Introduction
No sooner has the ticker tape landed on the Crucible carpet than the riggers, table fitters and television crew from Channel 5 move in to transform the World Championship stage into the annual trip for the World Seniors. This tournament is a nostalgic trip down memory lane, remembering some of the true greats of snooker from yesteryear and showcasing their talents to an audience of today. A few still play on the main tour, Ken Doherty and Jimmy White, but there are also appearances from Tony Drago, Igor Figueiredo, Rodney Goggins, Tony Knowles, Joe Johnson, Darren Morgan, Barry Pinches, Dechwat Poomjaeng, Stuart Watson and James Wattana. Also, look out for Tyson Crinis, Tessa Davidson and Andrew Norman.
A Sprinkle of Nostalgia
Although only for a few days, the World Seniors makes the hangover from the World Championship slightly more bearable and gives snooker fans one last fix of the sport before they pack up their bags for the summer. The brainchild of Jason Francis, the World Seniors, has grown year after year, with Jason finding a space in the calendar to hold the event at the Crucible. It was born out of Alex Higgins’ last appearance here against Cliff Thorburn at a Snooker Legends event in 2010. A gaunt and frail Alex donned his trademark Fedora for the last time but still displayed glimpses of his Hurricane play in the match despite being very ill.
The World Seniors may seem fun, but the players take it seriously. Jimmy White, despite never winning the World Championship, has reigned here, winning four times in 2010, 2019, 2020 and 2023. He always fancies his chances in this tournament and gives the audience some Whirlwind magic. The Crucible may look slightly bare without all the trimmings of the World Championship screen wall and the event’s pomp, but you can’t beat a one-table set-up, and I can testify to this myself, having been to the tournament twice.
This is all helped by Alishah Singh, Rachel Casey, Ray Stubbs, Rob Walker, Neal Foulds and John Parrott front of house, and John Virgo, helped by a few others such as Mike Dunn and Cliff Thorburn in the commentary box. Michaela Tabb and Leo Scullion are the referees. Sponsored by Mr Vegas, this event is already hotting up with a 3-2 win for James Wattana over Rodney Goggins. This was despite Rodney being 2-0 down and forcing a deciding frame. Ken Doherty also beat Tyson Crinis 3-1 after coming back from being 1-0 down. A midweek to the weekend feast of snooker that is bound to produce a few surprises, with Jimmy White keen to retain his title.
