Blog
You may have noticed a few changes to my website – I thought it was time to freshen it up a bit and make it look better. I hope you like the improved version keep coming back to visit.
One exciting new thing to look out for is my shop, where you will be able to buy my official merchandise. It’s opening really soon and there will be all sorts to buy, like snooker cues, posters, calendars and key rings. And I’d love to see a few of you supporting me at tournaments wearing the “It’s Jester Game of Snooker” T-shirts!
The draw for the World Championships was made this week, and I’m quite pleased with facing Ricky Walden. There is no good draw these days, they’re all hard, so I can’t complain too much.
Ricky is a great player, and it will be a tough match. But by the same token, it’s his debut and he will be nervous, so I’ll want to stamp my authority on the match early doors, and put the pressure on him. If he settles too quickly, he will be a dangerous opponent. We grew up through the ranks together and, this season, we’ve played each other twice already with the score 1-1, so we know each other’s game pretty well.
If there’s one player I didn’t fancy, it was Mark Williams, everyone will have wanted to avoid him. He beat my fellow Leicester pro Tom Ford 10-5 in the final qualifying round and he’s been there and done it, winning the worlds twice, so he knows what’s needed at the Crucible.
I was disappointed not to see Tom qualify, it would have been really nice if he’d done it, great for him and great for Leicester as a whole. It would have saved his season if he got through, but he probably couldn’t have got a tougher draw.
I’m delighted Steve Davis qualified. He was my hero when I was a kid and it’s brilliant that he will be back in Sheffield again. He was 5-0 down in his final qualifier against Lee Spick, but did fantastically well to pull through. I’m sure he’s over the moon.
However, there are one or two players you’d expect to be there who didn’t make it. I’m especially gutted for Ken Doherty, he’s a lovely bloke and it’s a shame he couldn’t do it this year. Time may not be on his side any more, but he’s a great character and a superb ambassador for the sport. You still want to see the likes of him and Matthew Stevens getting through.
I can’t say I miss the qualifiers, I had to suffer them for many years. They can be cruel, and the standard is always so high. The players that are involved are all great players – they are professionals who are playing for their careers.
I went up to Sheffield to watch Michael Holt and give him some support in his final match against Dominic Dale. He won 10-7, so it’s great to see him through, we practise a lot against each other. Just being there at the qualifiers and seeing the pressure when they get to frame 10 to win it and the nerves set in, I’m glad it’s not me any more!
I spent a few days in Prague last weekend for an exhibition with Peter Ebdon. When I say exhibition, it was more like a comedy act! I know Peter quite well and we really get on with each other. He’s a good laugh and he’s got another side to the serious one you see on TV – he can be a bit of a madcap!
In Prague, he came back from the toilet with his shoes in his hand, ran towards the table, jumped up on it and then off the other side, and then did a forward roll, just as if he was at the Olympics! I’ve never seen anything like it, I was in tears of laughter. I can’t see him repeating his trick at the Crucible, though!
As is often the case when I go away, I didn’t see as much of Prague as I would have liked, but what I did see I can thoroughly recommend. I would love to go back and spend more time having a proper look around. I met a good few fans as well, and did a lot of signings and meeting and greeting.
When I got back to Leicester, me and Vikki went out with Mukesh and his family to celebrate his birthday. We had a good night, nothing too hectic, though, as he’s getting on a bit. Thing is, he’s been telling everyone he’s 29 for the last 20 years! Happy Birthday Muke!
