The Top Ten Most Iconic Snooker World Championship Moments Ever

We’re ranking our top ten Snooker World Championship moments and pulling out the real reason they stick, whether it’s raw skill, pure bottle, a bit of chaos, or just the perfect line from the commentary box.

Subscribe, share the episode with a snooker fan, and leave us a review, then tell us what we’ve missed: what’s your greatest Crucible moment?

Transcript

Welcome To Who Remembers

SPEAKER_03 0:00

Hello and welcome to the podcast Who Remembers, the UK nostalgia podcast. In this episode, we're asking who remembers the top ten Snooker World Championship moments?

SPEAKER_02 0:53

Well, it's the crucible moments, isn't it, real life, rather than the just the champion. We're concentrating. I only know it as the same thing, but yeah, I know what you mean.

SPEAKER_03 1:01

Yeah, it is the moments at the crucible, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:03

But we might get people in, older people might think, oh, this is this is for me, pre pre-woke crucible.

SPEAKER_03 1:08

Um this was a request from Is it like uh you know, like when they say there's nobody left who served in the World War Is there anybody left who remembers pre-crucibles?

SPEAKER_02 1:18

I wonder if there's anyone on live realistically. 1927 uh was the first ever snooker championship. So I wonder if there is anybody sold in the colour. I'm not they're listening to this.

SPEAKER_03 1:28

I know, because they've they have to Yeah, because to remember it, how old do you think you have to be to remember your first snooker tournament? Seven, six?

SPEAKER_02 1:37

Yeah, something like that, yeah. Six, seven, eight, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:40

So you're gonna so you're talking we need 105-year-old. And it wouldn't be televised then either, would it?

Sheffield Pride And Crucible Love

SPEAKER_02 1:46

So No, no, it wouldn't have been televised then, neither. So now who remembers? Who remembers? This was recrossed by Harvey. Thank you so much for this. Because he messaged me privately actually and said, um, oh, should we do something for Crucible? And I was like, why have we not thought of that, Liam? I thought that is such an obvious tie-in to what's happening in the city that we live in.

SPEAKER_03 2:07

Yeah, it's perfect because we we want to mix in these uh ranking episodes where we're we're absolute rankers, and yeah, it just seemed seemed a perfect fit. And I mean, I I don't know about you, I I have genuine affection. I don't know if it's because I'm from Sheffield, I presume that gives it huge bias. I don't know how people outside of Sheffield feel, but I I love the world championships at the crucible. I I absolutely love it.

SPEAKER_02 2:28

I'm gonna say something here that um a lot of Sheffields are not gonna be happy with what I'm saying here. So when you get off the train to come into Sheffield, you are greeted by a massive sign that says, Welcome to the home of Henderson's Relish. You've got the Crucible, you've got the home of football, obviously Sheffield FC, and you've also got Tony Christie, right? So why are they not like the first things that you see when you come on? Why is it Henderson's relish? This is a massive thing for a pretty shitty city, really.

SPEAKER_03 3:00

It's quite cool though, quite hipster, isn't it, to to sort of the Henderson's relishing? I mean, don't get me wrong. Yeah, we we all have Hendos. We've all like we genuinely like have a I don't like some people clinging to this Henderson's thing. Like it's a bit desperate at times to prove you're a Sheffielder almost. But we if we're getting down towards the bottle of the bottom of the bottle, we do like near nearly out of Hendos.

SPEAKER_02 3:24

Yeah, he's pathetic from everybody involved.

SPEAKER_03 3:27

Yeah, me included, yeah.

Tribute To John Virgo

SPEAKER_02 3:28

Yeah, yeah, myself included. But now we're we're we are gonna concentrate on the crucible, obviously, here. Um and we do want to dedicate this episode genuinely to John Virgo. And this is a bit of a comedy podcast, but yeah, the late, great John Virgo.

SPEAKER_03 3:43

And I mean, I think you've said that about a couple of people who haven't died yet. Yeah, he has died. As kind of almost suggest, unfortunately, John Virgo is no longer with us, and and yeah, uh you know, for what our opinion is worth, greatly missed by by us.

SPEAKER_02 3:57

I think John Virgo's one of those people, a bit like Father Christmas, that you always sort of knew existed. Well, he didn't exist, obviously. In real life, I I know Father Christmas doesn't exist, but you know, you know what I'm saying. Oh, we've done that, we've covered that, he kind of does, doesn't he? But it's kind of a symbol.

SPEAKER_03 4:11

Yeah, feeling uh metaphor.

SPEAKER_02 4:14

Uh and John Virgo is also a symbol of the crucible in many ways. But yeah, he's one of those what I'm saying is basically I don't I don't remember a pre-Jon Virgo time, and I do mean that as well. I mean, as we'll get on to, I'm not you're more into your snooker than I am. I used to watch it a lot in the 90s and early northers and sort of fell out of it for for whatever reason. But John Virgo was just sort of there from day one in my life. Um, it was always on TV, obviously big break and stuff like that. Um they're a great emo as we're recording this, it's probably gonna come out a week later. They'd had a great emotional tribute to him. I don't know if you saw that at the crucible um today, in fact, as we're recording.

SPEAKER_03 4:47

No, I've not seen that yet. No, I will watch that. I've seen um I've seen a couple of tribute videos. I know Ken Ken Darcy had arranged something or was part of some sort of tribute. Um no, I'll definitely be watching that, yeah, because very well, I mean we kind of want to sort of tribute it to Willie Thorne as well, because he's another legend of the commentary box and and the table as well, that to be fair. So but yeah, obviously John Virgo passed away fairly recently. What are we talking about? This is yeah, this is his first yeah, this is the first crucible without him. Um and yeah, Silky, Silky Voice, where's the cue ball going? Is is a incredible just on that, right?

SPEAKER_02 5:29

Yeah, where the cue ball, where where's the where's the cue ball going? Everyone knows it. I think this is this happened pre-internet or pre-social media, or yeah, maybe Facebook or around or whatever, but this is one of those sort of things I I remember that people thought they were the first people to discover it.

SPEAKER_03 5:46

It was one of those sort of fight skinner with his idiotic Eureka moments where you think you're the first. Uh, have you noticed how he says, Where's the cue ball going a lot? Yeah, everybody's noticed that, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 5:56

And that were pre that were pre-Twitter and now it has become a thing, and obviously sold even t-shirts with it and stuff, where's the cue ball going? But at the time I do remember, oh Virgo, remember when he says, like, oh, where's the cue ball going? He says it every time that always like Peter K. Do you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_03 6:10

Yeah. But but yeah, like you say, uh obviously, yeah, we're fairly lighthearted, but yeah, very, very what's the word? Uh I don't want to say sad, but kind of don't do it justice. Yeah, just it it doesn't feel the same without him, I would say that.

Snooker Origins And Early Champions

SPEAKER_02 6:25

No, I think that's fair. Do you want to go through a little brief issue, Lim of the uh the championships themselves?

SPEAKER_03 6:31

Yeah, so 1920 I think you've said this already, 1927 was the first ever World Snooker Championship. Um I always kind of find it interesting. What was like the year before that, what what changed where they thought, like, do you know what? We need a world. He should decide who the best snook player in the world is, but in 1926 nobody cared. But yeah, 1927 became quite important.

SPEAKER_02 6:52

Um to be fair, the first ever World Cup weren't until 1930, so they were ahead of the curve with that.

SPEAKER_03 6:57

Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's uh sometimes the way with the snooks. Uh Joe Davis dominated the first 15 tournaments, so won it from the first one to 1946. Retired undefeated. I mean, that's a huge stat, innit?

SPEAKER_02 7:12

Yeah, ridiculous, isn't it?

SPEAKER_03 7:14

Retired undefeated at the tournament. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 7:17

Yeah, he won and won every single one. Yeah, world champion. Well, yeah. So like a cheap player, Joe Davis. Obviously, way before. I don't even know if there's any footage of Joe Davis. I would like to see it to see like how.

SPEAKER_03 7:26

Was he the the only player for the first 15 years?

SPEAKER_02 7:31

The the Joe Davis Championship Snooker. Yeah, I mean, like like I say, I don't think there'd be much existence of this um uh uh footage of this because obviously snooker really started getting big in the 70s, 80s when it became televised and pot black was was aired.

SPEAKER_03 7:46

Um colour TV as well was huge. I mean, yeah, we might mention it before. I I once if the if the brown gets put anywhere near the reds, I can't see the difference. So yeah, it's had some very troubling moments at the table where people have watched me pot quite happily pot of brown thinking of pot of red or vice versa, and then said foul. Yeah, I mean that's abuse, really, isn't it?

SPEAKER_02 8:10

It's disabled eye abuse, isn't it? Yeah, colourblind eyes abuse. Uh and as as someone with dyspraxia, um, which I don't like to talk about, is um I I struggle on the table, don't I? You've seen me on the table.

SPEAKER_03 8:23

Yeah, but I I don't think you're doing yourself a disservice there. I don't I don't think you you're you're a mediocre player, aren't you? I think you you're not the world championships, but you're alright. You're not gonna be able to do that.

SPEAKER_02 8:33

I what I normally try to do is hope to lure my opponent into thinking it's that easy if they end up putting a black by accident you know first before the you know before or the white ball goes in or whatever. It's a brave tactic, I'll give you that. Yeah, that's it. Anyway.

SPEAKER_03 8:47

Um yeah, so the first uh 50 years of tournament was London, Birmingham, Manchester based, and I I think it just rotated between the three. I don't think it necessarily moved one to the other, to the other. I think it uh from the notes we've got it it just moved around those. 1977 is the important date for us though, because the Crucible Theatre hosts some world championships. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 9:10

I mean, have you ever been? Yeah, I went to see John Higgins versus somebody called Yeah, somebody called Green, and I can't remember his first name off the top of my head. Oh it were a bit it were low ranker, not Higgins armadim. It were quite boring actually because it were great seeing John Higgins, obviously, one of the all-time greats, but it was also that one-sided that there was just zero jeopardy involved in it. So but I did enjoy it as a yeah, as a concept.

SPEAKER_03 9:34

I've never been I've been to Crucible for several different events, but I've never seen a snooker, which is huge failing on my part. And I know when they were going to move it to the Middle East, I thought, oh god, I'll I'll never get to see it. Now they haven't, and I still haven't booked tickets for it.

SPEAKER_02 9:48

Yeah, yeah. We should go, we should do it, we should have a whole members uh out in at the snooker.

SPEAKER_03 9:54

Yeah, yeah, let's let's do that. Um uh John Spencer was the winner against Cliff Thorburn in the first Crucible final, and since then we've had 23 different people who've lifted the trophy. Uh do you remember Cliff Thorburn?

SPEAKER_02 10:10

I don't remember Cliff Thorburn, but um, spoiler alert, he will come up to. I don't remember him, I don't remember him at the time. I have what I've genuinely done a lot of research for this, just basically watching loads of old snooker clips. Instead of watching the recent tournament, which is something that I've found that I do. I'll often not watch like old sport. Uh I'll not watch the sport that's on now, but I'll be watching seven years ago. Yeah, the golf from 1989 instead of watching the Masters. And I'm doing that at the moment. I bought I I went through loads of old clips, and yeah, you know, spoiler alert, Cliff Thorburn will be featuring in the top ten.

The Crucible Building And Its Myth

SPEAKER_03 10:40

Yeah, and he he features in my school career as well, because we once played blockbuster in business studies, and the teacher had made the last line really difficult, or so he thought. Um, and my half of the class got to the bit, and it was a question CT was the the initials, and it was about the moment we're gonna mention actually, and uh yeah, I I got the answer Cliff Thorburn and everybody cheered and did it like that Dev Poet Society, everyone on tables and stuff, woohoohoo, he's done it. Um yeah, so no, I think a couple of people just sort of nodded in like didn't know that. Um and in 1978, the first televised world championship was aired, uh, and the crucible was then automatically seen as the home, so it's the first time anybody really, sort of the the public at large, got to see it anywhere. And since that date, it's it's been associated with a crucible, which is a well you're you're gonna move on actually. Let's should we move on to talk about the actual crucible?

SPEAKER_02 11:35

Little bit of the crucible name for a building, by the way. So the crucible is fantastic, isn't it? I I put in Best Crucible moments and um a lot of other stuff came on for other things at the Tile Cruise. It's a brilliant name. Um, this is don't worry by the way, this is not gonna be coming a building um podcast, it's very short, this little bit. Uh but the crucible was built in 1971 and it was named after Crucible Steel, which obviously invented in Sheffield in 1740. Obviously, Sheffield, the other thing outside of Sheffield.

SPEAKER_03 11:58

Obviously, Crucible Steel obviously invented in Sheffield in 1740, and everyone nodding along with you, listening.

SPEAKER_02 12:03

No, but Sheffield's known for its steel, obviously. Uh yeah, obviously known for its steel. Uh it's known for its Henderson's relish, and it's known for um Reverend and the Makers, obviously. That's the big three, but people normally say. Uh it sits on the older Delphi Hotel site, which uh obviously way before us because it got demolished in 1969. But I do rem I hear that a lot, you know, a older. Do you know what I mean? Like old my granddad would talk about the Adelphi. Adelphi, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 12:27

I I don't know if there's another Adelphi somewhere, but I've certainly heard talk of the Adelphi, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:32

It was designed with a thrust stage, and that's the first time I've ever heard that term. I don't know about you. You do a lot, I know you do build a did you thrust as you said that? Yeah, I did genuinely did do a thrust. But what that means is uh the audience wraps around, so no one's ever more than 20 metres away from the stage, which is why it feels like that's an incredible start though.

SPEAKER_03 12:51

I didn't know that. Yeah, that's that's uh a a really interesting which is kind of why they say like it feels like a pressure cooker, a cauldron, like uh a crucible, I suppose. A crucible is a bowl, isn't it?

SPEAKER_02 13:04

Yeah, yeah. And it's just a weird building because it do you it but before the snooker and even after the snooker, uh or even now, it hosts like Shakespeare, it's mad that it can host like a Shakespearean play and a 25-minute Peter Ebden frame at the same time, and and none of them like it doesn't seem weird.

SPEAKER_03 13:20

Like you wouldn't get a Shakespeare a Bobby Knott pantomime, I think. I think that's the one.

SPEAKER_02 13:23

Yeah, Bobby Not pantomime, yeah, yeah. Another Sheffield hero, Bobby Nott. But yeah, like I say, it's bizarre because I think if a Shakespeare's play were happening in in Wembley Stadium, it'd just it'd just be weird, but it yeah, I don't know. Jack of all trades, Jack of all trades.

SPEAKER_03 13:38

It's a really I I don't know again, I don't know if it's a Sheffield-based affection, but I I love the crucible as a building. We used to sometimes go into a cafe when I was little. My mum took us into town, and there was a slope, like a tiled slope you could slide down on the way to toilets that I used to really love.

SPEAKER_02 13:54

Oh, I do remember that, yeah, I do remember that. Uh who remembers the slope? The toilet. Let's go on to the let's go onto the list, Liam, and as always, the second time with the list, we're gonna play her our uh Rankers theme tune.

SPEAKER_00 14:14

Rankers, rankers, rankers, rankers. Rankers, rankers, rankers, rankers. Do a LiamR fucking rankers.

Honourable Mentions Before The Rankings

SPEAKER_03 14:29

Yeah, you've you've obviously we've played the music because you've you've called for it. I wonder if we should have done the mentions and then because we're not actually gonna rank yet, we're doing honourable mentions, aren't we? Well, it don't matter, does it? They won't remember. They won't remember. We might play it again after this, but yeah. So honourable mentions we're gonna move straight into. I think I think we're gonna alternate on these and the list, but yeah. The first one I'll give you is and this is a bit of a dig at Gary Lineker, this, because uh Yeah, I don't think anybody's expecting that. In a crucible rankings list, a dig at Gary Lineker. But yeah, Mark Williams said if he won it, he would uh do the press conference naked. And I think Gary Lineker said something similar about Leicester winning the League of the United States.

SPEAKER_02 15:09

He said, If Leicester win the league, I'll do yeah, I'll do um I'll just do it in my pants, he said. Um I'll do my pair of shorts. Yeah, but he bottled that. I mean, I've got I'll I do one of the yeah, I do like Lineker, and Ian Wright found it hilarious at least. I don't know if he's there's a brilliant still where it's him in just in his shorts. So then Ian Wright in the background, like with his head back, it's like the funniest thing he's ever seen. But I think he bottles it. I think he bottles it. I think righty boy, Yan Shearer should have said, No way, I'm not having that, no chance. Get your pants on and get back out there.

SPEAKER_03 15:39

Expouse yourself like you said you would. Yeah, yeah. Gal. I think you're right. We've mentioned this before, he's the only person in the world who changed his name, Gary, to Gal. I've never heard that done before.

SPEAKER_02 15:49

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 15:51

Are you gonna move on to the next one?

SPEAKER_02 15:53

Yeah, sorry. Um Ding as I Ding Zhun Hui, uh, emotional semi-final 2016. First Asian player to reach a crucible final. This was a huge moment because like I said, I I I wasn't watching it as much um at this stage, but I think it was.

SPEAKER_03 16:13

But yeah, I think I think this was the first as well, exactly what you've just said, the first Asian player to reach Crucible Final. And because Snooker is huge over there, yeah, it did feel like yeah, the world was watching in that moment.

SPEAKER_02 16:25

I think like like I say, but when I were growing up, it were mainly British people. You might have the odds, you know what I mean, other nations and stuff. But this this was huge, obviously. Getting it and it were really emotional after in a great scene, so that's a that's an honourable mention that just misses our lium.

SPEAKER_03 16:38

Yeah, I'm on board with that. Yorkshire Man, this is the next one, Yorkshireman, Joe Johnson, uh, never won a tournament in seven years as a pro, beat Steve Steve Davis in 1986. He was 150 to 1 outsider, and uh yeah, never got anywhere near it again after that win. No, he went he went to the final the year after.

SPEAKER_02 16:56

Uh oh, sorry, that's what I said No, no, no, he went to the final the year after, lost to Steve Davis, Steve Davis gets his revenge, and then that were him, that were him done. It's just like one of those weird a bit like Lester winning.

SPEAKER_03 17:09

I can't picture him.

SPEAKER_02 17:10

Just we like I say, it's a little bit like Lester winning the league and they nearly went down the year after. It's just one of those weird things where everything's just going your way. It must have been an incredible experience. Um Cliff Thorburn, we've already mentioned him, first overseas winner in 1980, you know, a bit like the I was saying um you didn't really get that many people from overseas played in the early championships. Um Cliff Thorburn. Um I'm not trying to catch you out by the way, but just pub quiz. Do you know where he was from? Uh I'm gonna say Australia. No, Canada. Correct.

SPEAKER_03 17:42

Yeah, sorry, I did know that. Oh, bloody hell, go on, yeah. Uh next one we've got, and again, we're still not into the rankings yet, these are just the mentions. So Stephen Henry, uh some people might might have this actually in their top ten. Just outside for us, Stephen Henry in 1990 was the youngest ever world champion.

SPEAKER_02 17:59

Yeah, brilliant. And I'll we'll come to Steve Der uh Steve Davy. Steven.

SPEAKER_03 18:02

He's gonna get another mention, don't you worry.

SPEAKER_02 18:04

Yeah, and obviously last year's champion, the Asian champion in the Zhao Xing Tong. Zhao Xintong, the first ever Asian champion in 2025. Didn't make the top ten. Maybe if we did this 20 years later, that might have made the top 10, but it's a bit too recent, in it, really, William.

Number 10 Beer-Powered Snooker

SPEAKER_03 18:20

Yeah, it's kind of reverse recency bias, isn't it? Like it's yeah, it's still quite fresh in the memory. It doesn't feel that iconic. I mean, don't get me wrong, it was it was a huge moment, but yeah, it it doesn't it doesn't push anything out of the top ten for me.

SPEAKER_02 18:33

So let's get into the top 10. Uh I don't know if anyone ever ever done that. Um how'd you pronounce this second name, Lynn? We've been sort of um and R in about this.

SPEAKER_03 18:44

Yeah, I mean I I think it's Bill Werben Wurbenock, Werbeneak.

SPEAKER_02 18:48

Bill Werbeneuk, sorry, yeah, we're not the greatest at pronouncing things, but this is not really a moment, it's his beer-powered breaks, but we had to bring this up, and this is fantastic. He famously drank at least six pints before a match on one per frame. He said for medical reasons to stop the shakes. I love this. Apparently, outdrank Eddie Sinclair. What a name, Eddie Eddie Sinclair, yeah. He's such like a Phoenix Knight club man, isn't it? Like Eddie Sinclair.

SPEAKER_03 19:12

I mean, I wonder whether Peter K kind of had that in mind with Jerry Sinclair, yeah. I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 19:16

Well Peter K on uh that Peter K. No, so we were on Phoenix Nights, they had the Tony Knoll suite, aren't they? Yeah, Thomas Sistina player. But anyway, uh we had the drinking Bill and Eddie Sinclair on a drinking um competition. Apparently they had 40 pints each. Uh Eddie were finished and Bill had the four this is this is wrong. I I saw somebody say Bill had the 41st part, and then said, Right, what bar are we going to next? I can't be that can't be true. Yeah. Uh he claimed his lager against his income tax because he wasn't allowed to take uh the beater blocker that he was on because it was banned in this country. Um so he drank like just shiploads of beer to steady him. He got up at 6 a.m. when he had a morning session, just so he could have enough beer to be able to play. I I mean is it it feels like a myth this, but so many people have said it's true that it I think it has to be true.

SPEAKER_03 20:07

Yeah, I I don't know, 40 pints, 41 pints. I don't know if that's true. Yeah, maybe not 41 pints. I don't know. I mean it depends over what time period. Um yeah, but I I'm kind of yeah, I I believe. I I certainly think as well, by the way, when you play pool or darts, a coup a couple of pints just just steadies your nerves, doesn't it? I think you do play, but then he very quickly starts to play much worse, don't you?

SPEAKER_02 20:30

Well well let me just tell you this one then. So Willie Thorne once said that he played against Bill and Bill drank 10 pints before the match and then drank a pint of frame. By the end of the match, Willie was stone called sober, and Bill had drank 29 pints and he'd beat Willie 10-9.

SPEAKER_03 20:44

And that's you know, if he drinks 29 pints! He drinks a pint of frame, and that's Willie Thorne kind of telling that anecdote. So all of a sudden the 40, 41 pints maybe is plausible.

Ebden’s Slow-Motion Mind Games

SPEAKER_02 20:56

I love that Willie Thorne just like and he beat me. Brilliant, absolutely fantastic. So our number 10 is basically just this guy getting leathered at a crucible.

SPEAKER_03 21:07

Yeah, yeah. Um I mean it's it's it's pretty I don't remember that, but it's it's too good a moment. It's not even a moment, it's too good, it's too good a kind of story to not include, I suppose. Um I mean a fr a really frustrating one is Peter Ebden's slowest break in history. So Sullivan was brilliant this in disbelief as a 12-point visit takes five minutes. 12 point visit to the table, five minutes. I mean the the minimum shots, so if if that's red yellow, the minimum shots that can be is what three, six. So the minimum that's eight shots, it took five minutes. That is absolutely outrageous, isn't it?

SPEAKER_02 21:49

We said it, we said it on a previous uh episode, uh sports stars who uh went into pop music, and he's got a couple of songs out, Peter Ebden, and they're all ballads, and someone put he even sings slow. I love him doing everything really slow, like just getting out of his chair really slow.

SPEAKER_03 22:05

I mean it's funny because obviously it turned a lot of the public because everybody loved Ronnie at the time. Ronnie was known for sort of the well, Rocket Ronnie playing really quick. Snooker again, that might get another mention later on at some point. Spoiler alerts. Um but yeah, it it was so frustrating to watch. And then I think oh Sullivan kind of called him out. I don't know if it was on this particular occasion, but he's called him out a couple of times about the way that he plays, but that's that's just his style of play. And there were other like Terry Griffiths before him was a very slow snooker player. Um this would be completely different. I mean, this is I mean, yeah, that is another level, isn't it? That's just not slow. That that's I mean, is is it actual a sort of game game matter?

SPEAKER_02 22:48

I think it's brilliant. I mean, listen, uh Peter Epden himself said that um let's get he says that when I'm under pressure, that's how I cope. I didn't do it deliberately. I'd like to think he did do it deliberately because I think it's so much cleverer if he did, isn't it? To be so brave to spend that long making a break at 12. Ronnie Sullivan said he did a 147 in five minutes and eight seconds, and he it same time as he made it he got a break at twelve. Absolutely like it's just I think it's I it's brilliant entertainment there. So I imagine at the time I can't I we're watching Snooker at this point, but I can't remember watching this game. I imagine at the time it if you were there, it was so infuriating. But when you watch it back, it's like a pe it's like drama, it's like how far can this man take it?

SPEAKER_03 23:39

And you found a an incredible quote. I don't know if you want to read that out.

SPEAKER_02 23:43

Oh, yeah, a comment on Facebook. Someone put um when I was looking at this, he said, some say that his break that the break took so long to compile that when he struck the crew cue ball for the first time, he had a full head of head of hair with a ponytail.

SPEAKER_03 23:55

Because yeah, he did in his in his sort of younger days, he had the ponytail and he was obviously bold in this in this frame.

SPEAKER_02 24:01

But yeah, I can I can see why people wouldn't have this as a moment, but for me it is a moment because he g he goes viral every now and then, just Ronnie's reactions. Ronnie shaved his head, and someone someone said he shaved his head and it had grown by by the time he ended that that frame.

SPEAKER_03 24:14

Uh, but yeah, so Ronnie's just it can't be like, I mean, I wonder if anyone's done that, a side-by-side comparison of the 147 and that particular break. That'd be really good if anyone does that. Um and and yeah, again, I think it's worth mentioning on each one of these. So I I either watched it live or I watched the highlights, but I certainly watched this.

SPEAKER_02 24:34

Oh, I have so I I I I do remember it happening. I don't think I watched it live, but I remember it being like fairly big news at the time. I remember it like being all over the sports pages and stuff like that. It was just a really incredible moment. And I I I know we we we differ on this. I've got a lot of time for Peter Ebden, just but some of the balls to do that, I think, is just incredible.

SPEAKER_03 24:54

I don't like it. I think it's I think it's anti anti-sport. It's just trying to kill the game, I think.

SPEAKER_02 25:00

But but you're a hypocrite because we once played pro-evolution soccer at a tournament and we were way out of his depth, weren't we, playing against some top players. And we decided just to pack the remember they pack the defence. We went Chelsea, didn't we? Mourinho Chelsea. We said we'll play for we'll play for set pieces and corners. We actually won it, we won every game.

SPEAKER_03 25:18

So many 1-0s, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 25:20

Because the other people were getting so frustrated with it, because we were just literally kicking it out of play, weren't we, to waste time and stuff. And they've been, what are you doing? Like we I remember Brendan Armageddon furious about it, but you know, the Peter Epden style. Number eight.

Modern Finals And Surprise Winners

SPEAKER_03 25:33

I know what you mean. Like, yeah, it needs needs must if you've got to do that. But I didn't like it as a spectator, but if yeah, I I get it as a as a player, yeah. Sorry, good number eight.

SPEAKER_02 25:41

Number eight. You this were your pick, actually. Jud uh Judd Trump versus John Higgins in 2011. 2011 final. I watched this back because when you put it in the list first, I thought because we've all we've come we've come together to an agreement for this, and I didn't have this in my top 10. It is a great match. I've not watched it all, but I've gone through obviously the highlights. Over six million people watched the conclusion of this, which is the biggest crucible audience in years. Um, and it was the first time that many casual viewers, myself included, had actually seen Trump and he instantly be uh became a star, even though he lost this game.

SPEAKER_03 26:10

Yeah, we'd seen this this young guy, Jud Trump, that everybody was talking about, next big thing, and yeah, he really announced himself to the to the world in this tournament.

SPEAKER_02 26:18

It's just uh the the standard uh I mean, probably sort of repeat John Higgins, I'm not sure if that's right, but it Well Higgins had just returned from a suspension because of that sting operation. Can you remember that? Yeah, uh where he said he uh it basically implied that he was willing to do uh throw frames for money. Um Higgins said he played along with the undercover reporters because he thought they were the Russian mafia. Uh I don't know how I feel about this. Yeah, yeah, he got banned for it. Yeah, I don't know enough about it, but he got banned for it, and I remember it being a big scandal at the time, and then he came back and obviously won the I think it was sixty.

SPEAKER_03 26:54

I really like John Higgins. Um people used to say I looked a little bit like a young John Higgins. Uh when I was sort of see it, yeah. I like to think not so much anymore. I think time has treated me better than him. Um yeah, and he's uh and he's older than me, I suppose.

SPEAKER_02 27:10

So well, yeah, he's getting on a bit now. But yeah, I mean it's a great game. Like I say, you I I watch this back and I I can see and I think it will even though it's a little bit.

SPEAKER_03 27:17

So the reason this sorry, go on.

SPEAKER_02 27:18

Sorry, yeah, no, no, carry on, go on.

SPEAKER_03 27:20

No, I was gonna say the reason this is in there is because I I'm guessing I watched an awful lot of this tournament, and sometimes like these games don't deliver, they're not kind of what you want them to be. But I just remember loving this, like the standard really high. That it kind of peaked. I I sort of dipped out of it for a little bit after this. I don't know if it's because the kids were young and stuff, and I've kind of refounded my love for it, but this was when I would have been watching as much as I could at this time, and uh yeah, absolutely brilliant. Uh two of my favourite players in a final, and yeah, it delivered. Yeah, brilliant. Next one we've got a bit of a slightly divisive figure, I think, but Sean Murphy winning the tournament in 2005. Yeah, so he had to qualify for the tournament, and he was the only third person to win the title after Higgins and Terry Griffiths were solving quite a lot earlier than this. He was number 48 in the world at the time. Uh, and that actually makes him the lowest ranked player to ever win the title, which surprising me because Joe Johnson Yeah, but maybe there weren't as many ranked players.

SPEAKER_02 28:25

Yeah, maybe so, yeah. Maybe not rank.

SPEAKER_03 28:27

Yeah, uh, it was 22 years and 265 days old, and he became the second youngest winner behind the previously mentioned Stephen Henry. That that is shocking to me.

SPEAKER_02 28:37

Not that he looked old or anything, but I didn't realise he was that young when he did this.

SPEAKER_03 28:43

Yeah, I mean, I I don't know what it is about Sean Murphy. I I quite like him. I think he's quite blunt, he speaks his mind. I quite like him in the commentary box. They do uh particulate the crucible, but they grab the players and they say tell us your top three players, your top five ever breaks, and all this. And I I kind of really like his take on it. So I I like Sean Murphy, but there are people who don't. On a journey to to win the title, he beat Chris Small, know the name, I can't I don't remember them. John Higgins, Steve Davis, Peter Ebden, and Matthew Stevens, which is uh you know that's a great run to beat all those on the way. Uh not just his first world title, but first ever ranking event victory. Um and yeah, kind of in the press at the time with his£250,000 prize money purchased a house and a Mercedes Benz.

SPEAKER_02 29:31

Why wouldn't you? Why wouldn't you? You wouldn't probably want to get a house in a Mercedes. Well you wouldn't want you for£250,000 now. Get a one-bedroom flat with that sort of money nowadays, wouldn't you?

SPEAKER_03 29:41

Yeah, no. I don't know. Yeah. I'm trying to think, would you actually? You'd probably I'm I'm guessing the house and the Mercedes you bought then were very different to the house and the Mercedes you'd have to buy now. It might still be possible, but I think he's talking top-end material. Yeah, and you won't get that now. And this was the last time, so the Embassy World Snooker Championship, so it's last time sponsored by a cigarette company.

SPEAKER_02 30:05

And I don't know about you, but in the same way I still call it the Carlin Premiership. Um is it Carl? It's not Carlin anymore, is it? I I still see it, I still think of it as the Embassy World Championship.

SPEAKER_03 30:14

Yeah, I know what you mean. There was a time when I probably would have referred to it as that. I think I think that's now finally kind of 20 years later, it's starting to fade. I don't necessarily call it that anymore. But yeah, it certainly for a long time was the embassy world snooker championship.

SPEAKER_02 30:28

What do you call the League Cup?

SPEAKER_03 30:30

Uh the Carabao.

SPEAKER_02 30:32

That is what it is, isn't it? Because I think I'd still I get I still I think I might still call it the the Carlin Cup or even the Worthington's. I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 30:40

Uh Carlin, I might kind of say one that never gets changes.

Ronnie’s Left-Handed Controversy

SPEAKER_02 30:45

Everyone knows um Johnson's paint tropher, even if they've sponsored it for about 25 years. Uh number six, Roddy O'Sullivan's left-handed frame in 1996. Um, so this is the first round match against Canadian player. Um go on, you have to pronounce it for me. I'm a terrible pronunciation.

SPEAKER_03 31:00

Elaine, well, Alan, but Alain Robbido.

SPEAKER_02 31:03

Robbie Doo, Robbie Doo. 20-year-old also loving, uh, naturally right-handed, but he began playing left-handed uh while he were already leading 8-2 comfortably. So he said he felt bored and he wanted to enjoy the game and uh give his right hand a rest, which we all we've all know that feeling, don't we? Um yeah the Canadian.

SPEAKER_03 31:21

Absolute rankers, absolute rankers.

SPEAKER_02 31:23

Absolute rankers, yeah. Uh the yeah, the Canadian felt this was deeply disrespectful. Uh showboat him, um, and he lost 10-3, and he refused to shake his hand. And following the match, also of them was called to a disciplinary hearing by the governing body on the accusations that he played left hand to humiliate his opponent. This is brilliant, this. And to prove to prove he wasn't just mocking mocking him. Yeah. Oh, Sullivan offered to, and he ended up he did do, he played a match left-handed against former world champion Rex Williams in front of officials to demonstrate how good he was with his left hand, and he won three straight games, and the disciplinary was immediately dropped. And then years later, to be fair, Robbie Doo uh apologised to all Sullivan uh after realising because obviously, in fairness to him, this guy's only 20 years old at this point. Um he's probably thinking he was this piss taker, but yeah, unbelievable.

SPEAKER_03 32:11

Yeah, and and I think I think when he started working with I want to see Terry Griffiths, but I might might be wrong on that. He got a new coach who's an ex-player who who really encouraged him to lean into that and say, you know, that this is an asset, this is not something to kind of it's not a novelty act. You're actually a you know world-class player with your left hand if if the shot's if the shot's on with your left hand, take it with your left hand. I mean, I didn't like it at the time. I I probably just because I love Doe Sullivan coming through. I I kind of do get that why it was perceived as a bit of a piss take, but I I don't know, I I kind of think in in boxing people switch South Pole stance, and it's not that that's not a mockery, that's just done to to throw them off if they're not expecting it. I get it, it does feel a bit exhibition, doesn't it?

SPEAKER_02 32:59

Knowing Ronnie now, as we do, obviously we've sort of not been on the scene too long for this 2020. Do you think it was a piss take?

SPEAKER_03 33:08

No, I I do think it is exactly what he said it is. I I think he's so naturally talented, he obviously has kind of you know issues with sort of focus and staying switched on and enjoying the game, and I think it was just for him something to spice it up. Like I'll I'll switch and I'll but but then I as I think that I do think like there's a point where when does it become piss taking then? Because like I might put a blindfold on or like uh Jason Cundra put like one of the face masks on of uh what's his face mask on?

SPEAKER_02 33:38

Has anybody seen as he's doing it like around the sable? Yeah, you took one hell of a beat, it goes through all the Canadians, like you know what I mean goes through the Alaska team brilliant.

SPEAKER_03 33:51

Yeah, I I I don't know. I I've I get it, I understand the accusation of disrespect, but I I personally didn't mind it. I was willing to let it go. I did certainly did not condemn it. The law was not broken. The the the laws of Snooker were called in accordance with common law, and then so I take charge anyway.

SPEAKER_02 34:09

We've got to number five.

First Crucible 147 And Late Nights

SPEAKER_03 34:11

So this is Cliff Thorne. I wonder if there's ever been a podcast that's mentioned Cliff Thorburn more times than this. It's such a good name as well, Cliff Thorburn. Uh Cliff Thorburn's first so the first ever World Championships uh 147 and it was 1983. It was made in the match against Terry Griffiths. Um the other table stopped to watch. I think they still do now, but they do it kind of right at the end, I think. I I I don't I don't think they would have watched quite as much of it as this one. Yeah, um I mean it's I'm guessing it's quite iconic for snooker fans. I've I've certainly seen it a few times. Um as he as he goes to take the final black, the commentator at the time uh for the BBC, Jack Con Con M, Con Aim, yeah, uh simply says, Good luck, mate.

SPEAKER_02 34:56

It's brilliant how he says it, he goes, Good luck, mate. It's the most sincere good luck, mate.

SPEAKER_03 35:00

Yeah, he genuinely wants him. I mean, everybody was willing it on, weren't they? Even probably Terry Griffiths.

SPEAKER_04 35:05

I think Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 35:07

You know, we'll we'll perhaps move on to the debate about what's what's the best thing in sport, but we'll finish the points on this. So uh Terry Griffiths hugged him after it, and also uh another mention for Bill W Werbenook, Wer Werbenok, who peeped around and watched him. Um interesting, so I I didn't know this and didn't remember this until we started looking into the the facts behind it. So actually the the first red of the break was a fluke, it wasn't an intentional. Yeah, it was not yeah.

SPEAKER_02 35:34

I I watched that I watched the whole frame and yeah, that first red, it's but I mean it's brilliant with stuff like that because it's like like I say to take it back to football or something, it's like when an FA if a a non-league team gets far in the FA Cup often just starts from like a game that you're not even thinking about from the early, early rounds where you get a last minute winner and you think, oh whatever.

SPEAKER_03 35:54

Yeah. Yeah, so obviously really impressive. It was a second round match and uh it didn't finish until 3 51am. Past your bedtime. Uh you certainly would be these days, yeah, but uh back in the day, mate, I'd have been I'd probably be in bed. Yeah. You would have been you wouldn't have been born.

SPEAKER_02 36:12

Well you would have been born, you'd have been one. No, you wouldn't have even been one, you'd have been none.

SPEAKER_03 36:18

No, I would have been.

SPEAKER_02 36:20

1983. Yeah, you'd have been none years old. No, I was no years old, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 36:23

I might have been awake, who knows? Um didn't know get a birth. Might have even been watching it. Can you see at that stage? Uh anyway. I anyway. Um up to date, I assume this is true because I don't know if any have happened kind of. I looked into this a lot. Maximum breaks.

Jimmy White’s Cruellest Miss

SPEAKER_02 36:40

Yeah, I've got three or four different sources for that. So yeah, um, different versions. Different versions of this. Number four, Liam, and this we had this at number two at first, and I can see why. It's good though. Jimmy White 1994 final, the heartbreak of six finals he'd been in, six losses, four of the four of them, including this one, Stephen Hendry, and that missed black against Stephen Hendry. The reason I didn't want this a bit higher, and we sort of debated about is because it wasn't if it were a black ball that he'd missed to win it, I think that'd have put it on a different pedestal. But it's still really dramatic because it's an easy pot for him, and he'd lost five finals in a row.

SPEAKER_03 37:21

Yeah, it's a weird one, this. So it like in hindsight, I'm I'm good at Jimmy White didn't win this game because obviously Stephen Henry I think he's got seven. Um so you kind of could have thought, well, take this one away from him and give that one to Jimmy. But at the time, I remember seeing this young kid come through, Stephen Henry, um and just kind of really willing him on to win it. And I remember sort of like my my mates, mum and dad saying, Oh no, come on, you've got to get behind Jimmy. And then I remember like then the next day, what year is this, 1994, so we were 11, 12. I remember mum and dad being genuinely like guttered, like like really like down about it almost. And yeah, yeah, it's only as I've kind of got older. Although, what I will say, to be fair to Jimmy White, is I've seen him a few times say he's kind of sick of people feeling sorry for him. Like he said, Snooker's given me a great career, I've had a fantastic life, wouldn't change it. Yeah, yeah. Unfortunately, I never got that one over the line, but I've had plenty of success in the game. And I think it's the fans who feel it. Well, I probably not, that's probably nonsense. He probably feels it more than anyone, but the fans certainly certainly want to bring it up more than he does.

SPEAKER_02 38:30

Oh, well, to be fair, Hendry at the end of this game looks more devastated than Jimmy White. That's weird though, innit? Yeah, true. Hendry's like because obviously all all the crowd are behind Jimmy White. And I'm looking at the comments on YouTube and so and people saying they felt sorry for Stephen Hendry because they're but it's understandable, I'm sure he understood that. Why? Because he were obviously this winning machine, um, Stephen Hendry, and you want to see the guy who's never won it before win. It's like any sport, isn't it? Like the way that happens. So I I get it, but I mean and and I'd love to see Jimmy White win this because he was sporting the old bold mullet look, isn't it, in this five year old?

SPEAKER_03 39:04

Yeah, it was the business on the top, um, pleasure at the bike, wasn't it? It was the sort of like short, short bold top, and then a bit of a mullet, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 39:12

And not enough sportsmen win with that look, to my figure. What I'd noticed in this one, and it gets a lot of stick now, um, Snooker, for the coffin in the audience. I saw someone today to tweet about oh god, it's just coughing all the time, can't deal with it. The coffin in this game is sponsored by Embassy still at this point. Absolutely, it's it's like it's like Major Charles was in Imagine if Major Charles were there or like what's his name, Techie Newt, whatever he was called, and he were like trying to put oh, he had like money on Stephen Endron every time he and as you can see here when he goes for the block.

SPEAKER_03 39:45

Because we've shared something on it today that people should check it out. But it's almost like uh Mike Parry's took a spoon of cinnamon in the background, isn't it?

SPEAKER_01 39:52

Oh water! Yeah, it is, it's so much coffee on it, but yeah, the scores are locked at 17-0.

SPEAKER_02 39:58

What if people don't know what we're talking about here? White has a really great scoring opportunity in the final frame, but he misses a black ball and and White says that it was just a rush of the blood to the head and he didn't compose himself um on the black and it and it cost him dearly. Uh is he the best player to ever win a win not win a world title? That's what people say.

SPEAKER_03 40:17

Uh yeah, possibly. Um I mean whether there's kind of any up-and-coming youngsters who who will go on to win it, it's probably sort of the the one who's finished his career. I mean, I think he still does play technically, but I think that he's not gonna win.

SPEAKER_02 40:35

Leave it, leave it, leave it, because I've got a great idea for a future episode. Sporting losers, the best sporting losers. Yeah, I mean it's a strong word, isn't it?

SPEAKER_03 40:43

Because he because he's not a loser. He's not a loser. He's not a loser, Marge. Yeah. I mean he's certainly better than you, and he's you know, he's likely better than me, but you know, he's a I don't know if you can call him a loser.

SPEAKER_02 40:55

Well, you've seen him do a banana shot, aren't you?

SPEAKER_03 40:58

Yeah, that's I mean, that's something I I consider having. I don't know if it's big enough. They used to do the top well, they still do, the top ten shots of the tournament they do towards the end of it. And yeah, there's a there's a but search the Jimmy White banana shot that he does, and it's absolutely incredible the amount of Q power, the the Q action that it generates. The Q action.

SPEAKER_02 41:16

Yeah, I mean I think Trump did it, didn't he, in a later game as well.

SPEAKER_03 41:19

Yeah, that's right, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 41:20

Yeah, um but yeah, there's something really special about failure. Bob Dylan once said, not on that about Snooker, uh, there's no success like failure, and failure's no success at all. And I like that because I think it's people like I don't know if it's just a British thing. I don't know if you get this in uh in other countries, but like a loser, don't I? You're like Eddie the Eagle, don't they? The Brits. Do you know what I mean? Like the the the glorious loser who never wins, and obviously the English football team um carry on from that as well. You wanted to say something, didn't you, about a tournament where he changed his name, Liam?

Alex Higgins Glory And Chaos

SPEAKER_03 41:50

Yeah, I thought it was in the world championship, so it was on my initial draft, but it wasn't actually. I think it was the Masters, but it there was a tournament where I think just for a match, again, I'd remember it as the whole tournament. He was sponsored by HP Source and he changed his name to Jimmy Brown.

SPEAKER_02 42:06

That's absolutely fantastic. Jimmy Brown.

SPEAKER_03 42:09

And it was like I remember it on the scoreboard, it was Jimmy Brown. It it changed his name to Jimmy Brown.

SPEAKER_02 42:15

Ridiculous. I remember my first memory of Jimmy White, probably before this game, I would have thought, was uh Jimmy White's World Wind Snooker. Do you remember? I think I think I had the C but even C64 or me, brilliant, proper good game. Oh, proper good game. So at least he had that, even though he lost this.

SPEAKER_03 42:33

Right, number three, Liam. Number three, Alex Higgins. Um the hurricane 1982, emotional win.

SPEAKER_02 42:40

So too young for us to remember, but certainly seen the I've seen the most I think it's one of the most iconic sporting photos ever.

SPEAKER_03 42:50

Yeah, so still still young and fresh faced at the time. Um gets his wife and young kid down, and he's he's emotional after the tournament. Um, yeah, it's it's a really famous picture. And Higgins was a this is black when you could drink and you could smoke, and and he was a it was a character. Um kind of loved by everyone, but but actually kind of I wouldn't say the dark side because I don't think that's fair, but but but we might as well get on to wasn't loved by all the players necessarily on the tournament. Um what so obviously one of the most exciting players ever uh Sullivan said he'd pop balls nobody else would ever take on, uh, but you just knew he was gonna pot them. Rearan got back to 15 all in the final, but it won the last three frames to win at 18 15. Uh the final set was the highest break ever to win a world championship. I don't know. Yeah, I didn't know that.

SPEAKER_02 43:47

Yeah, so that's the highest. So in the final frame, that's the highest break ever in a final frame.

SPEAKER_03 43:52

Is that still to this day? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Really surprising. Um Raiden lights up a cigarette, but watch the final frame. It's brilliant. It's so hard. It might be, by the way. It might be Ray Reardon, actually, who told or Sullivan to lean into the left-handedness.

SPEAKER_02 44:05

It might be a cool customer, Ray Reardon. He's like a proper old school, imagine him on indoor league. Do you know what I mean? Like it gets you just likes the cig ups. Brilliant. Bring it back. Bring back cigarettes indoors. So I think that's two episodes in a row that I've said that.

SPEAKER_03 44:24

It came ten years after his first world championship title in 1972. But obviously the difference this time was the that image at the final of uh him with his baby in particular. 10.8 million viewers watched this, which is BBC 2. Incredible, really.

unknown 44:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 44:41

The day after his win, he appeared at a disciplinary meeting, uh, for instance, that occurred in the tournament. I mean, this kind of sums him up, doesn't it? Like genius on the table, including urinating on a flower display at the Crucible. He was fined at£1,000.

SPEAKER_02 44:56

He actually, because of the points he lost um on the during the disciplinary, he's to lose points obviously on that. He went from number one to number two in the in the rankings, even though he was the world champion. What for the flower incident? Yeah, so he went from number one to number two for pissing on some flowers basically, and Ray Readham got to number one again.

SPEAKER_03 45:15

Wow. I didn't know that. Um so he teamed up. This is just about Higgins now, not this particular moment. This is brilliant to represent Northern Ireland with Dennis Taylor. Um yeah, he lost his temper with him and said, The next time you go back home, I'm gonna have your shot. And he said afterwards, he doesn't deserve to wear this badge, which showed the red hand of Ulster, the red hand of Ulster. If he wants to get into fisticuffs, I've given him my hotel room number.

The Black Ball Final Explained

SPEAKER_02 45:43

These are teammates, these are teammates, and he's saying he doesn't deserve to wear the badge which shows the red hand of Ulster. What a brilliant turn of phrase, anyway, that is. But yeah, he uh apparently later down the line, Dennis Taylor forgive him. Um I imagine Dennis Taylor was just like, What are you talking about? I can't imagine put your fucking glasses on the right way. Do you know what I mean? Well, that leads us nicely into number two. Um, it's perfect caveat yeah. 1985. Yeah, uh uh Dennis Taylor, Steve Davis. In my opinion, and we've had an argument about this, and I've got some more snooker experts involved. This should have been number one, but you wanted the other one that is number one, and I got outvoted, I think, by people such as the executioner, as he's calling himself on the snooker table. Um, so this is our number two. Uh, the most watched snooker moment ever. Went past midnight.

SPEAKER_03 46:34

I kind of agree, by the way. In terms of duration of the whole tournament, is this a bigger moment? Maybe maybe so, but for me, I'm I'm giving you my personal opinion of why I think this is topped by something else. But this is incredible in terms of drama, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 46:50

You know more about snooker than me as well, so I'm happy to concede on that. This is the final frame, and it gets the final black, which is incredible drama. I think this is the best sporting final, I think, for drama ever. And I really do mean that. I can't think of anything else that comes close to this for drama.

SPEAKER_03 47:06

But well, if you think like say in a World Cup, obviously it comes down to one goal. As all the penalties, penalties is drama, but but it could come down to one still one penalty goal, we'll decide it. And let's say during the tournament, including penalties, I don't know, there's 200 goals. There's thousands of balls potted in this tournament, and it comes down to the last ball that can be potted. There's only one ball left now. So so obviously, if you have to get to 18 first, you can win 18-3, and in theory, there could have been a lot more snooker. This this is the last it couldn't have gone on any longer this match. It got to the last possible ball they could pot. Yeah, it's incredible.

SPEAKER_02 47:45

Yeah, I also think in penalty shootouts, for instance, that uh it's always unless you're involved in it, it's always a bit deflating when the team wins on pens because the it's a completely different game to what they've just been playing. This is the game of that they've been playing, you know, for for all these many.

SPEAKER_03 48:01

Yeah, and I suppose like in a penalty shootout, it can come down to the the left back who doesn't take penalties having to take one and you can't feel for someone. This is what they do, this this is their this is their thing, and they both have to plot the black ball to win. Incredible drama.

SPEAKER_02 48:15

Incredible, and ends it ends at half twelve uh basically on uh Sunday night, at this time on a Sunday morning, apparently loads of people were late for work the day after because it holds the highest record ever of BBT T BBT2 viewership um and the highest ever post-midnight audience in the UK. 18 and a half million people watch this, Liam. That is fascinating to me. BBT2, I I'd still say it's a fairly I won't say it's a niche sports new, but it's not the people's game in the sense that football or anything like that. That is an incredible, and I'd like to think I'd be one of the people staying out for it. Steve Davis had race into a 7-0 lead and then an 8-0 lead. Uh Taylor fought back to 9-7 overnight and then got it tied to 17-17 before the final frame.

unknown 49:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 49:01

I'm interested. Why why would you phrase race to a seven-nil lead and then an 8-0 lead? Why why would you not just say race to an 8-0 lead? Why or why would you not say race to a one-nil lead and a two-nil lead? Why did you specify 7 and 8?

SPEAKER_02 49:15

I just want people to know 7 and then 8.

SPEAKER_03 49:19

Before he was running 8-0, he was running 7-0.

SPEAKER_02 49:22

Yeah, but anyway, but telephoto back to 9-7. Uh the deciding frame lasted over an hour. Um, both players, uh, this is brilliantness. I've watched this back many times before, but I watched it back for this again, obviously, for this podcast. Davis misses a chat. Davis, I think, in this era, if I'm right, and it's again, it's before our time, but you know, we sort of grew up with all this sort of stuff, and and seeing these, you know, pictures and knowing how good Davis was. He was like a cool customer, weren't he? He wasn't he was just the ultimate professional. Everyone used to call him boring Stephen.

SPEAKER_03 49:51

Yeah, people said he was a robot, he was boring, he wasn't easily rattled, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 49:54

I would agree. And he misses at least one shot here that is incredible for someone of his talent and for someone of his temperament. And he looks around as if I can't believe I've done that. He can't, yeah. Um, Taylor, even when Taylor's going forward now, I think he's gonna miss it. He's gonna miss this because it's a brilliant final for it. Brilliant. Just the blood, just watch the black ball, but if you're not gonna watch anything else.

SPEAKER_03 50:25

Brilliant.

SPEAKER_02 50:26

Um Taylor obviously after he wins has the famous wagging finger, raises his cue above his head in celebration. Uh, did you know his upside down glasses were specifically designed uh by a London optician to allow him to see the ball better when queuing down because uh it looks over atop of normal glasses.

SPEAKER_03 50:44

I can I can see it. I I don't know. Well, you're not having it. I don't know. I've never seen any other player do it before or after.

SPEAKER_02 50:54

It's a good point, actually. Yeah, no one else has had upside. I got it's brilliant when he's sitting there, and obviously Davis is getting up and he's gonna it's just sat there with these mad glasses on. It's mad. Like back to I just love the idea of like an American who maybe didn't know anything about a snooker just coming to this country and saying, Oh, what's this thing that they've all been watching? This is this mad man with glasses on.

SPEAKER_03 51:15

Where did it end? Like, and and Taylor said that the you know the the flashing lights on the glasses were there to help him see the the bulls better in front of him. Yeah, I don't know, I'm I'm not sure. To me, it was kind of this this might be incredibly harsh, this because I like Dennis Taylor, but it but it kind of became like his personality, the the wacky guy. I'm not sure if there was a a statistical advantage.

SPEAKER_02 51:38

Yeah, I don't know enough about I'm not I'm not I I want Clay to know enough about this, but a lot of people said Dennis says the worst ever champion. I don't know if that's true, I don't know if that's false, a bit before my time. He did go out in the first round the year after, the crucible curse, as we've not mentioned. Yeah, it's just come up being broken. Yeah, yeah, the law has been broken. Um but yeah, he lost in the first round the year after. And a lot of people do say he's the worst ever player to win it, but in a way that makes sense.

SPEAKER_03 52:03

I can't I kind of know what they mean by that, but that but then we've talked about 150 to one outsider earlier, so sure surely that's the worst winner ever.

SPEAKER_02 52:10

I'd well I suppose he got to the final the year after, so at least for those couple of years, he was you know he was top of his top of the game or whatever. But well made. But that I think that makes it even better though, that this sort of you know, uh I don't know, like uh I won't say a rank outsider, but I suppose it's yeah, it's it's it's hope, it's hope for everywhere. As we're recording this, we're having a darts tournament, aren't we, on Sunday? It's that day. Sorry. And I yeah, and I can't play darts due to my crippling dyspraxia. I'm just gonna be looking, you know, looking over at Denny's Taylor.

SPEAKER_03 52:38

I'm not gonna wear my glasses back to you know upside anything, but extra large glasses so you can see the board there.

SPEAKER_02 52:43

Yeah, yeah, perhaps uh wear these goggles. Um but yeah, so it an inspiration to us all. Right, we'll go through the top ten, Liam.

SPEAKER_03 52:51

And then you'll just quickly skim back through them all.

SPEAKER_02 52:53

Yeah, you you go through the top ten and then I'll uh yeah, and then you and then you announce the number one.

SPEAKER_03 52:57

Okay, so at number ten it was Bill Wib Wurbinook, Wurbinook, uh basically being an alcoholic, I suppose. Uh that's not what it was stated as. Yeah, uh number nine, Frank Frank, Peter Ebden's slowest break in history. I don't know why I read Frank there. I don't think Frank Ebden um number eight, Judge Trumps, John Higgins. I I think that's that could have been higher for me. I don't know, just really enjoyed that one. 2005, Sean Murphy uh winning the tournament. Number six, Ronel Sullivan playing left-handed against Elaine Robidou. Number five, the first ever 147 from Cliff Thorburn. Number four, Jimmy White's heartbreak. Number three, Alex Higgins really emotional win in 1982. Number two, Dennis Taylor, Steve Davis, the Black Bull final.

Ronnie’s Five-Minute 147 Debate

SPEAKER_01 53:44

And number one Can you tell what it is yet? Can you tell what it is yet? Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 53:48

So number one.

SPEAKER_01 53:49

He doesn't talk like that, does he, Rolf? Can you tell what it is yet?

SPEAKER_03 53:53

Yeah, I'm sure everybody's screaming at their device the same thing. And and as you're doing that, smash your head into the like button, please. Um, give us a like. Absolutely. And we're all saying the same moment. It's Peter Ebden's missed brown ball to the middle pocket. No, I'm only joking. So it's it's kind of the obvious one. It's Ronnie O'Sullivan's five-minute one four-seven, and it's actually five minute eight seconds, but we we can give him five minutes. Yeah. I mean, to me, this is not just the best crucible moment. I would make an argument this is the best sporting moment ever. In a sense, like sort of Michael Johnson breaking world records, or you're saying ball, or this is this is right up there as an argument for me for the most elite sporting moment ever. And and what I love is I was lucky enough, I was privileged enough in 1997 to be watching Snooker at the time and saw this full frame, and it was just absolutely mind-blowing. So April 21st, so actually, what's that, 19 years tomorrow? Oh no.

SPEAKER_02 54:57

Oh, I uh as we're recording, actually, I didn't realise that. As we're recording this on the 21st of April, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 55:02

No, we're on the 20th today, aren't we?

SPEAKER_02 55:04

No, we're the 21st today.

SPEAKER_03 55:06

Alright, this this calendar's wrong on my laptop. Well, you know, yeah, it is the 21st. So well, that's interesting then. So yeah, so what are we talking? We're talking actually 29 years ago today, are we? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Um, first round match against a player called Mick Price, who uh apologies, I don't remember. Uh he won the match 10-6. Five minutes and eight seconds approximately well again, I like how you've done this. You put your notes. So instead of putting approximately nine seconds per shot, you've put approximately eight point eight seconds per shot.

SPEAKER_02 55:38

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You've got to be you've got to be right in this game. Yeah. Uh Dennis Taylor, as he was watching it, mumbled, I don't believe this. It's brilliant that. I love the commentary because he's sort of I don't believe this. He's like he's genuinely stunned, Dennis Taylor.

SPEAKER_03 55:52

And we we've had this debate before, I'm sure it's quite common, but we we've had it several times with the the Tufty Club guys and and some others as to a darts nine data, holding one in golf, and a snooker one four-seven. I just think because of the number of shots you have to get right for a snooker one four-seven, this this is the pinnacle of you know, it's a hard slog, it's not nine throws of an arrow, it's not one hit of a ball. I know there's an argument sometimes that that one hit has to be perfect, and you can get away with a couple of sort of off shots in a one-four-seven, I suppose, but still you have to be really, really on it for for the duration, which is what would it be? So it's is it 15 reds, 15 colours, 15 black, sorry, and then the six. So am I right in saying is it 36 shots?

SPEAKER_02 56:42

I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 56:43

I think yeah, uh you could have done a Dennis Taylor, I don't believe it.

SPEAKER_02 56:48

I I I don't believe this, I don't believe this. I don't have the fucking.

SPEAKER_03 56:51

But yeah, I mean, absolute pinnacle. I think he got the I think it was at a time when there was a huge sort of payment for doing the 147 because there is a famous moment, I assume you've seen where he declines a 147 because he doesn't think the the prize money is enough, so he he decides not to go for it. But yeah, I uh to me I I I feel genuinely really privileged that I saw this live. It was just just absolute snooker sport iconography. It was amazing, incredible. Do you think it'll never be broken? Uh the 147 will not be broken. No, I don't think so. No, it kind of can't be broken.

SPEAKER_02 57:27

Imagine if Ebden did it, I'd say potting really quick. Like you could do it all along, that'd be amazing.

SPEAKER_03 57:33

I mean it's just going, I'd say, because I think like you know, you look at Usain Bolt, yeah, it will be it will be beat.

SPEAKER_02 57:39

Well, as as Mike Mike Parry said, what did he say? It'd so it'd be one day be broken in one second, the hundred metres. And that's Mike Parry saying it. So that's gonna happen.

SPEAKER_03 57:48

So I'd like I'd like to ask Mike Parry out whether or not it's possible. I I do believe you say Usain Bolt's record is is going to be broken, or certainly could be. Yeah, I I don't think this could ever be broken. I I don't know how you could.

SPEAKER_02 58:02

Er well do it in seven point eight point seven seconds rather than eight point eight is the only way.

SPEAKER_03 58:08

Yeah, but what I mean though is like I I think he's the only player probably ever who could do this at this pace. And I and I think he's over the over the peak as as good as he still is. So you know I suppose it's possible there's a another player comes along who's better than Ronnie O'Sullivan, but I I struggle to see it. I just don't I can't believe it.

SPEAKER_02 58:25

I think I think if that that that is the main reason I think why I'm more than happy to concede this as number one, because I think this is something that I don't I think in every other sport, golf, darts, what I think I I think the records that we've got now in 20 years' time will be broken. I don't think this will be.

SPEAKER_03 58:44

No, no, I agree. Well, and it's like I say, I've I've not played a lot of golf and I've I've come close to a hole in one. I've come close to a world championship.

SPEAKER_02 58:54

No, but I've come close to winning the Masters.

SPEAKER_03 58:57

Landed fairly close to hole in one. Like I think there are there are quite low-level amateur players who do get hole-in-one's in golf. I've thrown, I think I've thrown the first seven darts of a nine darter because I did use play darts quite a lot. So that's a good chunk of it. I I used to play snooker a bit, and I've never I've never got anywhere near this. Like I've never probably potted more than four, maybe five balls in a row on a full-size table.

SPEAKER_02 59:20

I like I like how you're reckoning. It can't be done because I couldn't do it. It can't be done if I couldn't. Yeah, that's just it.

SPEAKER_03 59:29

But I just don't think I think it's possible I could hit a hole in one. I think it's possible I could throw a nine dot. You're right, actually. Yeah, that is how I'm judging it. I don't think I could ever get a one-four-seven. I I just cannot too much to go on.

SPEAKER_02 59:40

There's too much that needs to happen. Everything has to be pretty much perfect. There's a bit in the in the 147 where it's sort of I can't remember what ball it is. And he's sort of and Dennis Taylor's getting a bit worried. He's like, oh, please don't go, where's you know, where's the white ball going? Sort of thing. It's the two ball going. Yeah, it's not actually perfect in in a technical.

SPEAKER_03 59:59

No, yeah, you don't have to be millimeter. No, no, no, no. You have to be very good on every shot.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:03

But this is what I mean. This is what I mean. But the fact that he wasn't perfect means he had to turn it around, which is even more impressive because of how fast he did it.

Listener Top Moments And Closing

SPEAKER_03 1:00:12

Yeah, that's it, isn't it? Yeah. I I I I just think if I'm I'm assuming anybody listening to this will have seen this, but even if you have and you haven't watched it for a while, just go and watch this. It's it's incredible. It's absolutely incredible. And yeah, I'm I'm absolutely confident this is the best moment at the Crucible that I've that I am aware of. You you listen to this, may have your own. Like, like we said, uh Andrew, you you possibly would have gone black bowl final. People at home might have have their own personal ones. I mean, let us know. Let us know your top ten, your top five. Please do. Yeah. Top three, your top top one, whatever you want to tell us. What whatever top ones you want to tell us.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:52

Top one. Right, thank you for that. Proper pro. I know you say enjoy it. Proper, proper enjoyed that. Really enjoyed looking back at the old snooker thing as well. It's the 49th consecutive world snooker championships held in Sheffield at the moment. So renewed the contract, the contract, haven't he? So it's gonna be there. Yeah, the contract has been signed, I think. But not that yeah, Ronnie O'Sullivan didn't want that to happen, did I? Um on a sour note.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:17

Yeah, we're gonna finish by we gave him number one spot, we're gonna do a character assassination now, and I wanted to go to Saudi Arabia. What about it? No, I think he he he did sort of he's got some stuff, some contacts with him, and he did talk about that. But I I think everybody ultimately is glad it stays at the crucible, the home of Henderson's relish.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:35

The home of Henderson's relish and the home of Hall Remembers, Who Remembers. Thank you uh for today. Uh, and everyone for listening again, and we'll see you next time, Leroy Jenkins. Yeah, thanks everyone. Goodbye.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:47

Snooker Lupe Natsaruaya.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:50

Where's the podcast going?

SPEAKER_02 1:01:54

Thank you for listening to Who Remembers. If you want to get in touch with us, you can find us at WhoRememberspod at outlook.com. If you are a right wing fascist, you can find us on Twitter at Who Remembers Pod. Or if you're a wokener, you can find us on Blue Sky at WhoRemembersPod. Once again, thank you for listening, and we'll see you next time for more remembering.