This week, one of the leading players of the early 1990s...
Gary Wilkinson was a great talent who rose to prominence as the Steve Davis era was ending and the Stephen Hendry years were beginning.
He had to win seven matches in the old Pro Ticket Series that was used to determine new professionals and beat Martin Clark in the last of them to earn his shot at the pro circuit in 1987.
Wilkinson’s first significant success came in one of the WPBSA’s non ranking events (much like the newly announced Pro Challenge Series) in 1988 when he beat Alex Higgins 5-4 in the final.
Later that season, he beat Ray Reardon and Tony Drago to qualify for the Crucible where it was his misfortune to draw a certain Mr. Hendry.
Having slipped 6-2 down, he gave the future champion a great game, levelling at 8-8 and 9-9 before Hendry comfortably won the decider.
Wilkinson was a fast, fluent player in those days and the 1989/90 season saw him start to realise his potential.
He reached the semi-finals of three of the campaign’s first five ranking events – the Hong Kong Open, Asian Open and UK Championship – and rose 20 places in the world rankings to 19th.
However, it could have been a lot better but for a mental aberration in his UK semi-final against Davis.
Wilkinson was full of confidence going into the match having beaten Jimmy White 9-0 in the quarter-finals. Leading Davis 8-7, he misread the scoreboard and, believing Davis did not need a snooker, failed to make contact on a thin safety attempt.
Davis put him in again, Wilkinson left the pink, lost the frame and then the decider.
In the 1990/91 season, Wilkinson reached what proved to be his only ranking event final, the British Open.
Again, he gave Hendry a terrific battle but, again, he lost in a decider, 10-9.
Although he reached the World Championship quarter-finals the following month, he had missed out on a huge cash bonus in the first round when he jawed the yellow on 120.
Wilkinson began the 1991/92 season as world no.5 – his highest position – and would capture the biggest title of his career at the World Matchplay Championship, an invitation event for the 12 highest ranked players in the provisional rankings.
He beat Dean Reynolds, John Parrot and Jimmy White to reach the final before completing an 18-11 defeat of Davis.
A year later, as world no.8, he lost 10-8 to Neal Foulds in the final of the Scottish Masters, but his early flamboyance began to disappear and he became slower and, at times, more negative.
He dropped out of the top 16 after only two seasons and reached only three more ranking event quarter-finals, including at the 1995 World Championship.
At the 1999 Welsh Open, he was involved in a frame against Dennis Taylor that was re-racked after 57 minutes.
In the following year’s World Championship, he beat Jason Ferguson 10-9 in the longest ever best of 19 frame encounter – clocked at 698 minutes, including an 83 minute decider – to qualify for the World Championship.
Wilkinson was relegated from the circuit in 2006. Like most players, snooker is in his blood and he is still involved today as a highly efficient member of the WPBSA’s tournament team.
16 comments:
Gary once told me that he wasn't aware of the mistake in frame 16 of that UK semi final until after the match was over.
He came off the table actually feeling really pleased to have given the world champion such a good fight in such a big match.
It was only when somebody else brought up the error that he realised what he'd done.
You might be right, but I thought Gary beat Higgins 6-4 in the Satellite event at Marco's in Glasgow ... although I remember it for very different reasons! sw
It's 5-4 in the 'book'
dave
i never saw Gary as fast or fluant.
he was a dogged determined player and very tough to beat...
in the scotish masters 1 year he was trailing Hendry 5-1 in the Quarter Finals i think and he came back to win 6-5 the sheer effort at that time to do that shows how slightly underestimated as a player he has become with the passage of time.
with some people refering to him and similar players like Darren Morgan and Alain Robidoux as the reason Hendry won all his titles but what they forgeting it isnt how well you can play but how well you can stop the other player playing is the important part and some of todays young players should look at the likes of wilkinson to learn that aspect of the game.
He was pretty quick when he started but got bogged down over the years.
Agree with the second point, if everyone plays attacking snooker it favours the best attacking players. When you're being tied up in tactical knots it becomes more of a test.
Apparently the 'book' is wrong
No you were right first time.
It was 5-4.
Off topic - Where is this seasons grand prix held?
Yeah it's funny I certainly don't remember him as being fast and fluent just a dogged grinding sort of a player. I guess i just remember the end of his career.
The Grand Prix will be in Glasgow
Ta Davie, that is what i thought.
Is it at the SEC again?
No I think that venue is unavailable so it will be somewhere else, most likely the Kelvin Hall.
Gary was a wonderful fluent player until he got on a bad run and then slowed down his game. He is probably the best retired player never to have made the semi-finals of the world championships.
John H
Gary was a Mansfield lad wasn't he (like Lee Spick)?
I can't say I remember him as a fast player (I'd have been very young when he first came on the scene), but by the sounds of it certain mental demons stopped him fulfilling his early potential. He wasn't the first player to fall into this trap and he certainly won't be the last.
Psychology is such an important part of snooker, possibly more than any other sport.
Anyone who saw Willie Thorne practising during the 1980s would wonder how he ever lost. Mental toughness was one of Stephen Hendry's strongest points in the 90s, and was an understated quality in his enormous success.
What is the book? I still mourn the end of the Rothman's year books. I know it's all on the net but that's no good for reading on the bog or on the tube!
Thanks for the replies Dave. Sorry for the off topics.
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