Mandy Fisher, the woman at the head of WWS was interviewed on the BBC “Framed” podcast

Here is the BBC piece about this interview:

Mandy Fisher: Women’s snooker president predicts narrowing of gender gap

Last updated on 12 June 202312 June 2023.From the section Snooker

Women’s snooker head Mandy Fisher says the “new generation” of female players will be able to compete with men.

The former world champion is now the president of World Women’s Snooker, the organisation she founded in 1981.

From the days when some clubs had signs reading ‘No women allowed’, Fisher believes the sport is now close to having a level playing field.

In the BBC snooker podcast Framed, Fisher spoke of the great strides the women’s game has taken in recent years.

The introduction of two-year tour cards for women on the World Snooker Tour in 2021 has been key to elevating the sport to the point where women players are “role models” to girls coming through, and where Ng On-yee – who last year beat former world champion Ken Doherty in a qualifying event – is a “superstar” in Hong Kong, she says.

“It’s absolutely huge. It’s a platform. It’s a learning curve,” said Fisher.

• Listen to the full Framed podcast interview with Mandy Fisher

“It has brought more players to the game because they’re realizing that, like [19-year-old British Open champion] Bai Yulu – she probably would have remained in China and just played from there had it not been for the fact that we were given the tour cards. So she came to the Women’s World Championship for the first time ever this year to try and win that tour card.

“So it just gives fantastic opportunities, not just for women, but for minority countries that don’t play snooker. It just builds snooker in each of those countries – for women as well as for men.”

World number one Reanne Evans, Rebecca Kenna, 2022 women’s world champion Mink Nutcharut and reigning world champion Baipat Siripaporn have all been offered tour cards.

Evans made history in January by becoming the first woman to beat a man in a televised ranking snooker event, when she beat Stuart Bingham in the Snooker Shoot Out.

Fisher predicts that such wins will become more commonplace.

“Yes, they haven’t won many matches. They have won frames, which is a stepping stone,” she said.

“But you have to bear in mind that that they’ve never played until recent years on the Star tables. 

“You can’t explain to people there is so much difference from playing on club tables, and unless you’ve got your own Star table installed, you are not going to go to a tournament and play your best because they are just so different from anything else that most people have ever played on. 

“But you can see the standard improving all the time. The women have won matches, they’re not at the bottom of the ranking list and they’re doing really well.

“You’ve got to give people a chance. Whether you’re male or female, coming on the tour you’re probably going to struggle. It’s like anything, to get used to the surroundings, the environment. 

“To play your best it can take players years and years. And we know that because there are players coming through now, who have been playing for 20 years and not done anything, but in these last few years they’re doing really well.”

Fisher added that the women’s game has come a long way since the dark days when she was world champion, in 1984.

“Most women don’t go in snooker clubs,” she added. “They go in pubs, and in pubs there are pool tables. I’m not saying pool isn’t skilful, because I know it is skilful. I’m just saying that the leap from being good at pool to being good at snooker is a very difficult one to take.

“I was not able to play in all the snooker clubs, or I was the first woman ever to go and play in these clubs because you would have signs saying ‘No women allowed’, so it takes generations to get over that. 

“Now there are academies and more snooker centres that make women more welcome, and you are seeing more people playing.

“It will take some time, but I just can’t see any physical reason why women should not be as good as men.”

As it happens WST also just did a piece with Reanne Evans

Evans On Overcoming Struggles To Regain Tour Card

Reanne Evans battled through cue and health issues at last month’s Women’s British Open to retain her professional status and secure another two years on the World Snooker Tour, now she hopes to showcase her best game on the sport’s grandest stages.

The 12-time Women’s World Champion has struggled to find her best form in recent times. However, she has been hindered by an undiagnosed tremor which has impacted her game.

Despite this and last minute cue damage, she managed to outperform rival Ng On Yee to reach the British Open final and remain at the top of the Women’s world rankings. Evans lost the title match 4-3 to 19-year-old Chinese sensation Bai Yulu, who was runner-up to Thailand’s Baipat Siripaporn at the Women’s World Championship.

We’ve caught up with Evans to reflect on the British Open and discuss the current global trend of women’s snooker.

Reanne, first of all congratulations on retaining your tour card. How pleased were you to achieve that feat?

“I think everyone wanted a showdown with me against On Yee. It didn’t happen in the end. I wasn’t really thinking anything heading into that tournament. I didn’t think I could win it or play any good. I had a lot of issues going on and my cue was damaged. I actually played quite well in the end. Snooker is a random sport, I didn’t expect it. When I got to the final, I thought I was going to win but I was just so drained. Bai is half my age so she could probably have played another whole day of snooker. She deserved it in the end and she outlasted me. She is great for the game, has a good following and is a good young talent.”

How did your cue become damaged?

“I went to watch the World Seniors at the Crucible and Jason Francis said I could take my cue to have a hit on the practice table. I went to see everyone and enjoyed a couple of days there. As I was walking back from the venue to the hotel, it absolutely poured down with rain. I never thought anything of it. I got back home a day or two later and went for a practice. My daughter picked up my cue and said it felt funny. I said it was probably nothing and told her to go and wash her hands. When I chalked my cue, the chalk was damp and I looked and saw the wood was actually over the ferule. I was panicking and had to go up to the loft to find my old cue. The ferrule of that was black and mouldy so I had to clean it up and put on a new tip. My two cues are now with John Parris and he has done a refurb on them both.”

You have been dealing with a tremor recently. How hard has that been to contend with?

“At the moment it isn’t as bad, maybe because I’m not playing as much. There are just things in day to day life which trigger it. I have a couple of more scans to go to and will speak to neurologists to try and get it sorted.

“When it first started it was quite bad. There was a lot of publicity around women playing on the main tour, with the tour cards coming in. Matches were on TV and I was under the microscope. Most of last season, I had no feeling in my arm whatsoever. I was questioning whether I play quick, whether I play jabby or slowly. Nothing seemed to work. I didn’t know if I was coming or going. All the way down the right side of my body was shaking. Hopefully we can get to the bottom of it. I think not knowing what it is or what has caused it has been the main problem. Once you know you can start dealing with it.

“I probably shouldn’t have played last season when it was at its worst. However, we have been given this opportunity and it is something you think you can’t not turn up or withdraw. Hopefully it can be controlled a bit more.”

Now you have managed to get back on, what are the targets for the next two seasons?

“Since getting on the main tour I’ve been looking to win a few matches. It hasn’t been like on the Women’s Tour when I am looking to win events. That is a strange feeling. When I enter something, I want to win it. I know that’s not going to happen. It is a weird situation. It isn’t just not winning matches, I want to win the event. Changing the mentality is hard, but maybe I need to find a different approach. I love a challenge and I need to go out there and do my best. I have nothing to prove now. That is all on the young players like Bai, Baipat, Mink and the rest of them. I am older now. It is good that there is some youth and experience. They inspire me and hopefully I still inspire them sometimes. I have no real targets. I just want to see what happens. I still enjoy it and especially when I play well. If you enjoy a challenge, then you will always enjoy snooker because it is such a hard sport.”

How important do you think the tour cards have been for the women’s game?

“I think it is great for players like Baipat and Bai. They have no scars and just want to go out and enjoy it. I read Bai saying something about just wanting to play for herself. I thought that was great as it was what I used to think like. It got to the point when for a few years the limelight was just on me and I started trying to play for everyone. You get more pressure then and you have more people watching you. Everything is on your shoulders. I think it is fantastic for those young players coming on that there are a few of them.

“I still get messages now saying they didn’t realise women played. That is frustrating after all these years. To see what it is like in Thailand and see how many young girls play is just brilliant.  We all get on really well and we want to do the best for ourselves and the best for the sport. There is a lot of talent out there now.”

How impressed have you been with how Bai Yulu performed at the British Open and at Q School?

“Because she is so young and just wants to pot balls she doesn’t think too much. She has a great game and is very confident. Her long potting is amazing. The other parts of her game will come with more experience. People were impressed with the pink she potted against Josh Thomond in the decider at Q School, but I was more impressed with the black. She just got down and didn’t even think about it. You need to do the right things at the right times and I think she did.”

Before you continue to read this piece I want you to know that I have the uttermost respect for Mandy, who, for decades, has fought to develop the Women’s game, even when it was at its lowest. She fought through discrimination, contempt, derision, lack of support and lack of money. She never lost her love for her sport and she kept hope against all hopes. She’s a snooker hero and doesn’t get enough recognition for what she did, and still does. Thank you Mandy!

The first thing I will say – admit actually – is that I have been disappointed overall with the results of the women on the main tour. I expected better. That said I had no idea that Reanne was suffering with physical issues. I thought that she looked flat and demotivated at times, but, of course, if she was struggling physically whilst, at the same time, being acutely aware of the fans expectations, it can’t have been easy. I do wish Reanne the best and I hope that the doctors will be able to identify the cause of the problem, and cure it.

On Yee has been quite disappointing as well. Of course she also has her own issues. With the “Elite Sport” status of snooker under threat in Hong Kong, and with it, its future funding uncertain, she had her own concerns and additional pressure to deal with. She also traveled a lot back and forth between the UK and Hong Kong. That said, her last main tour match was encouraging: she lost to Michael Holt by 10-8 at the 2023 World qualifiers: She had five breaks over 50 in that match, including a 115, Michael had eight breaks over 50. It was a very high standard match and she certainly didn’t disgrace herself. She can score, she showed it again in the Asian Q-School, but IMO she would benefit from playing a bit faster and more aggressively.

Mink lacks cuepower. She is petite. Whenever she needs to apply cuepower, her accuracy suffers. We have seen the same with some of the men who are handicapped by a very short stature, like, for instance, Zhang Anda. There is nothing they can do about it. Some of the shots tall players – like Judd Trump or Neil Robertson for instance – can play, elevating the cue and creating a lot of spin, are simply not available to them (unless the step up on a crate 😉) … you can’t beat physics.

I’m afraid that those poor results have only reinforced the prejudices of those who believe that women are useless at snooker, should not be allowed on the main tour and will never be able to reach the Crucible. Unfortunately there are quite a few around on social media.

It will be interesting to see what Baipat will be able to do.

Bai Yulu has really impressed in the Q-School. No disrespect to Mandy, but I’m not convinced that Bai came to the UK because of the Women’s tour. She’s used to play the men in China and she entered the Q-School where she gave a really good account of herself. I do hope that she will be able to play on the Q-Tour.

Mandy says that there has been increased interest in the Women’s tour events since women are seen on TV playing on the main tour, more girls and women wanting to play. That’s obviously a positive. But to really progress to their full potential, I feel that the best of them, once they reach a certain level, need to play the men as well.

Finally, I’m not entirely convinced that there are “no physical reasons”, why women can’t compete with men. Strength and height are factors but maybe not prohibitive obstacles. However denying that there are physical differences is stupid and unhelpful.

We, women are, on average, shorter, we have less physical strength and we are built differently. We have narrower shoulders, boobs, wider hips, and the shape of our legs – because of the wider hips – is different too. All of these elements have an impact on our stance. I ‘m pretty useless at snooker, but I tried to work with a coach for a short while. Johnny was very patient and he tried his best to teach me the “perfect stance”, the “Hendry like” stuff. It was almost impossible, extremely uncomfortable, notably with boobs coming in the way of the cue.

In his latest book, in the chapter about practice, Ronnie speaks about the importance of the hips when it comes to the stance and alignment. You would expect that he knows his stuff. Well that’s an area where the anatomical difference between men and women is massive.

Also, speaking of strength, of course, on average women are not as strong as men. But that’s not all: the “repartition” of strength – if that makes sense – is different. Whilst males usually have a lot stronger shoulders and arms, women feel strong around the waist and hips. Ask a man to carry a 18 months baby around for half an hour, he will likely sit the kid on his shoulders, ask a women and she will probably carry it around her waist, sitting on one hip, or strapped on her lower back.

Yes we are anatomically different. I wonder if any coach ever did put some real effort into looking at the anatomy of both genders and maybe find a stance, or stances, that can be recommended depending on gender or body types. And of course then, there is another challenge. Those anatomical differences mainly develop with puberty. Some kids start very young, which is good, but then coaches need be able and prepared to guide them through the anatomical changes.

Comments and thoughts more that welcome!

Stephen Hendry may not have put the efforts many of his fans expected into his “comeback” but he still loves his snooker, still wants to be involved and help grow it.

Six months ago , he set up a YouTube channel named Hendry’s Cue Tips. Really, it’s a “must subscribe” for any serious snooker fan. Hendry may no more be the player he was, but his knowledge and understanding of the game at its highest level is immense. His conversations with fellow top players are always interesting and, at times, challenging.

Yesterday he published his latest “cue tips” instalment and his guest was Ronnie…

One of the topics they touched is, of course, the “*the 8th World Title” and – by chance or by design – Phil Haigh also published a piece yesterday where he reports the interview Ronnie did on BBC Radio 4 and that same topic was on the menu as well.

Ronnie O’Sullivan warns rivals he’s ‘coming back a different player’ after World Championship disappointment

Phil Haigh Sunday 28 May 2023 4:50 pm

Ronnie O’Sullivan was left ‘really gutted’ by how he played at the Crucible this year and intends to ‘come back a different player’ next season.

The Rocket was looking good at the World Championship this year, beating Pang Junxu in the opening round before thrashing Hossein Vafaei in the last 16.

The seven-time world champion was still looking strong at 10-6 ahead against Luca Brecel in the quarter-finals, before the Belgian reeled off seven frames on the spin to win the match and continue his incredible run all the way to the title.

While it was brilliance from the Belgian Bullet in that final session, O’Sullivan certainly played poorly and he admits that his performance hurt him in the aftermath of the sport’s biggest event.

The 47-year-old believes he still has a significant amount of time at the top of snooker, if he is prepared to dedicate his life to the sport, something he intends to do next season as he warns his rivals that he intends to put his recent Crucible performance right.

‘I think, if I want it, I’ve got three really good years,’ O’Sullivan told the BBC’s Desert Island Discs. ‘But that depends on whether I’m fully devoted to it and say snooker’s all I’m going to do for three years, which I can do but it’s hard if you want to do some days with Jimmy White as a pundit, a few exhibitions, because they’re fun.

‘I can still perform, still be a top eight player doing that. But to really give yourself the best opportunity it’s about being totally on it and it’s whether I’m prepared to do that and I think I will this year.

‘The last World Championships wasn’t a good tournament for me. I was really gutted with how I played. I wasn’t disappointed I lost, you lose you know, but the way I played, I wasn’t happy with that.

‘I want to try and put that right and try and come back a different player next year.’

Still world number one, O’Sullivan has no doubt he can still perform at the very highest level, saying he is probably a better player now than he has ever been due to constantly developing a more rounded game over the years.

‘For me, it’s always been about being open to learn and becoming a better player,’ he said. ‘I think now I’m a better player than I’ve ever been, because I don’t rely on one thing, I’ve got three or four different options of surviving within a game and at any point I can switch.

‘It’s taken time, because I was never really the best at anything, I wasn’t the best long-potter, I wasn’t the best safety player.

‘I was always good at making breaks and scoring quickly, which is an amazing asset to have, but without the other stuff it became a bit one-dimensional.

‘Over the years I’ve had to improve in a lot of them areas and now I can call upon them. But I always know at the back of my mind I need to be firing on all cylinders, which is scoring breaks at a rapid speed. When I’m doing that I’m a dangerous opponent.

‘It’s learning, leaning to be a better player. That’s what excites me. I spent a lot of time struggling, trying to work it out. I’m at the point now that I’ve improved, but how long can I keep it going for now? I’ve worked so hard to get there and now I want to make as much hay as I can and [get] enjoyment. Because I suffered a lot with it and I’ve learned to not suffer. It’s about more pleasure now.’

After Ronnie’s first round win at the 2023 WST Classic last week, there were no quotes by Ronnie in the very short WST report about his match. Rumours over social media were that Ronnie’s interview had been vetoed.

Jason Francis, who manages Ronnie and Reanne Evans, confirmed to me that Ronnie had spoken to two journalists, one of them being Hector Nunns, the author of the piece I share hereafter.

Everyone will have their opinion, but here are a few things I want to stress before you read it:

• The WST/WPBSA spoke person claims that Ronnie chose not to attend. This is not entirely true. Ronnie and Reanne were not due to play on the first day of the tournament, they had not planned to be in Leicester on that day. Jason Francis, who manages both, asked for them to be allowed to attend by Zoom rather than in person. That was refused.
• Ronnie claims that he has been carrying the sport for 20-30 years and it IS true. There is no doubt that it has taken a lot out of him mentally, even too much at times. Judd Trump himself said it recently: for over 20 years Ronnie is always in the limelight, he’s always expected to win, if he doesn’t its because “he didn’t try”. Everything he says or does is scrutinised and judged. Judd is right and those who claim that Ronnie didn’t do enough for the game don’t understand what it takes to play and succeed for so long under that kind of pressure. He’s not a business man, he’s a player.
• WST/WPBSA claim that the prize money has grown … for their UK events. Well, that’s a big part of the issue: the game is far too UK centric. It calls itself “WORLD” snooker but it IS massively UK centric, England centric even. You can’t expect big international companies to get behind a sport that basically looks like a national league with a few international invitees. Of course covid has limited what they could do, but that’s over now. Of course, China’s ongoing isolation policies have not helped either. But mainland Europe has been open for quite some time and the Women’s game has traveled a lot. So? One of WPBSA’s answer in the past has been that the UK centric organisation – especially that of the qualifiers – is cheaper for the majority of the players who are British/Irish. That’s true but that is also a big part of what causes the issue because it actually keeps it that way by making it harder, more mentally taxing and more costly for everyone else.
• The way that money that is there has been used has prioritised the shareholders over the players. Matchroom basically “owns” the sport but since Barry Hearn has retired I feel that snooker has not been their priority. Eddie Hearn has never been interested in anything but boxing, the very dynamic and capable Emily Frazer is 100% behind the development of pool and has even been successful in attracting some of the top snooker players to “her” sport.
• Jason Ferguson is someone I like. He’s been a player, he understands their needs, he genuinely cares for them and the sport, he understands the game but he’s not a business man. If anything, he is too nice maybe. He needs someone at his side who is a businessperson.

The whole situation reminds me of the start of the 2009/10 season: it has the same “feeling”. Discontent, players not allowed to speak their mind … Then it lead to Barry Hearn taking over snooker and initiating big changes. What will happen now? I don’t know but changes surely are around the corner.

So, here it is as reported by Hector Nunns, one of the two journalists Ronnie spoke to :

O’Sullivan launches most explosive interview yet ripping into snooker’s bosses

Reigning and seven-time world snooker champion Ronnie O’Sullivan has ripped into his sport’s bosses in an explosive attack over the current state of the professional game

Ronnie O’Sullivan has launched a devastating attack on the state of snooker and those running it – claiming the sport is in “the worst place it has ever been”.

In under a month the Rocket launches his bid for a record eighth world title at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield. The world No.1 last year equalled Stephen Hendry’s mark of seven crowns amid hugely emotional scenes at the iconic venue as he beat Judd Trump in the final.

But this year’s blue-riband tournament will take place under the shadow of a match-fixing hearing also next month that sees 10 Chinese players suspended and charged with a range of offences.

There is also widespread discontent among top players over the calendar, cancelled tournaments and reduced overall prize-money levels post-Covid with China events not yet back on stream.

And recent efforts by the governing bodies to stop players speaking out appear to have been a red rag to O’Sullivan – who states the situation is “beyond a crisis”. The game’s No.1 box office star has even encouraged players to go on strike to force major change.

He said: “Listen, snooker is in a bad place. It’s in trouble. Forget Turkey [Turkish Masters recently cancelled]. This needs at least another £50million a year just to make it a proper tour.

“When you look at the number, it’s bad. When you look at £10million prize money for 25 events across the year for 128 players, it’s never going to be good. It needs at least to triple that to make it work. Maybe you do need some proper people like Liberty [in Formula One] or someone with the vision to bring it up to date.

“You look at the people actually managing the game, they are not the brightest sparks either. So you can’t see them digging themselves out of it. But you don’t have to be Einstein. It is probably in the worst place it has ever been. The image of the sport, it’s a bit like a pub sport now.

“Look at some of the tournaments. The Shootout. Some of the venues we play at. It’s lost its charm of what it used to be. It’s cheap. If they can be honest enough with themselves, maybe the people that run the game need to say: We have taken it as far as we can.

“If they really have the love of the sport they would hand it over to somebody else that had higher ambitions. It is probably as bad as it has ever been also because of the betting scandal.

“There are a lot of players I know who are really unhappy and frightened to speak out because they will get fined. They are told that. The game is struggling, if you look at the numbers it is in a bad way. But we all want good for the game.

“I can’t do more. I have carried the sport pretty much for the last 20-30 years. It’s not one player. It’s the sport, it’s not a massive sport. At Wimbledon it is probably £50million for the one event. You look at golf, minimum first prize of £1.2million and the top players don’t even turn up for that.

“We are playing for the winner gets £80,000 most weeks and the runner-up gets £35,000. It’s bang in trouble. Mark Allen has done well this year, Judd Trump did well a couple of years before that. A few others do alright. But for the rest, there is nothing there.

“A lot of these players are tempted by crumbs. If you give them a few crumbs, and they say, I will play, keep them quiet, keep them on board. But the only way to get change is for the players to say, we are not playing until you listen to us.

“If you want us to play in this tournament for six days then this is what we expect. This amount of prize money. Two weeks for this amount of prize money. Nothing will change until the majority of the players go, you know what, we are not playing.”

World Snooker have sought to reassure O’Sullivan and the tour that there are causes for optimism, with a plan in place that will kick in post-Covid as the Asian markets re-open.

A spokesperson said: “Last week we held a constructive meeting with the players, unfortunately Ronnie chose not to attend, where we set out our vision for the future of snooker and addressed issues which are important to the players.

“The outcomes were positive, and players were encouraged by the progressive strategy set out by WST. WST is working diligently across many of the areas Ronnie has raised and is achieving considerable success as a result. We have smashed records on ticket sales for the majority of our events this season, and our global TV and digital audience is bigger than ever.

“Prize money for our UK events has increased since the start of the pandemic. Post COVID we are committed to returning to China in 2023 and optimistic about that prospect, which would put our tour in the strongest position it has ever been.

“We are working with the leading agencies in sports, whose clients include the Premier League, FIFA, Ryder Cup and The Masters. Our long-term strategy is based upon best-in-class analysis and driven by data. We would always welcome Ronnie to share his ideas and discuss our plans and strategy directly with WST.”

The “underline” highlighting some bits in the above text are my doing. Opinions expressed are my own, and my own only

Ashley Carty has not been invited to the 2023 World Championship qualifiers and, like Balvark, I find this very surprising. Also surprising to me was how Ashley, who qualified for the Crucible in 2020, plummeted down the rankings. In this interview he explains what happened

Ash Carty is back on the World Snooker Tour after traumatic time set him back

Phil Haigh Wednesday 8 Mar 2023 7:53 pm

It was a painful end to his previous stint on the World Snooker Tour, but Ash Carty is back and feeling better than ever as he prepares for another crack at the professional circuit.

The Yorkshireman won the Q Tour Playoffs on Sunday, beating Farakh Ajaib, Hamim Hussain, Ross Muir and then Florian Nussle in the final to earn himself a two-year tour card.

Still only 27 years old, Carty had four years on tour before falling off last year and is thrilled to bounce straight back, especially without having to go to the notoriously difficult Q School.

‘I’m absolutely buzzing,’ Carty told Metro.co.uk. ‘It’s relief more than anything, to do it so soon, the last thing I wanted was to have two, three, four years off tour. It’s nice to be back on within one season. 

‘Avoiding Q School was the main thing, to avoid that at all costs because it’s just absolutely brutal, anything can happen and it’s just not a nice tournament to be in.’

Carty looked to be making progress on the professional tour, reaching the Crucible in 2020 with some fine qualifying wins over the likes of Jimmy Robertson and Rob Milkins before putting up a good fight in a 10-7 loss to Stuart Bingham on the sport’s greatest stage.

From there it was somewhat surprising to see him drop off tour last year, but after failing to come through Q School, he hinted at off-table troubles.

Ash tweeted in June last year: ‘Gutted to have fell off the tour and not gained my place back on. 

‘The last 6/7 months for me away from the table have been awful to say the least, thankfully things have been getting better slowly and I can start to focus fully on snooker again & to try and get back on the tour.’

Speaking about that tough time now, Carty explains that snooker was far from his chief focus as his father’s life was in jeopardy for months at the time.

‘My dad was seriously ill during my last season on tour, thankfully he’s getting better now but he was in hospital for about four months,’ Ash explained. 

‘He had Covid, he was in intensive care for two months, then he had a stroke which put him in hospital for another two months. 

‘For the first two months I wasn’t sure if he’d make it or not, so snooker took a back step completely. I was still turning up to tournaments, I actually got a couple of good wins, I beat Maguire and a couple of others, but I wasn’t practicing at all really, just an hour a day while that was going on.

‘I was going to tournaments and I wasn’t sharp, I wasn’t thinking about snooker at all, it was a really tough time for me. Thankfully now he’s on the mend slowly and I can concentrate on snooker a lot more now, but then I didn’t want to play snooker at all.’

The really tough time off the table brought bad habits into Carty’s practicing which he didn’t get rid of until very recently when his friend gave him a talking to.

With his dad’s health improving, Carty needed to get back to the grind and has been putting in the hours on the table and on the road, which has paid off already with his Q Tour Playoffs victory.

‘I wasn’t practicing, I got into a bad habit and not even doing good practice when I was in the club,’ he explained. ‘I was doing that for probably a year and it was only three months ago that my friend who runs the club where I play had an honest chat with me. 

‘He told me I wasn’t practicing hard enough and it hit me a bit. I went home that day, thought about it and realised he was right. 

‘I changed a lot from then, I’ve been doing a lot of fitness, getting up at 6am and going for a run, my friend has been coming to the club and picking balls out for me, that’s really helped. I feel a lot more sharp, doing intense practice, maybe two hours non-stop, not going on my phone after doing a line-up, that’s no good.

‘That was just after the Q Tour had finished. I finished 13^th and I thought, “I’m a lot better player than this, I need to sort myself out if I want to get back on tour.” Since then I’ve just felt really good, in myself as well. I’ve noticed a big difference in my game, feel a lot more confident and sharp.

‘Even my time on tour, I wasn’t practicing as hard as you have to to get to the top, which I’ve realised now. I’ve got to improve a lot more to get where I want to be, but it’s been a good kick up the backside.’

With a reinvigorated attitude to practice and some wins under his belt, Carty is feeling good about his game again and is ready to take on the tour once more.

‘I do feel confident,’ he said. ‘This season off the tour has helped a bit. If you’re on the tour and not winning many matches then your confidence is rock bottom. 

‘I feel a lot more confident now, I think it’s done me good having a year off the tour, winning matches and getting confidence back. I’ve proved before what I can do, it’s just doing it more consistently.’

Carty is also taking inspiration from his good pal Joe O’Connor, who he came up with in the junior ranks and has now watched him shine this season, reaching his first ranking final at the Scottish Open.

‘This season he’s been unbelievable and that’s inspired me,’ said Ash. ‘I’ve been good friends with him for years and we’ve always been at a similar level. 

‘As juniors I was even a little bit better than him, so to see what he’s doing, it’s inspiring. I know I can do that as well.

‘That’s where I want to be, I want to be back at the Crucible. I want to do what Joe’s doing, getting to quarters, semis, finals of big ranking events.’

Before he returns to pro status next season, Carty heads to the European Amateur Championships in Malta this weekend as he looks to add some more silverware to his collection and return to the tour in style.

First of all I want to wish Ash the best, on tour of course, but in his private life as well.

Next… a word for the conspiracy theorists who believe that covid was just a cold, measures to attempt to contain the spread of it were unnecessary and the vaccine did nothing: read what happened to Ash’s father.

Ash is only 27. His father is unlikely to be a frail old man in his 90th, is he? Yet he spent two months in intensive care.

The same happened to two close friends of my husband. One, in his early 60th, eventually survived, but one of his lungs is completely destroyed. The other one died. He wasn’t even 40. He was a professional sportsman (track and field).

Covid is NOT a cold. Covid can cause clotting that destroys your organs. Covid can fool your immune system that then attacks your own body. The more recent strains are milder, more contagious but milder. That’s how viruses evolve. What happened with COVID had happened before, most notably with the Spanish flu pandemic in 1918. Then as well the virus evolved from an animal disease.

The confinement measures were necessary at the start of the pandemic, until the virus got better understood and adequate treatments were found. That said, it wasn’t necessary for them to last as long as it did. And completely isolating elderly, fragile persons for months – many with dementia – was inhumane. They needed to be protected but they equally needed human contact and love. There is a balance to be found in everything and it wasn’t found. Same when it comes to visiting very ill people in hospitals, or attending one’s child birth.

The vaccine doesn’t prevent those who get it from catching the disease, nor does it prevent from transmitting it. It does however protect from the worse symptoms and hence reduces both mortality and morbidity. The global stats prove it did that. The vaccine against the flu works similarly. All my kids got the vaccine against measles -it was mandatory at the time in Belgium – and all three still got the disease but in a milder form without pulmonary complications. That’s what it’s about. It doesn’t suppress the disease but it helps preventing the worse case scenarios.