JOHN HITS GOLD AGE!
Ray tips Higgins to roll back the years
JOHN HIGGINS has bared his teeth at the Crucible this year and snooker legend Ray Reardon has been lapping it up.
Scot Higgins is 42 this month – the oldest Betfred World Championship finalist since the man known as ‘Dracula’ lost to Alex Higgins 35 years ago, aged 49.
Four-time champion Higgins is chasing a fifth world title in Sheffield to equal the tally of long-time rival Ronnie O’Sullivan.
Smash
That would make world No.6 Higgins the oldest winner since Reardon beat Perrie Mans in 1978 at the age of 45.
Higgins remains locked in battle with world No.1 and defending champion Mark Selby and the winner will smash Stephen Hendry’s season’s prizemoney record of £740,000.
But Reardon, 84, says Higgins can carry the flag for the over-40s for a few years yet. Reardon, a guest of ® honour at this year’s 40th Crucible anniversary celebrations, said: “No one can halt time for ever, it is like water and rock.
“Eventually the water will win. It is the same situation with players. You don’t know when it will kick in but I don’t think John is at that point yet.
“In my case I retired when I knew I couldn’t win, my nerve had got a bit fragile.
“But you don’t know that until it happens and that was also the case with Stephen Hendry.
“But John is not in that position. He is still capable of winning any tournament anywhere. John is an outstanding player and his defence is fantastic .
“I always say you win a match on the defence, not by potting the balls – they can all do that.
“The real problems start when your eyes go. I had to get contact lenses and couldn’t get used to those and ended up with some glasses like Dennis Taylor’s.”
Higgins put the bite on Selby, 33, early in the final by opening up an 8-4 lead last night in the best-of-35 frames clash.
But Selby’s renowned comeback powers would have snuffed out any danger of complacency from the Scot.