by elliott west
As the 1970’s ground to a conclusion so the dawn of the 1980’s emerged with a promise of new things to come. In snooker the old snooker guard were moving to the exit door, stage left and a new breed of snooker player came onto the scene. One such player was Steve Davis. Davis a lanky lad from Romford had been the talk of town for a few years. He regularly beat all that dared challenge him in his local club and took a clinical approach to the game, the desire to win. Inspired by his father at an early age he fell in love with snooker when his Dad took him to the club on a Sunday afternoon and watched him play. Davis was the archetypal amateur who had little clue on how to manage his talent and relied in the early days on family support to progress.
However in 1982 Steve was under new management, under the wing of the entrepreneur and businessman Barry Hearn. Hearn had spotted Davis in his local snooker club and saw his immediate potential as a world class player. Remolding his image Barry took Steve from a casual to smart look to dressing him in a suit and accompanying him to matches acting as a mentor and lucky talisman. The odd couple of polar opposites began to work, so Davis was able to accomplish the transition from an amateur to professional player and subsequently won the World Championship in 198
The 1980’s had failed until this point to have ever brought a televised 147 to fruition. John Spencer had managed one in the 1970’s but the camera crew were on strike at the time and his efforts missed the film can and his efforts ended in vain. Oddly enough this cruel blow came back to haunt Spencer in 1982 when he played Steve Davis in the quarter final of the Lada Classic at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in Oldham. Ironically Davis was beaten in the final; 9-8 by Terry Griffiths but on the way to this match Steve showed all his flair and panache on the table, winding Spencer around his bridge hand.
Now dressed in a crisp white shirt, waistcoat and bow tie Davis started his break by potting a red into an acute, middle pocket and so the magic began. Like any 147 it was a joy to watch and shows the true genius of Steve Davis as a player. Davis was accused by some fans of being emotionless and boring but if you showed them this 147 they may change their minds. It is true that Steve is serious when on the table but that’s only because he is in the zone and off the table is a very funny and intelligent man. The clip I below speaks for itself and shows the elegance of this break at a time when 147’s were as rare to be seen as baby pigeons.
