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Q. This is your first final and the start to many more but which one do you desire the most?
The World Championships at the Crucible, not only because it's the pinnacle of our sport, but I live about 10 minutes away from the Crucible.
Q. Is there any player that you have not over seen a match with that you would like to?
I think i've reffed every player on the main tour at present, but the player I have never reffed that I would have loved to have done, was Paul Hunter.
Q. What is your greatest fear when refereeing a match?
Probably trying to spot the pink and dropping it in the pack of reds scattering them everywhere.
Q. When you are in Sheffield it must be more relaxing for you knowing that you can go home to your own bed and not staying in another hotel with the rest of the World Snooker crew?
It's good to go home everynight and spend time with my wife and kids, but to be honest I would prefer to stay in the hotel with the other refs because it's easier to concentrate on the tournament and not get distracted by things at home.
Q. How did you get into refereeing to start with?
A friend of mine passed his class 3 exam(which is the first referees exam) about 9 years ago, I decided to do the exam myself and my refereeing career snowballed from then.
Q. Do you referee for your local league in Sheffield at all?
Not as much as I would like, but I do as many as I can time permitting.
Q. Do you have any preparations before a game that you stick to religiously?
Not really, once i've set the table up before a game and seen both my players, I tend to sit in the tournament office and have a coffee.
Q. When did you find out that you were to be the referee for the final of the totesport.com Welsh Open?
About 5 days before I went to Newport,
Q. Members on TSF post up questions about the rules all the time and a little birdy tells me that you and your fellow referees often discuss these questions while at competitions, can you tell me what has been the most complicated question to answer form the forum?
There are some very good questions posted on your site, but off the top of my head I can't think of any to mention. Give me a few days and i'll get back to you on this one.
Q. If you had a chance to work with a past referee who would it be and why?
I don't have a reason but probably John Street.
Q. If you could pick one match from this season to of overseen which one would it of been?
Ronnie O'Sullivan v Mark Williams in the Masters 2 weeks ago. That was a great game.
Q. Do you have a player which you enjoy overseeing than any other?
No, I don't have any favourites
Q. Do you think (like in Rugby/Cricket) that a "2 nd eye" could be used when replacing balls after a failed snooker attempt would be good/useful?
We have a system where we have a DVD replay machine that we use when replacing balls. The scorer buts the image up on the screen and between the ref and scorer we usually get them back pretty close.
Q. Do you have any tips for people trying to be a professional referee?
Referee as many local club games as possible, this is a great way to gain experience and a good way to learn from your mistakes. This is where I ironed out all the kinks I had to start with.
Q. Is there a rule that you would change or one that you would add?
No, I love the game as it is.
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