Matt's Ray of hope.

May 2005

World No 4 Matthew Stevens is still reeling from the heartbreak of missing out on snooker's biggest accolade - by just two frames - to rank outsider Shaun Murphy.

It's the second time the Carmarthen cueman Stevens has suffered the pain of defeat in a Crucible final, having lost to fellow countryman Mark Williams in 2001. Add to that a couple of semi-final exits, and Matthew Stevens is in danger of earning the kind of perennial bridesmaid tag long since handed to Jimmy White.

So enter Reardon, a legend of the game, a Welshman, of course, and the man attributed with harnessing the best of troubled genius Ronnie O'Sullivan.

Although Reardon has been challenged by 'The Rocket's' complex state of mind, he has nonetheless earned himself a reputation as a real guru in the game - a guiding light. Now he's willing to offer his guidance to Matthew Stevens.

"He knows where I am, I'll be glad to help if he wants some assistance",- said Reardon, a world champion no fewer than six times.

"He missed a lot of shots he would have otherwise potted. In fairness Shaun Murphy did too but that's what pressure does to you... Being the more experienced player I thought he'd deal with the pressure better and I thought he was going to do it but he obviously under-estimated his opponent a little bit".

"I commiserate with Matthew. He's one of a number of players who've been struggling with their form over the last couple of years but, to be fair, he's picked up of late and reached the final of the Irish Masters and now the World Championships...So he hasn't had a bad season but nevertheless he'll still be a little disappointed. I think he needs to reassess his game a little to try and find out what is going wrong, where it's going wrong and what he can do about it".

"Some people have said that Matthew Stevens didn't lose it, Shaun Murphy won it. I don't know, though. I'd say it's the other way around. They're both attacking players and they're quite fearless in the way they go about things; they don't mess about and try to pot all the balls in one go".

"Matthew 's a lovely player but if I was him I'd look at myself and my all-round game; look at my game in minute detail to try and stop me losing so many frames. If I was him I'd watch last week's final over and over again. It'll be painful but he needs to see where he can improve. I'm not going to criticise his game but if he wants my advice, and who's to say he does, then he can get in touch with me".

Ironically, Reardon played a small part in Stevens' downfall - the 72-year-old snooker legend endorsed the cue used by Murphy.

"But it definitely wasn't one of my old cues, - said Reardon. - That rumour's incorrect. I've only ever used two and they are still here in my house, I never let them out of my sight!"

Meanwhile Reardon believes Murphy, a 22-year-old Yorkshireman, has the mental toughness to build on his famous win. "He's the only player since Terry in '79 to come right through the qualifying stage, - added Reardon. - But it's harder now as there's a lot more quality players".

Based on the BBC Snooker materials