The Snookerbacker Blog

We move on today to the semi-finals and at last the boys at the BBC will hopefully stop bleating on about there being a Welsh winner. Patriotism only goes so far in my book before it starts to become annoyingly tribal. So let’s raise a glass to England and Scotland, who provide today’s semi-finalists.

Yesterday saw the end of the Welsh challenge, starting off with the defeat of Mark Williams, who played the most bizarre match against Stephen Maguire. The laid-back Welshman looked anything but as he decided to commit snooker suicide by beating the record for the amount of time it took to finally play a safety shot. At one point it looked to be working against Stephen ‘Cue Bang’ Maguire, but in the end it was the Welshman who was banged out of the tournament, in truth, deservedly so after an uncharacteristically nervy and clumsy display.

On the other table the Jester got his hands dirty again and out slogged Dotty. You feel he will start having to up his game a notch if he is to take his second ever ranking title but there is still hope for those of you who followed me in the outrights.

Last night saw the partisan crowd put in their place by John Higgins, who again looked to be very solid in the balls when he got in, but he isn’t yet playing as well as he did in the UK so he’s not unbeatable. His defeat of Matthew Stevens can be described as workmanlike rather than awesome. On the other table, the laid back Chinese man and increasingly demonstrative Ding Junhui was dumped out by the Captain. Ali arguably produced the best snooker of the day and looked very good. The 5-2 scoreline could actually in the end be seen as flattering Ding, who just wasn’t at the races for the majority of the match. But Ali was very solid.

Bettingwise, it was a mixed bag yesterday. Two out of four of the recommended match bets won but I was disappointed with Williams, who up to then had looked nigh on unbeatable. For my penance, I have forwarded my £10 to The Potfather, Black Whippet, head held down in shame to reimburse the Not So Great Blog Bet Pot which continues to hang by a thread. But at least we still have the outright bet on Selby to pacify the increasingly thirsty punters at Sheffield.

There will be some news early next week for all those of you that have invested in the snooker future of the Albino Assassin, Pretzel-Boy Allan Taylor. It’s been a huge response to a campaign that one Dutch website described as ‘unusual’, well all I can say is that they haven’t heard my latest idea yet! When I’ve sorted that one out it could dwarf this in the unusualness stakes I can tell you. Mrs SB blames my overactive mind, I’d prefer to call it genius. Allan himself is in action down in Gloucester today for anyone in the area that would like to pop into the SWSA and watch him.

As for todays penultimate Welsh Icon, this will no doubt please all the lady lovers on the blog. Such a shame she married her grandad. I wonder what she saw in multi-trillionaire Michael Douglas anyhow? Our Cath should have looked a bit closer to home in my opinion, her and Dominic Dale would have made a lovely couple for example, he could have treated her to nights at the Opera, trips to the Butterfly House and plates of viennese whirls as well as free backstage access to BBC Wales and the chance to rub shoulders with the likes of Darren Morgan, John Evans, Griff and that Ashleigh bloke. They could even have gone halves on jet black hair dye as the grey ones began to appear. But oh no, she wanted more than that, poor Dommo.

Anyway, enough of that nonsense, let’s get the boys on the baize.

Semi Finals (Best of 11)

1pm

John Higgins v Ali Carter (H2H 6-0)

A repeat of last year’s final sees the Captain trying to overhaul a 6-0 head to head deficit and beat Higgins for the very first time. The closest he has ever got to the Wizard was in 2003 in this event when he forced a decider in round one, but since then it’s been pretty much one way traffic when the two have met. As I said above, John has not looked unbeatable this week and could easily not have made it here, but as we all know he has a winners mentality and that is crucial if things get tight. Ali has been quietly making his way through and for some reason seems to thrive at this venue. Perhaps for all the cheeky showmanship that he can give us he is more at home in the low key surroundings of Newport and neighbouring Bridgend. Whatever it is, he’s only lost once here in three years, that being to Higgins in last year’s final. I have a sneaking feeling that Ali might just turn the tables on John today and would not put anyone off backing him to win. Of the two he seems to be looking the more assured up to now, but Higgins is not a player to take on lightly, so rather than recommend a bet on Ali to win and with the handicaps not offering a great deal of value in pitching him at 4/11 with a 2.5 frame start, this makes the price below a bit of value, as you could argue it’s the same bet. HIGGINS WINS EASILY, 6-2.

Recommended Bet: Winning Margin under 2.5 frames at 11/10 with Paddy Power

7pm

Mark Selby v Stephen Maguire (H2H 4-2)

Selby is carrying the hopes of the blog in the outrights and I wish I was a little more confident that he can carry it off than I am. He’s again grinding out results and isn’t exactly living up to his billing as an entertainer, but as he often says himself on Twitter ‘a win is a win’. Mags got better as the match went on yesterday but still missed some silly balls which resulted in a couple of his trademark cue bangs. But he remains a solid long potter and the mistakes don’t look to be down to bottle problems, usually they just seem to be simple miscalculations. This is another tight one to call for me and even factoring in my inherent ‘back against Maguire’ mentality I still can’t find the confidence to say that Selby will win. So again I will look to other markets and looking back I noticed that out the 7 times these two have met there has only once been more than 2 frames in it either way, so again I’m going into Paddyland and the winning margin market.

Recommended Bet: Winning Margin under 2.5 frames at Evens with Paddy Power

For Multiple backers, a 1 point double on the two bets above pays 4.2 at Paddy Power but I have been onto Betfred this morning and have asked if they will offer an enhanced Snookerbacker double on the two. Should this materialise I will let you know in the comments section, or just click the banner below to check. I think he’s still in bed.

Good Luck if you are having a bet today.

The source of Ronnie's medical note is exclusively revealed

Well, despite the best of seven frame format and the lack of table brushing we have ended up with eight top players in the quarter finals which are contested over nine frames and are all played today.

Yesterday began with Mark Williams against Jamie Cope and MJW completed his second whitewash of the event, meaning he is yet to lose a frame in the tournament. He looked pretty good again and to me is now the man they all have to beat. On the other table the Captain made up for his defeat at Wembley and saw off Peter Ebdon, who will no doubt still be reeling from the lack of brushing action. Ali though, in typical cheeky chappy fashion decided to laugh off Peter’s protests and said that ‘if you know your own game you will be ok’. He’s a wind up merchant is the Captain and it remains to be seen as to whether his comments will further stoke Ebdon’s Brush Fury.

Then came the battle of the Welshmen, which was won eventually by Matthew Stevens, who was the first to admit that he should have lost. But despite missing a number of gilt-edged chances to send the Panda back to the zoo he let him back into it before finally putting the match to rest on the colours. John Evans claimed that the match was ‘a classic’ and that the audience had been treated to ‘some stunning pots’. Incisive as ever, the unbiased Welshman.

On the other table Ding had obviously just got out of bed and has gone from being the game’s best starter to it’s worst in the space of a fortnight. But perhaps this is his new tactic, have his little nap at the start of the match and then wake up at the business end. This is what he did yesterday against Mark Allen anyway, Marky Mark looked uncharacteristically wobbly in amongst the balls but had some absolutely amazing run of the ball to lead 3-1, before our man Ding fought back to win, gradually playing better and better as the frames went by. I think Mark’s new regime of not practising too much is possibly the worst piece of advice since that record executive rang Peter Ebdon and said ‘let’s make music’.

The evening session started with a bang as the legend that is Stephen Hendry hit a maximum in the first frame against Maguire. Wonderful stuff. But little were we to know of the turgid stuff that lay ahead of us. A truly painful match with Hendry showing us that from utter brilliance he could reverse gear to utter tripe in the blink of an eye. Maguire won, but it wasn’t pretty.

Fearless Terrier Graeme Dott overturned the World Champion Robbo after three previous defeats. The 4-1 scoreline for me was the surprise of the day but as we have all said before, write off Dotty at your peril.

Talking of wee-Graeme, the begging letter disguised as a post the other day asking someone to send me an advanced copy of his autobiography ‘Frame of Mind’ worked. The postman delivered a copy to Snookerbacker Mansions direct from the publishers Blakes themselves. It’s quite useful having the blog for things like that, for anyone reading from any other place that likes giving free stuff out and getting a plug in return just email me at snookerbacker@hotmail.co.uk , it really doesn’t matter what it is, I’ll probably say yes. Bear in mind I also have a wife that likes all lady things so however inappropriate you feel the free gift is, it probably isn’t. Even if we don’t like it we can always flog it on. Everyone’s a winner.

Today’s Welsh Icon will be known to people of my generation who had to sit through this bloke singing on New Year’s Eve as kids, before it was OK for 12 year olds to go out with their mates and hang round parks getting pissed to celebrate the coming of their 13th year.

Anyway, the betting went ok again yesterday with another cheeky double landed. It was looking good for a 100% day until last night put the spoilers on, but I’m not giving up yet of repeating day one’s maximum success rate. We still have Ding and the Jester fighting in the outrights too of course.

1pm

Mark Williams v Stephen Maguire (H2H 1-3)

Maguire has a good record against Mark including a 5-1 win at this stage of the very same event last year. Mark has won their only encounter since 4-0 in a PTC. But the MJW of twelve months ago and the one we are witnessing now are two different players. In this event last year Mark had not yet come into top form and was only beginning to sprout to life. He has said that he wants the number one spot even if only for a few weeks, to say that he has been at the pinnacle of the game on three seperate occasions spanning over a decade, that’s quite an achievement. The calm exterior masks a fierce competitor, something his opponent doesn’t hide quite as well. It will come as no surprise to anyone that I think the bet below is the bet of the day today and at odds against for me is a must to get on. I said at the beginning that this quarter would be decided in Mark’s first match and from what I have seen so far I think I was right. RESULT: MAGUIRE WINS A SCRAPPY AFFAIR 5-3.

Recommended Bet: 2 Points win Mark Williams (-1.5 frames) at 21/20 Sportingbet.

Dogged Dotty

Mark Selby v Graeme Dott (H2H 3-3)

These two squared up in Germany a couple of weeks ago in a semi-final that was won 6-4 by the Jester. But Graeme managed to turn around three recent defeats to Robbo yesterday and is more than capable of doing the same to Selby here, who has won both encounters since Graeme’s semi-final defeat of him at the Crucible last May. I called this one wrong a couple of weeks ago and thought Graeme might edge it and it’s as tricky today to call. I’d fancy it to be a tight one and therefore the price over at Paddy Power on the bet below appeals. RESULT: SELBY WINS 5-3.

Recommended Bet: Winning Margin to be under 2.5 frames at 5/6 Paddy Power

The double on the two bets above pays over 9/4 at Paddy Power so I will recommend a point on that too.

7pm

John Higgins v Matthew Stevens (H2H since 1996: 11-5)

It’s quite hard to believe that Matthew has been around for as long as he has and is still only 33. His baize record goes back to the mid nineties and sometimes he still looks like he’s just starting out in the game, such are his youthful looks. John on the other hand though only two years Matthew’s senior has the air of an elder statesman of the game about him that comes from the calm assurance you feel about him when he’s in the balls. He is truly one of those players that you love backing when he’s in form as he very seldom throws a match away and usually has to be outplayed. Let’s be honest, this is a huge ask for Matthew and I just can’t see him getting that close to Higgins tonight despite the well-wishes of the Welsh and the no doubt totally unbiased analysis from Evvo. HIGGINS WINS 5-3.

Recommended Bet: John Higgins (-1.5 frames) at 5/6 with Paddy Power

Ali Carter v Ding Junhui (H2H 1-5)

Friend of the Blog Ali takes on one of my outright picks Ding in what could be the match of the day. Ali has been quietly making his way through as ever, outside of the glare of some of the other boys, which is how he likes it. He seems to save some of his best snooker for this event having made the last two finals here, winning one and losing last year. There will be plenty tempted by the 11/8 over at Boylesports on him to win here. Ding however is just so difficult to beat lately. He has this casual, almost careless way about him before something seems to kick in and he turns into a potting machine. I marginally favour Ding to come through here but I think this could be another close affair, the last time they met was over 17 frames in the UK which Ding won on a decider and I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if he had to play his third one this week again tonight. RESULT: ALI WINS 5-2

Recommended Bet: Winning Margin under 2.5 frames at 5/6 with Paddy Power

Good Luck today to anyone having a bet and please remember if you are involved in the Great Blog Bet Pot to cast your votes on a wager today with Black Whippet.

Also a congratulations to blog poster Jaykay who won this last week.

All hail the Wonder Bairn! Frame 1 versus Mags tonight, Stephen hit a 147.

Some cracking matches today in the Welsh Open as Thursday sees the conclusion of the second round.

We got under way yesterday with a couple of whitewashes. Matthew Stevens made short work of Shaun Murphy and Stephen Hendry looked very impressive in seeing off Joe Perry.

While Stevens played very good snooker there is clearly something not quite right in Camp Smurf. The big man doesn’t look anything like the player of old at the moment. He looks visibly low on confidence, sitting there staring into space when he normally looks like he would murder his own granny to win a match. I don’t know if its anything away from the baize but my guess is that it isn’t and that Shaun is just going to have to try and play his way out of this current quagmire. Only the biggest Smurf follower or a bewildered fool would even consider backing him for Sheffield at the moment, at prices of anything between 11/1 and a more realistic 18/1.

Hendry on the other hand looked to have found a bit of form and I sense that the change in attitude and perhaps even the stints in the commentary box he’s been doing has helped him look at the game a little differently. I can’t remember who it was that said it but one of the players attributed an improvement in form down to just that recently, I think it might have been Ken Doherty. There is no doubt that Stephen still has the game to win, it’s now just about doing it on a consistent basis. But it was all good yesterday and once he had Joe on the ropes he finished him off like the Hendo of old. Put it this way, I’d rather back him at 80′s for Sheffield than Shaun at 18′s.

Then came John Higgins, who looked as good as ever in beating Big Dave Harold. That said, Dave threw the final frame away to lose 4-1. Higgins needing a snooker at one point and Dave playing two of the worst shots of his long career to let the Wizard back in. John raised a smile at the end which was nice to see, but I’m sure the rest of the players would rather he’d have stayed away as when in the balls he barely missed a pot. On the other table, Stephen Maguire led 2-0 and was cruising before Gerard Greene mounted a mini-comeback, but Mags pulled a couple of breaks out of the hat to coast into a tie against Hendry tonight.

Then came Ronnie. Having made the effort to attend, he might as well not have bothered as like Murphy, he looks a pale shadow of the player we all know and love. While Ryan played solid enough, he shouldn’t expect that many presents at Christmas, Ronnie left him in the balls every time he missed and eventually the Panda put the chances away and progressed to an all Welsh clash against Matt today. Ronnie admitted afterwards that he was out of the routine of practising and also showed that his ability at snooker is not matched by his maths by claiming if his form didn’t improve he would be out of the top 64. In four years maybe, but he shouldn’t have to fill in the Q-School entrance forms just yet.

On the other table the two Marks, Selby and King served up a real yawnfest, in front of an audience of about three people. The Jester again letting Baldy Bonce dictate the pace of the match rather than going for his shots. I have no idea why he reverts to this type of game against certain opponents and it is probably the only weakness he still has left. But at least this time he’s through and moves on to the safer territory of the best of 9′s and the outright bet is still in there with a chance.

Bettingwise, that 5th frame collapse from Big Dave cost us another 100% day. But the other matches going to plan ensured a tidy profit as a cheeky little double was landed thanks to Hendry and Mags doing the business.

Today’s Welsh icon by the way is to appease the frankly shocking verbal protests from the sex-starved macho men on the blog at the picture of Tommy Cooper yesterday. While she looks very nice in this picture I don’t see her as holding a torch to the feisty Ms Church. But as her name was mentioned I have bowed to ‘poster pressure’ to avoid riots on the streets which might only be compared to recent events in Egypt. I hope through my actions to have avoided the need for a curfew to be imposed at governmental level, which surely would have been the next logical step to control the drooling male masses. You’ll end up blind if you all carry on like that.

Anyway, another way to keep people happy is recommending winners so we can bash the bookies rather than the bishop. So let’s see if we can reach that 100% today shall we?

1pm
Mark Williams v Jamie Cope (H2H 3-3)

The last meaningful meeting between the two was in Round 1 of last season’s China Open. A match which will be seen by many as marking the start of MJW’s meteoric rise back to the very top of the sport. Jamie has been getting results lately and can at last relax safe in the knowledge that he will be seeded for Sheffield after a few years now of narrowly missing out. His Easy Jet orange waistcoat is now becoming a more familiar sight on our screens and that means he’s winning more matches, but Mark looked awesome against Marco Fu in round one and there is no reason to suspect he’ll be any different today. WILLIAMS WINS 4-0.

Recommended Bet: Mark Williams (-1.5 frames) 5/6 at Blue Square

Peter Ebdon v Ali Carter (H2H 1-7)

Rumours that Peter Ebdon will play this match in a long wig so as he can have an excuse to bring a brush into the arena are circulating but I’m not sure if someone is pulling my leg. This is a match up that sends shivers down my spine after we were stung at the Masters, where Peter beat Ali for the first time despite claiming he was so ill that he couldn’t even see the balls. It is quite incredible given Ebdon’s long standing in the game that it took him that long to beat the Captain. Despite Ebbo’s gripes about the format of this event he managed to pull out a decent performance against Dom Dale while Ali overcame Barry Hawkins narrowly in round one. I marginally favour Ali to win here as I detected he was cueing well in the balls in his first match and of the two he is consistently the heavier scorer. But I’m not going to get stung on this fixture twice so I’m leaving it alone. CARTER WINS 4-1.

A Big Day Today for Day.

NB 2pm
Ryan Day v Matthew Stevens (H2H 4-2)

All Welsh eyes will be on this one and John Evans will have to be physically and verbally restrained as he’ll be so excited to see two of his fellow countrymen slogging it out on the big stage. It has to be said that the three main Welsh boys have so far risen to the occasion this year, something they have all sometimes struggled to do in the past. Day will be purring after beating Ronnie for the first time, but in truth he was never troubled. Stevens to me looked clinical against Murphy, who again didn’t exactly put up a fight. I’m going to take a chance on Matthew here to upset the odds, simply because on yesterday’s form he needs less chances to win a frame than Day does. STEVENS WINS 4-3.

Recommended Bet: Matthew Stevens at 5/4 with Boylesports

Mark Allen v Ding Junhui (H2H 2-1)

Unless you are Welsh, this is the match that everyone will want to be watching this afternoon so I hope Eurosport decide to cover this one. A mouth-watering match up between two attacking players that can be deadly at their best. They met last in the UK in December when Allen won 9-8 and despite the fact that I’ve backed Ding in the outrights I wouldn’t put anyone off backing young Marky at odds against to win here. I think this one will go all the way but either of them could win so there is only one bet to recommend here, all they both have to do for this one to pay is get to 2 frames. DING WINS 4-3.

Recommended Bet: 2 points win over 5.5 frames in the match at 4/7 with Paddy Power

7pm

Neil Robertson v Graeme Dott (H2H 3-3)

It might just be my imagination but these two seem to be playing each other a lot lately. A repeat of the World Final sees Robbo coming into this having won all the last three encounters between the pair. I thought Robbo looked like he was hitting the ball well in his first match against Bond and to me he looks to be steadily improving just in time for his title defence at Sheffield. The amount of events this season just makes you stop and think how short his year as World Champion must have seemed to him. It’s difficult to know how Dotty is playing as I didn’t see his match against Burnett, but it was a slow affair and the one thing about Graeme is that he can adapt to tactical and potting matches easily. But so can Neil. I think, in common with their last three meetings that this will be a tactical battle and Neil for me has the edge in that department so I’m going to favour him to make it to the Quarter Finals to play Selby. RESULT DOTT WINS 4-1.

Recommended Bet: Winning Margin under 2.5 frames at 4/7 with Paddy Power

Stephen Hendry v Stephen Maguire (H2H 1-2 with 1 draw)

There have been surprisingly few meetings between these two over the years. Three of them have been in round robin events and the only one of any real consequence was in this event 6 years ago when Hendry edged his fellow Scot 5-4. I think on current form these two are evenly matched. Everyone that has ever read the blog will know that I like to take Maguire and Murphy on whenever I get the chance and so you will need to factor that in when I say I think Hendry might win this one. Paddy Power are offering 15/8 on this match to go to a decider and I think it might but instead I’m going to recommend a slightly safer option. MAGUIRE WINS 4-2 AND HENDRY HITS A 147.

Recommended Bet: Stephen Hendry (+1.5 frames) at 4/5 with Sportingbet

For Multiple Backers today I would stick to a double on Stevens (+1.5) and Williams (-1.5) for a 2 point double which pays just over 2/1 at Sportingbet.

Good Luck if you are having a bet today and don’t forget there is still a little bit of cash in the Great Blog Bet Pot which Black Whippet may be looking for another vote on today

I'm gonna make a Rocket vanish. Just like that.

Day 3 from Newport and despite the fact that John Higgins and Mark Selby are both playing their second matches of the week, the Rocket Ronnie O’Sullivan is due to grace us with his presence in a schedule that has been tailored to give the organisers a fighting chance that he will show up to face local boy Ryan Day.

It has to be said that the crowds this week have been disappointing. The Welsh Open is usually one of the better attended events which makes it all the more surprising after the spectacle of Berlin. So, the question for anyone wanting a morning discussion below is, how can we attract more people to the venues in the UK? More centralised locations? Better promotion? Smaller venues? Cheaper tickets? Ban earpieces when John Evans is commentating? Maybe perhaps allow the crowd the opportunity to bet in play from their seats? Any more ideas?

On the table, yesterday started with a fantastic display from MJW who is now firmly back to his brilliant best and is very much establishing himself as the man to beat. Mark Allen breezed through his first match despite being surrounding by scousers Rod Lawler and Peter the referee. Allen revealed afterwards that he may at last have found the key to winning that elusive big event; he is cutting down on practice. Genius Mark! Other ideas for success include sleeping rough in the run up to an event, not eating and throwing your cue away and playing with a different one for every match. Surely it is only a matter of time before Marky Mark lifts that trophy.

Then came another characteristic ‘get out of jail’ escape from final frame specialist the Jester, who looked for all the world like he was going to lose but managed to overturn Stuart Bingham, who now must resign himself to qualification for the Crucible having failed to catch Marco Fu, loser against Williams in 16th place. It now looks a straight fight for 16th spot between Marco and Mark King, who still needs a couple more wins to overtake the Hong Kong man. That is unless Ryan Day or Matthew Stevens lift the trophy when they will be right in the mix.

Austrian dweller Dom Dale looked to be cruising. He also looked to be playing quite well in his match against Peter Ebdon, even managing to hit the tournament highest break so far, before imploding and ruining the 100% match betting start to the event by from all accounts, taking on a silly shot when in command (I was at the vets at the time). One golden rule against Ebbo is ‘don’t get too big for your boots’, or in Dom’s case your socks.

Last night saw a surprisingly slow affair between Scots Dott and Jaybee, Dotty winning 4-1. While Neil Robertson, having even made the effort to show up on time especially for the crowd had to ride a wave of terrible running and the ridiculous letter of the law when it comes to the miss rule before winning the last four frames on the spin to beat King of Speed Bond 4-2 and land another bet to boot.

Bettingwise it’s still going ok. Only Dommo proving a fly in the ointment and of course with Marco losing the 40/1 punt on him disappeared with a whimper. But overall, I’m happy with the start we’ve made so far and hopefully it’s the start of a record-breaking profit week.

So to today:

1pm
Shaun Murphy v Matthew Stevens (H2H 2-5)

I flagged up Murphy’s outright price of 20/1 in the main preview, simply because it stood out. Regulars will know that I am usually happy to take him on as I don’t rate him as highly as some do. Lately he has looked short of both form and confidence but you would expect that to change at some point. That’s why the price was earmarked. Matthew has won the last three encounters between the pair including a 5-4 win at this very stage last year. Indeed the only two times Shaun has beaten Matt have been on the biggest stage at the Crucible in a quarter-final and famously in Shaun’s winning year in the final. So you could argue with Matt’s record, there may have been an element of him beating himself in both of those. So the logical conclusion here is that Matt will win, but I’m going to play it safe. STEVENS WINS 4-0.

Recommended Bet: Matthew Stevens (+1.5 frames) at 4/5 Betfred

Smiler

Stephen Hendry v Joe Perry (H2H 4-3)

The head to heads don’t really tell us too much here. Stephen won all the first four encounters between the pair and Joe has won 3 of the last 4 in small events with one draw. I have detected a slightly more positive change in Stephen’s attitude of late and I think he might throw in a decent performance today so I’m going to stick with him to beat Joe. HENDRY WINS 4-0.

Recommended Bet: Stephen Hendry at 4/5 Betfred

NB 2pm

John Higgins v Dave Harold (H2H 8-2)

Picture the situation, you have had a horrendous few weeks personally, you don’t really feel like playing snooker and your head is all over the place and someone tells you your next match is against Big Dave. Can it get much worse for John? These two go way back, with John firmly in control of the head to head match ups since 1994 when he beat Dave in the final of the Skoda Grand Prix, which sounds more like a car chase than a snooker tournament. But you have to admire Big Dave, he is a grinder and a grafter and produced an excellent clearance against Walden to get here. If John’s head isn’t in the right place yet Dave could well take advantage. Snooker has a way of throwing up the odd anti-climax and while the TV and the sponsors will be praying for a QF match up between John and Ronnie, Big Dave could well come and spoil the party, as of course could Ryan Day. HIGGINS WINS 4-1

Recommended Bet: Dave Harold (+2.5 frames) 4/7 at Betfred

Stephen Maguire v Gerard Greene (H2H 1-0)

You have to go back a decade to the first and only time these two have met. Maguire winning a qualifying match for the Scottish Open 5-0. I wasn’t going to recommend a bet in this one until I saw the prices. I can’t see Greene living with Maguire’s scoring power here and I think the Scot will come through this fairly comfortably. MAGUIRE WINS 4-2.

Recommended Bet: Stephen Maguire (-1.5 frames) 4/5 at Boylesports

7pm

Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ryan Day (H2H 4-0)

I think we might see a bit of a shift in the attitude of the watching crowd tonight and I expect Ryan’s supporters to be very vocal here. But we all know that Ronnie likes it when the crowd are not on his side unanimously so if any supporters of Ryan are reading this I’d square it with him first and then turn up shouting for the Rocket. Ryan produced great snooker against Jimmy and if he gets in first in that kind of mood he can beat anyone. But having never really troubled Ronnie in four meetings he’ll feel an added pressure to finally put one over on him. I have a feeling that if Ronnie does turn up he might put in a good display tonight, but I’m not risking any money on it.

Mark Selby v Mark King (H2H 5-3)

What happened between these two in the Masters will remain with me until my dying day. Did it really happen? Did King really produce a masterclass of breakbuilding to outplay the Jester from 0-2 down? Was it all a dream? Did I really then flag him up to beat Jamie Cope? If the Jester isn’t fired up and hungry for revenge tonight he never will be. Come on Selbs, get your Saville Row threads on, wipe your cue down and get the job done.

Recommended Bet: Never bet in a match with Mark King in it.

For Multiple Backers: I’d just stick to a double today which pays 9/4 at Boylesports. 2 points on Hendry to win and Maguire to win -1.5 frames.

Ebbo: Has a bit of previous.

Despite a winning start yesterday Peter Ebdon seems still intent on rattling cages at World Snooker and has today issued them with a formal complaint about the format of the Welsh Open.

It isn’t the open plan format that Ebbo is upset about. He doesn’t like the best of seven frame format and wants the interval to be reinstated so as the table can be brushed. He even went so far yesterday as requesting a brush be placed by his seat so he could do it himself, but this request was refused by World Snooker.

But that didn’t stop Ebbo, he found a brush from somewhere (it can’t have been a hairbrush unless he borrowed Dom’s) and did it anyway out of the sight of the cameras. The crazy madcap rebellious fool that he is.

Ebdon has stated that he doesn’t expect anything to be done about his complaint which points to the prestige of ranking events being messed with to their detriment. He also said ‘From a player’s point of view, I think it is absolutely vital that the table is in the best of conditions all of the time. Simply, there are chalk marks and finger marks on the table during a game that significantly increases the chance of getting bad bounces off the cushions and kicks’.

Now, I know Ebdon isn’t everyone’s cup of tea and he has a history as long as your arm for spats and political fights with anyone that disagrees with him, but I can’t help but see his point as a fair one here. But I come at it from a different angle.

If the idea of the best of seven’s is to increase the speed of matches, it has to be said that it isn’t working across the board. A lot of players are approaching this, as in the World Open, not wanting to lose rather than wanting to win. Berlin proved that the best of 9 format is not the issue and I think from an increasingly important betting perspective in the sport too, that your average snooker punter wants to see matches that aren’t regarded as a toss of a coin and will be more inclined to place a bet and take an interest.

I don’t see any need for an interval in a best of 7 frame match however and it only takes a couple of minutes to brush the table so this could be easily incorporated into a comfort break for the two players should they need it.

There will be plenty that will see this as Ebdon causing trouble, but it would be silly not to listen to genuine gripes about the changes that are being made by the people it affects most.  

After an eventful first day in Newport, day two sees a later start and two less matches played. The Welsh Open continues to be one of the strangest tournaments on the calendar for a number of reasons.

Yesterday saw the long awaited reappearance of John Evans in the commentary box, a true mystery of epic proportions as to why he is still there, but he is. His constant questions range from ‘what colour next? Blue?’ to the classic ‘what colour next? Green?’ to everyone’s favourite ‘one liner’ in ‘what colour next? Black?’. But somehow the man that could drive a three-toed sloth to untold depths of boredom remains glued to his seat in the commentary box, much to the visible and verbal dismay of Terry Griffiths, who isn’t the best at masking his infuriation with his clueless colleague.

We were also treated to the sight of the strangest person in snooker Dominic Dale sitting in the studio waving his hands about and making overstated facial expressions whilst wearing just stripey socks on his feet. He was sat talking to a ‘new kid on the block’ and the replacement for the one thing that actually used to work for the BBC, the former presenter Oliver Whatshisname who has obviously now been promoted to cover the Indoor Bowls or Sheepdog Trials or something similar. The new bloke looks like he’s just finished his apprenticeship as a children’s TV presenter and has now been handed the ‘geriatric gig’ to prove himself to a whole new audience, this time literally ‘dying’ to see him mess up.

On the table, Ding struggled but came through, Dave Harold produced a banana inspired performance to send Ricky Walden home. The Rickster missed a fairly straightforward match ball before the bloodhound-like greengrocer from Stoke licked his lips and cleared them up, leaving Ricky wondering whether he will need to qualify for Sheffield after all.

Welshmen Matt Stevens and the Panda both won, Ryan in particular with a great performance to end Jimmy’s campaign. The Captain was a bit patchy but looked to be cueing ok when in the balls and came over the tricky first hurdle of Barry Hawkins, he could be a dark horse this week. Other winners were Jamie Cope, who just about beat Rory after the Marvin Gaye lookalike brought the match down to an unfathomably low level of play and Mark King, who seemed to be scoring quite heavily again and in between tweeting about getting a tattoo done on his back of ‘his Mrs’ (classy), managed to beat off the challenge of Michael Holt.

But the star of the day was undoubtedly Jack Lisowski, who despite looking about 12 performed fantastically to push experienced old hand John Higgins all the way. OK, John was not anywhere near his best and admitted afterwards to being ‘all over the place’ emotionally, but he also found time to say a few words about his opponent describing him as ‘reminding me of a young Jimmy White’, whilst the bookies immediately doubled his price for the World Championship following this comparison, it has to be said that I felt we were witnessing the birth of a new baize star yesterday. Inspired primarily of course by winning the coveted ‘One to Watch’ Willie last year.

Bettingwise, a 100% start to the tournament. Almost immediately wiping out the poor performance in a week of qualifiers, I told you we’d be ok. It was also nice to see the Great Blog Bet Pot revitalised with a nice 4/1 treble to kick the week off. To celebrate I thought I’d include my favourite Welsh lass in the post today, a right little cracker she is.

Let’s see if there is anything worth getting involved with today..

Tuesday February 15

1pm
Mark Williams v Marco Fu (H2H 7-4)

Just over a week after their semi-final in Berlin these two square up to each other in the altogether different surroundings of Newport. MJW is being touted by many as the winner this week, but winning two events on the spin these days is rare. Whilst I would marginally favour him to win today, the value is with Marco whose price for the event will plummet if he pulls off a victory here. Like I said in the preview, this is why I have backed Marco for the quarter and in the outright market so I don’t need to have a further bet on this match. MJW WINS 4-0 (VERY IMPRESSIVE)

Mark Allen v Rod Lawler (H2H 3-0)

Mark Allen will see this as yet another chance to win his first ranking event and comes up against the dogged scouser Rod Lawler who has made it through to the TV stages for the first time in quite a while. Whilst Rod has played well in the qualifiers, notably dumping out Judd Trump, Allen is a whole new ball game and I’d be very surprised if he troubled the Ketchup Kid here. ALLEN WINS 4-1.

Recommended Bet: Mark Allen (-1.5 frames) 4/5 at Blue Square

Not Before 2pm
Mark Selby v Stuart Bingham (H2H 5-4)

A big match for Bingham that will edge him closer to an automatic Crucible spot against Berlin runner-up Selby. Stuart is a tough opener and the Jester will need to be on his mettle to win. But I’ve backed him in the outrights in the hope that he carries the momentum from Germany over to this event, if he does he will win this match. SELBY SCRAPES HOME 4-3.

Sock it to him Dommo.

Peter Ebdon v Dominic Dale (H2H 2-4)

Dom was asked if he was looking forward to this match yesterday and came out with some confident words. It’s no wonder when you look at the head to head statistic. Dale is another I have taken a punt on at silly prices as I fancy him to win this one. One of the key things when playing Ebdon is to not be scared or intimidated by him, while Dom is looking forward to the match (from a viewing perspective possibly the only person that is), I’m not sure Peter will be. EBDON WINS 4-2 TO SPOIL THE 100% RECORD.

Recommended Bet: Dom Dale 6/5 Victor Chandler

7pm
Graeme Dott v Jamie Burnett (H2H 2-2)

A lot of people fancy Dotty for a run in this but first of all he will have to beat Burnett. That might not be all that straightforward. They are both attacking players and JayBee has proved on many occasions to be more than a match for higher seeded players. I’m going to leave this one alone but may get tempted later in the day by the 13/8 at Betfred on Burnett. For no other reason than that, very like Dott he is capable of getting into a match very quickly and running away with it, that to me makes those odds attractive in a best of 7. DOTT WINS 4-1

Neil Robertson v Nigel Bond (H2H 2-1)

Assuming Neil doesn’t accidentally lock himself in his dressing room/hotel room/car (delete as appropriate) you would expect him to have too much for speed junkie Nigel here. I think the -1.5 frames for the world champion on the handicap is probably the bet in this. ROBBO WINS 4-2.

Recommended Bet: Neil Robertson (-1.5 frames) 8/13 at Boylesports

For multiple backers today I would recommend 2 points treble on Allen and Robertson both -1.5 frames and Dale +1.5 frames which pays just under 7/2 at Betfred.

The Best of Luck if you are having a bet today

ALSO EVERYONE INVOLVED IN THE GREAT BLOG BET POT NEEDS TO TAKE A VOTE ON WHETHER TO FOLLOW THE TREBLE AGAIN TODAY, YES OR NO? BLACK WHIPPET AWAITS YOUR DECISION.

Ivor the Engine. Driven by Evan Evans, no relation to John.

How can you fail to be excited by a rainy Monday in Newport? If the weather there is anything like it has been here today it will be a damp audience entering the arena to watch the first day of action from the Welsh Open.

Masters Champion Ding John Way kicks things off against Scottish Scruffbag Marcus Campbell with the Cue Licker Ricky Walden taking on Bananaman Dave Harold on the adjoining table. It’s good that they have got rid of that terrible four table format this year at least.

We then have a carried over qualifying match between experienced old hands Matthew Stevens and Anthony Hamilton, given Hamilton’s recent break making form I will admit that I have availed myself of the 50/1 generally available on him making the highest here. Long shot I know, but he’s as good around the black spot as there is and has been scoring heavily recently. I’ve seen worse 50/1 shots. On the other table The Captain faces a very tricky opener against Barry Hawkins, fingers crossed for a smooth take off for the winner from two years ago there.

It’s then time for John Higgins to take on ‘One to Watch Willie’ winner Jack Lisowski, who I think will relish this challenge. On the other table Mark King once again dons his mansize babygrow to take on the unpredictable, but entertaining and ever so slightly bonkers Michael Holt.

The final session sees Jimmy attempt to secure a match with the Rocket against homeboy Ryan Day while Jamie Cope takes on laid back dude and blog icon Rory McLeod.

I’ve included the current head to head statistics below. I’m not sure that I’m confident enough at all to recommend a decent bet in these best of sevens so unless something pops up, it’s minimal stakes on these ones until the Quarter Finals. Bring back best of nines!

11am
Ding Junhui v Marcus Campbell (H2H 3-0)

Ding is one of my selections for the outright here and has beaten Campbell on all their previous encounters. Marcus is a fine player however and I do think the 4/7 for him with a 2.5 frame start sticks out a bit. He’ll only have to win 2 frames to make that one pay. DING WINS 4-3

Recommended Bet: Marcus Campbell +2.5 frames at 4/7 Betfred

Can't outsmart Bananaman.

Ricky Walden v Dave Harold (H2H 1-2)

Big Dave has the bit between his teeth here and has experience in droves. Ricky finds himself playing this as a seeded player and will possibly need to win to ensure it will stay that way for Sheffield. But given Dave generally tends to string wins together and can outsmart a weasal I’m going to take a chance on him at the odds here. HAROLD WINS 4-3

Recommended Bet: Dave Harold at 6/4 Betfred

Not Before 1pm
Matthew Stevens v Anthony Hamilton (H2H 3-3)

These two have never really had a tussle and all six meetings so far have been quite one-sided. I think there is a bet in this at the price and that is on the breaks, odds against on Hamilton on current form is too big. STEVENS WINS 4-2 BUT HAMILTON MANAGES THE TOP BREAK OF 71!

Recommended Bet: Anthony Hamilton to have the highest break of the match at 11/10 with Extrabet

Ali Carter v Barry Hawkins (H2H 4-1)

Ali will need to improve on current performances to win here and I’m sure he is well aware of that fact. There will be plenty that will find the 6/4 on Hawkins a bet, it is a shade big I have to say, but I’ll abstain on this one I think as if Ali is back on song he is the better player of the two by a little bit. ALI WINS 4-3.

Not Before 2pm
John Higgins v Jack Lisowski (H2H 0-0)

I’m just looking forward to this as a TV spectacle and hope Jack performs well. No need for a bet on this one. HIGGINS WINS 4-3 IN A GREAT MATCH.

Mark King v Michael Holt (H2H 2-0)

This match should carry a government health warning. I have vowed never again to get involved in a match involving Mark King and I intend to keep that pledge. This could go either way and if I was feeling daring I’d be tempted to back Holt at the odds. But NO NO NO. KING WINS – RIGHT TO LEAVE IT ALONE. 

Jimbo wants a go at the Rocket

Not Before 7pm
Ryan Day v Jimmy White (H2H 1-0)

Another ‘held-over’ qualifier match. Ryan will need a huge huge tournament to scrape back into the top 16 in time for the Crucible, he might even have to win it. Jimmy will be looking to capitalise on Ryan’s self-imposed home crowd nerves, but despite the fact that Ronnie awaits the winner I really can’t see an upset here. DAY WINS 4-0.

Recommended Bet: Ryan Day at 8/13 with Boylesports.

Jamie Cope v Rory McLeod (H2H 2-3)

The last three times these two have met has been decided on a final frame. I think this is very evenly matched given that all the attention from the cameras will be on the other table and the 6/4 on Rory is not one to overlook lightly. But given the recent history between the two there is only one bet for me, I’m playing it safe.

Recommended Bet: Rory McLeod (+1.5 frames) 4/5 at Betfred

For Multiple Punters I would recommend a 2 point treble on Day to win, McLeod to win (+1.5) and Harold to win (+1.5) which pays just over 4/1 at Betfred.

As ever, the best of luck if you are having a bet.

ALSO!! Anyone involved in the Great Blog Bet Pot, please check the thread to see what you want to throw the money on!

It’s time to head off to Newport on Monday for the Welsh Open. An event that has taken on added significance as a result of the changes Bazza introduced to the rankings system. This means that for some this event marks make or break time when it comes to their jostling position for the China Open next month and the Betfred World Championship which starts in 8 weeks time. *Goosebumps*

But all that serious stuff won’t matter to BBC commentator and our guide through the week, the indispensable John Evans, who has developed a cult following with his distinct Welsh patter, even greeting viewers to every session in Welsh before being prodded by young suited BBC executives and reluctantly switching back to English. Oh no, our John will be too busy asking viewers ‘does pink pass to middle bag?’ as well as asking the winner about everything other than winning the event at the end. A national treasure is Johnny, but as with all treasure and precious things it’s always best to not keep them on show in public for too long for fear of them losing their value and uniqueness. No, once a year in the company of this Welsh rambler is quite enough for us baize fans.

The intricacies of the ranking list will surely also be lost on another great eccentric, namely (Uncle) Joe Johnson over on Eurosport, who are also covering this event in full. But unlike John Evans that won’t stop our Joe from having a try. He’ll make a sweeping statement at some point in the first round that ‘this pot could put him in the top 16′ only to be corrected after a short pause by Dave Hendon, who will politely point out that the player will need to win the tournament and produce a big brown envelope at a service station to do that before laughing it off that ‘this new ranking system is quite hard to get your head around’. It will then be quickly forgotten until Joe gets his calculator out and to the dismay of colleagues does it again. But you gotta love crazy uncle JJ for trying.

The ranking list is poised for players like Stuart Bingham, Ricky Walden and Marco Fu amongst others and an altogether more sensible and clear assessment of the ins and outs, the whys and wherefors, the do you mind if I do’s and do you mind if I don’t's than you are ever likely to get from the two boys above can be found over at the ‘King of the Rankings’ website here.

So to the event itself. The qualifiers, as with the German ones have not proved profitable in a betting sense, we’ve rattled the jaws a few times this week but with the odd exception the pots just won’t drop. But we turned it around in Berlin so there is no reason why we can’t do so again here.

An added hindrance in Newport however is that the first two rounds (plus the held over qualifying matches) are the best of seven frames. I’m really not sure why anyone thinks this is a good idea as to me it can put punters off having a decent bet. It doesn’t sound much of a difference between best of 7 and 9, but if you go 2-0 down in a best of 7 you will need to win 4 of the remaining 5 as opposed to 7 to win the match. That to me is a big difference, so a quick starter is what you need here, regulars will already be sensing who I might flag up as a possible winner.

Anyway,  we revert back to best of 9 frames for the Quarter Finals, best of 11 for the Semi Finals and a good old best of 17 for the Final. The draw for the tournament can be found here.

So let’s see what we can do:

Quarter One: Old Rivals or Absent Friends?

In any event nowadays you unfortunately have to weigh up the ‘Ronnie Factor’, not so much if he’ll be in mood, more if he’ll be there at all. There are rumours that he wants to take a career break, well at least that would make it official. But I think he’ll show up for this for three reasons. Firstly, he might play Jimmy first round if he beats Ryan Day. Secondly, he will have a match every day from when he gets there, as by some freak of the scheduling, he starts on Wednesday night when Masters Champion Ding Junhui has to slog it out on Monday morning and thirdly, I think he’ll see that he might have a match up against John Higgins in the quarter finals, who I still believe he has a deep admiration and respect for. Ronnie also played what I would describe as one of his best ever matches here last year against Mark Allen, so he obviously doesn’t mind this tournament, it is possible that he will be ‘up for it’, but as we’ve seen, even if he is that doesn’t mean he will win it. The other question mark obviously hangs over Higgins himself, whose personal circumstances may lead to his withdrawal from the event, but at the moment it appears he will play, which having been through the same emotions myself would be my advice. But everyone is different so we’ll wait and see. There will be plenty that will think that if John does turn up he will win this, I’ll admit, the thought had crossed my mind as he’s obviously good enough, but on reflection it’s a huge ask after a harrowing week for him and those close to him. In any case I’m looking forward to seeing ‘new kid on the block’  Jack Lisowski on the TV who is John’s first opponent, I just hope he doesn’t have his Willie on show. But there is a ‘lurker’ in this section. Someone that wants a bit of that limelight, someone that has been studying the draw, someone that just can’t wait to get started. I think Shaun Murphy might have something to say (that makes a change) in this part of the draw. I can’t remember the last time he started at these odds in a ranking event.

Recommended Bet 1 point each way Shaun Murphy to win the Welsh Open 20/1 Skybet.

Quarter Two: Captain Fantastic or Crash LanDing?

A look at this quarter after looking at the last makes you realise exactly how tough snooker is becoming to predict. Friend of the Blog Ali Carter, Mark Allen, Masters winner Ding Junhui, the unpredictable Peter Ebdon as well as the dangerous qualifiers Barry Hawkins, Marcus Campbell, Rod Lawler and Dom Dale populate this section. Pick your way out of that lot! Ali is due a run in something and as a past winner here this seems like a logical place to start. He’s fine with the short formats as has been proven with his recent win at Crondon Park and to me, someone who doesn’t get phased by a short match is one you want to be on here. I was very tempted to pitch for the Cap here and I am now a regular loyal fan and backer of him but there is one player that stands out to me here and that is Ding. He is a ferocious starter of a match and needs to do that for two rounds to get to the slightly longer format. I would also not rule out Dale who, though no doubt being lined up for a stint on the BBC Wales sofa, is playing very well recently and is a player that does not generally let pressure get to him.

Recommended Bets:

2.5 points win Ding Junhui to win the Welsh Open at 9/1 with Betfred

0.25 points each way Dominic Dale to win the Welsh Open at 125/1 with Victor Chandler

0.5 points win Dominic Dale to win Quarter 2 at 12/1 with Boylesports

Quarter Three: Will Mark have them singing in the Valleys?

Looking at the draw for this I seriously think this is a one match quarter. That might sound disrespectful to the likes of Jamie Cope, Stephen Maguire and Stephen Hendry, not to mention qualifiers Joe Perry, Rory McLeod and Gerard Greene but for me, the match that will decide this quarter is in Round One between Mark Williams and Marco Fu. MJW, who’s name is now routinely followed by the words ‘the laid-back Welshman’, was triumphant in Berlin and even showed some emotion at the end, something that Marco seldom does in public. But these two beat each other, MJW is 13/2 for the tournament and Marco is 40/1. Fu has the experience, the game and the momentum to win this match and when and if he does, he has the same assets to go a lot further. The recommended bets below are based on one match, so I make no apologies if they fall flat on their Fu King Royal Arses at the first hurdle. But, despite what I have said about Dale above, the Welsh boys haven’t done too well in this event lately though they continue to big themselves up as they do every year. There is no doubt that Mark is buzzing, but if he were to triumph this week it would be against recent history.

Recommended Bet: 1 point each way Marco Fu to win the Welsh Open at 40/1 with Skybet

1 point win Marco Fu to win Quarter 3 at 7/1 with Boylesports

Quarter Four: Robbo in Passport Control?

At least the World Champion won’t need his passport for this one. Neil Robertson takes on the unlikely King of the Shot Clock Nigel Bond in Round One and will be eager to appease what I think has been an overly harsh press after his latest off the table comedy mishap, in the words of my mum ‘he’d forget his head if it wasn’t screwed on’. But like I say I think some of the criticisms that I’ve read have been a bit hard on the Aussie who was organised enough to win the World Championship after all. Dangerous Dotty, Berlin runner-up Mark Selby, manbaby Mark King and ‘Honest’ Jaybee are amongst the crop of bewildered cue-wielders that are there to stop Robbo passing the ‘Nothing to Declare’ gate here. It’s another horrible quarter to predict but having been a devoted Selby backer in the past, some good times some bad, I have deserted him lately like a spurned lover. But now I’m back with a box of chocolates, a cuddle and a bunch of flowers for the Jester. Berlin is just what he needed, he’s a lot better than his results this season suggest and he will win either here, in China or in Sheffield. I am convinced of it.

Recommended Bet: 3 points Mark Selby to win the Welsh Open at 8/1 at Betfred

If anyone fancies any of the prices with Betfred but doesn’t have an account, click the banner below and follow the steps to open one. Whatever you stake as your first bet will be matched for free once it is settled, up to a maximum of £50. Remember there is also still a chance to win a £50 free bet with Betfred by entering the Prediction Contest here. You can also take a look at what odds they are offering on Albino Assassin and Pretzel Loving Allan Taylor to do the blog proud at the Q-School.

As ever, the best of luck to anyone having a bet this week.

Right, the first thing I have to do are the preliminaries. Firstly, a big thank you to Blake Publishers who very kindly got in touch with me and sent me a free copy of this book to read and review. Anyone else that wants to send me free stuff is more than welcome and will receive a plug accordingly. I am not too proud to beg. I’m quite keen on getting an advanced copy of Graeme Dott’s book if anyone that can send me one is reading.

Secondly, I have never met John Virgo, so I had no preconceptions of him other than the ones other people will have of him from his TV work and history as a player, namely a hairy bloke that wears silly waistcoats and shouts about cue balls. On the other hand, I have ‘met’ or rather encountered, the subject of the book; Alex Higgins. On two seperate occasions, the first being entirely pleasant and positive as a young kid, the second being not so nice as a teenager. Probably summing him up as a person.

The first thing to say about this book is that it didn’t take me very long to read it, not because it’s not very long, but more because I enjoyed it. It has it’s flaws, which I’ll come onto in a moment, but overall I thought it was entertaining enough, if not exactly groundbreaking.

Having read three seperate biographies of the Hurricane over the years there are very few surprises in this. The book is at its best when recounting anecdotes between JV and Alex, things that were outside of the public eye, such as the time when the mild-mannered Salfordian threatened to throw the Hurricane ‘out of the fucking window’ for a rather cruel remark.

The one thing that I didn’t get from the book was a huge sense of friendship between the two men, despite JV asserting on quite a few occasions that they were indeed lifelong friends. While it isn’t quite a ‘warts and all’ tale of the Hurricane (for instance the relationships he had with the women in his life is largely glossed over), JV is not afraid to point out the many failings of the man as a human being, so much so in fact that with the exception of the early days ‘on the road’ he doesn’t really come across as liking him very much at all, though he obviously respected him hugely as a player.

You do get a sense of what it was like to be around Alex at close quarters though and it is clear that this was a man who could be charming, witty, jealous, intelligent, cutting, vicious and rude all within the blink of an eye. It is clear that he still had a huge belief that he was bigger and better than anyone, even right up until his death last year, bordering on an arrogance which is often found, dare I say it, in serial killers. I do get the sense from the book that even at the height of his fame and fortune, Alex remained a deeply troubled man, who craved the limelight and never really found anything that satisfied him for very long.

Along the way we meet, Alex the Rookie, Alex the Rebel, Alex the Gambler, Alex the Drinker, Alex the Showman and Alex the Hellraiser, but never really Alex the Good Friend. In fact, you get the distinct impression that Alex didn’t much care for friends and even Jimmy, his best one throughout his life right up to his final days, was always kept at arms length.

In amongst all the tales about Alex, JV also talks about his own life both on and off the baize. He does this at sufficient length for you to stay interested without having to go back to the book title and wonder when he’s going to start talking about the main subject again.

I was however surprised and in fact a little sceptical to read that in 1982, after Steve Davis and Terry Griffiths were knocked out of the World Championship early on, Virgo went bookies favourite for the title. Now, I’m not questioning the integrity of the author here, but Reardon, Higgins, Thorburn, Jimmy and a few others were still left in it. Come on JV, you’re pulling our legs there surely?

A personal favourite chapter is the one which describes ‘that press conference’ and the reaction of some unnamed behind the scenes officials when Alex started alluding to people in the game having affairs. You can almost picture them watching it in the wings squirming in their seats from here. Watch a snippit of the press conference here.

Another slight criticism; in one chapter we are treated to a very entertaining tale about a disciplinary hearing involving Alex, between members of the then WPBSA board, when Alex cheekily buys Champagne and John Pulman drinks two bottles of it before midday. We begin with the meeting being chaired by someone called Ray Williams, who later appears to have turned into someone called Rex William. I assume he is referring to Rex Williams…..but it illustrates possibly another minor flaw in the book, that the author might not have meticulously read it properly. It has the feel of being ghost-written by an unnamed lesser light who has followed John around getting his take on all things Alex.

But overall, it’s a good read and if your birthday is coming up soon, or your lady/man partner is struggling for a Valentines gift for you, this might be just the ticket. I’d give it 7/10.

See, I can be nice, now can I have some more free stuff please?