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Hannah hits top of English Ladies' rankings at the age of 13

Postby Monique

http://www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk/sport ... ticle.html
Sky's the limit as Hannah hits top of English Ladies' rankings at the age of 13

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TOP OF THE POTS: Teenage snooker ace Hannah Jones.

DERBY schoolgirl Hannah Jones has cemented a place at the top of the English ladies snooker rankings after adding a senior championship win to her trio of junior titles.

The Ecclesbourne School pupil scooped the English Association of Snooker and Billiards senior ladies title, defeating Jan Hughes 5-0 at the World Snooker Academy in Sheffield.

The win means that the talented 13-year-old from Quarndon will be an automatic first choice for international selection for the rest of the year.

And her father, Mark, is delighted with the progress his daughter is making.

"It's amazing," he said.

"She is doing incredibly well and her performances have been tremendous."

Jones is now provisionally ranked seventh in the world for ladies snooker and is hoping to go even further in her career.

"Hannah wants to take her snooker as far as she possibly can," Mark Jones explained.

"With Barry Hearn coming into the sport and offering Reanne Evans – the women's world number one – a wildcard entry into the men's tournaments, it offers talented players like Hannah an incentive to get to that level as well."

Adding to an oustanding season, Jones has also claimed a personal best in the Regional Junior Tour.

The tour is contested by all players – male and female – who are under 21 and Jones finished in a creditable sixth place.

She was one of only three girls playing on the tour, one of whom is another Derbyshire player, Ripley's Joanne Davies.

Jones came in as the highest ranked female with her sixth-place finish out of 25 players in her regional zone.

She just missed out on progressing into the play-offs for a chance to move on to the Premier Tour – where the best 48 players in England play.

Her father said: "The junior tour acts as a precursor to the Premier tour.

"She did really well in coming sixth when you consider that her regional zone runs from Derbyshire all the way to Lincolnshire."

Not surprisingly touted as a star for the future, Jones sees her next step as getting closer to challenging the more experienced players such as Evans and Maria Catalano, the cousin of snooker legend Ronnie O'Sullivan.

"She is still quite a way off Reanne and Maria but she is getting a lot closer," said Mark Jones.

"She has taken frames off Catalano and I don't think it will be too long until she is at their level."

Next up for Jones is a summer of playing pool but that does not mean she will putting her snooker on hold.

"Hannah is determined to get her first 100 break," added her father.

"She almost did it the other night in practice when she scored a 97 and then a 99, it's coming."


Congrats Hannah! Some girl power there! :excited: