by elliott west
In 1981, the Crucible was still barren of a 147 and the audience were craving for the day for it to happen. The only sniff of a 147 had come in 1979 when the Canadian Bill Werbeniuk had scored a 142, a treat for snooker fans but the glorious goal that all viewers wanted to see. Several years later Doug Mountjoy was playing Reardon at Sheffield and the chance came again for the former miner from South Wales. Mountjoy a protégée of the great coach Frank Callan was walking on the crest of a wave this year and on his great run to the final he came across the Welsh great; six times World Champion, Ray Reardon. Reardon was hungry for another title but Mountjoy was keen to keep the former miner and policeman at bay. Great friends off the table, the two Celts reverted to snooker warriors on the baize.
The lad from Glamorgan had his chance in this match to achieve the ultimate dream and it is a clip that is regularly viewed still on social media. Doug was one of the Welsh greats and like Reardon is a true hero of mine. They both remind me of my Grandfather, John Reardon who was born and lived in Ebbw Vale. Snooker was a release for these players from the arduous daily life in the Welsh valleys and so this snooker theatre was a perfect place to fight to achieve the 147. Unfortunately Mountjoy couldn’t achieve the 147 but instead produced the second best prize; a 145.
Like Alex Higgins’s latter 1982, 69 break, Doug’s break is a joy to watch and shows a Welsh master class in action. With Reardon smiling and sniggering in his chair and Ted Lowe with his occasional whispering on the commentary, this truly was a fantastic television moment causing the viewer to sit on the edge of their seat and the hairs to stick up on the back of their neck. Doug managed to get his chance early in the frame and so the momentum began. Never losing position until the last red was potted, Doug decided to take the air of caution route and avoid missing the penultimate black. Instead he went for the blue and then went on to clear the table.
To the applause of the audience and a warm hug from Reardon, Mountjoy bathed in this glorious snooker moment and raised his cigarette packet and cue in joy. He may not have achieved a 147 but he had stamped his craft on the Crucible table, setting a record that wouldn’t be broken for another two years when Cliff Thorburn achieved the 147 in 1983 after fluking the first red into the opposite pocket. Sadly Mountjoy was unable to become a Crucible victor in 1981 as he came across the machine that is Steve Davis.
