Alan McManus, Australia & Cuestars Academy
A CUESTARS sponsor from down under reckons the Cuestars Snooker Academy is the “gold standard” of training programmes.
Hugh Grant was so impressed that he contacted Alan McManus, who featured it on The Snooker Breakfast Podcast in an episode entitled Shenzhen Surprise & The Usual Suspects.
Hugh, who moved from Scotland to Australia in 1994, has signed up to sponsor two more tournaments this season.
Writing from his home in Brisbane, he told custars.co.uk: “My primary reason for sponsoring Cuestars is to express, in some small way, my gratitude for everything that John Hunter has done, and continues to do, for grassroots snooker and the broader snooker community.”
Hugh has experimented with many snooker training and development programmes over the past six years and accepts that each has its merits.
But he insisted: “The Cuestars Snooker Academy represents the gold standard. It has provided the framework for virtually all of my snooker practice over the past two years.
“I have found the Cuestars Snooker Academy to be invaluable in my own development as a player, albeit a fairly ordinary one”
Explaining his reasoning, Hugh added: “One of the most common mistakes made by developing snooker players is attempting practice routines that are beyond their current level of ability.
“Many training programmes make numerous drills available, but provide little guidance as to which drills are most appropriate for a player’s current standard.
“As a result, players can easily find themselves practising routines that are too difficult, achieving limited success, becoming frustrated, and ultimately making inefficient use of valuable practice time.”
Hugh highlights the fact that the Academy provides a clear and structured pathway that requires players to demonstrate competence at one level before moving on to the next. This encourages a disciplined and methodical approach to improvement, ensuring that fundamental skills are mastered before more advanced challenges are attempted.
Another aspect that he finds valuable is the way it prepares players for competitive snooker. Many of its practice routines focus on shots and situations that regularly arise in competitive matches.
He said: “In my experience, regularly practising these scenarios and demonstrating competence under the pressure of formal Cuestars ‘level assessments’ helps bridge the gap between practice and competition. It also builds the confidence needed to execute those shots when they matter most.”
Turning his thoughts to Cuestars director John Hunter, who created and developed the Academy, Hugh said: “I also greatly admire John’s selfless dedication to the sport, including the countless hours he has devoted to developing and running grassroots tournaments and wider player development activities.
“John is one of snooker’s unsung heroes and he deserves far greater recognition for his tireless efforts in developing and nurturing current and future generations of snooker players.”
Picture, from left: Ken Doherty, Hugh Grant, Stan Moody, John Higgins.