As the clock neared one in the morning, a deathly silence marinaded the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes. After 18 long frames, Judd Trump and Neil Robertson were at nine apiece, with only the pink and black remaining on the table. Trump had potted a nerve-shredding blue into the bottom corner to set up a chance for victory. All he needed to do was knock in a relatively straightforward pink, followed by the black which was waiting, and the UK Championship title would be his.

He drew back, released, as he has done millions of times in his career, but the pink rattled in the jaws of the pocket, cannoning a foot or so up the table. Chance missed, advantage Robertson. The Australian stepped forward and assessed the situation. The pot was far from easy, with the pink close to the right-hand cushion, but Robertson knew he could not shy away now. After all, he needed just the pink to secure his third UK title. 

In it went, as the last ounces of energy left Robertson’s body. This had been a marathon match. Trump flashed a pained congratulatory smile at his opponent. There was no punch of the air, no wild celebrations. As Robertson returned to his chair, he leant back and exhaled. In a sport that requires so little physical exertion, both players looked as though they had boxed for 12 rounds. 

It’s hard to believe it’s been a whole year since those dramatic events, as Trump and Robertson played out one of the most dramatic UK Championship finals of all time. It was a match that see-sawed tantalisingly right up until the very last ball, with no more than a single frame’s difference between the two players throughout the contest. Robertson’s 10-9 win will go down in history as one of snooker’s greatest moments.

Now, the UK Championship is back on our screens, and if this year’s competition offers anything like the drama of last year, we’ll be in for a treat. It’s no surprise that recent Champion of Champions Trump are heavily fancied by those betting on snooker UK Championship, although Robertson has already bowed out of the tournament with a first-round loss to John Astley.

That epic match in 2020 proved that even the best players in the world are not immune to pressure, or to lapses in focus. Trump and Robertson are celebrated as two of the most attacking players in the world, and to watch them play is usually to see a flurry of century breaks and frame-winning contributions, with speed around the table the order of the day. 

That wasn’t the case in Milton Keynes last year. The magnitude of the occasion led both players to play far slower than they would normally, particularly as the match drew towards a close and the pressure ramped up. 

“It was unbelievable,” Robertson reflected. “There was a lot of good stuff, and to use a quote Mark Williams used, it almost got so bad it was so good at one stage, because we were both trying so hard. We don’t want frames to go that length. We like to win frames with big breaks in one visit. Maybe because I lost my last two finals I was trying too hard and brought Judd down a bit. But we are both gladiators out there, even without a crowd.”

The good news is that this year’s UK Championship has returned to its usual home of the Barbican Centre in York, and there will be full crowds for the duration of the event. As the buzz around one of snooker’s most prestigious tournaments reaches fever pitch, and as fans eagerly peruse the UK Championship snooker tips, one can only wonder how special last year’s final would have been had a raucous crowd been in attendance to cheer the players all the way.