Player Guide & Wallchart  The biggest snooker tournament in the world has just kicked off and we have put together a handy wallchart for you to print off so you can keep track of the tournament as it progresses. Just click here and print a copy off. It should fit fine on a single A4 sheet, but do a quick 'Print Preview' to make sure you're set up correctly. Use the 'Shrink To Fit' option to make sure it fits ok onto one sheet of A4 in the landscape layout. (not portrait) Contact us if you need any help with it.
Ian McCulloch - Best odds: 179/1 Another tough nut to crack who can beat anyone on his day. He had a good 04/05 season and is currently ranked 26th. He has reasonable Crucible form having lost in the semis in 2005 to Matthew Stevens. However, his 2005/2006 season has been disappointing, with only a quarter-final appearance in the Welsh Open the highlight. Betfinder prediction: Be a surprise if he got past Dott in the first round. Anthony Hamilton - Best odds: 200/1 A very prolific break-builder, Anthony has one of the best nicknames in the game - "The Sheriff of Pottingham". Doubly funny as he is from Nottingham and looks a lot like a Robin Hood character complete with goaty beard. Currently ranked 16, this guy is very talented but appears to lack consistency and lost 10-1 to Mark Williams in the first round last year. The 2006-07 campaign has been a dire one for the popular potter. He reached the Welsh Open quarter finals by defeating both Joe Perry and Dave Harold, before losing his quarter final match to Steve Davis in a thrilling final frame decider. However, he lost his first match in every other tournament, including against Ding Junhui in the Masters. He goes into the 2007 World Championship ranked 32nd provisionally in the world. Betfinder prediction: Tricky opener against Marco Fu, but Dott will probably beat him in the 2nd round should he prevail. Marco Fu - Best odds: 80/1 From Happy Valley in Hong Kong, Marco has had a resurgence of late showing much improved form last year only narrowly missing out on reaching the final when losing to Peter Ebdon in a very closely contested semi-final. On the way to that semi-final he beat three seeded players Alan McManus 10-3, Stephen Maguire 13-4 and Ken Doherty 13-10. In the semi-final itself, Fu was 15-9 down at one point, with only one session left to play, but won seven out of the next eight frames to send the match into the deciding frame, which Ebdon eventually won. Now coached by Terry Griffiths, Marco is a good solid break builder and may be a dark horse yet again. Betfinder prediction: The 8/1 on him winning his quarter looks like value. Stephen Maguire - Best odds: 28/1 Has disappointed since his UK Championship win back in 2004 (a 10-1 victory over David Gray) and can be very inconsistent. On his day he is right up there with the best but has given too many poor shows for my liking over the last couple of seasons. If he finds his form in Sheffield, he could meet Ronnie O'Sullivan in the semis who he has played 5 times, losing twice, although both those defeats were in the World Championships first round. Betfinder prediction: He can still be 'on-fire Maguire' but I wouldn't risk any of my money on the unreliable Scot. Joe Perry - Best odds: 119/1 The 'Fen Potter' turned pro in 1991 and reached the top sixteen in 2002 and has spent 3 seasons in it's lower reaches and dropped out after 2005/06. He reached the quarter-finals of the World Championship in 2004, beating defending champion Mark Williams along the way, and he reached the semi-final of the UK Championship the next two seasons, losing the 2004 match after leaving opponent David Gray requiring snookers to remain in it. In 2005 he lost in the semifinal to eventual champion Ding Junhui. He is recently a new father which can often be a factor in a sportsmans improved performance (maybe they feel more virile!), but this doesn't appear to have happened with Joe. Betfinder prediction: Maguire and Williams block his path to the quarter finals which is a tall order. Mark Williams MBE - Best odds: 39/1 Former UK and World Champion, this left-handed Welshman has been a bit of an enigma of late. His form is very patchy and seems to have lost interest. Maybe he has in the smaller tournaments but this is the biggest and he should have the desire to win this. In April 2004 Williams' fiancee Jo gave birth to the couple's first child. This, and the fact that he has achieved every ambition in the game, has meant that he often loses focus in matches and, as a result, he has slipped down the rankings. However, in March 2006, Williams won his first ranking event in two and a half years, the China Open in Beijing, beating John Higgins 9-8 in a fantastic final. This helped him return to the top 8 in the world rankings. It was revealed during the World Snooker Championships in April 2006 that Williams had split with coach Terry Griffiths. The two remain very close friends, but Terry would no longer be coaching him. Betfinder prediction: Bet on him at your peril but odds of 37/1 seem generous enough for those brave enough. Joe Swail - Best odds: 200/1 'The Outlaw' (a pun on his name "Joe Swail" and The Outlaw Josey Wales, the 1976 film.) from Belfast has a very unorthodox stance but it works for him and has helped him reach nine major ranking semi-finals including the 2000 and 2001 World Championships but never a final. Swail is congenitally hearing-impaired. He has told BBC that he regards this as an advantage for snooker, as he is less likely to be distracted by crowd and other background noise. The two-table nature of the Crucible Theatre, in which cheering from the other table can often occur as a player takes a shot, may be one reason his World Championship record is especially strong. Betfinder prediction: Could give you a run for your money at long odds. Maybe one to back with a view to laying off later. John Higgins - Best odds: 14/1 The Wizard of Wishaw was a dominant force in snooker in the early 2000s but appears to have lost his concentration and consistency in the last few seasons. Since the birth of his two children, he no longer practises with the intensity that he did when he became world champion and world number one, but he did win the Masters in 2006 beating Ronnie O'Sullivan 10-9 in the final in what many consider one of the greatest finals ever played in any snooker tournament. In the deciding frame, Ronnie made a break of 60 before running out of position, and Higgins made a winning clearance of 64 to win the title. However, Higgins had a disappointing end to a highly successful season last year when he lost his first-round match at the World Championship 10-4 to Mark Selby who he had beaten at the same stage of the 2005 event by 10 frames to 5. Higgins' strength is his combination of superb break-building, technique, and outstanding safety and tactical play. Betfinder prediction: Looks to have a fairly straight-forward path to the quarter-finals where he could go out to O'Sullivan, Ding or Robertson. Michael Holt - Best odds: 279/1 A very good player to watch, Michael wears his heart on his sleeve and shows all his emotions out there. He would make an awful poker player. In the 2005 World Snooker Championship, he beat his friend (the late) Paul Hunter in the first round. In the second round he faced Steve Davis, losing 13-10 after having led 8-2. Michael has stated that he's 'not a choker', and that he just lacks concentration. He qualified for the 2006 World Championship, and lost in the first round to eventual runner-up Peter Ebdon 10-8, earning Ebdon's applause as a result of his performance. Michael is also infamous for conceding the deciding frame (while level at 4-4) in a China Open match in 2005 against Joe Perry, while there were still 13 reds left available to pot. Analysis of his body language at the 2006 World Championships found apparent flaws in his attitude and temperament. He finds it difficult to re-focus after playing a bad shot. This can lead to dips in form that may last for two to three frames. He appears to need confidence to achieve his best results. On a similar theme, his nickname 'The Hitman' comes from his penchant for hitting the table in anger, which once resulted in a broken knuckle. Betfinder prediction: Has the timeform squiggle next to his name. I wouldn't back him with your money! Barry Hawkins - Best odds: 80/1 I like this guy. When I first saw him play I thought he looked like a future world champion but he has yet to fulfil that promise. In 2005/2006, he reached the semi-finals of the Grand Prix and the Welsh Open again, and also beat the highly-rated Ding Junhui to qualify for the World Championship for the first time. At the World Championships in Sheffield however, Barry faced former champion Ken Doherty in the first round, but struggled to perform in the intimidating Crucible Theatre, and lost 10-1. He told the BBC that "I just couldn't perform and I don't know why... I'm gutted after such a good season to have played like that". Betfinder prediction: Could be one of the better longer priced players to have a nibble on with a view to laying off. Fergal O'Brien - Best odds: 300/1 This Irishman's greatest achievement was winning the British Open in 1999, beating Anthony Hamilton 9-7 in the final. He also reached the final of the 2001 Masters, and three other ranking semi-finals and spent 3 seasons as a top 16 player. Can still produce some good stuff on his day but looks out of his depth here. Betfinder prediction: Will need the luck of the Irish. Not for me.  Neil Robertson - Best odds: 18/1Career prize: The Aussie potting machine has had a great season winning the Grand Prix and Welsh Open but had early exits in both the UK Championship and the Saga Insurance Masters. He reached 4 quarter-finals in the 2005/2006 season, including the 2006 World Championships, in which he fought back from 12-8 to 12-12 against eventual champion Graeme Dott, before losing the final frame by inadvertently potting the final pink, which he needed on the table in his attempts to get a snooker out of his Scottish rival. Betfinder prediction: Definitely one for the short-list but has a tough draw. Each way prospects. Ryan Day - Best odds: 64/1 Due to problems with his liver in 2003, his results suffered badly. In 2004 however, he qualified for the World Snooker Championship - he led John Higgins 9-7 in the first round, but lost the last 3 frames. As some consolation, John commented that Ryan is "going to be a top player for many years to come". Back at the Crucible in 2006, he beat Joe Perry 10-3 in the first round and led Ronnie O'Sullivan 9-7 in the second round before losing 13-10. He is ranked 17th in the world for the 2006/2007 snooker season, which is 16 places higher than the year before. The current season is already the best of his career: he reached the quarter-finals of the Northern Ireland Trophy 2006 and was runner up in the Malta Cup 2007, losing 9-4 to Shaun Murphy. He is now provisionally ranked 12th for the 2007/2008 season. Betfinder prediction: Some people's idea of the tournaments dark horse. Could spring a surprise.  Ronnie O'Sullivan - Best odds: 7/2 favWhat can you say about the enigma that is 'The Rocket'. He is undoubtedly one of the most naturally-talented players in the history of the sport. When in top form, he has produced displays that lead many to hail him as the greatest player of all time. His 2007 Masters final win against Ding Jun Hui was breathtaking. In a contrasting display to his stunning form in the Masters O'Sullivan bowed out of the Malta Cup with a 5-3 loss to Michael Holt in the first round. Later, during the Welsh Open, the Rocket announced that he was going in for some major changes in his technique, and was not happy with his performance in the past few months. He lost a thriller to Neil Robertson in the quarter-finals by 5-4. Ronnie is blighted by a temperamental streak and lack of concentration sometimes leads to a seeming lack of confidence or interest, and many question whether he has the temperament to go with the talent, to enable him to win another four or five world titles, putting him on a par with Hendry and Davis. Ding Jun Hui - Best odds: 13/1 The young Chinese snooker sensation has brought great interest to the game over in China and is a superstar there. This is the kid's first appearance at the Crucible so it will be interesting to see how he handles the atmosphere. In March 2005, he celebrated his 18th birthday by reaching the final of the China Open in Beijing, along the way defeating world top-16 ranked players Peter Ebdon, Marco Fu and Ken Doherty. In that final he played against then world no.-3-ranked Stephen Hendry, whom he beat by 9 frames to 5, to score his first ranking tournament win. In December 2005, he beat another crop of (now former) world top-16 players, namely Jimmy White, the late Paul Hunter and Joe Perry once more on his way to reaching the final of another major tournament, the UK Championship at the Barbican Centre in York. This time he met the resurgent snooker legend Steve Davis in the final, and defeated him by ten frames to six, in doing so becoming the first player from outside Britain or Ireland to win that particular title. Betfinder tipped him to win this title at a juicy 33/1. On 14 January 2007, Ding made a 147 break in the opening match of the Saga Insurance Masters against Anthony Hamilton. It was the first maximum in the competition since that of Kirk Stevens in 1984, which was also the only one up to then. He went on to make the final of the tournament and made a confident start by winning the first two frames. However, O'Sullivan went on to produce what many regard as one of the finest displays of snooker ever seen on television. His dominance, along with the boisterous and hostile nature of the crowd, left Ding visibly distraught during the twelfth frame, trailing 8-3 in the best of 19 frames contest. He is currently on a losing streak in ranking tournaments this season which continued with a 5-3 first round loss to Barry Hawkins in the China Open. Betfinder prediction: The tie of Round 1 is without doubt Ding v O'Sullivan, a match that could have been the final but I don't think his current form will be good enough.  Ken Doherty - Best odds: 22/1Ken was world champion back in 1997 and is still a very tough matchplayer with good tactical skills and safety play which has earned him the monniker "Krafty Ken". Following an average start to the 2005/06 season, Doherty won the Malta Cup in February 2006, beating John Higgins in the final. Doherty had trailed 8-5 at one stage but managed a stirring comeback, winning four frames in a row. Doherty called the victory, which bridged a five-year gap, his "most important tournament win since the World Championship". In the 2006 World Championship, Ken started brightly winning his first match and defeated Barry Hawkins 10-1 and then he beat Matthew Stevens, playing superbly to win the last 5 frames. Ken was favourite in his quarter-final match against Marco Fu but lost 13-10. Betfinder prediction: Usually there or thereabouts, he could very easily find himself in the semis in what is the weaker half of the draw. Mark Allen - Best odds: 109/1 Mark Allen of Northern Ireland is the 2005 World Amateur Snooker Champion. For 2005/2006 he turned professional, reaching the last 32 of the UK Championship and the Welsh Open, losing 5-2 to the then professional World Champion Shaun Murphy, after leading 2-0 in the latter. He also got to the final qualifying round of the World Championship, losing to Andy Hicks. In March 2007 he qualified for the World Championship for the first time, beating Robert Milkins 10-4, having already defeated Jamie Cope in an earlier qualifier. His partner is the ladies' World Number 1 Reanne Evans, who he says has only beaten him once in practice. Betfinder prediction: Would be a major surprise if he beats Ken Doherty in Round 1.  Matthew Stevens - Best odds: 23/1Not the force of old but someone with good Crucible form. He got the the final in 2005 where he lost 18-16 to Shaun Murphy. He was also runner-up in 2000 where he lost to fellow Welshman Mark Williams 18-16 from being 14-10 up. Although his form has been poor in recent years he is always considered a real threat in major events, as the longer matches appear to suit him so he is always worth considering at Sheffield. Betfinder prediction: I wouldn't put you off an each-way punt at around 20/1. Joe Delaney - Best odds: 750/1 Joe won three qualification matches to get to Sheffield beating Ian Preece 10-7, Barry Pinches 10-9 and perrenial Crucible qualifier Alan McManus 10-9. He has done very well to get here but unless he does a Joe Johnson he will be out early doors. Betfinder prediction: The odds clearly reflect his chances which are like Victoria Beckham - very, very slim.  Steve Davis OBE - Best odds: 150/1Speaking of slim, what about the old 'Romford Slim', Steve 'Interesting' Davis has been a top name in the game since the Ark. He had a serious resurgence of form to get to the UK Championships final in 2005 where he lost 10-6 to the Chinese wonder kid Ding Junhui. At the age of 49, he is still going strong, retaining his place in the elite world top-16 players almost every year, and hoping to remain there at least until his 50th birthday. He meets his old mate and fellow BBC tv snooker pundit John Parrott which should be a good match to watch. If he finds the form he showed in the 2005 UK Championships he could surprise a few but his best days are now way behind him. Betfinder prediction: Should beat Parrott in Round 1 but I wouldn't be rushing out to back him for much else. John Parrott MBE - Best odds: 750/1 Former world champion (way back in 1991) John is master of the final-frame deciders at the Crucible. A record nine of his Crucible matches have gone to a deciding frame and he has won 6 of them. From 1984-2004 he was ever-present at the World Championship, but he failed to qualify in 2005. Parrott also boasts 14 consecutive seasons in the top 16 of the snooker world rankings (the top 16 being the sacred number, as only those players qualify for tournaments automatically, with others having to play preliminary rounds to qualify). John plays his good pal and studio expert on snooker for the BBC Steve Davis in the first round, a match that should be a good classic battle of the oldies. Betfinder prediction: Offers very little from a betting perspective. Out in Round 1 or 2 at best. Shaun Murphy - Best odds: 11/1 Devout Christian and 2005 world champion Shaun is set to meet the youngster Judd Trump in the first round. Last year he lost to Peter Ebdon in the quarter-finals. No first-time world champion has ever successfully defended his title at the Crucible (can Dott break that trend?) That was the second year in a row that Peter Ebdon defeats the defending world champion in the quarter-finals. Shaun isn't a very popular player on the circuit and he has a rival in Stephen Maguire in particular.(lucky for Shaun that the scotsman is in the opposite side of the draw) They really don't like each other. It all came to a head in a 2004 Grand Prix match. As the match was about to begin, Maguire realised he had forgotten to bring his chalk with him. He asked referee Johan Oomen for permission to leave the arena. While he was away, Murphy spoke to the referee and the tournament director Mike Ganley was summoned and he docked Maguire a frame for not being ready to start at the scheduled time. Hardly Christan behaviour from our bible-bashing Shaun. Betfinder prediction: If he finds his long-potting can be very dangerous but he's not very reliable. Judd Trump - Best odds: 66/1 Judd is still only 17 years old and had to win four qualification matches to get to the Crucible. He beat Bradley Jones 10-8, Shokat Ali 10-7, Jamie Cope 10-7 and James Wattana 10-5, an amazing achievement itself. He will play Shaun Murphy in Round 1 and the 11/4 about a win over the 2005 champ could represent value. Betfinder prediction: Speculative punt in the first round at 11/4 to beat Murphy is the call.  Peter Ebdon - Best odds: 14/1A very dogged and gritty player especially over these longer distances, Peter seems to base his season around the Crucible. He won the title in 2002 in a last frame decider with Stephen Hendry in perhaps one of the best world finals ever. He also finished as runner-up last year in that epic dogfight with Graeme Dott. Ebdon can be incredibly focused and tenacious and often pumps his fist at key moments something which can get to some opponents. He is scheduled to meet Hendry in the quarter finals whom he beat comfortably in the final of this season's UK Championship final in December and I fancy him to beat him again. He now lives with his family to Dubai for tax reasons and he also has an interest in breeding racehorses. Betfinder prediction: Being in the weaker half of the draw I would recommend an each-way bet on Ebdon at 14/1. Nigel Bond - Best odds: 500/1 Bond has been around for donkeys years and was a finalist back in 1995, but lost to Stephen Hendry 18-9. Hendry is a bit of a nemesis for Nigel, he has reached at least the quarter finals at the Crucible Theatre every year from 1993 to 1996, losing to Stephen Hendry every time. He got his own back last year in a classic first round match last year. It went 9-9 and the deciding frame went down to the black! Nigel clipped it into the left corner pocket, only for the cue ball to go in-off in the right middle for a respotted black which Nigel potted to take frame and match. Final score 10-9. He beat Jamie Burnett 10-6 to qualify for the World Championships but has a tough first round match against Ebdon. Betfinder prediction: A very likely first round casualty at the hands of Peter Ebdon. Stephen Lee - Best odds: 89/1 One of the games more rotund players shall we say, noted for his smooth cue action that some pundits regard as the most natural in the game. Lee has won 4 ranking tournaments in his career but has never progressed beyond the semi-final (2003) of the world championships. In the 2006 Welsh Open he came in the competition outside the provisional top 16, after failing to win a ranking tournament for four years. He went on to win the tournament beating the world champion, Shaun Murphy 9-4 in the final. He didn't attend the China Open recently and the rumour was he was complaining of seeing spots in front of his eyes. Betfinder prediction: With reports of him experiencing various problems lately, he is one to rule out. Mark Selby - Best odds: 45/1 An exciting prospect, Mark's best ranking snooker performance came in the Regal Scottish in 2004, where he finished runner-up to David Gray, losing 9-7 in the final. He has qualified for the finals of the World Snooker Championship on three occasions (2005 onwards) and reached the last 16 in 2006 beating John Higgins in the first round and emerged with credit from a cracking second-round match against Mark Williams. In his career he has beaten top players such as Stephen Hendry, John Higgins, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Paul Hunter, Matthew Stevens and Peter Ebdon. Heading into the 2007 world championships, Selby is ranked no. 20 and needs to win two matches at the Crucible Theatre to earn an elite Top-16 ranking for 2007-08. He should beat Lee in Round 1 but will probably meet Ebdon in Round 2 which should be a cracker. Betfinder prediction: Could be anything and the 40/1 is tempting each way material. Value could also be had backing him in match betting. Ali Carter - Best odds: 89/1 Allister's best ranking event performance was a shock semi-final place at the 1999 Grand Prix tournament. He reached the last 16 of the World Snooker Championship in 2005. Experts regard him as a highly talented player who can beat anyone on his day - he has a decent record against Stephen Hendry in particular whom he may well meet in Round 2. Despite his obvious talent, he is prone to inconsistency. This may be linked to his having the digestive disorder Crohn's Disease. His occasionally over-aggressive shot selection is also his downfall on occasion but he does seem to be in much better form of late. One to watch. Betfinder prediction: Should beat Hicks in Round 1 and then may be worth a punt against Hendry in Round 2. Andy Hicks - Best odds: 469/1 Andy first came to prominence in the 1995 World Championship, in which he reached the semi-finals, beating Steve Davis, Willie Thorne and Peter Ebdon along the way. This remains his career highlight, although he has reached and lost semi-finals of four other ranking events. Never quite reaching the top level during the late 90s, Andy gradually declined in form to drop as low as #62 in the world rankings by 2003/2004. However, recent years have seen the diminutive balding player return to form. He reached the second round of the 2004 World Championship, beating Quinten Hann in a match memorable for a near punch-up between the two players at the end, triggered by Hicks pointing out to Hann that he was likely to drop out of the Top 16 as a result of the loss. He then gave Ronnie O'Sullivan a fright in the second round before losing 13-11. Other than 1995, this is the only time Hicks has won a match at The Crucible. Betfinder prediction: Might sneak to Round 2 or even the quarter-finals at a push, but no further.  Stephen Hendry - Best odds: 11/1After a poor 12 months, Hendry's provisional ranking before the 2006 Maplin Electronics UK Championship had dropped as far as number 11. However, after his win over Mark Williams in the third round, he stated that he believed that his best form was returning "slowly but surely", with improvements in his long potting and safety play in recent weeks. He has notably taken a break from coach Terry Griffiths and gone back to basics with his practice methods. In the quarter finals of the UK Championships, with Hendry 4-1 up, his opponent Ronnie O'Sullivan sensationally conceded the match, much to Hendry's bemusement. He then went on to beat reigning world champ Graeme Dott 9-7 from being 5-7 down. In the final, however, a nightmare run of missed pots in the evening session shattered Hendry's confidence, and he went on to lose 6-10 to Peter Ebdon. Continuing to practice for 5-6 hours every day since that final, he continued his revival by beating Matthew Stevens and Shaun Murphy to reach the semi-finals of the Saga Insurance Masters, where he lost, 6-2 to Ding Junhui, and also reached the quarter-finals of the Malta Cup, before losing 5-4 to Ali Carter, not helped by incurring a stomach infection. Betfinder prediction: You always have to respect Hendry but at 11/1 doesn't represent any value considering his up and down form. David Gilbert - Best odds: 500/1 David is a qualifer who had to win three matches to get here. He beat Alfie Burden 10-9, followed by wins over Gerard Greene 10-6 and an impressive 10-6 win over Mark King. He faces snooker legend Stephen Hendry in his first Crucible appearance and it would be a major surprise if he won. He is a best priced 11/2 to pull it off. Betfinder prediction: Hendry will easily dispatch him in the first round. Please post your views on this article via the Betfinder forums. |
Graeme Dott - Best odds: 14/1