While Bolton has already played twice since their last meeting with Cheltenham, their opponents are short in competitive practice, having had their planned match against Carlisle United postponed due to a frozen surface at the weekend.
Darrell Clarke’s side were supposed to face Burton Albion on Tuesday evening – a tie from November that had to be rescheduled – but instead, the Robins face another difficult task in Bolton, where they want to build on their good winter performance.
Cheltenham’s most recent completed fixture ended with Clarke’s squad shocking first-placed Portsmouth 2-1 in front of the home fans, due to a Liam Sercombe brace following Tom Bradbury’s own goal, marking the Robins’ third win in five games and also leaving them.
He stated, “Paul was an extraordinary talent. He obviously has star power and transcended the game. Wasn’t he the Beckham of snooker? He was a good-looking boy. He was a good-natured young man who usually smiled.
“He was great at the game, a nice guy with a lovely family. I had a fantastic time and made some good memories with Paul. He will never be forgotten; all the players adored him. He will remain in the hearts of snooker players and everyone who knew him.”
Hunter’s influence on the game cannot be overstated. The iconic waterfront crystal Masters trophy was renamed in Hunter’s memory in 2017. Meanwhile, his titanic encounter against O’Sullivan, in which he rallied from a 6-1 deficit, is widely regarded as one of the best of all time.
The 48-year-old has subsequently claimed that in the mid-noughties, he, Hunter, Mark Williams, Stephen Hendry, John Higgins, and Matthew Stevens represented the pinnacle of snooker. He continued, “I’ve always said that snooker had a golden era when Hendry, Higgins, Williams, Stevens, the great Paul Hunter, and myself were battling it out. “I honestly believe that was the best top six ever.”
