‘I halted crime in Dublin by successful Crucible crown and acquired open-top bus tour’
A few select snooker stars can claim to have stopped a nation during their careers.
Dennis Taylor and Steve Davis in their epic 1985 World Championship final and Ronnie O’Sullivan spring to mind. But just one can say they have halted crime in a major city. Step forward Ken Doherty, whose appearance in the 1997 final saw Dublin literally grind to a halt for a few hours.
At the time, access to the tournament wasn’t readily available across Ireland unless viewers had access to the BBC. But such was the interest in Doherty’s progress, national broadcaster RTE picked up the final session against the all-conquering player of the era, Stephen Hendry.
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Against the odds, Doherty prevailed 18-12 and a nation rejoiced. He was welcomed home from Sheffield like a World Cup-winning football team or an Olympic champion with an open-top bus tour. It was then that the impact of his victory truly sunk in for Doherty, who had idolised Alex Higgins in his youth.
“When I came home, there was an open-top bus tour through the city centre and a reception at the Mansion House,” recalls Doherty in an interview with Daily Star Sport. “The lord mayor presented me with a cut-glass trophy, there were huge crowds outside, people lining the streets with flags and banners saying ‘welcome home champ’.
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(Image: PA)
“The chief of police was in there and he told me that on the Monday night, during that final session, they didn’t have one phone call into the central police station for three hours. Normally, they’d get a phone call every five minutes. He said, ‘you should be on television more often, you stop crime in the city!’
“Those type of homecomings are only granted to Olympic champions or the national football team, so I was quite honoured and humbled by it. I didn’t think it would have such an impact on the country. It was wonderful, what dreams are made of.”
(Image: Getty Images)
In the days of far fewer tournaments, Doherty’s focus finally returned to snooker and he made a good fist at defending his trophy in 1998, reaching the final, only to lose pal Higgins.
“I had such a great year with the cup before I went back to Sheffield,” he adds. “I’d not had a great time on the table, I was probably too busy enjoying myself!
(Image: Getty Images)
“But I got all the way to the final and I just missed out to John Higgins. After having all the adulation like the open-top bus the year before, after losing just one match, I came back to Dublin airport and had to get a taxi home!
“That shows you the difference between winning and being runner-up. But I had a wonderful time as champion and no matter where I go, people remember when I won it. It was something I dreamed of as an eight-year-old when I first saw Higgins play and got a snooker table from Santa.”
