He reached the last 16 of the Antwerp Open European Tour event in November and has developed a reputation as one of the most dangerous players outside the top 32. Maflin, who was born in London but has lived in Norway for the past decade, reached the semi-finals of the Players Tour Championship Grand Finals last season, only losing to eventual champion Ding Junhui. He has also made two maximum 147 breaks in the PTC events.
The 30-year-old has no hesitation in naming his biggest current goal in snooker. "Winning a tournament is my main objective and my priority now," he said. "I want to achieve that within the next two seasons. I am very pleased with the way my game is going at the moment.
"Over the last few years I have tried to keep relaxed during tournaments and not treat every match as if it's life or death, and not let defeats get to me. I think that's been the biggest factor behind my improvement. Break building has always been my strength but I've been working hard on my safety and long potting and those areas have improved."
Maflin turned professional in 2001, and decided to move to Oslo soon after meeting ladies snooker player Anita Rizutti. The couple got married last May and they have a son called Neon who will be six in January.
He gave up professional snooker for three years, but was persuaded to return by Norwegian businessman Knut Pederson who had seen him play in an amateur tournament. "He said he would sponsor me if I made a century break in the final of one of the Norwegian league matches," Maflin explains. "I got a 137 in the first frame and never looked back."
In 2006 he won the World Amateur title, and in 2010 he won the European Play-Offs despite suffering a car crash just two months earlier which left him with a six-inch metal plate and seven screws in his shoulder.
Maflin dropped off the main tour in 2011, but bounced straight back via Q School, and is now fulfilling his potential.
However he admits that living in Norway makes getting the balance between career and family particularly difficult. "It means that when I get knocked out of a tournament, I can't just go straight home like most players, I might have to wait a day or two to get a flight. I spend a lot of time travelling," said Maflin.
"The other hard thing is the fact that I don't have any good practice partners in Norway so I play on my own. The club I play at, Oslo Snooker, is fantastic, everyone who plays there is serious about snooker and I have a Star table. I do practise with Anita, but very rarely.
"We have talked about moving to the UK, but it's would be a big upheaval. We'd have to find a school for Neon and he only speaks a bit of English, and Anita would have to find a job. We'll see how this season goes for me and then talk more about it."
