SNOOKER: Hendry quick off the mark

SNOOKER

Hendry quick off the mark

The new season started as the last one ended - with Stephen Hendry beating Mark Williams, writes Clive Everton. Hendry beat the Welshman 18-11 to win his seventh world title in May; yesterday he beat him 4-2 in the new Liverpool Victoria Champions' Cup in Croydon. There has been no close season for snooker politics. Following the recent dismissal of Peter Middleton, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association chief executive, an EGM to remove the chairman Rex Williams and his ally Bob Close was initiated by three members of the seven-man board - Steve Davis, Dennis Taylor and Jason Ferguson. But the WPBSA board last week voted 3-2 to sack the three. A release said they no longer trusted them "to act in the best interests of the Association and the game as a whole". Taylor has started libel proceedings.