrant can only select any given player three times over the course of the season.
All the best of luck to those making picks for this week.
Most of all is defending champion Kellie Barker who has extended her lead at the top of the standings heading into this week's Northern Ireland Open.
A week previously, Barker had hit the front after selecting International champion Mark Allen, so that's two winners in a row a feat that has been repeated by Matt Butler, Rob Francis and Phil Robinson.
Here are how the standings now look after the last two weeks:
Kellie Barker 461
Ryan Duckett 429
Rob Chipp 412
Matt Butler 411
Stephen McCabe 387
Tungsten Darts 378
Daniela Reich 374
Rob Francis 374
Daz Muckian 368
Dani M (esnukero) 357
Phil Mudd 353
Andy (APB147) 351
Munraj Pal 349
Steven Bunn 347
The Cue View 347
Cluster of Reds 344
Martin Pearlman 344
Anatole Compton 339
LTD Syndicate 338
Andrew Devonshire 335
Phil Robinson 331
Voihelevettisua 330
Shaun Hunt 324
Square Sausage 322
Chris Watts 316
FAM147 313
Markus 302
Kim Kristensen 281
Debbie Dymott 278
Alex Abrahams 274
Anthony (antow73) 241
Pete Tscherewik 214
Daniel Gavin 175
Kelvin Platten 166
The next event as I have mentioned is the Northern Ireland Open and again it is a short turnaround with the deadline for picks falling on November 12 at 10am.
A full updated 'warnings list' will be issued prior to the UK Championship with all participants being reminded of players they have either selected two or three times, remembering of course that each Fantasy Snooker entrant can only select any given player three times over the course of the season.
All the best of luck to those making picks for this week.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)