Richard Mann blogged live from the UK Championship final where Ronnie O'Sullivan beat Mark Allen - recap the action frame by frame.
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Result: O'Sullivan 10-6 Allen
Thanks for joining me today, I hope you enjoyed the coverage as much as I enjoyed writing it and I hope readers of the Antepost Angle column managed to snap up some of the 4/1 about O'Sullivan when advised a couple of months back.
Until The Masters, goodbye!
What a finish. O'Sullivan and Allen share a warm embrace at the end of an engrossing final but The Rocket had too many guns today.
Allen didn't do a great deal wrong but he came up against an O'Sullivan, particularly this afternoon, in imperious form. At 6-2 down, there was no way back.
A record seven UK Championship titles, 19 Triple Crown wins. Ronnie O'Sullivan is, quite simply, the best.
Ronnie O'Sullivan gracious in victory: "It's amazing, I can't believe it. Mark is an unbelievable player and an unbelievable competitor and if he doesn't win a world title I'll be amazed. I played really well today and even at 9-6 I had to convince myself I'd win, that's how hard the match was. Great to create history and great to break my hero's record, Stephen Hendry."
Mark Allen all class in defeat: "To beat Steve Davis' record of UK titles, to beat Stephen Hendry's record of 19 Triple Crown events, he's [O'Sullivan] something special.
An emotional O'Sullivan showing just how much this great game means to him. What a day, what a tournament, what a winner.
Ronnie O'Sullivan, the greatest.
about him lifting the trophy.
Even after all these years of following snooker, the final Sunday night of Triple Crown event still gets the hairs standing on the back of my neck as the excitement goes into overdrive. Even more so when O'Sullivan is featuring.
I guess that's the Ronnie factor and displays like he produced this afternoon must be enjoyed and appreciated. He wont be around forever and I intend on savouring every last moment of him.
Here's hoping for more of the same tonight.
Antepost Angle readers will also know that I'm waiting on O'Sullivan for a 4/1 winner for the column as well and with Christmas looming every nearer, the wallet could certainly do with the reinforcements.
Don't fail me Ronnie!
Right. The players are back. An electric entrance for both. It is on.
make O'Sullivan their favourite with Allen available at .
Where's your money going?
Frame Two
That will hurt Ronnie. He should have closed that first frame out.
He responds with a glorious long red, though, and is up and running. Can he level up in one visit?
Yikes. O'Sullivan isn't hanging about. 43 and counting already.
Frame safe for O'Sullivan. 93 and counting. A century beckons.
And there it is. He's taken these beautifully.
No clearance but a break of 101 from O'Sullivan levels the scores at 1-1.
Frame One
Allen draws first blood, sinking a cracking long red but he's forced to play safe having failed to land ideally on the black.
O'Sullivan goes in off and gives Allen another chance at a long red. Misses.
Some fine safety by both players.
O'Sullivan in now courtesy of a thumping long red followed by a sublime positional shot from brown to red.
Down goes the black and he looks well set.
29 and out as O'Sullivan misses a simple red to middle.
Allen pounces with a superb red to the green pocket. Can he lay down a marker?
No. A tricky missed black lets O'Sullivan off the hook and he finds an easy red to get started.
Both players look a little edgy, understandably so, and O'Sullivan misses a simple black.
50-20 O'Sullivan but Allen with a decent chance to counter.
Now Allen misses another red and somehow knocks the yellow in the pocket.
Errors galore so far.
O'Sullivan trying his best to tie up the frame here. Allen's safety holding up well.
Allen finds a good snooker and O'Sullivan can't find an escape.
Allen with a great chance to clear.
And he holds his nerve to clear to the pink. 1-0 Allen.
Hello and welcome to Sporting Life's live blog of today's UK Championship snooker final between Ronnie O'Sullivan and Mark Allen at the Barbican Centre in York.
I'm Richard Mann and i'll be guiding you through all of the action from what promises to be a brilliant showpiece between two of the sport's biggest hitters.
For O'Sullivan, today gives him the chance to lift a record seventh UK title having drawn level with the great Steve Davis when beating Shaun Murphy in the final twelve months ago. O'Sullivan currently sits alongside Stephen Hendry on 18 Triple Crown titles and victory would see him surpass his former rival.
As for Allen, he has enjoyed a 2018 to remember already - claiming The Masters back in January and the International Championship last month - and winning today would leave him only step away from completing the famous Triple Crown treble.
While hoping for a cracking final, I must confess that I'm team O'Sullivan today having put up The Rocket in my Antepost Angle column a few weeks back at 4/1. Fingers crossed!
Right, it's almost time.....
Out come the players. O'Sullivan walks out to Oasis - the atmosphere is just electric.
The players shake hands. Smiles, all smiles for now.
Here we go. O'Sullivan to break.
