‘I’m just trying to survive at the minute’ – Allen suggests career might be over
Video credit: TNT Sports
After losing 4-2 to Brown in Belfast, TNT Sports presenter Rachel Casey asked Allen how he was.
“Not good if I’m honest, really overwhelmed,” Allen said. “I’m in a bad place at the minute, so even just to go out there and try was tough.
“I think if I wasn’t playing Jordan, I wouldn’t have come back. I felt like if I was going to play one last time, playing here at the Waterfront, where it all started in 2005, against one of my best mates, I thought that was a better way to sign out.”
Asked by Casey if he is genuinely thinking of signing out, Allen said: “Yes. I just don’t see a future with snooker in it if I’m honest. It’s sad to say because it’s all I’ve loved to do since I was 12.
“The last few months have been really difficult and it’s sort of put snooker into perspective for me. I’ve been flooded with support, but the problems are within.
“At the minute, I’m just trying to survive.”
Allen’s last match before his meeting with Brown in Belfast was against Wu Yize in a World Championship semi-final at the Crucible that he lost 17-16.
He has since pulled out of a number of tournaments this season, citing personal reasons, before deciding to make a return this week in his home country.
In a later interview with the BBC, Allen said: “I just felt like I didn’t want my last match to be remembered for that semi-final in Sheffield. I thought [this] would be a more fitting end if I do call it a day.”
Speaking to TNT Sports after his victory, Brown spoke about what a difficult afternoon it had been for him.
“That was easily the hardest match I’ve ever had to deal with,” Brown said. “It just shows there some more important things to life than snooker.
“Even though Mark is going through it, I feel like I’m going through it with him. We’re all behind him, first and foremost. It’s great to see Mark back playing.
“I’m trying to get myself together here, but it’s hard. It’s hard to see him like that. You could just tell he was anxious about today.
“I don’t even know what to say, I’m lost for words. I’ve missed him, I love him, just a great guy through and through.
“But as hard as it was, I still had to concentrate on what I had to do today. In a selfish way, I had to block all the distractions out.
“I’m not going through the easiest of times myself. I’m trying to fight tour survival and trying to get my game together, and that’s what I had to focus on today as hard as it was.
“I never want to go through something like that again.”
Allen’s stellar career has seen him land a number of major titles, including the Masters in 2018 and UK Championship in 2022.
His last tournament success came at last season’s English Open in Brentwood, where he beat Zhou Yuelong 9-8 in the final.
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