By Elliott West
“Success takes practice”.
O’Shea Scott
Introduction
Learning about young and aspiring talent in snooker always warms my heart. It is the lifeblood of the sport and one that will drive the game forward to a bright future. One of these future stars that has caught my eye is O’Shay Scott. The 15-year-old from Eastleigh looks the part, walks the walk and is pretty nifty around a snooker table, having already added a whole host of prized trophies to his cabinet. The “King of the Long Pot” who has already picked up some key sponsorship has a great ethos. He wants to be a professional snooker player and a future world champion. He first started playing snooker when he was six years old and amazingly he could play on a full-size snooker table. Somehow he managed to combat the challenge of being able to reach. He started off playing at his grandfather’s house which had a snooker table. His grandfather Pepe Zagaroli is very proud of him, describing him as a “special boy”. Pepe gives him a start and O’Shea still thrashes him. In the under-14 qualifiers, he won every game and got a 90-break. He is already sponsored by the same cue tip manufacturer as Mark Selby, Century Cue Tips. A brand ambassador for this, Taom Billiards and Winchester Tailoring. He was also featured on BBC South Today in 2012.
A Buzz in the Air
O’Shea Scott is fascinating to watch. In my research on this gifted teenager, I came across several videos of him on the practice table. Now a Cuestars Under-21 Goldstar player, he glides around the table with ease, can calculate the angles of his advanced shot choices, is great at a double and is clinical when making a century break. In practice, he sets up a line of reds, a method we call in the game “the drill” and floats them one by one into what seem very tight pockets. The pockets surrender under the force of his cue power and create a sound that is beautiful to hear the thud of a ball hitting leather.
A Great Work Ethic
O’Shea has a great work ethic. He practices hard and when he loses, he never beats himself up about it. He just moves on to the match and says he could have done better in the last. Often travelling with his mum to tournaments, Scott recently won £240 in February at the Will Forster’s tournament at Waterlooville Sports Bar. An astounding victory that saw him beat Ronnie Blake 4-1, Harry Wyatt 4-0 (including a break of 84), Oliver Sykes 4-3 from 4-0 down and Bradley Cowdroy 4-3 from 2-0 down.
He has just scooped another trophy at the Cuestars Under-21 Gold Tour where he posed proudly with his sister Ellise Scott for a winner’s photograph. A player who works closely with his coach Tim Dunkley. He reached the last 32 of both the Under-16 and Under-18 European Championships. His favourite player is Ronnie O’Sullivan and he has already been pictured with Shaun Murphy and Mark Williams. Someone who has already spent some time with Joe Perry in the practice room too. The Southern Regional Champion who practices at the Chandler’s Ford Snooker Club, comes from good stock. His uncle was a professional snooker player and he has also inspired his sister to pick up a cue and to start playing.
