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ronnie the rocket 1000th century

truthteller

Academy Player
Joined
Feb 7, 2018
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431
and he potted the last ball left handed lol
thats the wildest cheering ive ever heard from a snooker crowd....bravo to the snooker genius
 
very nearly stuck a grand on Wilson to beat trump 3//1. can't afford to lose it atm so kept it in my pocket. very good price though.
 
hard to back against trump , but its really tight and could go either way
gilbert is looking good against higgins, higgins not at his best but you cant write off the the wizard of wishall
 
Time for Judd to deliver on his promise and win this year.​
 
not saying he's going to win, but no way should Wilson be 3/1 to beat trump. most centuries of anyone all tournament and looks cool as a cucumber. should be even money in my book. not sure who to want to win now i've not put the bet on !!!

gilbert's raised his game massively from the 1/4 final, although last couple of frames there both of them playing badly. Higgins put on a masterclass against Robertson, so just goes to show how form can vary day to day.
 
Makes me laugh how Virgo predicts almost every single shot wrong.

Higgins took on a plant earlier which Virgo pronounced was "unmissable". Of course he missed it. Very next shot Gilbert lol takes on a pot. Virgo says he'll roll it "dead weight". **** me, he smashes it so hard it jumps off the table !!!!!
 
could be an absolute classic this match *


* or trump could turn it into a landslide. one or the other.
 
It's Virgo's aftertiming that annoys me. I seem to hear him making any predictions, but often notice him being quick to jump in and make out that he knew best all along after something goes wrong.

@Bill did you back your assessment of the prematch price on Wilson? No looking good now (6/1 on the exchanges), but I'd have thought that a handicap bet would still be looking decent. Class aside, experience of the one table format and of playing at the sharp end of big tournaments would have been a factor in the SP.

Anyone who finds the commentary too bad, don't forget that Eurosport is an option. Their commentators aren't as polished as media types, but offer much better analysis and sychophantism that the BBC guys.
 
It's Virgo's aftertiming that annoys me. I seem to hear him making any predictions, but often notice him being quick to jump in and make out that he knew best all along after something goes wrong.

@Bill did you back your assessment of the prematch price on Wilson? No looking good now (6/1 on the exchanges), but I'd have thought that a handicap bet would still be looking decent. Class aside, experience of the one table format and of playing at the sharp end of big tournaments would have been a factor in the SP.

Anyone who finds the commentary too bad, don't forget that Eurosport is an option. Their commentators aren't as polished as media types, but offer much better analysis and sychophantism that the BBC guys.

Regarding your first comment, yes I had noticed that. Very reminiscent in my (unpopular) opinion of Richie Benaud.

Anyway, I did a little ranking thing of the BBC comm team, which is as below in case of interest:

8. John Virgo. Too many mistakes for me. Worst predictor of the next shot. One time last week he changed his mind 9 times about whether or not the blue would "go". Can drone on a bit.
7. Sean Murphy. Obviously been identified as a presenting talent, the guy clearly has a sense of humour and a great self confidence. Good in the studio, but for me doesn't stand out in the comm box. Got the face, but not the voice.
6. Steve Davis. Far more affable than people who remembered his dour demeanour around the table would think. Made one particularly funny contribution during the team quiz, and good at explaining things on the practise table, but otherwise doesn't stand out.
5. Ken Doherty. Can't go wrong with his lively Dublin brogue. Has become a re-assuring snooker companion and advisor.
4. Dennis Taylor. What a charmer ! Talks about the "dreaded double kiss" too much though.
3. John Parrot. JP had his dark moments as a player, but with the pressure off in the comm box, his lively bubbly side flourishes. Usually gets it right.
2. Stephen Hendry. A natural. Informed, professional and mildly amusing. Good voice.
1. Alan McManus. Wow. Well done BBC. The new Ted Lowe. Give me a log fire and an armchair. If anyone cues it sweetly, Alan does.


Possibly over rated Hendry on reflection. Maybe move KD up a place or two.


Edit, don't fancy the handicap bet on Wilson. I think if Trump goes clear Wilson will give up hope and get thrashed. Only way he'll stay close is if he's right in it (not sure this makes sense ???!!!), in which case might as well back him for the win. Still think it could be a terrific match tomorrow.
 
I was meaning if you had taken the handicap from the start, but I follow the logic in what you are saying either way.

By and large, I agree with your ranking too, the BBC are much better off for ditching "he's just gone favorite" Thorne and bringing Alan McManus in. Davis is much better in the studio than in the commentary box, my big problem is that he's a puppet for Barry Hearn, this is patently obvious at times (a bit mike Wayne "there's definately going to be a 9 darter tonight" Mardle in the darts), but I feel like it creeps in to him just saying what he thinks the audience want to hea far too much. He'd be excellent if he was more candid. Maybe Murphy will develop as a commentator, but he's also more suited to the studio at the moment. I'm not sure that he's got a clear idea of the difference between the two in his head at the moment. Think I'd have to slide Taylor down the rankings a bit, he's a bit of a dinosaur, but he's so likeable, he gets away with it.

It goes for many sports, but snooker maybe could benefit from the old fashioned idea of having one broadcasting professional partnered with a recent player "colour commentator".
 
Could be a turning point here. Needs to be for JH. Can't believe how bad he's been playing.

Interesting comments on commentary. Will reply in a different post.

Edit : wow, what a pot !!
 
I was meaning if you had taken the handicap from the start, but I follow the logic in what you are saying either way.

By and large, I agree with your ranking too, the BBC are much better off for ditching "he's just gone favorite" Thorne and bringing Alan McManus in. Davis is much better in the studio than in the commentary box, my big problem is that he's a puppet for Barry Hearn, this is patently obvious at times (a bit mike Wayne "there's definately going to be a 9 darter tonight" Mardle in the darts), but I feel like it creeps in to him just saying what he thinks the audience want to hea far too much. He'd be excellent if he was more candid. Maybe Murphy will develop as a commentator, but he's also more suited to the studio at the moment. I'm not sure that he's got a clear idea of the difference between the two in his head at the moment. Think I'd have to slide Taylor down the rankings a bit, he's a bit of a dinosaur, but he's so likeable, he gets away with it.

It goes for many sports, but snooker maybe could benefit from the old fashioned idea of having one broadcasting professional partnered with a recent player "colour commentator".

I thought WIlson was great value at 3/1 4/1 to beat Trump. I still think he's decent value now at 5/1. The only reason I would have put a really big bet (for me) on though was because I thought he was at least 50/50 to win the match. I did think that at the start and after the 1st session, but not now. Saying that though, I can't see him losing to Higgins or Gilbert based on how they're playing, so still think that 14/1 for the tournament's a great price, so might still stick a bit on him to go all the way in the morning even though I think it's more likely to lose than not.

I can't believe the girth of Higgins btw. Looks like a barrell. I know it's not an athletic sport, but I can't believe that any sportsman can be at their best in that shape.

You make some interesting points on commentators. It's interesting to think what a commentator is. And I suppose it's someone that informs you about what's going on AND keeps you entertained. To me the balance between those 2 varies from sport to sport, and I think that's probably why we see a different mix of commentators from sporting backgrounds and journalistic backgrounds in various different sports. In sports like cricket there are traditionally more from the sports background, whereas in football I'd say that it tends to be less so. Perhaps that's more because football fans are focused more on the game and less on being kept cheerfully entertained. I would have thought that snooker might fall more onto the cricket side of things where it's less fast paced and more need for entertainment. It's funny though to think that where that entertainment side is more of a factor, that the ex sportsmen tend to prevail more. You might think it would be the other way round. I had a think about who are the most famous, iconic, well loved and respected sports commentators. Tbh I thought they would be ex sportsmen. But the names I think of first are :

Bill McLaren
Brian Johnson
John Arlott
David Coleman
John Motson
Ted Lowe

I think I'm right in saying not a top level sporting appearance between them.

Could maybe add Brendan Foster and Steve Cram* (whose commentary of Mo Farah's 2012 gold I think was outstanding), but still the big names seem to come from the journalistic sports lover background, rather than the ex sportsman background.

What does all that tell us about your theory for the snooker comm box ? I don't know tbh ! One thing I would say though is that I think that snooker watches want to be entertained. I think it's not just about what's going on, but having some company that you enjoy, and I think that quite a few of the current crop seem to tick that box one way or another. It's not perfect, but personally I don't think it needs a radical change. I think that McManus has got the balance of providing great insight, whilst being 'nice' to listen to. Maybe he can buck the trend and make it into the list of greats someday !

* and possibly Benaud too, but personally I think he was rubbish. Also peter alliss and dan maskell tbf.
 
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Incredible performance by Trump. If he can keep that up could challenge for GOAT.
 
Some punter won £10k on him at odds of 1000-1 placed when Judd was 8. Won it just in time before Judd turned 30. Nice story.
 

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