And you can't even see the tables in some rows. At least at the crucible you all get a good view It's unique, the fact you are so close to the play. But now Eddie's replaced his Dad of course it will go elsewhere.
That really annoys me though, whoever the heck Eddie Hearn is, or thinks he is. He's now running things, and can make big changes if he wants ?.
Watched an interview recently where Stephen Hendry interviewed Barry Hearn, 2 of the more pertinent points he made was: 1) Eddie does not like Snooker 2) He has laid the gauntlet down to Sheffield Council to ‘put their money where their mouth is’ and to build a new bigger venue to host the Snooker. Both for me were code for he’s warming the plate up to move in the future.
How will it be beneficial if it gets moved to Ronnie's Saudi Arabia? Bloody long wait for the last bus home for the few who are likely to go. ". Look at footage of the earliest championships and footage of the most recent. Nothing really has changed"....what are you hoping for...Big screen video replays, half time show with a pop star...propane burning torch entry...Cheerleaders perhaps?
I wouldn't move it to Saudi Arabia, but it is a world championship. The interior is dated and old fashioned. The capacity is holding back the biggest event in the calendar. It's really poor for parking. It's not the greatest for disabled access. The traffic is bad to get away from. Eddie Hearn told Sheffield Council a few years ago they should look to build a new Crucible fit for purpose for the worlds. They have the contract for four more years and we will see what Sheffield does in that time to keep it beyond that.
They could build a purpose built arena but no guarantee that it would stay on Sheffield. Southern bias at play for starters it's not Sheffield that's unique it's the theatre atmosphere. It'll go to Saudi, they'll have a load of gimmicks like the golden ball but it won't get any more popular, or at least not as much as greedy Hearn would like. And who knows how long the Saudi princes will keep funding it for?
1/6 are Chinese in the finals, if its going to any other country it should be them, they've actually embraced the sport
Wow well done David Gilbert, he's beat the defending champion Luca the Belgie 10-9, in one of the opening day First round matches.
And some great news, Mark Selby is getting a right old drubbing now, he's 7-2 down. And Judd against Vafei is 6-3, come on Judd and all you left handers lol.
Remember back in '82, the then defending Champion Steve Davis got battered by Tony Knowles (I think it was 10-1).
I see Hossein Vafei has been mouthing off again, after his defeat, and he tried to do it and wind Ronnie up last year. He's also wanting the World championships to move to China, for various reasons. But for me (and in the words of The Rock).. I think he should know his role, and shut his mouth!. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/snooker/live/c2qvr7wyleqt
He's spot on just like Ronnie. The Crucible gas barely changed since the world's started there. The venue has aged badly and is dated. If you go it's best to take a cushion because those awful looking seats that have been in for decades are uncomfortable. Football teams move with the times to go bigger and more modern. Snooker should take note.
I'm all for improving, and wanting to move to something better. But NOT to China or Saudi etc, why does it have to move abroad ?.
Not particularly those places but it's the world championship so can be anywhere in the world. It's not like moving the UK Championship to Christchurch.
Ok no more Neil McCollins guff lol, we've got some serious snooker to talk about on here. Mark Selby and Ali Carter both got whacked lol, in the First round, yeah get in there!!. And Luca Brecel, Mark Selby, Mark Williams, and Ding Ping have all gone out in the First round too.