Allen has eye on major prize after crushing last eight success

MARK Allen took a massive step towards a second ‘triple crown’ title with a magnificent 6-1 victory over Stephen Maguire in the quarter-finals of the UK Championship in York last night.

The Antrim cueman (below )— who made the big breakthrough by winning the Masters earlier this year — will face 2015 World champion Stuart Bingham in tonight’s second semi-final of the £850,000 event. Bingham too was in top form last night, beating Kyren Wilson 6-1.

This afternoon’s first semi-final will see tournament favourite Ronnie O’Sullivan up against surprise packet Tom Ford over the best of 11 frames.

O’Sullivan beat Martin O’Donnell 6-1 yesterday, while Ford had a 6-2 victory over Joe Perry.

Meanwhile, World Snooker chairman Barry Hearn has told O’Sullivan his public outbursts have to stop.

Five-time world champion O’Sullivan infuriated Hearn when announcing the idea of a breakaway circuit in York this week.

Hearn said yesterday that the sport’s most marketable player was harming snooker and had to abide by the rules.

“It is damaging to the game,” Hearn said.

“Ronnie by nature does not like authority,” Hearn said.

“A lot of geniuses don’t like authority — Alex Higgins was one that ignored authority a lot — but we live in a society where the rules are the rules and we must obey them, or get them changed.”