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Whilst reading about the modern game |
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It all began in India |
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I decided to set down my thoughts |
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Or so the legend says |
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All about this intriguing game we love |
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In the officers mess at Jubbulpore |
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Its beauty and its warts |
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In the Empire’s halcyon days |
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Created by Neville Chamberlain |
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Some coloured balls were added to |
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In Eighteen Seventy-Five |
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The games they already played |
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George Pretyman was also there |
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Like ‘Pyramid Billiards’ and ‘Life Pool’ |
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To bring the game alive |
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The changes now were made |
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A first year cadet was a ”Snooker” |
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Controversy surrounded the beginning |
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At “The Shop” for the Artillery |
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With several candidates in the frame |
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‘The Woolwich training centre’, called |
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Capt. Sheldrick and John Roberts, with |
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“The Royal Military Academy” |
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Tenuous links to the birth of the game |
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Between Eighty-Two and Eighty-Five |
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Fred Shorter a professional cueist, from |
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The earliest rules were written |
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‘Indian Hill Club’ at Ootacamund |
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In clubs and messes throughout the Raj |
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En route to Australia through Rangoon |
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The officers all were smitten |
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Took the rules to the new game he found |
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John Roberts Jnr, a Billiards professional |
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From the busy club they called ‘Ooty’ |
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Coaching the ‘Maharajah of Cooch Behar’ |
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It spread both East and West |
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Was introduced to Sir Neville Chamberlain |
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To gentlemen’s clubs back in England |
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And took the rules back to Blighty’s shore |
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Snooker was proving to be the best |
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The first official Snooker championship |
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The game became more popular |
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Was held in Nineteen Sixteen |
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As championships unfurled |
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It was called the “English Amateur” |
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Until in Nineteen Twenty-Seven |
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The first there’s ever been |
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Came the Championship of the World |
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Joe Davis won the first World Crown |
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He beat Tom Dennis 20-11 |
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At ‘Thurstons Hall’, it all started |
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Six ponds Ten shillings was his pot |
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And held it through to Forty-Six, when |
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Equivalent to £280 now |
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From World Championships he departed |
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For a World Crown – not a lot |
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As master of both games he played |
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Joe and his younger brother Fred |
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Retiring in Nineteen Sixty-Four |
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Are still the only two |
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But in Fifty-Five he made the first |
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To win World crowns in both disciplines |
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Official maximum Snooker score |
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Of Snooker and Billiards too |
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Now Fred was like the grandfather |
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The game was in the doldrums |
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Younger players all adore |
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For about a decade or more |
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Playing a Crucible semi-final |
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With no sponsorship or interest |
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When he was Sixty-Four |
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Disagreements and disputes galore |
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In Fifty-Two there was a split |
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The players organised their own |
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Between players and governing body |
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“World Matchplay” competition |
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With only two in the official comp’ |
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From Fifty-Two to Fifty-Seven |
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Horace Lindrum beat Clark Maconachy |
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No ‘Control Council’ recognition |
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With no official World championships |
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Challenge matches were the method used |
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Between Fifty-Eight and Sixty-Three |
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From Sixty-Four to Sixty-Eight |
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With a distinct lack of players |
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Reverting to the Knock-out form |
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And no money to pay their fee |
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From Sixty-Nine, right up-to-date |
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Television in the late Sixties |
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Watching the game from dawn till dusk |
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Brought the game to everyone |
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Past midnight and much longer |
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With a growing army of lady fans |
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Plus younger players drawn to the game |
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All tuned into BBC1 |
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Local leagues were getting stronger |
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From radio to Black & White |
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With all his wit and knowledge |
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Then colour made it better |
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His comments were quite mellow |
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Listening to ‘Whispering Ted Lowe’ |
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He said, ”for those with Black & White, |
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The original commentator |
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The Pinks behind the Yellow” |
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David Attenborough – the naturalist |
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‘Pot Black’ was born, Patsy Fagan won |
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As head of BBC sport |
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For outside broadcasts – flew the flag |
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To promote the use of colour TV |
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With Winifred Atwell at the piano playing |
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In Sixty-Nine had a thought |
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George Potsford’s ‘Black & White Rag’ |
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In Seventy-Two the ‘Hurricane’ |
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Televised World Championships |
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Won on his debut appearance |
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Commenced in Nineteen Seventy-Three |
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Joe Davis, John Spencer & Terry Griffiths |
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Then ranking points in Seventy-Six |
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The other three to take their chance |
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Were introduced, for seedings we see |
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With Embassy in Seventy-Six |
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The following year to the Crucible |
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A new dawn for Snooker is found |
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In Sheffield – it’s permanent home |
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With ‘Dracula’ winning the trophy |
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When tobacco sponsorship was banned |
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Collecting £3,500 |
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It became 888.com |
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The jinx began in Seventy-Eight |
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With Spencer, Mans & Graham Myles |
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John Spencer beaten in round one |
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Both Taylors and ‘Steady Eddie’ |
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Thirteen – Eight by Perrie Mans |
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Ray & John plus Fred & Rex |
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And so the seed was sown |
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For the Crucible were always ready |
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In Seventy-Nine at his first attempt |
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Steve Davis ruled the Eighties |
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Terry Griffiths won the pot |
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With six wins in just nine years |
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In Eighty, Cliff ‘The Grinder’ won |
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But Alex got his second win |
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The only genuine overseas hot-shot |
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And with his daughter shed some tears |
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A Whirlwind then blew through the game |
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Terry Griffiths versus ‘The Grinder’ |
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The ‘Peoples Champion’ of London town |
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In Nineteen Eighty-Three |
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He made six final appearances |
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Ended at 3:51 in the morning |
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But he never won the crown |
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The latest match in Crucible history |
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With ‘Joe Nineties’ on in Eighty-Five |
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Denis beat Steve in ‘That Final’ |
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One finger waved in the air |
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Passed midnight and on it went |
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The final Black in the final frame |
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Watched by 18.5 million viewers |
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He won his only title there |
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The biggest TV sporting event |
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In Eighty-Six a Bradford man |
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In Eighty-Five to Blackpool Tower |
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Joe Johnson gave Steve the Blues |
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The IBSF Amateurs came |
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He sang with a band – “Made in Japan” |
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With trumpet, fanfare and national flags |
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And wore his Crocodile shoes |
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For the Centenary Championship games |
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A 15 year-old from Thailand was there |
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From Mauritius, Iceland, Australia |
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Wattanna Pu-Ob-Orm |
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They came from near and far |
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He’s now their ‘Ambassador for Sport’ |
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Sri Lanka, Poland and Finland |
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With his gentleness and charm |
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New Zealand, South Africa |
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From Malta, Sweden, Hong Kong |
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Now back to the Crucible theatre |
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Singapore and Pakistan |
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We come to Hendry’s decade |
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Cyprus and the British Isles |
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With seven crowns in just ten years |
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Including the Isle of Man |
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And hundreds of centuries made |
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Nineteen Ninety against the Hurricane |
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In Nineteen Ninety-One the ‘Toffee’ |
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Steve James scored a 135 frame |
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A previous winner of ‘Pot Black’ |
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The only ’16 Red’ total clearance |
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John Parrott took his biggest prize |
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In a professional tournament game |
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But he never won it back |
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Then came the phenomenal ‘Rocket’ |
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There’s only been one whitewash |
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Moving the game into a new phase |
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At the Crucible it’s true |
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Playing just as easily with either hand |
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John Parrott beating ‘Steady Eddie’ |
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Ronnie’s the master of the Baize |
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Ten – nil, round one, Ninety-Two |
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Fergal O’Brien from the ’Emerald Isle’ |
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Ken Doherty “The Darlin’ of Dublin” |
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Is unique in that he did score |
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Is the only player to win, as yet |
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A century in his very first frame |
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Both Junior & Amateur World titles |
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At the Crucible, in Nineteen Ninety-Four |
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And in Ninety-Seven completed the set |
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From Wellingborough, 2002 |
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In the 2007 World final |
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Peter Ebdon was his name |
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Between John Higgins and Mark Selby |
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He had the cue-ball cleaned at least |
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One frame lasted 77 minutes |
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Ten times in every frame |
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The longest in Crucible history |
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Now the very first 147 was made |
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Twas in the ‘Lada Classic’ |
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By Joe Davis in Fifty-Five |
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In the year of Eighty-Two |
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With Ivory balls and heavy cloths |
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The ‘Nugget’ made the first maximum |
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The maximum had arrived |
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On Television for us to view |
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And then in Nineteen Eighty-Three |
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The total of maximums at Sheffield |
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Cliff Thorburn was his name |
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Is Eight with Ronnie on Three |
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But this time at the Crucible |
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And @ 5 minutes & 20 seconds |
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From a fluke he did the same |
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He has the fastest in history |
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He’s also the only player, to lose |
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With Nine maximums by ‘The Rocket’ |
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With a 147 in a Crucible match; |
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Out of Sixty-Six to date |
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Jimmy, Stephen & Mark Williams |
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He’s got the fastest Five of them |
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With Ali Carter completing the batch |
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A genius on ‘The Slate’ |
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Now Willie was called ‘Mr Maximum’ |
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We’ve had a different champion |
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Or sometimes ‘The Great WT’ |
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For Thirteen years on the trot |
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He made more than 200 in practice |
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And still no first-time winner |
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But never made one on TV |
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Has successfully defended ‘The Pot’ |
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Now comes the threat from China |
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For years David Vine ran the studio |
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Numerous players on their way |
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With many pundits & some of the greats |
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With Marco, Ding and Liang Wenbo |
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Now Hazel Irvine plus ‘The Deadly Duo’ |
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They will surely have their day |
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(Steve & John) – With facts from Phil Yates |
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Alan Hughes who hails from Brighton |
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He gave many a parent a nightmare |
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From comedian & singer to compere |
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When introducing the players to us |
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In Eighty-Five Barry Hearn asked him |
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Inventing most of their nicknames |
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To introduce players, with panache & flair |
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But once forgot Alex’s, Oh what a fuss! |
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We’ve just heard that two of the sponsors |
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With all these names and places |
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Have pulled out of the game, such a waste |
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This poem has gotten quite long |
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But Rodney’s confident his ‘War chest’ |
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But let’s hope this game keeps going |
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Will suffice, until new ones are in place |
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Staying both healthy and as strong |
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Now I must thank a number of authors |
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Now if I’ve missed your favourite |
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For the facts in these verses I’ve penned |
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Or overlooked a fact or two |
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Their arguments and deliberations |
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Just put your pen to paper |
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In their research: upon which I depend |
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The next verses are down to you. |
