Post a reply

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby SnookerFan

lhpirnie wrote:The problem is that there may not be a solution! Because 90% of the snooker fraternity are in love with the Crucible, there isn't any real prospect of moving, regardless of how bad the playing conditions or facilities are. A modern sporting event needs a media centre and corporate hospitality to maximise its potential. In that sense I do think snooker is being left behind.


My overriding concern is that in around 10 years' time, we face a crisis when today's top players aren't there anymore. The Crucible thing is a symptom of a wider problem: snooker not engaging with its future. Ultimately, keeping still amounts to falling behind in a changing world.

Indeed, I do recognise that there is something 'special'. But I think we should be thinking that the World Championship itself is special, and not focus on the building, as some kind of shrine.


But it's a combination of the both.

Yes, of course the World Championship is special and we don't want the format messed with. Doesn't automatically mean that you could or should just move it anywhere though. Like it or not, people do attend to feel The Crucible experience as much as they do for The World Championships. It goes hand in hand. If you're talking about appealing to younger viewers or whatever, surely changing the one tournament a year that creates more buzz than the rest of the tour combined in any way shouldn't be rushed into. If anything, finding a way for the rest of the tournaments in a season to capture that buzz is the answer.

It may be that at some point in the future, we need to move The Crucible. In 50 years it might not be fit for use any more, it might be crumbling. Or, for example, the seeds of international expansion we see at the moment have grown, and the sport might be being held back by keeping itself UK-centric. But, at present, the idea that we want to move the game into the future seems a poor reason to mess with one of the things in the season that truly works, and is truly loved.

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby Prop

Remember when they built a replica Crucible in China?

“Yushan officials have visited Sheffield and studied its famous Crucible Theatre, which hosts the annual world championships and is to snooker what Wembley is to football or Wimbledon to tennis.”

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/a ... ooker.html

*apologies for the Daily Mail link, it’s one of the few reports I could find that wasn’t behind a paywall

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby lhpirnie

GeF wrote:I agree for almost all gentleman talking :
https://ronnieo147.com/2021/10/06/not-a ... -with-him/

It's exactly what I would have expected from some of the older players. They don't want to be playing in qualifiers with 2 tables. It's been a horrible season so far for the players. There are 9 professionals who haven't qualified for any of the three Home Nations events, who won't get to play in front of a live crowd until at least the UK Championship. Even there it could be the sports hall...

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby KrazeeEyezKilla

That ronnieo147 site has been pretty negative lately and I can see why. With the Chinese events not on right now, problems with betting sponsorship coming and the increased focus by Matchroom on Pool there could be issues over the next few years.

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby Prop

KrazeeEyezKilla wrote:That ronnieo147 site has been pretty negative lately and I can see why. With the Chinese events not on right now, problems with betting sponsorship coming and the increased focus by Matchroom on Pool there could be issues over the next few years.


Is it Monique that does that site?

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby lhpirnie

Prop wrote:
KrazeeEyezKilla wrote:That ronnieo147 site has been pretty negative lately and I can see why. With the Chinese events not on right now, problems with betting sponsorship coming and the increased focus by Matchroom on Pool there could be issues over the next few years.


Is it Monique that does that site?

Yes. She hasn't been too well recently. But like me, she is concerned about the future of the game, and the lack of young players coming through.

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby Prop

lhpirnie wrote:
Prop wrote:
KrazeeEyezKilla wrote:That ronnieo147 site has been pretty negative lately and I can see why. With the Chinese events not on right now, problems with betting sponsorship coming and the increased focus by Matchroom on Pool there could be issues over the next few years.


Is it Monique that does that site?

Yes. She hasn't been too well recently. But like me, she is concerned about the future of the game, and the lack of young players coming through.


I suppose time will tell. Certainly in UK the popularity of the game at grass roots is nothing like it was.

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby Iranu

Prop wrote:I suppose time will tell. Certainly in UK the popularity of the game at grass roots is nothing like it was.

Which, if it continues, will most likely be the deciding factor on whether the Worlds stay in Sheffield.

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby Prop

Iranu wrote:
Prop wrote:I suppose time will tell. Certainly in UK the popularity of the game at grass roots is nothing like it was.

Which, if it continues, will most likely be the deciding factor on whether the Worlds stay in Sheffield.


Probably. Hearn gone, bookie sponsors won’t last forever, and a generation of players coming to the ends of their career. Doesn’t bode well at all, but I’d like to think it’ll survive. Just don’t ask me how.

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby SnookerFan

lhpirnie wrote:
Prop wrote:
KrazeeEyezKilla wrote:That ronnieo147 site has been pretty negative lately and I can see why. With the Chinese events not on right now, problems with betting sponsorship coming and the increased focus by Matchroom on Pool there could be issues over the next few years.


Is it Monique that does that site?

Yes. She hasn't been too well recently. But like me, she is concerned about the future of the game, and the lack of young players coming through.


I'm sorry to hear about Monique's health.

Am I allowed to ask what the matter was?

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby lhpirnie

SnookerFan wrote:
lhpirnie wrote:
Prop wrote:
KrazeeEyezKilla wrote:That ronnieo147 site has been pretty negative lately and I can see why. With the Chinese events not on right now, problems with betting sponsorship coming and the increased focus by Matchroom on Pool there could be issues over the next few years.


Is it Monique that does that site?

Yes. She hasn't been too well recently. But like me, she is concerned about the future of the game, and the lack of young players coming through.


I'm sorry to hear about Monique's health.

Am I allowed to ask what the matter was?

I can't speak for her, but it looks like she won't be able to travel to tournaments. She would normally come to Sheffield for the World Championship.

Re: Robertson talking out of his backside

Postby gninnur karona

SnookerFan wrote:It may be that at some point in the future, we need to move The Crucible. In 50 years it might not be fit for use any more, it might be crumbling. Or, for example, the seeds of international expansion we see at the moment have grown, and the sport might be being held back by keeping itself UK-centric. But, at present, the idea that we want to move the game into the future seems a poor reason to mess with one of the things in the season that truly works, and is truly loved.

Is the sport too UK-centric?


I suppose the answer is that depends where you consider snooker should be in 10, 20 or 50 years time. As one consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic prize money has considerably declined. Either this is a realignment reducing prize money to its natural level (sport UK-centric?) or it is a temporary blip on a path towards prize money levels of where exactly (global sport?)?

So is staging the World Championships at the Crucible holding back the sport?

If the sport chooses to veer towards an even more predominately UK-centric tour then everything can carry on as before. Small incremental increases in prize money. Prioritising UK domestic broadcasters and sponsors. Maybe that's sustainable but I think it's more likely that the result would be stagnation and eventual decline.

For the global approach the tour structure needs to be overhauled (development, tour cards, prize money and the professional tour calendar). I see two major possibilities at the competition top end. Either scrap the World Championships completely and replace it with four majors per golf or tennis, or quadruple the World Championships' prize money. If achieving that is compatible with continuing at the Crucible great. If it isn't then I don't see any justification for not looking at alternatives.

Snooker has come a long way since Barry Hearn set the sport on a journey. There have been setbacks and controversial decisions along the way but overall snooker has been a clear beneficiary of Barry Hearn's stewardship (although please WST best of 19s should be restored for the early World Championship qualifying rounds). Time though stands still for no-one. Prize money of any one tennis grand slam event today is three to four times annual WST prize money. Shouldn't snooker aim for that particular ratio to be 1:1?

Snooker sits at a point on its journey rather than at its destination. Determining and implementing snooker's future path is a major challenge. Nothing should be considered sacrosanct.


   

cron