2006 Northern Ireland Trophy
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The 2006 Northern Ireland Trophy was the 2006 edition of the
Northern Ireland Trophy The Northern Ireland Trophy was a professional snooker tournament. History First contested in 1981 and named ''Northern Ireland Classic''. It was an invitational event held at Ulster Hall, Belfast, and Jimmy White beat Steve Davis in the fi ...
snooker Snooker (pronounced , ) is a cue sport played on a rectangular Billiard table#Snooker and English billiards tables, billiards table covered with a green cloth called baize, with six Billiard table#Pockets 2, pockets: one at each corner and ...
tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concen ...
, held from 13 to 20 August 2006, at the
Waterfront Hall Belfast Waterfront is a multi-purpose conference and entertainment centre, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, designed by local architects' firm Robinson McIlwaine. The hall is located in Lanyon Place, the flagship development of the Laganside Corp ...
,
Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
, Northern Ireland.
Ding Junhui Ding Junhui (; born 1 April 1987) is a Chinese professional snooker player. He is the most successful Asian player in the history of the sport. Throughout his career, he has won 15 major ranking titles, including three UK Championships (2005 ...
defeated
Ronnie O'Sullivan Ronald Antonio O'Sullivan (born 5 December 1975) is an English professional snooker player. Widely recognised as one of the most talented and accomplished players in snooker history, he has won the World Snooker Championship seven times, a m ...
by nine to six (9–6) in the final to lift his third ranking title whilst still a teenager. In the semi-finals, Ding defeated Stephen Lee 6–1, and O'Sullivan beat
Dominic Dale Dominic Dale (born Christopher Dale; 29 December 1971) is a Welsh retired professional snooker player, as well as a current snooker commentator, pundit and presenter for BBC Cymru Wales and TNT Sports (United Kingdom), TNT Sports (formerly Eur ...
6–0. O'Sullivan made the highest with his 140. The defending champion,
Matthew Stevens Matthew John Stevens (born 11 September 1977) is a Welsh professional snooker player. He has won two of the game's Triple Crown events, the Masters in 2000 and the UK Championship in 2003. He has also been a two-time runner-up in the other t ...
, lost in round 3. The tournament, consisting of the top 32 and 16 qualifiers, was the first of seven
WPBSA The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) is the governing body of professional snooker and English billiards. It is headquartered in Bristol, England. Founded as the Professional Billiard Players Association (PBPA) in ...
ranking events in the 2006/2007 season, preceding the
Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural ''Grands Prix'') most commonly refers to: * Grand Prix motor racing, a form of motorsport competition ** List of Formula One Grands Prix, an auto-racing championship *** Monaco Grand Prix, the most prestigious ...
.


Tournament summary

The
Northern Ireland Trophy The Northern Ireland Trophy was a professional snooker tournament. History First contested in 1981 and named ''Northern Ireland Classic''. It was an invitational event held at Ulster Hall, Belfast, and Jimmy White beat Steve Davis in the fi ...
was first staged in
2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...
at the
Waterfront Hall Belfast Waterfront is a multi-purpose conference and entertainment centre, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, designed by local architects' firm Robinson McIlwaine. The hall is located in Lanyon Place, the flagship development of the Laganside Corp ...
,
Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
, Northern Ireland, as a non-ranking tournament featuring the top 16 and four wildcards, generally Irish. In the following year, it was granted ranking status and took the form of a regular tournament. The 2006 tournament was the first of seven
World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) is the governing body of professional snooker and English billiards. It is headquartered in Bristol, England. Founded as the Professional Billiard Players Association (PBPA) in ...
(WPBSA) ranking events in the 2006/2007 season, preceding the
Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural ''Grands Prix'') most commonly refers to: * Grand Prix motor racing, a form of motorsport competition ** List of Formula One Grands Prix, an auto-racing championship *** Monaco Grand Prix, the most prestigious ...
, and the first event since last season's
World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...
won by
Graeme Dott Graeme Dott (born 12 May 1977) is a Scottish professional snooker player and snooker coach from Larkhall. He turned professional in 1994 and first entered the top 16 in 2001. He has won two ranking titles, the 2006 World Snooker Championship ...
, who defeated
Peter Ebdon Peter David Ebdon (born 27 August 1970) is an English retired professional snooker player who is a former world champion and current coach. Ebdon won nine ranking titles during his career, placing him in joint 14th position (with John Parrott ...
18–14 in the final. The defending champion was
Matthew Stevens Matthew John Stevens (born 11 September 1977) is a Welsh professional snooker player. He has won two of the game's Triple Crown events, the Masters in 2000 and the UK Championship in 2003. He has also been a two-time runner-up in the other t ...
, who defeated
Stephen Hendry Stephen Gordon Hendry (born 13 January 1969) is a Scottish retired professional snooker player and a current Sports commentator, commentator and pundit. One of the most successful players in snooker history, he turned professional in 1985, ag ...
9–7 in the previous year's final. Going into the tournament,
Joe Swail Joe Swail (born 29 August 1969) is a Northern Irish former professional snooker player from Belfast. He retired in May 2019 after being relegated from the tour. He has reached ten major ranking semi-finals, including the 2000 and 2001 World Cham ...
, provisionally ranked number 13, said he was targeting a place in the top 16; and Dott, the World Champion, said interest in his results would increase, and that he felt capable of winning more tournaments.
Shaun Murphy Shaun Peter Murphy (born 10 August 1982) is an English professional snooker player who won the 2005 World Snooker Championship, 2005 World Championship and has completed the Triple Crown (snooker), Triple Crown. Nicknamed "The Magician", Murp ...
, the 2005 World Champion, said the pressure would be off him in the 2006/2007 season.


Qualifying

The qualifying stage took place between players
ranked A ranking is a relationship between a set of items, often recorded in a list, such that, for any two items, the first is either "ranked higher than", "ranked lower than", or "ranked equal to" the second. In mathematics, this is known as a weak ...
from 33 to 48 and those lower for one of 16 places in the final stage between 29 and 31 July 2006 at Pontin's Snooker Centre,
Prestatyn Prestatyn (; ) is a seaside town and community in Denbighshire, Wales. Historically a part of Flintshire, it is located on the Irish Sea coast, to the east of Rhyl. Prestatyn has a population of 19,085. Origin of name The name Prestatyn d ...
, Wales. The matches were best-of-9 frames until the semi-finals. Successful qualifiers in this round included Northern Irish player
Mark Allen Mark may refer to: In the Bible * Mark the Evangelist (5–68), traditionally ascribed author of the Gospel of Mark * Gospel of Mark, one of the four canonical gospels and one of the three synoptic gospels Currencies * Mark (currency), a currenc ...
, who defeated
Tom Ford Thomas Carlyle Ford (born August 27, 1961) is an American fashion designer and filmmaker. He launched Tom Ford (brand), his eponymous brand in 2005, having previously been the creative director at Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent (brand), Yves Sai ...
5–3, and said the Waterfront—where he made his professional debut last year—was the best venue he had played at.
Gerard Greene Gerard Eamonn Greene (born 12 November 1973 in Chatham, Kent) is a Northern Irish former professional snooker player. He represents Northern Ireland in international events, as his parents are from Belfast. Greene has enjoyed moderate success ...
defeated
Judd Trump Judd Trump (born 20 August 1989) is an English professional snooker player who is a former List of World Snooker Championship winners, world champion and the current List of world number one snooker players, world number one. He is currently in ...
5–2, and
Dominic Dale Dominic Dale (born Christopher Dale; 29 December 1971) is a Welsh retired professional snooker player, as well as a current snooker commentator, pundit and presenter for BBC Cymru Wales and TNT Sports (United Kingdom), TNT Sports (formerly Eur ...
beat Dermot McGlinchey 5–1.
Jimmy White James Warren White (born 2 May 1962) is an English professional snooker player who has won ten ranking events. Nicknamed "The Whirlwind" because of his swift and attacking style of play, White has reached six World Snooker Championship finals ...
, who had slipped from 8th to 35th in the rankings, lost 3–5 to Jimmy Michie, and said he was "match-shy" rather than nervous. Irish players
Joe Delaney Joe Alton Delaney (; October 30, 1958 – June 29, 1983) was an American professional football player who was a running back for two seasons in the National Football League (NFL). In his two seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, Delaney set ...
and
Fergal O'Brien Fergal O'Brien (born 8 March 1972) is an Irish retired professional snooker player who competed on the World Snooker Tour from 1991 to 2024. He won one ranking title during his career, defeating Anthony Hamilton 9–7 in the final of the 1999 ...
lost to
Rod Lawler Rod Lawler (born 12 July 1971) is an English retired professional snooker player. He is noted for his slow playing style which gave rise to his nickname, "Rod the Plod". After turning professional in 1990, Lawler has reached one ranking tourna ...
and
Paul Davies Paul Charles William Davies (born 22 April 1946) is an English physicist, writer and broadcaster, a professor in Arizona State University and director of BEYOND: Center for Fundamental Concepts in Science. He is affiliated with the Institute ...
respectively, both 3–5.


Round 1

In round 1 the 16 qualifiers went through to face players ranked 17–32. Swail lost 1–5 to Greene, who said the crowd was on his opponent's side. Tied at 3–3
Mark Selby Mark Anthony Selby (born 19 June 1983) is an English professional snooker player. Ranked List of world number one snooker players, world number one on multiple occasions, he has won a total of 24 ranking titles, placing him eighth on the all ...
won the seventh frame after
Tony Drago Tony Drago ( ; born 22 September 1965) is a Maltese former professional snooker and pool player. Known for his speed around the table, during his snooker career he won two professional titles: the 1993 Strachan Challenge Event 3 and the 1996 ...
missed a pink, eventually winning the match 5–4.
Jamie Burnett Jamie Burnett (born 16 September 1975) is a Scottish former professional snooker player from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire. A journeyman, Burnett was ranked within the world's top 64 players for 20 consecutive years between 1996 and 2016, reachi ...
made breaks of 117, 77, and 55 in defeating David Gray 5–2. Allen lost 1–5 to Ryan Day, a match in which Day made breaks of 79, 73, 56, and 91, after which Day said, "as soon as I started knocking in some breaks they went a bit quiet", in reference to the crowd. Michael Holt lost 2–5 to Mike Dunn, a player ranked 34 places below him.
James Wattana James Wattana (; born January 17, 1970, as วัฒนา ภู่โอบอ้อม ''Wattana Pu-Ob-Orm'', then renamed รัชพล ภู่โอบอ้อม ''Ratchapol Pu-Ob-Orm'' in 2003) is a Thai former professional snooker pl ...
defeated Michie 5–4 in a match that lasted over three hours. Michie was 1–3 down but went on to lead 4–3 and 30–0 points before he missed a straightforward pot, eventually losing the frame. Michie had the first chance in the next but also lost that frame.
Tian Pengfei Tian Pengfei (; born 16 August 1987) is a Chinese former professional snooker player. He began his career by playing the Challenge Tour in 2004, at the time the second-level professional tour. Tian played on the Main Tour in 2006 and competed o ...
, on his 19th birthday, made breaks of 50, 62, and 115 in defeating
Andy Hicks Andrew Hicks (born 10 August 1973) is an English retired professional snooker player. Nicknamed "The Cream of Devon", Hicks was a semi-finalist at both the World Snooker Championship and UK Championship in 1995, and the same stage at four other ...
.


Final

In the best-of-17 final Ding defeated O'Sullivan to lift his third ranking title whilst still a teenager.


Prize fund

The breakdown of prize money for this year is shown below: * Winner: £30,000 * Final: £15,000 * Semi-final: £7,500 * Quarter-final: £5,600 * Last 16: £4,000 * Last 32: £2,500 * Last 48: £1,625 * Last 64: £1,100 *Stage one highest break: £500 *Stage two highest break: £2,000 *Stage one maximum break: £1,000 *Stage two maximum break: £20,000 *Total: £200,500


Main draw


Qualifying

Qualifying for the tournament took place at
Pontins Pontins is a British company operating holiday parks in the UK, founded in 1946 by Fred Pontin. It was acquired by Britannia Hotels in 2011. Pontins specialises in offering half-board and self-catering holidays featuring entertainment at reso ...
in
Prestatyn Prestatyn (; ) is a seaside town and community in Denbighshire, Wales. Historically a part of Flintshire, it is located on the Irish Sea coast, to the east of Rhyl. Prestatyn has a population of 19,085. Origin of name The name Prestatyn d ...
,
Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
between 29 and 31 July 2006.


Century breaks


Qualifying stage centuries

* 136
Issara Kachaiwong Issara Kachaiwong (; born October 4, 1983, in Chanthaburi, Thailand), is a Thai former professional snooker player. Career Kachaiwong became the Thai national under-20 champion. He won the first edition of the General Cup International, defe ...
* 130 Jimmy Michie * 127
James Leadbetter James Leadbetter (born 23 December 1980) is an English former professional snooker player. Career Leadbetter was born in 1980, and turned professional in 2003. His début season was without any success, and he dropped off the main tour at the ...
* 126, 113
David Roe David Roe (born 11 September 1965) is a former English professional snooker player, and a four-time ranking tournament quarter-finalist. Career Roe was born on 11 September 1965 in Derby. He began his professional career for the 1986–87 sno ...
* 125
Jamie Burnett Jamie Burnett (born 16 September 1975) is a Scottish former professional snooker player from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire. A journeyman, Burnett was ranked within the world's top 64 players for 20 consecutive years between 1996 and 2016, reachi ...
* 123
Alfie Burden Alfred Burden (born 14 December 1976) is an English former professional snooker player from London. He first turned professional in 1994 and reached his highest world ranking of 38th in the 2001–02 and 2002–03 seasons. His best results in ...
* 120
Adrian Gunnell Adrian Gunnell (born 24 August 1972) is an English former professional snooker player from Telford. He reached the last-16 in four world ranking events (three in Asia, in three different seasons, and at the 2008 Grand Prix). While practising ...
* 119, 107
Michael Judge Michael Judge (born 12 June 1975 in Dublin) is a former professional snooker player from Ireland. His best performance in a ranking event came in the 2004 Grand Prix, where he reached the semi-finals, and he reached his highest ranking, 24th, f ...
* 117
Tom Ford Thomas Carlyle Ford (born August 27, 1961) is an American fashion designer and filmmaker. He launched Tom Ford (brand), his eponymous brand in 2005, having previously been the creative director at Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent (brand), Yves Sai ...
* 115
Mark Allen Mark may refer to: In the Bible * Mark the Evangelist (5–68), traditionally ascribed author of the Gospel of Mark * Gospel of Mark, one of the four canonical gospels and one of the three synoptic gospels Currencies * Mark (currency), a currenc ...
* 113, 100 Matthew Couch * 113 Chris Melling * 112
Gerard Greene Gerard Eamonn Greene (born 12 November 1973 in Chatham, Kent) is a Northern Irish former professional snooker player. He represents Northern Ireland in international events, as his parents are from Belfast. Greene has enjoyed moderate success ...
* 112 David Morris * 110 David Gilbert * 103
Dominic Dale Dominic Dale (born Christopher Dale; 29 December 1971) is a Welsh retired professional snooker player, as well as a current snooker commentator, pundit and presenter for BBC Cymru Wales and TNT Sports (United Kingdom), TNT Sports (formerly Eur ...
* 102 Sean Storey * 100
Jamie Cope Jamie Cope (born 12 September 1985) is an English former professional snooker player. A finalist in two ranking tournaments, the 2006 Grand Prix and the 2007 China Open, Cope also reached the semi-finals of the 2011 Masters. He reached his h ...


Televised stage centuries

* 140, 115, 113, 106, 106, 104, 103
Ronnie O'Sullivan Ronald Antonio O'Sullivan (born 5 December 1975) is an English professional snooker player. Widely recognised as one of the most talented and accomplished players in snooker history, he has won the World Snooker Championship seven times, a m ...
* 137, 104, 100
Dominic Dale Dominic Dale (born Christopher Dale; 29 December 1971) is a Welsh retired professional snooker player, as well as a current snooker commentator, pundit and presenter for BBC Cymru Wales and TNT Sports (United Kingdom), TNT Sports (formerly Eur ...
* 131
Stephen Maguire Stephen Maguire (born 13 March 1981) is a Scottish professional snooker player. He has won six major ranking tournaments, including the 2004 UK Championship, and has twice since reached the finals of that event. Maguire turned professional in ...
* 130
Ken Doherty Kenneth Joseph Doherty (born 17 September 1969) is an Irish professional snooker player who also works as a commentator and pundit on televised snooker broadcasts. From Ranelagh in Dublin, he is the sport's only World Snooker Championship, wor ...
* 128
Peter Ebdon Peter David Ebdon (born 27 August 1970) is an English retired professional snooker player who is a former world champion and current coach. Ebdon won nine ranking titles during his career, placing him in joint 14th position (with John Parrott ...
* 122
Michael Judge Michael Judge (born 12 June 1975 in Dublin) is a former professional snooker player from Ireland. His best performance in a ranking event came in the 2004 Grand Prix, where he reached the semi-finals, and he reached his highest ranking, 24th, f ...
* 117
Jamie Burnett Jamie Burnett (born 16 September 1975) is a Scottish former professional snooker player from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire. A journeyman, Burnett was ranked within the world's top 64 players for 20 consecutive years between 1996 and 2016, reachi ...
* 115, 100
Tian Pengfei Tian Pengfei (; born 16 August 1987) is a Chinese former professional snooker player. He began his career by playing the Challenge Tour in 2004, at the time the second-level professional tour. Tian played on the Main Tour in 2006 and competed o ...
* 112, 103
Stephen Hendry Stephen Gordon Hendry (born 13 January 1969) is a Scottish retired professional snooker player and a current Sports commentator, commentator and pundit. One of the most successful players in snooker history, he turned professional in 1985, ag ...
* 111
Neil Robertson Neil Alexander Robertson (born 11 February 1982) is an Australian professional snooker player, who is a former List of World Snooker Championship winners, world champion and former List of world number one snooker players, world number one. He ...
* 109
Graeme Dott Graeme Dott (born 12 May 1977) is a Scottish professional snooker player and snooker coach from Larkhall. He turned professional in 1994 and first entered the top 16 in 2001. He has won two ranking titles, the 2006 World Snooker Championship ...
* 108 Mark Williams * 107
Mark Selby Mark Anthony Selby (born 19 June 1983) is an English professional snooker player. Ranked List of world number one snooker players, world number one on multiple occasions, he has won a total of 24 ranking titles, placing him eighth on the all ...
* 103 Jimmy Michie * 103
Ding Junhui Ding Junhui (; born 1 April 1987) is a Chinese professional snooker player. He is the most successful Asian player in the history of the sport. Throughout his career, he has won 15 major ranking titles, including three UK Championships (2005 ...
* 101 Anthony Hamilton


References


Sources


Draw
. Sporting Life (UK). Retrieved 14 October 2010.
"Northern Ireland Trophy 2006"
Snooker.org. Retrieved 8 October 2010.
"2006 Northern Ireland Trophy Results Grid"
. snookerdatabase.co.uk (Snooker Database). Retrieved 14 October 2010.
"World Rankings 2006/2007"
snooker.org. Retrieved 8 October 2010. {{Snooker season 2006/2007 Northern Ireland Trophy
Northern Ireland Trophy The Northern Ireland Trophy was a professional snooker tournament. History First contested in 1981 and named ''Northern Ireland Classic''. It was an invitational event held at Ulster Hall, Belfast, and Jimmy White beat Steve Davis in the fi ...
Trophy A trophy is a tangible, decorative item used to remind of a specific achievement, serving as recognition or evidence of merit. Trophies are most commonly awarded for sports, sporting events, ranging from youth sports to professional level athlet ...
Northern Ireland Trophy The Northern Ireland Trophy was a professional snooker tournament. History First contested in 1981 and named ''Northern Ireland Classic''. It was an invitational event held at Ulster Hall, Belfast, and Jimmy White beat Steve Davis in the fi ...