By Elliott West
Introduction
Friends are hard to come by in life and when a bond is made, it should be for life. Through snooker, I have been fortunate enough to meet some very familiar faces and got to know them better in a social environment. Perhaps daunting at first, a famous person is at the end of the day, just like me and you and it is only their natural ability that has placed them in the media spotlight.
Snooker has always been my passion and fills me with joy whenever I get to experience it in whatever capacity. A game that never has a clear conclusion and is fraught with human errors. It is like a rollercoaster of human emotions that often causes a surprise and rewards the better player on the day. So to have some of these players in my life is a joy.
Friends in High Places
When I started to write about snooker several years ago, I never dreamt that I would have come on leaps and bounds. I had, several years earlier, responded to an advert on the Riley’s website to write blogs on a trial basis and began in earnest after being accepted. Unfortunately the project ceased due to financial constraints and I was only able to publish two pieces, one on the UK Championship and another, a profile piece on Ray Reardon. Both were very rough around the edges but people started to praise me for my style of writing.
It was about this time that I started talking to players through social media, striking up friendships with Ken Doherty, Joe Johnson and the late Willie Thorne. Such friends have always been very supportive and were never far away when I needed advice. However after this knock back, I decided to put down my virtual pen for a while and it wasn’t until several years ago that I was encouraged to pick it up again.
Setting up my website with the assistance of my girlfriend Natalia, I was buoyed by the positive feedback that I received when I started posting pieces. Friends such as Jason Ferguson began to retweet my posts and this in turn led to a steady increase in my readership. I have been humbled by the glowing reports that I have been given and the string of requests for me to write blogs for people.
You know when you are starting to make an impression when Jimmy White comes out of a hotel lift and extends his hand to shake mine. I have been lucky, having worked for some great websites and being asked to formulate all the promotional pieces for World Seniors at the Crucible. This wouldn’t have been possible if I hadn’t of kept chipping away and maintained the resolve to succeed.
Writing is about getting lucky breaks, no pun intended and requires a lot of networking to increase your profile and readership. Thankfully now people are talking about and my name produces multiple internet searches. That wouldn’t have happened if players like Tony Drago, Darren Morgan, Cliff Thorburn and the referee, Thorsten Mueller hadn’t given their stamp of approval.
I will leave you with a touching story about my late friend, Willie Thorne. WT and myself, spoke for many years on social media without meeting. Then when I went to Sheffield, I sat down next to him at the hotel bar. He turned his head and said “Hello Elliott, nice to see you in person”. That was Willie, selfless and very endearing. Even when he very ill, he asked me to keep his friends updated. I asked him if there was anything specific that he wanted me to say and he just replied, “ do it in your own lovely way”. A remark that still brings a tear to my eye when I recall it.
Summary
Friends are always there when you need them and this is a sentiment that I can strongly concur regarding my writing career. The snooker family is very important and always comes together when needed to, providing support and guidance to all those who require it. Famous people are just normal at the end of the day and once you earn their trust, they become very good friends. I thank all those I know in snooker and hope to meet up again when this pandemic allows us to.
