ROBBO: MY PHEW BALL

Neil on the pressure shot that saw him edge Trump in thriller last year

NEIL ROBERTSON was preparing his runners-up speech 12 months ago in the UK Championship final.

But in one of the most dramatic climaxes in snooker history, rival Judd Trump (right) somehow missed the last pink – allowing the Australian to win 10-9 for a third UK success.

A thrilling rollercoaster of a contest matched the iconic 1985 Dennis Taylor v Steve Davis Crucible final for excitement.

And with the nerves of both players shredded, the 66-minute decisive frame seemed to take an eternity, with Robertson taking six minutes on one shot. The final finished just before 1am and now Robertson is ready for his title defence that starts against amateur and sometime actor John Astley tomorrow.

The 39-year-old said: “I was in my chair thinking how devastated I would be to lose. I was getting the runners-up speech ready and telling myself to be as gracious as possible and show Judd the respect he deserved for winning a match like that. “And then he’s missed the pink! “The shot I had was thin and the white was going to come twice across the table and could have cannoned off the black or gone in off. But it was one of the sweetest shots I have ever hit in my life, straight in the middle. It was a quick look at the scoreboard to make absolutely sure I didn’t need the black. Then it’s ‘I won…thank God!’

“But I really felt for Judd. I’ve been there myself as a losing finalist. Top players experience massive highs and huge lows.”

A brown potted by Robertson in the penultimate frame was compared in importance to a crucial pot on the same colour ball by Stephen Hendry in the 1992 world final against Jimmy White. Robertson told the WST podcast: “I got an unbelievable brown into the middle to help force the decider. If I miss it, I lose the final.”