I CAN’T LET THE S**T HIT FAN IN BELFAST AGAIN

MARK ALLEN admits he bottles it in Belfast.

All eyes will once again be on Northern Ireland’s top potter at the

Northern Ireland Open which starts today and runs until 18 November.

But the Antrim ace, who reached the Champion of Champions semi-final on Saturday night, has struggled under the weight of expectation at the Waterfront Hall in recent years.

“The pressure will never ease on me, I just s**t myself every year,” revealed Allen, who faces Chinese cueman Niu Zhuang in round one. “That’s pretty much the bottom line.

“I’ve struggled the last few years because there’s a lot of expectation on my to perform.

“Regardless of how I do, it’s just good to have a tournament back in Northern Ireland.

Snooker is so popular and people just want to see the top players come and play.

“It would be nice if I can do it for them, but they’re going to see great snooker all week at the Waterfront Hall.”

Allen played well to reach the quarter-finals in 2016 in the competition’s inaugural year, but crashed out in the second round last year much to the disappointment of his arm of supporters.

But the 32-year-old sparkled to win the International Championship in China earlier this month and climbed from 12th to seventh in the world rankings as a result.

He also pocketed himself a welcome £175,000 first prize and is hopeful his fourth ranking crown could inspire him to success on home soil.

And despite his 6-5 semi-final defeat to Englishman Kyren Wilson at Coventry’s Ricoh

Arena at the weekend, he earned himself another £25,000 to take his earnings to £200,000 in the last fortnight.

“If I can play like I did in China and last week, then hopefully I can give the Belfast fans something to cheer about.

“I feel as if I’m playing well, my game is in good shape. I have to keep practising hard and waiting for the results.

“I can’t wait for the tournament.”

Welshman Mark Williams, the current world champion, won last year’s tournament with a 9-8 victory over Chinese young gun Yan Bingtao.

Five-time world champion Ronnie O’sullivan and other top names including John Higgins, Judd Trump, Williams, Neil Robertson and Shaun Murphy will all be in action in Belfast.

Northern Ireland’s Joe Swail, Gerard Greene and Jordan Brown, as well as top amateurs Patrick Wallace and Jordan Brown will also compete for the £70,000 top prize.