Ronnie O’Sullivan documentary finally gets release date on Amazon Prime Video
Phil Haigh – Friday 27 Oct 2023
Ronnie O’Sullivan won his record-equalling seventh world title in 2022 (Picture: PA)
The film documenting Ronnie O’Sullivan’s seventh World Snooker Championship win is finally set for release, hitting cinemas on 21 November, before launching on Prime Video two days later.
The Rocket granted cameras extensive access to his Crucible campaign last year, which helpfully ended with him lifting the world title for a seventh time, equalling Stephen Hendry’s record.
O’Sullivan was followed everywhere in the build-up to the event and throughout the tournament, even wearing a microphone during matches, so ‘Ronnie O’Sullivan: The Edge of Everything’ is set to be an incredible insight into the world of the greatest player the sport has ever had.
David Beckham’s Studio 99 has produced the documentary, with the Manchester United icon involved in live Q&A with O’Sullivan when the film is exclusively released in cinemas, before landing on Prime Video on 23 November.
On his motivation for the documentary, O’Sullivan said: ‘My highs and lows have been well-documented by the media but I felt like now was the right time to do something more definitive – something that I can look back and reflect on as I contemplate retirement.
‘Going into my 7th World Championship I wasn’t sure I had it in me but allowing the cameras in ended up driving me on in many ways and gave me a different perspective.’
The Rocket gave some clues on what to expect during the 2022 World Championships, which eventually saw him beat Judd Trump in the final.
‘I’ve given complete access to the point where if you put a fly on the wall and followed me for 17 days, that’s basically what happened,’ O’Sullivan said.
‘They’ve been in my dressing room, they’ve been in my hotel room before and after matches and sessions. I embraced it because whatever I get involved in, let’s just make it the best I could possibly do.’
He also said before the 2022 tournament got underway: ‘If I’m going to get bombed out in the first round, I couldn’t give a monkeys.
‘The documentary isn’t about me trying to win a world title. If it happens, great. If not they’ll have to put up with a first-round exit. They’re the business guys behind it, I’m just an actor.
‘The reason I’m doing it is because of everything I’ve done in my past. It’s a chance for people to watch someone they’ve followed for years.
‘Let them see the pressure, the stress, the good and the not-so-good
Ronnie O’Sullivan: The Edge of Everything is available exclusively in cinemas across UK & Ireland on November 21 and launches on Prime Video on November 23. Theatrical release includes LIVE Q&A featuring Ronnie and very special guests.
Teenager Stan Moody saw his hopes of extending his run at the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open end as he lost 4-2 to China’s Yuan Sijun in the last 16, while former Crucible king Shaun Murphy was knocked out 4-2 by Chris Wakelin.
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Tour rookie Moody, who turned 17 last month, won three matches in this event to raise his hopes of a quarter-final clash with mentor Murphy, but both were knocked out in Belfast a round early. Two more wins would have made Moody the youngest ever ranking event semi-finalist, beating the record set by Paul Hunter at the 1996 Welsh Open, but the WSF Junior Champion will have to wait for another chance.
World number 45 Yuan is through to the sixth ranking quarter-final of his career and the 23-year-old will hope to reach his second semi-final – the other coming at the 2019 Gibraltar Open.
Yorkshire’s Moody looked in charge when he fired a break of 88 to lead 2-1, but Yuan hit back to take the next three frames with a top break of 57.
Meanwhile, Murphy was looking to continue his bid to win a fourth ranking title of 2023, but he was outplayed by BetVictor Shoot Out champion Wakelin. World number seven Murphy has been bringing two cues into the arena this week and today, for the first time, he swapped cues before the fourth frame. But it made no difference as world number 25 Wakelin progressed to his seventh career ranking quarter-final.
After sharing the first two frames, Murphy made a yellow-to-black clearance to lead 2-1. But he scored just two points in the last three frames as Wakelin took them all with top breaks of 55, 41 and 49.
“I felt I controlled the match well and put pressure on Shaun,” said 31-year-old Wakelin. “I haven’t been past the quarter-finals of a ranking event other than the Shoot Out in my career so far, but I won’t be going into tomorrow scared of getting to a semi or a final or lifting more silverware. I genuinely feel I should be in the later stages of tournaments and I think performances like today show that.”
Asked about Murphy’s decision to change cue, Wakelin replied: “I have nothing but admiration for Shaun and for the fact he is trying to pioneer something new in the sport – hats off to him. But I don’t think changing cue is the solution if you are struggling out there. There are other factors you can change. As soon as I saw him dipping into his case to get a different cue out, I was thinking that he hadn’t missed many balls, and it would take him a few shots to adjust to a new cue.
“It’s like putting Max Verstappen in Lewis Hamilton’s car and expecting it all to fit perfectly and drive the same. A cue is so personal, I don’t think swapping half way through a match is the solution now, though it could be in the future.”
Ricky Walden reached his first ranking quarter-final since the 2022 Scottish Open by beating Xing Zihao 4-1 with a top break of 134. “It has been a long time coming after a tough season for me,” said Walden, who will meet Jack Lisowski or Aaron Hill on Friday. “In the last few months I have gone back to my previous cue and I have got settled down with that now and it feels good. When I’m happy with my game I just enjoy the challenge of competing.”
Judd Trump is still on target to become the first player in a decade to win three consecutive ranking titles as he beat Ian Burns 4-2. Bristol’s Trump, who has already lifted the BetVictor English Open and Wuhan Open trophies this month, was out of sorts against Burns and his highest break was just 36, but he did enough to earn a last 16 tie with Noppon Saengkham on Thursday evening.
Joe Perry came from 3-1 down to beat Hossein Vafaei 4-3, making a break of 122 in each of the last two frames, setting up a match with Stephen Maguire. David Gilbert top scored with 127 in a 4-1 win over Lyu Hoatian and he now meets Rory McLeod. Barry Hawkins beat Jimmy Robertson 4-1 and he’ll now face Robbie Williams who saw off Zhang Anda by the same scoreline. All of these last 16 ties will be on Thursday night.
Despite battling fatigue, Judd Trump won his 17th consecutive match with a 4-3 defeat of Noppon Saengkham at the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open as he continued his quest to become the first player in a decade to win three consecutive ranking events.
Trump is through to the quarter-finals in Belfast and will face Stephen Maguire on Friday at 7pm. Having already won the BetVictor English Open and Wuhan Open this month, he is looking to become the fifth player in snooker history, and first since Ding Junhui in 2013, to win three ranking titles on the bounce.
After sharing the first two frames, Thailand’s Saengkham made a break of 85 to lead 2-1, before Trump levelled with a 124. World number 23 Saengkham regained the lead with a run of 109 and he had match-winning chances in a fragmented sixth frame. It came down to a long safety battle on the colours, resolved when Trump double the brown to a centre pocket and added the blue for 3-3.
Saengkham had one more chance but missed a red to a top corner on 6 early in the decider, and his opponent punished him with 92.
“It’s very tough off the back of a couple of long weeks, I don’t know how I’m still going,” said world number three Trump, who won this title in 2018, 2019 and 2020. “It’s so draining playing this many games. Every day I wake up hoping I’m not flat and I’m still excited. I go out there hoping the crowd will help and I’m trying to do it for my family who have always supported me. There is not a lot left in the tank but I am trying to see out the week and then have a break.
“This might be the only time I get the chance to win three in a row because it’s hard enough to win one, let along two and then be in another quarter-final.
“I had to dig in tonight and luckily Noppon missed a couple of crucial balls and I got my chance in the end. When you’re in the winning habit it’s easier to make those breaks in the last frame.”
Jack Lisowski eased into his 27th ranking quarter-final, and ended Irish hopes, with a 4-1 win over Aaron Hill. World number 13 Lisowski, who has won all four matches so far this week by a 4-1 scoreline, rattled in runs of 116, 60, 61 and 83 to set up a match with Ricky Walden
“There was a good atmosphere tonight, it was great to play Aaron, he’s going to have a big future in the game,” said Lisowski. “The best of sevens are tricky because they can change so quickly so it’s good to be into the best of nines with an interval. Ricky Walden hits the ball so cleanly and I always enjoy playing him. Hopefully I can keep up my standard. The dream would be to win my first title against Judd in the final.”
Stephen Maguire earned his first ranking event quarter-final appearance since the 2022 World Championship by edging out Joe Perry 4-3. From 3-1 down, Perry battled back to 3-3 with a top run of 123, and he had a chance to snatch the decider from 40-0 down but missed the black to a top corner on 26. Maguire replied with 30 which proved enough.
David Gilbert, whose last ranking quarter-final came exactly a year ago, beat Rory McLeod 4-0 with a top break of 61. He’ll now meet BetVictor European Masters champion Barry Hawkins, who beat Robbie Williams 4-0.
Friday’s quarter-finals:
12pm Jack Lisowski v Ricky Walden
Not before 2pm Barry Hawkins v David Gilbert
Not before 7pm Judd Trump v Stephen Maguire Chris Wakelin v Yuan Sijun
Although Stan Moody rightly deserves praise for his run to the last 16 in this event and it’s a good thing that WST promotes young talents, the focus on him, whilst, at the same time, completely ignoring Xing Zihao who is also a rookie, only 18, and who reached the same round as Stan, once again shows how UK centric the whole WST is, and that its reporting focusses mainly on the UK/Irish players and readers. Xing lost by 4-1 to Ricky Walden in the last 16 and the match isn’t even mentioned in the above reports.
Judd Trump is fatigued and it’s only normal. The whole schedule in the last weeks is extremely demanding. Judd is 34, probably at the power of his strengths. He’s mature, experienced but still very young. Most older players will struggle with such a schedule as they need more time to “recover” after a massive effort. Snooker may not be the most physical sport, but sustaining ones concentration for long periods is mentally draining.
The typical schedule of the QFs means that Chris Wakelin and Yuan Sijun will be the only ones playing on table 2 today. As the semi-finals and final will be on table 1, this may put them at a slight disadvantage. Why not start at 10 pm, and have all QFs played under the same conditions?
Stan Moody took his biggest scalp so far as he beat former Crucible semi-finalist Gary Wilson 4-2 to reach round four of the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open.
After a slow start to his debut pro season, losing his first five knockout ranking event matches, 17-year-old Moody is now starting to live up to his potential. Breaks of 63 and 61 helped him to beat world number 18 Wilson and make it three wins in a row in this event. He will meet Jordan Brown or Yuan Sijun in the last 16 on Thursday afternoon.
“Out on the TV stage, to get over the line I was very pleased,” said WSF Junior Champion Moody, who could meet mentor Shaun Murphy in the quarter-finals if they both keep winning. “I missed a chance at 3-1 but then I regrouped and won the next frame. I made silly mistakes during the match so I need to improve. I am learning loads from being here and just trying to enjoy it.
“It was frustrating for me losing matches before this tournament, but I am viewing my first two years as an apprenticeship and accepting whatever happens. I had felt for a while that I was going to start winning matches because I have been playing well in practice and working with my coach. A few months ago I would have lost this match 4-3 because my head would have gone after missing the chance at 3-1, but today I stayed calm.”
Not even a fire alarm could stop Robbie Williams knocking out his namesake Mark as the world number 51 sprung a surprise with a 4-2 victory in the second round.
The closing moments of the match were interrupted by the alarm at the Waterfront Hall, which led to the whole building being evacuated while local fire-fighters investigated. Within 15 minutes the all-clear was given and play soon resumed inside the arena. Williams had been on a break of 53 and that proved enough to cross the winning line before they left the arena.
Merseyside’s Williams had earlier compiled breaks of 87 and 55 as he came from 1-0 down to take four of the last five frames. The result builds on a strong start to the season for Williams, who beat John Higgins on his way to the last 32 of the Cazoo British Open. He is into the third round again and will meet Zhang Anda next.
“I still needed match ball when the alarm first went off, but I wasn’t sure what it was so I just carried on, and thankfully did enough to get over the line,” said Williams. “Mark shook hands and said he wasn’t coming back! It’s got to be one of my best wins, along with beating John Higgins last month, they are two legends of the game.
“This season my belief and concentration have really improved, especially out there on the TV table. I fully believe I can win a tournament and that’s my biggest ambition, to pick up a trophy.”
Hossein Vafaei top scored with 86 as he beat Anton Kazakov 4-0. “I’m feeling great,” said Iran’s top player, who meets Joe Perry next. “I see a good future for Anton, he’s a talented player, I love watching him. My target is just to be happy and play well. I love Belfast and Irish people, they are treating me really well. I used to live in Ireland so it’s like my second home.”
Cork ace Aaron Hill was a quarter-finalist at the recent Wuhan Open and he got another win under his belt with a 4-0 whitewash of Dylan Emery, while David Gilbert came from 3-2 down to edge out Matthew Stevens 4-3. BetVictor Shoot Out champion Chris Wakelin top scored with 79 in a 4-1 win over Martin O’Donnell.
BetVictor English Open runner-up Zhang Anda top scored with 131 in a 4-1 defeat of Thor Chuan Leong. He said: “I was joking with friends the other day in Wuhan saying I’ve been very busy recently, and that’s perhaps because I kept losing back then! If you lose your first match in tournaments all the time then you are supposed to be pretty free and you can have a long rest. I’ve won quite a few matches lately so it feels like there’s not much time between events. Hopefully I can win a few more rounds in every tournament.”
Just five of the world’s top 16 players remain in the field at the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open, and both Shaun Murphy and Jack Lisowski look like title contenders after emphatic wins on Wednesday night.
World number seven Murphy, the highest ranked player left in Belfast other than Judd Trump, eased to a 4-0 success against Sean O’Sullivan with top breaks of 80 and 70. He meets Chris Wakelin in round four on Thursday afternoon.
“We both played to a very high level tonight,” said 12-time ranking event winner Murphy. “The Home Nations events are not always won by the favourites. They have the essence of surprise because they are best of seven frames. It’s all about who has the right attitude, it’s great to see these opportunities for all the players.”
If Murphy and Stan Moody both win tomorrow then they will clash in the quarter-finals on Friday, and the former World Champion is pleased to see his young protégé showcasing his talent this week. “It’s fabulous to see the next group of players coming through,” said Murphy. “I’m in camp Moody, I was asked by the family some time ago to get involved and help. I was delighted when he got his first win to qualify for this event and now he is on a run. The likes of Stan, Liam Pullen and others are the names for the future.”
Lisowski saw off Matthew Selt 4-1 with top runs of 55, 57 and 73, setting up a match with Aaron Hill. “I had a bit of luck tonight and I made a good clearance in the last frame when I got my chance to win,” said Lisowski. “The way I feather the cue ball is a bit different this week, I am trying to give myself more time on the shot.”
Northern Ireland’s hopes of a home winner ended with Jordan Brown’s 4-2 defeat against China’s Yuan Sijun, who fired breaks of 100, 97 and 77. Stephen Maguire top scored with 73 in a 4-2 win over Sam Craigie, while Ricky Walden beat Stuart Bingham 4-1 with a high score of 102.
I didn’t watch any snooker yesterday and I’m not sure I will watch any today or in the coming days. I feel that the way it’s going is really bad, despite having some very good youngsters progressing well. It’s not at all like Mark Allen to back off the way he did. I can’t help to think that he must have been threatened with some very serious consequences for expressing his feelings. The way his apology was phrased, it’s obvious that there was nothing untrue in what he said, it was just deemed “damaging” by WST. That’s a dangerous precedent and totally wrong in my book. How do you objectively assess “damaging”?
On a more positive note, there are a lot of very good youngsters coming through. Stan Moody needed a bit of time to find his foot but he’s truly excellent. The Chinese rookies have impressed me. The young Europeans are progressing. WST isn’t doing everything wrong, notably they have given the young ones more exposure on their social media, including to the Asian and mainland European ones.
But I stand by my opinion that players, who are self-employed, should have no restrictions. Hearn, back in the days, grew snooker by touring with his stable around the world. High profile exhibitions give the sport visibility and grow its audience. WST should embrace them, they should work with the top players and try to make it a win-win collaboration rather than threatening them. That’s especially true for the older ones. If top players decide to skip an event, WST should see it as an opportunity for less known players, younger players, to shine. They are the future. As much as we love them … Ronnie, Willo, John Higgins… they are at the end of their career. They won’t be there forever. WST should allow them to make the most of it, and, at the same time, invest more in the younger talents.
Joe Perry made a tremendous 145 total clearance during a 4-3 victory over Michael White as he edged into the third round of the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open in Belfast.
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Perry, a pro since 1991, equalled his best ever break and also set a new target for the £5,000 high break with his superb 145 total clearance in frame three. The Cambridgeshire cueman also made a 99 in the second frame and a 66 in the decider to beat Welshman White and set up a tie with Hossein Vafaei or Anton Kazakov.
World number 27 Perry, who won the BetVictor Welsh Open in 2022, has struggled for form so far this season but hopes today’s performance could be a turning point.
“It was a really good game and I’m happy with how I played,” Perry told Eurosport. “It was great to be out there in a big venue with a good crowd, you can sometimes falter under the lights but in general it brings the best out of me and makes me try harder. I have had two good runs to the semi-finals here in the past and hopefully I can go deep again this week.”
Ricky Walden also won 4-3, beating Dominic Dale in a marathon battle which lasted three hours and eight minutes. Breaks of 83, 68 and 93 helped Walden go 3-1 up before Dale recovered to 3-3. The decider came down to a long safety battle on the colours, and Walden had a slice of good fortune as he missed the blue to a baulk corner but fluked a snooker. He later converted a tricky pot on the blue to earn a meeting with Stuart Bingham.
“I really had to dig deep, Dominic is such a class player,” said Walden. “I rode my luck in the end. I was feeling a lot of pressure because I feel something is bubbling in my game, but you have to stay in tournaments to show that. I feel I am playing well and I’m prepared to play the big shots when I need to. I believe I can build some momentum and catapult back up the rankings.”
BetVictor European Masters champion Barry Hawkins saw off Jiang Jun 4-1 with a top break of 81, while Bingham top scored with 118 in a 4-1 defeat of Xu Si.
Judd Trump, unquestionably the best player in the world on current form, took another step towards a third consecutive ranking title as he thrashed Julien Leclercq 4-0 to reach the last 32 of the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open.
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Only four players in snooker history – Ray Reardon, Steve Davis, Stephen Hendry and Ding Junhui – have previously won three ranking titles in a row, but Trump looks hard to stop as he aims to join that elite group. The 24-year-old has already lifted the BetVictor English Open and Wuhan Open this month and tonight took his streak to 15 consecutive matches. He needs five more to capture another trophy.
The Bristol cueman needed just 45 minutes to beat Belgium’s Leclercq, knocking in breaks of 108, 108 and 55. His next opponent will be Ian Burns. who beat Ken Doherty 4-2.
“I hadn’t seen a lot of Julien before so I didn’t know what to expect, but I got off to a good start and kicked on from there,” said world number three Trump. “I still don’t feel completely sharp, I’m not quite as confident as I was in the previous two tournaments, but every day in practice I’m getting a bit sharper and if I can reach the quarter-finals I could be back in form.
“When you’ve won a lot of matches you start looking over your shoulder because you know it can’t go on for ever. It’s important not to get negative, you have to keep trying to win win rather than trying not to lose. I’ve had those kind of spells before and it happened to Mark Allen last season when he was on a good run. You can get a bit negative and go into your shell. This time, even if I lose I will go out playing the way I want to play.”
Local favourite Robbie McGuigan suffered a cruel 4-3 defeat against Anthony McGill, who had needed three snookers at 3-1 down. Wild card McGuigan, age 19, top scored with 66 to lead 3-1, and he was on the verge of victory at 39 points ahead on the colours in frame five. But canny McGill laid a series of tough snookers on the yellow to get the penalty points he needed, and eventually snatched the frame on a respotted black. That proved the turning point as the Scot controlled the next two frames and earned a third round tie with Noppon Saengkham or Barry Pinches.
“I don’t think I have ever won a match like that, where I needed three snookers,” said two-time ranking event winner McGill. “Robbie still looked composed after that. It’s one of those painful defeats for him, but there’s no doubt he will get on the tour. I was very impressed by him. It will be one of those matches he looks back on – I have had loads of them. He will learn, he’s a fantastic player.
“He punched the air when he was 39 ahead on the yellow. I said to him at the end, I don’t mind the fist pump, but maybe do it after the handshake. It didn’t fire me up at all, I’m not like that. In fact I was thinking that he deserved the match.”
McGill is trying a graphite cue for the first time this week and added: “I haven’t made my mind up about it yet. It’s good enough to use but I am still trying to get used to it. I practised with it last week and decided to take a chance and use it at a tournament. I’m not in a good run of form anyway so if I’d had my wooden cue I probably would have lost by now.”
Stephen Maguire fired breaks of 132 and 85 as he came from 2-1 down to beat James Cahill 4-2, while Jak Jones wrapped up a 4-2 victory over Mark Davis with a career-best 143 total clearance.
The Judd Trump v Julien Leclercq is the only match I watched in full. For the first two frame Judd looked unplayable. The other two frames were actually close. In frame three Julien missed a black off the spot, probably concentrating on position. That probably cost him the frame. In the last frame he was ahead, fouled the white whilst removing the extended rest from a difficult spot near the cushion, after playing a pink. It cost him six important points. Julien owned to the foul that neither the ref, nor Judd had seen. Judd acknowledged his sportsmanship, which was nice to see.
Ross Muir came on twitter later, asking if everyone had suffered from ocular migraine and found an efficient way to cure it or minimise its impact. So, apparently, the issue is back and it’s extremely painful. Unfortunately for Ross, I’m afraid that there isn’t really any cure and it’s extremely “disabling” when it kicks in.
Snooker Superstars To Align On Day One In Edinburgh
A raft of the sport’s biggest names are set to compete on day one of the BetVictor Scottish Open in Edinburgh, with home hero John Higgins, World Champion Luca Brecel, world number one Ronnie O’Sullivan, defending champion Gary Wilson, Mark Allen, Judd Trump, Mark Selby and many more scheduled for Monday December 11th.
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The match schedule on the opening day is:
10.00 am session M1 Gary Wilson v Elliot Slessor M14 Mark Selby v Sean O’Sullivan M17 Ding Junhui v David Grace M6 Jimmy Robertson v Amaan Iqbal
1.00 pm session M10 Ronnie O’Sullivan v Liam Graham M3 Mark Williams v Sam Craigie M11 Barry Hawkins v Pang Junxu M13 Ali Carter v Zehuang Long
Not before 2pm M18 Luca Brecel v Iulian Boiko M15 Shaun Murphy v Liu Hongyu M2 Hossein Vafaei v Daniel Wells M12 Jack Borwick v Ishpreet Singh Chadha
7.00 pm session M9 Judd Trump v Sydney Wilson M4 Kyren Wilson v Mostafa Dorgham M7 Robert Milkins v Mark Davis (Rd2 match)
Not before 8.00 pm M16 John Higgins v Oliver Brown M5 Mark Allen v Jamie Jones M8 Jack Lisowski v Mohamed Ibrahim (Rd2 match)
The full draw and format for Edinburgh will be announced after the completion of the qualifying round, which finishes on November 2nd.
The way things are going this season, I’m not holding my breath over Ronnie’s participation.
And this by Mark Allen on twitter
Note that Mark doesn’t say that his comments were untrue . 1 I’m also 99% sure that Mark was hard pressured to come out with these tweets. It’s very unlike him to back off like this. I don’t like this at all. If WST disagrees with some players comments, they have a right to respond and they should use it. Gagging the players simply isn’t right.
It’s the top players who bring the money, not the lowest ranked ones. They all started at the bottom. Ronnie won 76 of the 78 matches he played in Blackpool in his first year as a pro. Nobody did him a favour, he earned it. Now that many “big names” are nearing the end of their career, they should be allowed to cash on their image, status, reputation and success. They earned it. They will get no “retirement” money, they are self-employed. There should be NO restrictions whatsoever regarding what they are allowed play in and when. It’s up to WST to make their own events attractive enough to keep them on board. That’s my opinion and I stand by it.
I’m not entirely convinced that there was anything untrue either in what Hector Nunns published that got him in trouble BTW. ↩︎
The biggest surprise yesterday was Mark Allen’s defeat at the hands of Andres Petrov. Andres though has shown clear signs of improvement – massive improvement – in recent weeks. This match was decided on the last black. It was a serious pressure situation and he passed the test. I’m always happy when a young player from mainland Europe does well. It’s so much more difficult for them than it is for the UK and Irish players. Most of them live as expats, away from their families. Most of them have no compatriot around them. It’s a lonely life. If they struggle financially, they can’t even taken a second job as their “work” visa is only for snooker. Of course, the Chinese and Thai players face an even bigger “cultural gap” but they are a group, they have at least some other players around them, sharing the same cultural background and speaking the same language. It wasn’t always that way though and Ding will never get enough credit for what he achieved as a “pioneer”.
Local ace Jordan Brown scored one of his best career wins with a 4-1 victory over Neil Robertson in front of his home crowd in the second round of the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open in Belfast.
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Antrim’s Brown delighted his friends and family at the Waterfront Hall with a superb performance to knock out former World Champion Robertson, and the confident 36-year-old believes he can kick on from today’s result and go all the way to the Alex Higgins Trophy. The world number 44 has had success in the Home Nations Series before, winning the BetVictor Welsh Open in 2021.
Defeat for Robertson means that he is yet to reach the last 32 of a ranking event this season, and he must now win either the International Championship or the UK Championship if he is to continue his streak of lifting a trophy in every calendar year since 2006.
Brown made a break of 94 to take the opening frame, and he dominated the next two for a 3-0 advantage. Robertson pulled one back with a 125 but that proved too little, too late as his opponent sealed the result in frame five with a 51.
“Beating an all-time great in Neil in front of my home crowd – it doesn’t get better than that,” said the player nicknamed the Antrim Ferrari, who now plays either Jamie Clarke or Yuan Sijun in the last 32. “I absolutely loved it out there, it was an amazing feeling. It’s right up there with my best wins, even if Neil has not been in his best form. I just concentrated on myself and I felt I was in control for most of the match. I got a bit nervy towards the end, but when I got another chance I finished it off.
“It would mean everything to have a long run here, not just for me but for my family and friends. I’m here to win the tournament, that’s the bottom line. It’s not big-headed because I know what I’m capable of. I’d like to dedicate this victory today to Joe Bingham, he was my coach and he passed away five years ago today. This one’s for him.”
Hossein Vafaei impressed in a 4-1 win over Mark Joyce, compiling breaks of 74, 72 and 112. A good run this week could cement Vafaei’s top 16 place with the cut off point for the MrQ UK Championship coming soon.
“There is room to improve, hopefully I can play better in the next round,” said the Prince of Persia. “I do care about being in the top 16, but I try not to think about rankings. If I’m good enough then I’ll be there. Whatever happens, I will accept it.”
Jack Lisowski recovered from the loss of the first frame to beat Jackson Page 4-1 with breaks of 68, 57 and 138. BetVictor European Masters champion Barry Hawkins beat Elliot Slessor by the same scoreline, firing runs of 64, 123 and 108.
Ireland’s Aaron Hill enjoyed his best career run at the recent Wuhan Open when he reached the quarter-finals, and he has kept his momentum going this week, beating Fan Zhengyi 4-1 with a top break of 80.
Stan Moody reached the last 32 of a ranking event for the first time by beating Rod Lawler 4-1 in the second round of the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open.
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The highly-rated 17-year-old is playing his first season on the pro tour and initially struggled to find his feet, failing to win a match in his first six ranking events. But he got off the mark with a fine 4-2 victory over Zhou Yuelong to qualify for Belfast, and the WSF Junior Champion doubled his tally of wins by outplaying experienced Lawler at the Waterfront Hall.
Moody made a break of 102 to take the opening frame, then came from 57-0 down to snatch the second with a 66 clearance. Lawler pulled one back, but Moody took each of the next two on the colours to earn a tie with Gary Wilson.
“It was nerve-racking, to say the least,” admitted the Yorkshireman. “I started off well, then from 2-0 it was downhill and I was fighting to get over the line. I sometimes get annoyed with myself during matches, I was struggling with that at the start of this season. I was letting myself down and my team around me. Everyone was putting in hard work, and I was doing everything right but then not keeping my head during matches. So I’m trying to do it for them now. I had to try to stay calm today and it worked.
“I have more confidence and belief now that I have won a couple of matches, especially beating a player as good as Zhou to qualify. I know I can do it now. I will just keep playing my game and I know if I do that I can beat anyone.”
Mark Allen’s hopes of winning the title for a third consecutive year ended as he lost a late night battle against Estonia’s top player Andres Petrov by a 4-3 scoreline. From 3-1 down, Antrim’s Allen fought back to 3-3, setting up a dramatic decider. Petrov had first chance and made 48 before missing the green to a baulk corner, then Allen looked set to clear until he rattled the final blue in the jaws of a top pocket. World number 96 Petrov sunk blue, pink and black to cross the line at 1.45am.
“It’s the best win of my career, by far,” said Petrov. “I was really lucky in the end. When I was over the last black, I was thinking ‘this is for my daughter and I will pot it.’ I hope my wife back in Estonia was sleeping and not watching because she has to wake up soon. I am so happy to get through, I can’t describe what it means to me. I know I was playing the local favourite here, but I also knew there was a group of people in Estonia watching me and cheering me on, and that helped.”
Shaun Murphy edged out Marco Fu 4-3 in an extraordinary finish as the former World Champion looked certain to lose the decider. Murphy earlier made breaks of 122, 80 and 117 to lead 3-1 before Fu recovered to 3-3. In the last frame, Fu led by 27 points with just the colours left, and the balls in awkward positions. Murphy battled on, got the snooker he needed, and eventually potted a cracking long green to set up a winning clearance.
“I was fully prepared to accept I had lost. I have got no idea why I am standing here,” World number seven Murphy told Eurosport. “I missed chances to win 4-1 and 4-2, then the last frame was horrible and we both lost our technique. But before that I made two centuries and played some good snooker.”
Murphy was asked about an incident in the sixth frame when, in with a chance to win 4-2, he called a foul on himself for a push-shot when potting the penultimate red. He said: “I don’t think the referee saw it, you couldn’t tell that I had fouled, but I knew. We pride ourselves in our game on honesty and it cost me that frame.”
Matthew Selt made breaks of 79, 57, 60 and 67 as he beat Dean Young 4-3 while Gary Wilson saw off Lukas Kleckers 4-01 with top runs of 107, 96 and 86.
I have a visitor on my island … a (former) snooker player. She is German but lives in Scotland … and, no, we haven’t watched the snooker, so don’t expect too many comments from me in this piece. Just trying to catch up with the snooker and there’s been a lot of last week and over the week-end.
The 900 week 5 in pictures and words
Week 6 at the 900 starts tonight … so here is what happened in week 5
It all started last Monday.
The team was ready
The arena was packed with spectators, and players were having a late practice …
On day 1
Billy Castle abandonned the commentary box and emerged the winner from a competitive group.
On day 2
The incredible Less Dodd, 69 years old, beating a strong opposition
On day 3
Andy Lavin beat Rodney Goggins in the final to book his place in the winners week.
Congratulations Andy Lavin!
This was probably the most “diverse group” of this season so far.
Here are some pictures shared on social media by Jason Francis during the event:
German Glory! Dikme Wins Q Tour Event on Home Soil
Germany’s Umut Dikme recorded the most significant victory of his career to date when he defeated Hamim Hussain 5-1 in the final to win the 2023/24 Q Tour UK/Europe Event Three on home soil at the TSG Heilbronn.
Prior to this weekend’s event in southwest Germany, Dikme had never been past the last 16 of a Q Tour event, but the 23-year-old seemed to find inspiration from being close to home as he produced a string of fantastic results to become the latest new champion on snooker’s second tier.
As one of the event’s seeded players due to his results at last year’s Q School, Dikme began his challenge in the last 64. On Saturday he dispatched Rodion Judins (Latvia) 3-1, Ian Martin (England) 3-0 and then ousted 17-year-old Artemijs Žižins (Latvia) 3-2 in the last 16.
Finals Day was unchartered territory for the Ludwigsburg-based cueist – his previous best was a last 16 finish at last month’s Event Two in Stockholm – but he acclimatised, registering runs of 60, 51 and 65 in a 4-2 quarter-final win against Hong Kong’s Yu Kiu Chang before denying the experienced Peter Lines 4-2 in the last four along with efforts of 75 and 72.
Another player enjoying their time in the city of Heilbronn was Hussain who reached his maiden Q Tour event final, bettering his three previous quarter-final appearances (in regular events).
The 22-year-old Englishman – who compiled a maximum 147 break on last season’s English Amateur Tour – had to navigate Friday’s preliminary rounds before last 32 and 16 wins over Tyler Rees (Wales) and Alex Millington (England) respectively. Rees had defeated fellow Welshman and Event One victor Liam Davies the round before.
Hussain overcame his last eight block as he stopped Event Two champion Michael Holt from becoming the first player in Q Tour history to claim back-to-back event titles with a 4-3 success. He then ended the challenge of former European amateur champion Harvey Chandler 4-0 in the semi-finals.
However, Dikme was not to be denied a big triumph for himself and German snooker. He crafted breaks of 59 and 53 on his way to going into the mid-session interval 4-0 up, and although Hussain avoided the whitewash after the break, Dikme finished in style and completed his fairytale trip with an effort of 105 in frame six.
Event Four on this season’s Q Tour UK/Europe circuit takes place at the Landywood Snooker Club between November 10-12.
Neil Robertson has captured titles in every calendar year going back to 2006, and must win one of the next three tournaments to keep that sequence going. He made an ideal start to the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open with a 4-1 defeat of Wu Yize.
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Since winning the 2006 Grand Prix, Robertson has lifted at least one trophy for 17 years in a row, the longest ongoing streak of any player. But given that the world number six has decided not to enter tournaments in December this year, in order to take a Christmas break in his native Australia, he will have to win either this week’s tournament in Belfast, the International Championship in China or the UK Championship in York to keep the run going.
So far, this season has been a struggle for the 41-year-old; he is yet to reach the last 32 of a ranking event. But top breaks of 69 and 70 helped him to beat China’s Wu and set up a last-64 clash with local favourite Jordan Brown.
“I love records, keeping them going or achieving them,” said Robertson. “I am very proud of this one so the motivation is ultra high. I have only got a few attempts left to try to win a title but everything is good, I have been practising really hard and hitting the ball so well. If I can win this week I’d also become the first player to win all four Home Nations events so that’s another one to spur me on.”
Asked about his decision to skip tournaments in order to spend Christmas Down Under, he added: “I decided to bite the bullet, it’s more important for me to get back home for the first time in four years. There are things I miss, like close friends and family who are getting older. My nephews don’t really know me, apart from through Facetime and videos. It will be fun, (son) Alexander will be on a surf board and on the beach. And I’ll be back for the Masters, feeling refreshed.
“As an overseas player it’s always hard to decide when to go home, especially when Australia is so far away. After I had a great season in 2021/22 I should have gone back for a few weeks at that point. It’s probably something I need to schedule better in the future.”
BetVictor English Open and Wuhan Open champion Judd Trump is looking to win three consecutive ranking titles, a feat previously achieved by only four players, and he started strongly with a 4-1 defeat of Jenson Kendrick.
World number 108 Kendrick admitted last week that Trump was his idol and it was a dream for him just to compete with the 25-time ranking event winner, and the Stoke cueman had a moment to savour with a 90 clearance to take the opening frame. But Trump then took control, winning four in a row with a top run of 96.
“I felt a bit rusty because I had not played for six days,” said Trump. “This arena is one of the best three or four on the circuit and the atmosphere heats up as you go through the week, so I want to be around for that.”
Robbie McGuigan, an up-and-coming 19-year-old from nearby Antrim, took advantage of his wild card invitation to this event at the Waterfront Hall by beating Muhammad Asif 4-1 with top breaks of 56, 91 and 58.
“It felt amazing, I could see everyone I knew in the crowd so to play well in front of them was fantastic,” said McGuigan. “I think the crowd got to my opponent a bit and I had to take advantage of that. It was great to be able to fist pump in front of them at the end.
“I have made some changes to my mental approach, I am reading books which help me to stay calm off the table, and I have spoken to a few players about it. I am more relaxed now on the table, if I am playing badly or losing I try to enjoy the challenge.”
Jack Lisowski top scored with 112 in a 4-1 defeat of Rebecca Kenna while Cazoo British Open champion Mark Williams made a 140 total clearance as he beat Tian Pengfei by the same scoreline. Sam Craigie made a 67 in the decider to edge out Kyren Wilson 4-3.
Shaun Murphy brought two cues into his match with Ryan Thomerson at the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open and the experiment proved a success, at least in the result, as he won 4-2 to reach the last 64 in Belfast.
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Murphy has spoken for several months about his intention to use multiple cues, which he feels will give him an advantage in varying conditions, and he put the theory into practice tonight. The former World Champion brought three cues to the tournament, with tip sizes of 9.2mm, 9.3mm and 9.5mm, each of which creates a different amount of ‘deflection’ when playing with side on the cue ball. He left the 9.3mm version in his dressing room, took the other two into the match arena and used only the 9.2mm version in the heat of battle.
The world number seven, who won two ranking events at the tail end of last season, only found fluency in the third frame against Thomerson with a break of 91. But he ground out the result to set up a tie with Marco Fu on Monday at 7pm.
“I first spoke to John Parris about making new cues for me 18 months ago, and it has taken a while to put the plan into action, but tonight was the first real test,” said Murphy. “I have always felt that there are times when we struggle to adapt to the conditions, for example in Shanghai where it is more humid. And there are shots you miss because the equipment doesn’t perform as you expected it to. I didn’t want to get to the end of my career having not given this a try.
“Just by coincidence, there were two players in the arena tonight (Anthony McGill and Ahmed Aly Elsayed) using cues made of graphite, which shows that other players are also experimenting. It might be that in five or ten years, it is standard for players to use multiple cues, or versions made from carbon.”
Mark Allen made a strong start to his quest to win this title for a third year in a row as he beat Ben Mertens 4-0. Like Murphy, the Pistol was far from his best, but the local favourite’s fans went home happy as he won with a top break of 55. “It was a mixture of good and poor stuff,” Allen told Eurosport. “My safety was solid, I was patient and made Ben work for chances. It ended up being a comfortable win. I did what I needed to do, just getting past potential banana skin because Ben is a talented boy and has had some really good results.
“I’m getting better at playing in my home town but I still feel nervous, I just wanted to get the first win under my belt and get into the tournament. My preparation was different today because I was in the arena watching Robbie McGuigan’s match this afternoon rather than relaxing in my hotel. It was great to see Robbie getting a win on the board.
“This venue is class, if you put it somewhere else I would still say it’s one of the best we play in, not just because it’s in Belfast. The fans always come and support it.”
Gary Wilson made breaks of 69, 118, 94 and 50 as he edged out Louis Heathcote 4-3. Jimmy White came from 3-1 down against Anthony McGill to 3-3, only for McGill to make an 81 in the decider to win 4-3 just after midnight.
Of course no mention in the above reports of the biggest upset on the day … on the Day even at Ryan was beaten by Chinese rookie Ma Hailong. Kyren Wilson also lost, by 4-3, to Sam Craigie. It’s a bit unexpected but not really an “upset”.
Highly-rated teenager Stan Moody scored his first win as a professional with a fine 4-2 victory over Zhou Yuelong to qualify for the final stages of the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open.
Yorkshire’s Moody, who turned 17 last month, qualified for the tour by winning the WSF Junior Championship earlier this year. He has had a series of narrow defeats so far this season but bounced back today by beating world number 22 Zhou. From 2-1 down, Moody took the last three frames with a top break of 108 and he goes through to Belfast to face Rod Lawler.
Stuart Bingham, sporting a new pair of glasses, edged out Ashley Hugill 4-3 with a top break of 117. Estonia’s top player Andres Petrov made a superb 112 in the deciding frame to beat in-form Sanderson Lam 4-3. Stephen Maguire was another 4-3 winner as he recovered a 3-1 deficit to beat Fergal O’Brien, firing runs of 126 and 100.
BetVictor English Open runner-up Zhang Anda top-scored with 100 in a 4-1 defeat of Si Jiahui, while Michael White came from 2-0 down to beat Mink Nutcharut 4-2.
The Waterfront Hall in Belfast hosts the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open from October 22-29.
Below is the provisional match schedule and this will be updated as the tournament progresses.
Sunday October 22
10am Neil Robertson v Wu Yize Robert Milkins v Cao Yupeng Ryan Day v Ma Hailong
Not before 1pm Judd Trump v Jenson Kendrick Kyren Wilson v Sam Craigie Ricky Walden v Ben Woollaston
Not before 2pm Mark Williams v Tian Pengfei Jack Lisowski v Rebecca Kenna Robbie McGuigan v Muhammad Asif
7pm Mark Allen v Ben Mertens Gary Wilson v Louis Heathcote David Gilbert v Joel Connolly
Not before 8pm Shaun Murphy v Ryan Thomerson Anthony McGill v Jimmy White Rory McLeod v Ahmed Aly Elsayed
Monday October 23
10am Barry Hawkins v Elliot Slessor Hossein Vafaei v Mark Joyce Tom Ford v Haydon Pinhey
Not before 1pm Jackson Page v Jack Lisowski or Rebecca Kenna Ryan Day or Ma Hailong v Martin O’Donnell Graeme Dott v Xing Zihao
Not before 2pm Jordan Brown v Neil Robertson or Wu Yize Dylan Emery v Robert Milkins or Cao Yupeng Aaron Hill v Fan Zhengyi
7pm Shaun Murphy or Ryan Thomerson v Marco Fu Rod Lawler v Stan Moody Dean Young v Matthew Selt
Not before 8pm Mark Allen or Ben Mertens v Andres Petrov Lukas Kleckers v Gary Wilson or Louis Heathcote Zak Surety v Sean O’Sullivan
Tuesday October 24
The matches listed below will take place on Tuesday, but the schedule is yet to be confirmed.
Stuart Bingham v Xu Si Chris Wakelin v Alfie Burden Jamie Clarke v Yuan Sijun Barry Hawkins or Elliot Slessor v Jiang Jun Ricky Walden or Ben Woollaston v Dominic Dale Lyu Haotian v Tom Ford or Haydon Pinhey Michael White v Joe Perry Ian Burns v Ken Doherty Ross Muir v Rory McLeod or Ahmed Aly Elsayed Judd Trump or Jenson Kendrick v Julien Leclercq Jimmy Robertson v Peng Yisong Mark Davis v Jak Jones Hammad Miah v Kyren Wilson or Sam Craigie James Cahill v Stephen Maguire Anthony McGill or Jimmy White v Robbie McGuigan or Muhammad Asif
Wednesday October 25
The matches listed below will take place on Wednesday, but the schedule is yet to be confirmed.
Matthew Stevens v David Gilbert or Joel Connolly Zhang Anda v John Astley or Thor Chuan Leong Noppon Saengkham v Barry Pinches Mark Williams or Tian Pengfei v Robbie Williams Anton Kazakov v Hossein Vafaei or Mark Joyce
A raft of the sport’s biggest names are set to compete on day one of the BetVictor Scottish Open in Edinburgh, with home hero John Higgins, World Champion Luca Brecel, world number one Ronnie O’Sullivan, defending champion Gary Wilson, Mark Allen, Judd Trump, Mark Selby and many more scheduled for Monday December 11th.
