World Snooker Championship 2018

[milky_26]

6 hours ago, shaun.lawson said:

 

Right, time to do some good with these voodoo powers of mine.

 

Judd Trump, come on down! 

the wishaw walloper has just saved your blushes

[shaun.lawson]

6 hours ago, shaun.lawson said:

 

Right, time to do some good with these voodoo powers of mine.

 

Judd Trump, come on down! 

 

 

 

Bye bye Judd ya welt.

 

Now, fat Celtic-supporting mup John Higgins is clearly the man to beat. 

Edited May 2, 2018 by shaun.lawson

[Chester™]

 

Adios Fudd Trumpet.

[Victorian]

Getting the Higgins boak tho.    Just no.

[Maroon Sailor]

Hawkins / Wilson final for me

[lauriesrank]

9 hours ago, Maroon Sailor said:

Hawkins / Wilson final for me

Williams/wilson for me, phree munny!!

[chester copperpot]

Chucked a 5'er on Wilson on Saturday after my coupon came in.

 

Only did it due to this thread as I dont pay particular attention to snooker outwith the majors.

[Maroon Sailor]

3 hours ago, chester copperpot said:

Chucked a 5'er on Wilson on Saturday after my coupon came in.

 

Only did it due to this thread as I dont pay particular attention to snooker outwith the majors.

 

Next year we'll get Shaun to tip 31 players and then lump it all on the player he didn't tip.

 

Easy money

[chester copperpot]

1 minute ago, Maroon Sailor said:

 

Next year we'll get Shaun to tip 31 players and then lump it all on the player he didn't tip.

 

Easy money

 

Sounds like most of my coupons tbh

[Mikey1874]

That Barry Hawkins is a good player 

[Mikey1874]

John Higgins in the Final

 

Looking good  

[Dusk_Till_Dawn]

Shitehawkins is the luckiest ****er i’ve ever seen

[Cruyff Turn]

These last few frames between Williams and Hawkins have been truly awful.

 

Higgins will wipe the floor with either of them. 

[rudi must stay]

55 minutes ago, Dusk_Till_Dawn said:

Shitehawkins is the luckiest ****er i’ve ever seen

 

Have seen him playing better, I think he'll go through though, Williams has made errors that are unlike him

[rudi must stay]

22 minutes ago, Cruyff Turn said:

These last few frames between Williams and Hawkins have been truly awful.

 

Higgins will wipe the floor with either of them. 

 

Williams will have to up his game considerably to compete

[Cruyff Turn]

1 minute ago, rudi must stay said:

 

Williams will have to up his game considerably to compete

And he'll be mentally knackered after that game.

 

Glad it's Higgins v Williams though, two of the great players from the 90's generation.

 

Higgins is a great big tournament player though and one of the all time greats, Williams has always struggled against him as well.

[shaun.lawson]

Somewhere at my parents' home, buried in boxes from before I left the UK, are a collection of Pot Black and Snooker Scene magazines from the early 1990s. In there are reports of Ronnie O'Sullivan, John Higgins and Mark Williams all playing each other as 15-year-olds - all regarded as snooker's next big things.

 

When Dennis Taylor won the title in 1985, he was 36. He remained the oldest player to win the tournament for the next 27 years. This was a young man's sport; a game for hotshot twenty-somethings. The longevity of O'Sullivan, Higgins and Williams - born less than 9 months apart from one another - is astounding.

 

And for Williams to have reached the world final 15 years after his last one is unprecedented in snooker history. To put it into perspective: Davis had just 8 years spanning all 8 of his finals; Reardon 12 years spanning all 7 of his finals; Hendry 12 years spanning all nine of his finals. Williams now has 19 years spanning his four finals; Higgins, 20 years spanning his seven.

 

I doubt Williams will win, but very much hope he does. Ronnie with five, John with four and Mark with three would be about right overall. All three are legends who've beaten the odds again and again and again.

 

 

Edited May 5, 2018 by shaun.lawson

[shaun.lawson]

11 minutes ago, Cruyff Turn said:

And he'll be mentally knackered after that game.

 

Glad it's Higgins v Williams though, two of the great players from the 90's generation.

 

Higgins is a great big tournament player though and one of the all time greats, Williams has always struggled against him as well.

 

Over recent years, he has. Yet there was a time, between 1999 and 2007 or so, when Williams had Higgins' number. Never more so than 2000: Higgins entered the final session of their semi-final 14-10 up, and Williams forgot to shake his opponent's hand. Higgins was so thrown by this that he collapsed, lost 17-15, and his career went into a weird slump for the next several years. The mind does such strange things to snooker players at times.

[lauriesrank]

6 hours ago, Cruyff Turn said:

And he'll be mentally knackered after that game.

 

Glad it's Higgins v Williams though, two of the great players from the 90's generation.

 

Higgins is a great big tournament player though and one of the all time greats, Williams has always struggled against him as well.

I'm not glad at all that that cheating **** is in the final, OK I have made money on the fact that Williams is in the final as I backed him at 20s,that does not mean I am happy that a guy who shouldn't be allowed to play after cheating is in the final, yes he is undeniably a good player, however, he is a cheat, FACT.

[Victorian]

7 hours ago, shaun.lawson said:

Somewhere at my parents' home, buried in boxes from before I left the UK, are a collection of Pot Black and Snooker Scene magazines from the early 1990s. In there are reports of Ronnie O'Sullivan, John Higgins and Mark Williams all playing each other as 15-year-olds - all regarded as snooker's next big things.

 

When Dennis Taylor won the title in 1985, he was 36. He remained the oldest player to win the tournament for the next 27 years. This was a young man's sport; a game for hotshot twenty-somethings. The longevity of O'Sullivan, Higgins and Williams - born less than 9 months apart from one another - is astounding.

 

And for Williams to have reached the world final 15 years after his last one is unprecedented in snooker history. To put it into perspective: Davis had just 8 years spanning all 8 of his finals; Reardon 12 years spanning all 7 of his finals; Hendry 12 years spanning all nine of his finals. Williams now has 19 years spanning his four finals; Higgins, 20 years spanning his seven.

 

I doubt Williams will win, but very much hope he does. Ronnie with five, John with four and Mark with three would be about right overall. All three are legends who've beaten the odds again and again and again.

 

 

 

It's not even just those three.    There are lots of other 'veteran' players who have stayed at or near the top of the game in recent years.     Carter has been on the scene for years.    Joe Perry is a top performer still.   Stuart Bingham wasn't far short of 40 when he won the World Championship.   Barry Hawkins also fits the veteren mould.    Even Stephen Maguire.

 

Williams has returned to the top from nowhere.     A certain Scottish friend of his may be wondering if he himself retired way too soon.      It was the modernised schedule of worldwide tournaments and the monotony of daily practice that made Hendry decide to pack it in.     It damn near saw the end of O'Sullivan.     But if Mark Williams can have a renaissance then so too could Hendry have.

 

Sadly Higgins will flame Williams in the final.     18-12 at the very least.

[Justin Z]

1 hour ago, lauriesrank said:

I'm not glad at all that that cheating **** is in the final, OK I have made money on the fact that Williams is in the final as I backed him at 20s,that does not mean I am happy that a guy who shouldn't be allowed to play after cheating is in the final, yes he is undeniably a good player, however, he is a cheat, FACT.

 

I admit to not being the most up on snooker because I'm not even from here, but from what I've learned from researching all this is that News of the World edited the video heavily, the full video of the encounter leaves the viewer with a much different idea of what went on than their cut, he didn't know anything about the situation he was going into when they asked him to throw frames as he thought the meeting was about a sponsorship, and the only reason he received any punishment at all instead of being cleared fully by the investigation is because he didn't report the incident, which you're required to do as a player when someone approaches you attempting to fix matches.

 

You might be being a little cavalier with throwing "FACT" around in light of the above.

[Mikey1874]

John Higgins = LEGEND

 

FACT

[Dusk_Till_Dawn]

8 hours ago, rudi must stay said:

 

Have seen him playing better, I think he'll go through though, Williams has made errors that are unlike him

 

He just seems to drag players down to his level

[Chester™]

9 hours ago, shaun.lawson said:

 

Over recent years, he has. Yet there was a time, between 1999 and 2007 or so, when Williams had Higgins' number. Never more so than 2000: Higgins entered the final session of their semi-final 14-10 up, and Williams forgot to shake his opponent's hand. Higgins was so thrown by this that he collapsed, lost 17-15, and his career went into a weird slump for the next several years. The mind does such strange things to snooker players at times.

 

2000, and the 'weird slump' years, also coincided with getting married and the bairns being born. He said himself snooker took a backseat then.

[shaun.lawson]

2 hours ago, Justin Z said:

 

I admit to not being the most up on snooker because I'm not even from here, but from what I've learned from researching all this is that News of the World edited the video heavily, the full video of the encounter leaves the viewer with a much different idea of what went on than their cut, he didn't know anything about the situation he was going into when they asked him to throw frames as he thought the meeting was about a sponsorship, and the only reason he received any punishment at all instead of being cleared fully by the investigation is because he didn't report the incident, which you're required to do as a player when someone approaches you attempting to fix matches.

 

You might be being a little cavalier with throwing "FACT" around in light of the above.

 

Yep.

 

It kinda says it all that all you had to do was a little research. People like lauriesrank don't bother with that sort of thing. They much prefer vile slander based on nothing other than their own hatred and ignorance.

 

The snooker authorities asked the News of the World to provide the complete unedited video. The NotW refused. It was subsequently shut down for hacking murdered schoolgirls' phones, and the fake sheikh, whose entire M.O. ignored if someone was innocent or guilty, was sent to prison.

 

I feel quite sorry for Higgins having to deal with pathetic internet trolls like lauriesrank, who wouldn't understand evidence, due process or facts if it slapped them round the face.

[shaun.lawson]

2 hours ago, Victorian said:

 

It's not even just those three.    There are lots of other 'veteran' players who have stayed at or near the top of the game in recent years.     Carter has been on the scene for years.    Joe Perry is a top performer still.   Stuart Bingham wasn't far short of 40 when he won the World Championship.   Barry Hawkins also fits the veteren mould.    Even Stephen Maguire.

 

Williams has returned to the top from nowhere.     A certain Scottish friend of his may be wondering if he himself retired way too soon.      It was the modernised schedule of worldwide tournaments and the monotony of daily practice that made Hendry decide to pack it in.     It damn near saw the end of O'Sullivan.     But if Mark Williams can have a renaissance then so too could Hendry have.

 

Sadly Higgins will flame Williams in the final.     18-12 at the very least.

 

It's quite hard to understand it. The circuit is more cutthroat and ruthlessly competitive than ever - yet the lack of young players coming through is bewildering. The Class of 92, who John Parrott referred to last night, must've been inspired by snooker's enormous popularity during the 80s; maybe the crisis the game went through during the noughties is why these veterans are still at the top? 

 

I'll go for Higgins 18-15. And hopefully my midas touch in reverse will do the rest.  

[Cruyff Turn]

4 hours ago, lauriesrank said:

I'm not glad at all that that cheating **** is in the final, OK I have made money on the fact that Williams is in the final as I backed him at 20s,that does not mean I am happy that a guy who shouldn't be allowed to play after cheating is in the final, yes he is undeniably a good player, however, he is a cheat, FACT.

If John Higgins did cheat and the governing body hadn't seen the truth, he would be banned for life. 

 

The Fact is, Higgins was setup, the video was edited to make him look guilty, the Police, the governing body and the Judge all seen the full unedited video and it was clear that John Higgins didn't accept any money to drop frames. The guys been tarnished on the back of a shitty tabloid newspaper who are no longer in existence due to these sort of practices. 

[AlimOzturk]

10 minutes ago, Cruyff Turn said:

If John Higgins did cheat and the governing body hadn't seen the truth, he would be banned for life. 

 

The Fact is, Higgins was setup, the video was edited to make him look guilty, the Police, the governing body and the Judge all seen the full unedited video and it was clear that John Higgins didn't accept any money to drop frames. The guys been tarnished on the back of a shitty tabloid newspaper who are no longer in existence due to these sort of practices. 

 

Well said. 

 

There is a reason the news of world isn't in circulation anymore.   

[shaun.lawson]

Still very early days, but Higgins 1 Williams 5 latest score.

 

#NLTF 

[Cruyff Turn]

3-5 to Williams at the first interval. Good start for Mark, surprising really considering the gruelling semi final he won.

 

 

 

[shaun.lawson]

5 minutes ago, Cruyff Turn said:

3-5 to Williams at the first interval. Good start for Mark, surprising really considering the gruelling semi final he won.

 

 

 

 

Definite signs of him tiring mentally towards the end of the session though. 9 frames tonight, so needs to be no worse than 9-8 down overnight, because Higgins is clicking into gear.

[Cruyff Turn]

23 minutes ago, shaun.lawson said:

 

Definite signs of him tiring mentally towards the end of the session though. 9 frames tonight, so needs to be no worse than 9-8 down overnight, because Higgins is clicking into gear.

Agree, think he realised himself he needed to get off to a good start but like John he's been around the block enough times to tough it out and mix it up. Higgins will definitely feel good after coming out of that first session only two frames behind and now they've both eased into the match, I think we'll see a really good session tonight. 

[Mikey1874]

Good start 

[Victorian]

Wonderful from Williams.   He plays the game differently to everyone else.    He just sees a chance and goes full blooded.    No fear whatsoever.       Just like Hendry or Williams aged 18.

[rudi must stay]

31 minutes ago, Victorian said:

Wonderful from Williams.   He plays the game differently to everyone else.    He just sees a chance and goes full blooded.    No fear whatsoever.       Just like Hendry or Williams aged 18.

 

Both have brought their A game and are so strong mentally. This is going the distance I think

[Victorian]

Scoreboard pressure / comfort has been massive here.     Williams got an invaluable 4-0 and 5-1 lead and now looks comfortable now he's played in.   Higgins has done well to arrest the deficit but still looks edgy.      As long as Williams prevents Higgins from winning 3-4 in a row he'll have every chance as Higgins will only fully relax if he gets on a run and a lead.     

[Victorian]

Hendry and McManus underpinning what I was saying about Williams.   Now he's back it's a reminder that there's nobody like him.     It will be intimidating to play against from behind.

Edited May 6, 2018 by Victorian

[neilnunb]

I don't think either are playing that great, missing too many relatively easy shots (Williams was the same last night), however Higgins' safety play is improving at last.

[Cruyff Turn]

Mark Williams has played some incredibly ballsy shots, very unlucky when he tried to open up the reds in the 14th frame, expect John to take full advantage and tie the game now.

[Victorian]

Danger signs now.    Williams must win one of the next two.

[Cruyff Turn]

Great response from Williams, both players have just moved up a gear. Heating up now. 

[Victorian]

No idea what Higgins was hoping for there.    Must be fatigue.    3 behind.

 

Good.

[Mikey1874]

Nicely poised

 

Makings of a great final 

 

Higgins will need to improve 

[Mikey1874]

2 minutes ago, Victorian said:

No idea what Higgins was hoping for there.    Must be fatigue.    3 behind.

 

Good.

 

Brain meltdown that shot losing the plot potting the brown 

[Cruyff Turn]

24 minutes ago, Victorian said:

No idea what Higgins was hoping for there.    Must be fatigue.    3 behind.

 

Good.

Mental shot by Higgins, 1 in 100 shot, cost him another frame and possibly the match. 

 

Great game though. 

[shaun.lawson]

Delighted how this is going so far.  

 

But of course, Higgins led 10-7 overnight a year ago, so there's a long way to go yet.  

 

McManus is a superb commentator btw. So refreshing.  

[i8hibsh]

I know John Higgins has burnt a few snooker bridges in his past but it will be a cold day in hell when I want a Welshman to beat a Scotsman.

[Victorian]

Knickers doon,  arse tanned.    7-14.    Williams is unplayable.

[AlimOzturk]

21 minutes ago, Victorian said:

Knickers doon,  arse tanned.    7-14.    Williams is unplayable.

 

Thought he was finished but seems to have found that extra level again. 

 

The old guard in Higgins and Williams showing the youngsters how it is done. Great to see. 

[Cruyff Turn]

Williams has played immensely well. It'll take somethings special for Higgins to comeback now, magnificent clearance from John Higgins to make it 9-14.