2018 World Championship

[vjmehra]

I think the other issue, is that Higgins is damned by the 3 minutes of footage the NOTW edited together, whereas the decision not to press charges was based on the full footage of this meeting, and two previous meetings where Higgins is hooked into thinking he is negotiating a sponsorship deal.

Regardless of the details of that meeting, he's been a pro for 25 years without any suspicion that he has fixed any particular match, so I don't really know why nearly 10 years after being found that he didn't fix any matches people still bang on about it. Lots of times there is smoke without fire, such a shame that phrase is still used to damn someone where there isn't any evidence.

Yes very true, the full video was never made public was it (or at least if it was I haven't seen it)?

[JimMalone]

Ding through to the quarters. He has lost only seven frames so far.

[Mark187187]

I remember seeing the video (without any context) at the time and thinking, wow I can't believe it, he's finished...but then when it all came out his explanation was pretty reasonable. If you were in a room full of people you thought were gangsters would you not agree to whatever they said and just get out of there as quickly as possible?

He probably thought they were genuinely scary people, not a bunch of actors hired to set him up, so its even understandable why he didn't report it (albeit that's the only real criticism you could make, that once home he should have called the WPBSA asap).

Personally I believe he's clean for what its worth.

I think the other issue, is that Higgins is damned by the 3 minutes of footage the NOTW edited together, whereas the decision not to press charges was based on the full footage of this meeting, and two previous meetings where Higgins is hooked into thinking he is negotiating a sponsorship deal.

Regardless of the details of that meeting, he's been a pro for 25 years without any suspicion that he has fixed any particular match, so I don't really know why nearly 10 years after being found that he didn't fix any matches people still bang on about it. Lots of times there is smoke without fire, such a shame that phrase is still used to damn someone where there isn't any evidence.

[Neil Taperell]

I didn't say he was. But the types of people that operate in that kind of environment are hardly going to be angels are they.

Higgins stated the reason he didn't report the matter was because he was worried about the possible repercussions.

That is good enough for me and was good enough for the authorities.

I'm still to be convinced , a very easy get out line though . I suppose we will never know the exact truth .

[JimMalone]

I think this topic has been talked to death already. Whatever people think about this incident I find it dubious to exclude Higgins from being one of the all-time great players.
He has four world titles, 30 ranking titles and has ended a season as world number one on four occasions. Those numbers in the Crucible era are only bettered by Stephen Hendry, Steve Davis and Ronnie O'Sullivan.

[vjmehra]

I think Higgins said at the time that he didn't feel comfortable with the situation, and just said what he thought would get him out the room the quickest. He's always seemed like a good guy to me, and he was cleared of any wrong doing, so what's the problem?

I remember seeing the video (without any context) at the time and thinking, wow I can't believe it, he's finished...but then when it all came out his explanation was pretty reasonable. If you were in a room full of people you thought were gangsters would you not agree to whatever they said and just get out of there as quickly as possible?

He probably thought they were genuinely scary people, not a bunch of actors hired to set him up, so its even understandable why he didn't report it (albeit that's the only real criticism you could make, that once home he should have called the WPBSA asap).

Personally I believe he's clean for what its worth.

[Mark187187]

I think Higgins said at the time that he didn't feel comfortable with the situation, and just said what he thought would get him out the room the quickest. He's always seemed like a good guy to me, and he was cleared of any wrong doing, so what's the problem?

[gavpowell]

Doesn't he agree to do it on the videotape?

In principle, but the matches in question didn't exist, and were only going to be poxy World Snooker Series events anyway.

[mcsilks]

Was he ever threatened ?

I didn't say he was. But the types of people that operate in that kind of environment are hardly going to be angels are they.

Higgins stated the reason he didn't report the matter was because he was worried about the possible repercussions.

That is good enough for me and was good enough for the authorities.

[Neil Taperell]

Higgins was cleared of match fixing. You can argue with that all you like, but they are the facts. He was cleared.

The only thing Higgins was guilty of was bringing the game into disrepute by not reporting the whole sorry affair to the snooker authorities.

I don't blame Higgins at all.

If you were offered money by a bunch of thugs, would you report it and risk the possible repercussions to both you and your family?

Higgins is what he is. A legend of the game and certainly one of the few absolute greats.

Was he ever threatened ?

[Stony152]

Exactly, he was cleared.

Being cleared of something doesn't 100% mean you didn't do it. Many guilty people have been cleared of wrongdoing for various reasons.

Doesn't he agree to do it on the videotape? I realize that it's not the same as actually following through, but it looks pretty bad.

I remember reading about cases of Russian hockey and tennis players who have been in situations where they genuinely feared for their lives when "asked" to fix a match and refusing to do so. It's a very difficult and dangerous situation to be in. Some players choose to do it rather than risking something happening to themselves or their family.

[gavpowell]

To me, Higgins is still a match fixer, definitely not an all time great

Well I can't help that you're gullible enough to believe a criminal liar working for other criminal liars rather than the evidence itself, but Higgins' ability is all-time-great level. Look at Hendry's performances past 35 and then look at Higgins - he's lost half a step but is still able to beat all comers and win tournaments.

[Dark]

Higgins was cleared of match fixing. You can argue with that all you like, but they are the facts. He was cleared.

The only thing Higgins was guilty of was bringing the game into disrepute by not reporting the whole sorry affair to the snooker authorities.

I don't blame Higgins at all.

If you were offered money by a bunch of thugs, would you report it and risk the possible repercussions to both you and your family?

Higgins is what he is. A legend of the game and certainly one of the few absolute greats.

Exactly, he was cleared.

[Dark]

Maybe I'm naive, but I don't think he was really all that much to blame in what happened. Unless he'a liar, what happened is he was caught in a situation that his manager arranged and he felt that he would be in danger if he didn't agree to what was being proposed.

I guess we all have a choice to make. Believe him or not. I choose to believe him, but even then I think it tarnishes his reputation a bit. Probably more than Bingham, who it seems has been forgiven by most people. I don't think anybody really knows the full truth other than Higgins, his manager and the other people who were there. It's too bad, because overall he seems to be a nice guy.

I don't think Higgins is a match fixer, but even if he was guilty then it does not stop him being one of the greatest snooker players.

[mcsilks]

Higgins was cleared of match fixing. You can argue with that all you like, but they are the facts. He was cleared.

The only thing Higgins was guilty of was bringing the game into disrepute by not reporting the whole sorry affair to the snooker authorities.

I don't blame Higgins at all.

If you were offered money by a bunch of thugs, would you report it and risk the possible repercussions to both you and your family?

Higgins is what he is. A legend of the game and certainly one of the few absolute greats.