The game giving women a break – but could it be bigger?

Gender equality isn’t snooker loopy just yet, but it’s far from a shot to nothing

Next month sees the start of the FIFA Women’s World Cup, whilst the corresponding Ashes series is already underway, but it’s perhaps something of an understatement to say some hard yards need to be made where football and cricket are concerned (try acres instead). So who is leading the way in female elite sport at this moment? Snooker, the floor is yours.

With last year’s resurrection of the World Matchplay Doubles capturing the imagination, it seems the game is – to coin a staid commentary phrase – in prime position to capitalise on all its good work. That’s not to say that it doesn’t have plenty of hard yards of its own still to put in.

Next year in Manchester, the top four girls and boys will pair up to do battle once more. This, as well as a whole swathe of events, has left the Head of Media for the World Snooker Tour, Ivan Herschowicz,”encouraged” by what’s to come. “The WPBSA have taken it (the women’s game) under their wing, and it’s amazing to see how it’s taken off,” he says. “Snooker’s all about inclusivity. It’s one of the few elite sports where men and women can compete on an even footing.”

That almost makes the job sound easy, but when you’re going global it’s anything but, so the fact there’s tournaments in Australia, the U.S., Thailand and Europe speaks volumes for how important that wing has been. There are currently four females on the main tour, due to the World Champion and second seed player both automatically being granted a two-year tour card. The awesome foursome – Reeane Evans, Mink Nutcharut, Rebecca Kenna and current champ Baipat Siripaporn – are, as Ivan puts it, “the role models encouraging young women and girls to pick up a cue”.

Because no matter how much things have progressed, everyone needs to start somewhere. There are still unimaginable swathes of the female population who aren’t exactly snooker loopy, something best observed at grassroots level. Brian Rinkert, manager of Grantham Billiard Club, believes the game still suffers from an image problem. “There needs to be more exposure and more to entice the ladies in,” he says. “The reputation of dusty old back-alley clubs is a stereotype that needs to be broken.” Brian’s also adamant it shouldn’t be too hard to do, and from there the sky could well be the limit. “It’s cheap entertainment compared to, say, tenpin bowling, and if you can get people like Ronnie O’Sullivan involved – promotion from the top – you’d be well on the way.

“The more women they see on TV, the more they’ll think ‘I can do that’, and the exposure for the first female world champion would be immense. She’ll be a very rich lady.” Garry Baldry, who runs Sheffield’s Star Snooker Academy, is honest and optimistic in his assessment. With several female players currently under his tutelage in the heart of Crucible city, he’s also ideally placed to judge how close we are to seeing that inaugural, all-conquering female world champion. “The women’s game is in a good place with some very talented players getting the chance on the main professional tour,” he says. “I think they’ll win some matches against the lower ranked players, which is where they are at the moment, but I can’t see them winning against the big boys. They’re definitely on the right track though.”

It would seem that women’s snooker, amongst its sporting counterparts, is in comparatively rude health. When you consider that Grantham Billiard Club itself didn’t even allow women through its doors until 1992, you appreciate how things have progressed in such a short space of time. It was far from the last to do so, and even then the original committee vote had to be overturned that year. So it would be fair to say there’s been some catching up to do on and off the green baize, but such attitudes have long gone the way of the dodo.

Yet complacency when you’re on the cusp of greatness can prove a fatal blow, especially when some of the foundations are yet to be cemented. Undoubtedly though, snooker is in the best possible hands with the world starting to sit up and take notice.