Shaun Murphy says snooker’s future is bright, defending the game’s decision-makers amid criticism from high profile players.
The recent birth of the independent Professional Snooker Players Association (PSPA) brought into focus the fact that top stars want changes in the sport.
Judd Trump and Mark Selby have spoken out about playing conditions and some venues on the professional tour not being up to scratch, in their eyes.
PSPA director Ben Rees also explained a string of issues they hope to address, involving player welfare, travel and prize money.
Murphy is on the players board of the PSPA, so hopes to be part of bringing about some changes, but has praised World Snooker Tour for their efforts to listen to feedback of late.
‘I think the tour should always be looking to increase their standards and do things better,’ Murphy told Metro. ‘I think they’re to be praised recently because they’ve started liaising with the players a lot more.
‘Every tournament now there’s a feedback form sent to everybody. Every player gets that opportunity to put their words down on paper and put their money where their mouth is, so to speak.
‘I don’ think there’s a massive turnout from the players, but they certainly can no longer say they don’t have the opportunity to contribute to a better tour.
‘In fairness, I think World Snooker Tour are trying their best to make the tournaments as good as they can.’
Mark Allen has voiced his frustrations with the lack of progress from the PSPA since its arrival on the scene in August and Murphy agrees that it has been a slow start, but it remains a positive step in the right direction.
‘It’s been very quiet. I’m sure that the guys that are running it are doing things in the background. Bodies like that don’t form overnight,’ he said.
‘I think it’s taking a while to get going. The conversations that I’ve been part of, it’s not through a lack of want or desire. John [Higgins] is doing a great job of leading it and I think the whole idea of trying to bring all the players together under one roof in an independent fashion – which of course WPBSA Players cannot be independent of WPBSA and subsequently WST – bringing the players under an independent canopy can only be good.
‘Bringing the other parties to the negotiating table somewhere down the line. But as I said, in fairness to WST, there have been steps recently where they’ve come to the players a lot more and asked them for feedback.
‘We’ve had it after every event almost this season. So players are having their opportunity to make their voice heard. We just need more of them to shout a bit louder.’
On the issues raised by other players on conditions and venues, Murphy said that problems arise as snooker is played in places not build with snooker in mind.
He also feels that the tour is in a very healthy place, but comparisons, possibly unrealistic comparisons, with other sports create frustration among players.
‘I think one of our biggest problems as a sport is that we don’t have venues that are our own,’ he said. ‘None of the venues we use are purpose-built for us. So we always have to compromise with something, be it hospitality space, size of arena, how many tickets can a player have, security, car parks, whatever it might be.
‘I think we’re one of the few sports that don’t have purpose-built venues. I think because of that, we’re always having to rob Peter to pay Paul a little bit.
‘It’d be easy to read the press and think the game’s in a state, but it’s not.
‘I think a lot of us are lucky to attend other events in other sports and we’ve been lucky to be invited to…In Hong Kong, some of us went to the LIV Golf event and a few of us have been invited to different things.
‘It’s natural to compare, isn’t it? It’s natural to compare what they have and what we have and all the rest of it. I think the future is bright.’