'Snooker And Sheffield Go Together Hand In Glove'

[SheffieldForum]

There’s been a lot of headlines and comments about the Snooker and specifically the World Championships being held at The Crucible.

 

 

For balance, here are some comments from players about returning to Sheffield (from before the championship started this year):

 

Shaun Murphy said: 

 

“It’s iconic in the world of snooker. If you stop someone in the middle of Beijing and ask them to say something about Sheffield they'll say snooker. 

 

“It’s just synonymous. The two things go together. It used to be steel, its now snooker, and the Crucible Theatre is right behind that. 

 

“We always say it’s great to play in arenas that were designed for performance… this has been designed specifically for it and the atmosphere out there is better because of that.” 

 

"I've been lucky enough to speak to a number of actors and actresses over the years who come here and play great shows themselves and Shakespearean shows and they all say the same thing – The Crucible Theatre is one of the best theatres in the country and for us it’s obviously home. 

 

“It’s the home of snooker. We're fast approaching the 50th year of the World Championships here and it’s very special." 

 

“I'm very aware visibly to the naked eye just how much the city continues to change. Almost on a yearly basis there is a new building gone up or something has been cleaned up - that building’s gone or whatever, and it’s great to see the city continue to grow and expand… it’s got that vibrancy, it’s got that culture, it’s great on the music scene, it’s very arty, it’s very creative and we're very proud as a sport to have this as our synonymous home around the world. Snooker and Sheffield go together hand in glove.”

 

Barry Hawkins said:

 

“I've grown up watching the World Snooker Championships and the reason I started played snooker was watching Jimmy in the finals here and having his 147. It’s what inspired me to play snooker. All them memories and all of a sudden you're playing here yourself, it’s amazing. I never would have thought that years ago. All the history, the intimateness of the venue, all of them things add to the occasion and to the atmosphere.”

 

Tom Ford said: 

 

“If there is a venue that anyone wants to get to and a venue that anybody wants to play it’s the Crucible Theatre, there is so much history here. That’s why everyone puts so much pressure on themselves in the qualifiers, everyone wants to get to play at the Crucible and it’s such a good feeling when you're out there… the atmosphere is just so good here.”

 

There’s also a statement from Kate Josephs, Chief Executive of Sheffield City Council:

 

“Sheffield is the home of snooker. The World Snooker Championships and Sheffield go hand in hand.

“We know what the tournament means to the people of Sheffield, the players that come to compete and all the fans that watch the tournament across the globe. We have created a sporting legacy here in the city and we want that to continue for generations to come.

 

“We are in regular contact with World Snooker Tour and meet with them before, during and after each tournament and we will continue doing so.” 

[hackey lad]

Well it seems its all in the hands of the council  , so , bye bye .

[prince al]

20 minutes ago, SheffieldForum said:

There’s been a lot of headlines and comments about the Snooker and specifically the World Championships being held at The Crucible.

 

 

For balance, here are some comments from players about returning to Sheffield (from before the championship started this year):

 

Shaun Murphy said: 

 

“It’s iconic in the world of snooker. If you stop someone in the middle of Beijing and ask them to say something about Sheffield they'll say snooker. 

 

“It’s just synonymous. The two things go together. It used to be steel, its now snooker, and the Crucible Theatre is right behind that. 

 

“We always say it’s great to play in arenas that were designed for performance… this has been designed specifically for it and the atmosphere out there is better because of that.” 

 

"I've been lucky enough to speak to a number of actors and actresses over the years who come here and play great shows themselves and Shakespearean shows and they all say the same thing – The Crucible Theatre is one of the best theatres in the country and for us it’s obviously home. 

 

“It’s the home of snooker. We're fast approaching the 50th year of the World Championships here and it’s very special." 

 

“I'm very aware visibly to the naked eye just how much the city continues to change. Almost on a yearly basis there is a new building gone up or something has been cleaned up - that building’s gone or whatever, and it’s great to see the city continue to grow and expand… it’s got that vibrancy, it’s got that culture, it’s great on the music scene, it’s very arty, it’s very creative and we're very proud as a sport to have this as our synonymous home around the world. Snooker and Sheffield go together hand in glove.”

 

Barry Hawkins said:

 

“I've grown up watching the World Snooker Championships and the reason I started played snooker was watching Jimmy in the finals here and having his 147. It’s what inspired me to play snooker. All them memories and all of a sudden you're playing here yourself, it’s amazing. I never would have thought that years ago. All the history, the intimateness of the venue, all of them things add to the occasion and to the atmosphere.”

 

Tom Ford said: 

 

“If there is a venue that anyone wants to get to and a venue that anybody wants to play it’s the Crucible Theatre, there is so much history here. That’s why everyone puts so much pressure on themselves in the qualifiers, everyone wants to get to play at the Crucible and it’s such a good feeling when you're out there… the atmosphere is just so good here.”

 

There’s also a statement from Kate Josephs, Chief Executive of Sheffield City Council:

 

“Sheffield is the home of snooker. The World Snooker Championships and Sheffield go hand in hand.

“We know what the tournament means to the people of Sheffield, the players that come to compete and all the fans that watch the tournament across the globe. We have created a sporting legacy here in the city and we want that to continue for generations to come.

 

“We are in regular contact with World Snooker Tour and meet with them before, during and after each tournament and we will continue doing so.” 

Well that’s the end of that then!

[HeHasRisen]

To be fair why should a local authority build a new venue that is likely to be a white elephant for 49 weeks of the year? 

[Thirsty Relic]

Snooker is the same as all sports (and everything in life perhaps) - it all comes down to money.

 

Who would have thought the England football captain would go to play in Saudi?  Who would have thought LIV would dominate golf?  Or cricket get taken over by the Indian IPL?

 

Times change!

[Baron99]

Just move it to the Arena.  Problem solved.  You could also have more than two tables for the earlier rounds.  It could all be over in a week. 

 

Eddie 'Build me a 3,000 seater snooker stadium' Hearn seems to want all his way.  

 

Yes, the snooker brings revenue into the city but none of that revenue into MY pocket but it'd be MY council tax (and yours),  that'd paying for any new snooker arena, either directly or indirectly via intrest payments from loans taken out by SCC. 

 

Let the snooker go.  Most people watch it on tv anyway so it doesn't really matter where it comes from. 

[HeHasRisen]

8 minutes ago, Baron99 said:

Just move it to the Arena.  Problem solved.  You could also have more than two tables for the earlier rounds.  It could all be over in a week. 

Erm no, the winner of the event will have to play 16 sessions of snooker (assuming no thrashings) and that takes 8 days on its own, before you even consider all the other players. 

Edited April 25 by HeHasRisen

[Thorpist]

Having watched snooker in the Crucible I think the size of the place is just about right. There is no way I would go to a 3000 seat venue to watch a match , it would leave the majority of spectators too far away from the table.

I see the attraction of big venues for darts as the crowd involvement is part of the package.

Money talks and as the Chinese players begin to dominate it will surely move to more lucrative locations .

Match fixing is the big problem that snooker has and this will only become a bigger problem in future.

Sheffield should not waste it's time in trying to keep the event.

[Mr. Johnson]

It'll be gone after 2027.

Hearne had said 'The ball is in the council's court now ' and they're not bothered. As someone said above, why spend money on something that will be unused for 50 weeks but then again, could a new venue be multi purpose? The Arena is getting dated now. A new venue in the city centre could be used for all sorts really, not just snooker.

But fully expect it to go and with it any interest in snooker in the UK. It was / is a part of our sporting culture like the Grand National but going to China / Dubai means it'll be on niche streaming channels or pay per view which most people wouldn't bother with.

[HeHasRisen]

33 minutes ago, Mr. Johnson said:

It'll be gone after 2027.

Hearne had said 'The ball is in the council's court now ' and they're not bothered. As someone said above, why spend money on something that will be unused for 50 weeks but then again, could a new venue be multi purpose? The Arena is getting dated now. A new venue in the city centre could be used for all sorts really, not just snooker.

But fully expect it to go and with it any interest in snooker in the UK. It was / is a part of our sporting culture like the Grand National but going to China / Dubai means it'll be on niche streaming channels or pay per view which most people wouldn't bother with.

Would hardly call Eurosport "niche". They show a lot of snooker through the year, and tbh I prefer their commentary in the main.  They are being swallowed up into TNT in the UK later this year anyway.

Edited April 25 by HeHasRisen