Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine

Off Topic => Sports Arena => Topic started by: devilla on February 26, 2017, 10:10:55 PM

Title: Snooker 2017
Post by: devilla on February 26, 2017, 10:10:55 PM
Coral shot out is a ranking tournament. Each "match" is one frame, shots are timed, each frame is limited to 10 minutes and the rules are altered for this tournament. How on earth can it be a ranking tourament? Complete joke. Boils my piss.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: J on February 26, 2017, 10:52:53 PM
I'm all for trying to breathe some new life into the game with inventive formats and the like but you're right, there's no way it should be a ranking event.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on February 27, 2017, 01:02:41 AM
I assume it was made a ranking tournament to cajole the top players into competing, which would obviously be better for broadcasters, sponsors, etc.

It doesn't seem to have worked though as, off the top of my head, I don't remember seeing O'Sullivan, Ding, Neil Robertson, Trump and a fair few others.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: Legion on February 27, 2017, 05:12:59 PM
I watched this last night. Thought it was shit.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: ACVilla on February 28, 2017, 07:46:27 PM
I watched a bit of it and thought it was alright. A bit of brainless fun. Let's be honest snooker needs a massive injection of something. Christ knows where it would be without Ronnie.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: Dave Cooper please on February 28, 2017, 11:00:59 PM
I watched a bit of it and thought it was alright. A bit of brainless fun. Let's be honest snooker needs a massive injection of something. Christ knows where it would be without Ronnie.

Still very popular, more ranking events now than ever, massive following in the far East. Honestly it doesn't need a T20 style makeover and it isn't suited to that sort of style anyway.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: ACVilla on March 01, 2017, 06:31:35 PM
I watched a bit of it and thought it was alright. A bit of brainless fun. Let's be honest snooker needs a massive injection of something. Christ knows where it would be without Ronnie.

Still very popular, more ranking events now than ever, massive following in the far East. Honestly it doesn't need a T20 style makeover and it isn't suited to that sort of style anyway.
Yes it's massive in the far east so in that regard it could well be called very popular.

In the UK though, nah. I don't know the viewing figures for the major tournaments but they must be a fraction of what they were and if you take Ronnie out of the equation I'd imagine it would be a fraction again.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on March 01, 2017, 07:46:31 PM
Just about everything on terrestrial television has far lower ratings than in previous years due to more competition.

Snooker would easily survive with or without O'Sullivan though. You sound a bit like a Man United fan tbh, only the one with the most fans matters?

I think the Shootout is quite good fun... as a one-off. I wouldn't want to see any major tournaments adopting that format.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: devilla on March 07, 2017, 10:49:30 PM
I thought Ronnie's interview after his win on Monday night was great. They wanted him to talk about his match but all he wanted to do was tell them about his run that morning. "It was great, the birds were tweating". Hendry was creased up! Ronnie saying he was going home until his next match because there was nothing to do in Llandudno. Great TV.

In that interview they replayed some of his shots but you couldn't hear what anyone in the studio was saying becaue of the audience's applause. That needs sorting.

Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on March 07, 2017, 11:42:14 PM
Sounds like O'Sullivan being a prick, as per.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: devilla on March 08, 2017, 12:06:18 AM
Sounds like O'Sullivan being a prick, as per.

I think it just means he's being honest about what's really important to him now. He had a really tough time in his late teens when at one point, both his parents were in prison and he went off the rails for a few years. His new perspective has meant he's got his life back on track so I admire him for that. And of course, he's the most talented player the game has ever seen.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: peter w on March 08, 2017, 09:49:58 AM
And the reason most casual snooker fans watch it.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on March 08, 2017, 12:57:25 PM
Ermmm... nah. Maybe the sort of people who only bother watching football when Man U are involved, but I think snooker (in Britain) tends to be watched by an older demographic who have been watching since long before O'Sullivan came along.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: Chico Hamilton III on March 08, 2017, 03:06:55 PM
Stuck next to a fella on a packed train yesterday who was watching snooker on his iPhone. Dunno who was the saddest, him for having the world's collection of video material at his finger tips and choosing to watch snooker or me for watching it over his shoulder whilst pretending to read the Evening Standard
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: devilla on March 08, 2017, 06:26:12 PM
Ermmm... nah. Maybe the sort of people who only bother watching football when Man U are involved, but I think snooker (in Britain) tends to be watched by an older demographic who have been watching since long before O'Sullivan came along.

Yep, I'm one of those older demographic. I've been watching it since the Pot Black days on a black and white TV but I'm very pleased to say that I have a very deep loathing of man u.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: ACVilla on March 08, 2017, 09:29:01 PM
Ermmm... nah. Maybe the sort of people who only bother watching football when Man U are involved, but I think snooker (in Britain) tends to be watched by an older demographic who have been watching since long before O'Sullivan came along.
Not a great long term proposal for the game is it.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on March 08, 2017, 11:43:40 PM
The game is bigger than it has ever been. Just not in Britain. The domestic viewing figures were always going to diminish from the massive totals of the eighties when people went from having three or four channels to having hundreds (plus catch-up, streaming, DVDS, etc).

It still attracts far better viewing figures than most daytime telly, but clearly doesn't compete with the likes of Eastenders and Coronation Street in the evening (not helped by the fact that generally only show an hour or so in the later sessions until the semi-finals).

Pleased Ding recovered from four-nil down to beat John "Bung" Higgins. Surely the best sporting comeback of the day? 😜
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on April 14, 2017, 10:26:10 PM
World Championship starts tomorrow. My favourite sporting event of the year.

Have gone for Trump at 9/2 and an outside bet on Kyren Wilson at 50/1. Both are in the easier part of the draw.

The top half looks deadly, with Selby, Neil Robertson, Fu, Murphy, Ding and O'Sullivan all in it.

If my bets don't come in, I'd like to see Ding win. He's replaced Jimmy White as the greatest player never to have won it, imo.

Hopefully O'Sullivan doesn't win, he's a great player but also a massive twat.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: somec on April 14, 2017, 10:44:07 PM
World Championship starts tomorrow. My favourite sporting event of the year.

Have gone for Trump at 9/2 and an outside bet on Kyren Wilson at 50/1. Both are in the easier part of the draw.

The top half looks deadly, with Selby, Neil Robertson, Fu, Murphy, Ding and O'Sullivan all in it.

If my bets don't come in, I'd like to see Ding win. He's replaced Jimmy White as the greatest player never to have won it, imo.

Hopefully O'Sullivan doesn't win, he's a great player but also a massive twat.

Which bookie did you go with? Quite a few of them have promos on.

 Ladbrokes, back an outright tournament winner with at least a tenner and get a 2 quid free bet for every century break they make. Toals had a similar promo but stake 20 quid and get a 2 quid free bet for every game they win.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on April 14, 2017, 11:23:41 PM
Didn't think to look for promos! Stupid boy.

I went with Bet365 for Trump. They're my main bookie, I feel a sense of loyalty to them as they are just about the only one that regularly has good offers for existing members. One of which led to me winning £1,100 last year.

I went with Stan James for Wilson as they had him at 50-1, whereas all the others had him at 40s. As a new customer I get a free bet of the same value once my initial outlay has been settled.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: Villafirst on April 15, 2017, 07:20:06 AM
World Championship starts tomorrow. My favourite sporting event of the year.

Have gone for Trump at 9/2 and an outside bet on Kyren Wilson at 50/1. Both are in the easier part of the draw.

The top half looks deadly, with Selby, Neil Robertson, Fu, Murphy, Ding and O'Sullivan all in it.

If my bets don't come in, I'd like to see Ding win. He's replaced Jimmy White as the greatest player never to have won it, imo.

Hopefully O'Sullivan doesn't win, he's a great player but also a massive twat.

I hope O'Sullivan wins. Best player ever to grace the game.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on April 15, 2017, 09:02:04 AM
It's close, but I would still give it to Hendry. I think if both players were at their best it would be impossible to separate them. Indeed, I remember a session at the Crucible which finished 4-4 when they both played the best I've ever seen two players play. I think there were seven centuries in the afternoon, or something stupid like that.

Where I think Hendry has the edge is that he would be more capable of winning if both players were slightly below their best. Peak O'Sullivan threw in far more shock defeats against players that should never have been good enough to compete against him than Peak Hendry did.

I also think that, had he not got "the Yips", Hendry could have won nine or ten World titles in which case there wouldn't even be a debate as to who was better.

1 Stephen Hendry
2 Ronnie O'Sullivan
3 John Higgins
4 Steve Davis
5 Mark Selby
6 Mark Williams
7 Alex Higgins
8 Joe Davis
9 Ray Reardon
10 Neil Robertson
11 Ding Junhui
12 Jimmy White
13 Peter Ebdon
14 Ken Doherty
15 Judd Trump
16 John Spencer
17 Cliff Thorburn
18 John Parrott
19 Dennis Taylor
20 Terry Griffiths

Top twenty ever, imo. Have probably missed someone obvious.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on April 17, 2017, 10:46:35 PM
Fu vs Brecel, match of the tournament so far.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: devilla on April 19, 2017, 11:13:04 PM
Fu vs Brecel, match of the tournament so far.

Agreed. Great result for Rory McLeod tonight, that's one of the favorites out. Trump did have a shoulder injury though and looked quite out of sorts.

Big one tomorrow night with O'Sullivan playing Murphy. That could could be very interesting, bit of needle between those two.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on April 20, 2017, 08:07:46 AM
Didn't take long for the curse of me betting on him to get rid of Trump.

Some excellent looking Round Two matches:

Murphy v O'Sullivan
Ding v Liang
Fu v Robertson
Allen v Higgins
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: DB on April 20, 2017, 04:39:41 PM
I see that chap is back this year next to the players, wears a different Cov top every day.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: peter w on April 24, 2017, 10:03:24 PM
Midnight here in istanbul and too tired to stay up for the rest of Fu v Robertson. 11-11. Robertson missing some unbelievably 'easy' shots. fu should have gone 11-10 up but missed a relatively straight forward black and lost. We've had in-offs, fouls for waistcoats touching the balls, flukes, loss of positions, and some great pots (mostly from Fu as the match progresses. Whose bottle will stand up? Fu, just potted a good red and now the yellow. 11-11 3-0. Good place to end for the night.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: devilla on April 24, 2017, 10:20:03 PM
Midnight here in istanbul and too tired to stay up for the rest of Fu v Robertson. 11-11. Robertson missing some unbelievably 'easy' shots. fu should have gone 11-10 up but missed a relatively straight forward black and lost. We've had in-offs, fouls for waistcoats touching the balls, flukes, loss of positions, and some great pots (mostly from Fu as the match progresses. Whose bottle will stand up? Fu, just potted a good red and now the yellow. 11-11 3-0. Good place to end for the night.

Marco Fu looking favourite for me, standing up to the pressure better. The second cracking match he's been involved in.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: four fornicholl on April 24, 2017, 10:39:43 PM
What a kick that was.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: German James on April 24, 2017, 10:43:08 PM
What a kick that was.
Awful! The poor sod!
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: four fornicholl on April 24, 2017, 10:52:36 PM
I do like Fu, well done.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: German James on April 24, 2017, 10:53:35 PM
Great match! Well done Fu! Worthy winner.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: devilla on April 24, 2017, 11:09:22 PM
What a kick that was.
Awful! The poor sod!

Really pleased that he went through. To lose after that would have been really tough. He's looking a fair outside bet now.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on April 24, 2017, 11:12:24 PM
Have always liked Fu. Hoping for him, Ding, Maguire and Wilson to make the semis.

They will all lose.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: ADVILLAFAN on April 25, 2017, 08:56:01 AM
Just hoping that O'Sullivan and Selby get knocked out really.

Would be nice to see Ding finally realise his potential.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: German James on April 25, 2017, 08:26:58 PM
Stop going on about the bloody footballers in the crowd!
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: ADVILLAFAN on April 25, 2017, 09:04:58 PM
Paul Ince is there you know

Impressive from Ding so far tonight.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on April 25, 2017, 10:33:31 PM
Good stuff from Hector Salamanca's favourite player this evening.

I've warmed to Ronnie having found out that he's a Leftie. Still supporting Ding though. Be a lovely tribute to Chuck Berry if he could win it.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: devilla on April 30, 2017, 09:16:21 PM
I see Nicko McBrain, Iron Maiden's drummer, has one of the best seats in the house tonight. He's a big snooker fan apparently.

This final isn't going as I thought it would. Selby has been very below par and Higgins is making the most of it. I sense a Selby comeback tomorrow.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: thick_mike on May 01, 2017, 10:15:04 PM
Really got drawn into the snooker, might have something to do with the enormous pile of coursework I have to mark.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: Villan For Life on May 01, 2017, 11:12:28 PM
Is it my mind playing tricks or is there always a guy in a Coventry shirt in the front row at the final?
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: Chinchilla Bathhouse on May 01, 2017, 11:31:00 PM
Nope, you're right, he's there every year. He's made it to so many finals he's now Coventry's greatest ever sportsman.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on May 01, 2017, 11:32:46 PM
He's always there. He proposed to his girlfriend there, never misses a session and has a hundred different Coventry shirts.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/www.mirror.co.uk/sport/row-zed/theres-man-who-goes-every-5638153.ampP

He also goes to every England tournament.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/englands-biggest-fan-after-spending-3628532.amp
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: Villan For Life on May 01, 2017, 11:42:14 PM
I don't watch it religiously but when I switched it on tonight I saw him and something clicked.
Even though your first link doesn't work!
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: Chinchilla Bathhouse on May 01, 2017, 11:44:21 PM
What was with those bloody "Ton Up" signs that people were waving in the crowd? It's like one-day cricket with its 4s and 6s and big fingers. Why can't people just watch sport any more? Why the props? Are we all supposed to be doing this now? If so I'm going to knock up a batch of "stray pass" signs and make my fortune.
Title: Re: Snooker 2017
Post by: cdbearsfan on May 02, 2017, 08:07:08 AM
Dunno why that won't work. Just Google "Coventry fan at snooker"!
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