JC rambles on maximums!(2008 world snooker championship)

Greetings! My name is JC Leong and this is the first piece in my role as contributor to this new OriginalOmin.com website.

First, a little of myself. I am simply a snooker lover, been playing the game for 23 years now and honestly, I have enjoyed every minute of it. Through the years, I have learned about snooker and every piece of knowledge I have picked up has only served to heighten the joy and pleasure I derive from the sport. So, this is an opportunity for me to put on paper or monitor, if you like, my thoughts and opinion of the game I love.

So, as my first article, I thought nothing would be more appropriate a subject then the very recently concluded 2008 World Snooker Championship held at the Crucible Theater in Sheffield. What a tournament! Last year, after watching the semi finals and the final on television, i remember thinking how high the standards of the game has reached and I felt so thoroughly satisfied with what I saw that I believed the next edition of the event would be hard pressed to deliver more of the same. What Stephen Maguire, Shaun Murphy, Mark Selby and eventual winner John Higgins served up in the last season’s final three matches was some of the best snooker ever seen and if this year’s edition were to beat that, well, something silly had to happen.

But what transpired totally proved how wrong I was. I think if I were to sum up the 2008 event, I could do it with four words. Maximums and Ronnie O’Sullivan. That’s right! Maximum with an S. For those snooker fans who have just returned from a holiday to Mars, yes, for the first time in the history of the sport, two maximum breaks of 147 were made in a single event. But was it really that surprising?

In recent years, we have seen many maximums made and attempts at the magical break have shot through the roof. It is commonly accepted that the standards of snooker have risen dramatically and the performance of the players in the last decade have proved that but these two maximums, compiled firstly by Ronnie followed by Allister Carter the next day and the slew of attempts throughout the 17 day event just shows that snooker has, now, emphasis placed firmly in scoring.

Mark William’s two chances, Stephen Maguire’s attempt, Stephen Hendry’s 14 reds/blacks and Peter Ebdon’s own effort in the frame preceding Carter’s successful knock are just a few off the top of my head but really, all these big breaks were a collective voice from the players who were saying, “This is how good we are”. If you want to join the party, make sure you bring a lot of weapons!

All the better for us fans. And with Ronnie finally taking off with his third world title, I’ll bet no one could say this year’s event disappointed. I’ll admit you could imagine last year’s final three matches were of higher quality and were exciting but with those four semifinalists not even getting to the last four this time what did you expect?

In Higgins, we had the holder who, after an indifferent season, never came to terms with the conditions and fell in the second round. In Maguire, Murphy and Selby, we had the three form players of the season who I felt just came to a point where tiredness led to some lethargy and coupled with the fact that they were the players to beat, they were always playing opponents who were really up for it ensuring their early exits. What did that leave us?

Well, Hendry must have thought he was in the with the great chance and he improved and progressed steadily until he hit a wall, well, Ronnie. Ken Doherty and Mark Williams were looking for extended runs but Doherty came up against Chinese opposition in the form of Liang Werbo and was dumped in round one, while Williams, well, he played Ronnie. Ding Jun Hui, though young but a more established Chinese found Hendry a little too hot and would have to wait for next year. So, who did well? Joe Perry and Allister Carter. Not rated to win the tournament, these two took their chances, played excellent snooker and their efforts culminated in a semifinal meeting which also ensured their presence in the top of the rankings for the next season. Their semifinal was exciting in that no player ran away at anytime and they produced close frames, big breaks and also showed their mortal sides as both were on occasion affected by their enormity of playing for a place in the final of the biggest event in snooker.

Finally, the little matter of Ronnie O’Sullivan. I absolutely love him. Despite the tantrums and excessive behavior; read China Press Conference, he remains one of the most popular personalities in snooker, worldwide. And for him to win the title would for many snooker fans be akin to some scientist announcing he has just stopped global warming. Genius we call him and in my opinion, we are right. Ronnie in full flow makes the game look ridiculously easy. Need proof? The seven times world champion and one the greatest players ever, Stephen Hendry, was dispatched 17-6 with a session to spare. I mean, come on, Stephen Hendry for crying out loud. The man I credit for turning snooker on it’s road to it’s current shape and form and Ronnie takes him out 17-6 from 1-4 behind. How good is that? Some say Hendry is not there anymore, he’s older, not as hungry and many have caught up. How about going back to 2004 when Ronnie beat him 17-4 in another semifinal on his way to his second world title. Don’t misunderstand me, Stephen Hendry is worth every one of his title and every little bit of success but so does Ronnie. I just think Ronnie is better but without the consistency. I know it’s all about winning nowadays but I like to have a think about things now and then and I maintain the most successful may not necessarily be the best.

And the final? It wasn’t the best. One century from each player and didn’t really set any pulses racing. Oh! let’s be honest, Ronnie romped it but Alister Carter must have made more fans with his performances up to the final but in the end it was one step too far. But upon reflection, he will supremely pleased and will look back to the Crucible 2008 with only pleasant memories. He got to the world final, made a maximum along with the way and played, well, Ronnie. And the small matters of a share of the highest break prize and bonus for the 147 of 157,000 pound plus the 125,000 pound prize as runners up ensured a lovely pay day for him as well. He will be no.7 in the world next season and he will be itching for the new season to get under way.

As for our hero, Ronnie, after pocketing a grand total of 328,000 pound plus his third world title, he said he could win more, then he said he might quit for a bit, then maybe for longer. Well, I am going to do what I always do when Ronnie scares me with things like that. Pray his name is in the draw for the next professional event. Don’t leave Ronnie, we love you. We really, really do.

J C Leong

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