The Rocket has taken off!!

The Coral UK Championship is the first time I have experienced live snooker, and it is far from what I expected after watching it with my grandfather on the box as a nipper. Admittedly I experienced a magical moment, but my word, the crowds raised the roof when Ronnie O’Sullivan made the 147 break.

O’Sullivan couldn’t have asked for a better birthday present when he landed a tidy £44,000 at the Barbican Centre last night. When asked what he’s going to do with the bonus, he quipped “keep the tax man happy”. At 39-years-old, pros will say they start to lose that sharpness that makes them so great, but not The Rocket. The snooker legend demonstrated why he is the most gifted player to ever lift a cue last night when he created that magical maximum break and I felt extremely lucky to be there, let alone have a chat/obligatory photograph with him backstage after it all happened.

If the odds are right, then Sunday night will see O’Sullivan take on the in-form Judd Trump, who booked his place in the quarter-finals with a 6-3 win over Rod Lawler. After that victory, I popped into the press conference to get the low down, and I have to say, it was one of the more amusing post-match interviews. He was greeted with laughter when stating, “I got to sleep at 12 – I usually sleep about 11 hours but last night I slept for ten, so that cost me a bit. It’s why I wasn’t at my best”. So there you have it folks, if you want to be as good as Mr Trump, spend half of your day in the sack. Perhaps if he goes the whole hog and makes it a 24-hour kip he will beat Ronnie in the final!

As a proud Irishwoman it would be rude of me not to mention my fellow compatriot David Morris, who did exceptionally well to make it to the Last 16, knocking out world champion, Mark Selby. What a nice, humble guy, who’s career is only going up. He was a massive price at the start of the tournament, and although he didn’t go all the way this time, our odds compliers will definitely be keeping a closer eye on him in future. Of course, in true Irish style, we were joined by the legendary Ken Doherty in the hotel bar, drowned our sorrows and are paying for it today.