Journeymen...
What can we do about it? Well, absolutely nothing. These men will have done exactly what was asked of them, and will have earned their starting positions. No complaints. They've got to get beaten, and that hasn't happened.
I certainly had high hopes for young Jack Lisowski against Steve Davis. It's perhaps a little unfair to label a great like Steve as a journeyman, but for almost twenty years now, that's exactly what he has been. He has played at Sheffield over an incredible five decades, and I'd much prefer to see young blood like Lisowski at the Crucible, but Steve did what he had to do, and impressively by the look of it.
So, how exactly do these so called journeymen keep doing the business at qualifying level, while doing little or nothing for 90% of their venue matches? Well, snooker is a game where experience and temprament can count for an awful lot more than out and out talent. See Judd Trump for a man who really struggled against these guys. They are used to the less glamorous surroundings, they seem to know how to grind young players down. In short, they know how to survive at this level.
So, some of us will have to grin and bare it. Fergal O'Brien, Barry Pinches, Dominic Dale, Dave Harold, Jamie Burnett, Andy Hicks, Marcus Campbell & Rory McLeod may never pick up the Joe Davis trophy, but you don't see them dropping off tour either, do you? They are good at what they do. The likes of Jack Lisowski, Jamie Jones & Michael White will no doubt have their day, but it may be a little bit more frustrating a journey than what they had anticipated.
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Tubberlad - Posts: 5009
- Joined: 02 October 2009
- Location: Ireland
- Snooker Idol: Ronnie OSullivan
- Highest Break: 49