Steve Davis Looks Back at His Legendary Snooker Career | Ronnie O'Sullivan Show | Eurosport Snooker

[@danieldunkley6671]

Steve “ interesting “ Davis is now ironically genuinely interesting. Very raw and honest well done Steve

[@flucazade]

well they don't call him Steve for nothing

[@rogerbanana5670]

Been thinking that for years!

[@liamwalters5029]

That was always the joke to me he was interesting but played up to the boring bit

[@manephewlenny6401]

adversity sometimes brings the best out in people, his image started change after the 1985 final. i think barry hearn stopped the routine beatings around that time too@@liamwalters5029

[@Tommo77ful]

Davis is a legend. Showed how to play the game for so long, until the guys he'd influenced came and took over from him. Just an all-round top bloke.

[@EannaButler]

Mr. Davis could well be my favourite person in the world if I'm honest! :-) He's the amalgam of all my favourite things - snooker and music. Check his band, The Utopia Strong! And such a clear-minded, open and honest man to boot. Fantastic interview Ronnie!

[@thekitchenpoet]

Steve Davis is and always will be total class.

[@tonynaccarato4751]

Steve is a great human being, great snooker champion, Ronnie great all around.

[@johnkitchen4699]

What a fantastically honest interview by Steve Davis and cracking interviewing by Ronnie.

[@johnmccaughey2722]

Hes very honest and maybe too harsh on himself.

[@bartonbank2531]

Ronnie is as wooden as they come, just stick to playing snooker. It's what he was born to do

[@respectedgentleman4322]

@@bartonbank2531 I quite liked it, at least he gave his guest time to talk. Unlike so-called professional interviewers who seem to think they are the star attraction.

[@FoxyFreddie]

One of the best sports interviews I've ever seen. Kudos to both

[@tomg3833]

Have to say that Ronnie is a great interviewer. IMO he should be playing and winning every tournament, presenting the TV coverage, providing the punditry and running the entire sport. He keeps the sport alive.

[@sj460162]

Totally agree. Now Davis has dissapeared into the cue and slippers ranks Ronnie is my new top man.

[@SMC01ful]

@@sj460162 Same here, love to meet O'Sullivan and have a natter. He seems like a truly decent human being.

[@alexblackburn5489]

Very interesting how Steve reveals how much of a confidence player he was. When he believed he was better than someone, he could beat them ruthlessly. As soon as someone came along who he believed was truly better than him, he crumbled. It shows the huge psychological aspect to snooker which makes it so intriguing as a sport.

[@drewlovelyhell4892]

I was thinking the same thing. It's a battle of wills.

[@Isleofskye]

Very Interesting indeed Alex . "Confidence" is a massive factor in most things, as you know....

[@Eat-MyGoal]

'As soon as someone came along who he believed was truly better than him, he crumbled'... That's not what happened though. Not 'as soon as' Hendry came along. Davis regularly hammered Hendry in the Scot's early years as a pro - there was a famous Davis vs Hendry exhibition tour billed as old vs new which Steve dominated utterly. It was a gradual process as the gap in performance closed, before Hendry took his game to a level Steve could not match. All of this lead to a moment of realisation his domination of the game was now merely a part of the game's history, followed by years of trying to swim against the tide. He didn't just crumble FFS...

[@castleanthrax1833]

@EatMyGoal, the Hendry he "crumbled" to was a different Hendry that first came onto the scene. As soon as Hendry started dominating, that's the point in time that Davis crumbled.

[@xedasxedas]

@@castleanthrax1833 how soon it really starts to be mashed potatos and no longer potatos?

[@misterc5783]

Steve’s reflections on this time are great to listen to. Honest and open. Sounds like a difficult spell after hendry came along and having watched it all, it was.

[@billybhoy32]

He is quite good to listen to about the game.

[@george474747]

Ironically, when Spitting Image chose to create Steve "Interesting" Davis, they based it on a particularly charismatic, humourous and engaging man. Loved him on TTIAO. (At least) equally though, Ronnie O'Sullivan is an exceptionally brilliant interviewer: a great listener, completely unpretentious, and so refreshingly sincere.

[@uthmaanpacsa7259]

Greatest snooker player of all time was John Virgo!

[@caffreys1979]

@@uthmaanpacsa7259 Loool uthmaan 😅

[@johnmccaughey2722]

Great interview and insight into how it felt to lose his status as the greatest player in snooker.

[@colmward5489]

Davis is a real sincere honest person who doesn’t take himself too seriously an interview I really enjoyed listening to

[@jameswilson8642]

As a Scot, I used to have a loathing for Steve Davis in the 80s. I think it was his style of play, and especially the overt "Londoner" image he was given by Hearn ("Snooker Loopy" should be declared a crime against humanity). Then one day he was signing pictures in a Branch of Boots in Glasgow, and I took my cue along. The store was charging for the pictures and he was sitting there with an awe struck crowd just looking on at him while he was sitting bemused. I decided to chance it and walked up to ask him to autograph my cue case. What transpired from that turned me into a huge fan of his, and showed me that a World champion can still be a bloody gentleman and total nice guy. In the space of five minutes, he changed from being someone I disliked to someone I respected as a player and a human being.

[@pauljohnbodie5631]

Snooker Loopy's a masterpiece.

[@jameswilson8642]

@@pauljohnbodie5631 Okay I concede. I believe Paul McCartney is still receiving royalties for him writing the lines "Snooker loopy nuts are we. Me and him and him and me". McCartney claims to this day that those words have more meaning than the entire lyrics of "Hey Jude".

[@pauljohnbodie5631]

@@jameswilson8642 The bold James.

[@nacnud_]

If you let your birth place define you, or define your prejudices, then there are larger issues going on. I'm glad that some real world experience broke that down for you. The only way is up, right? Fair play to you.

[@leftmono1016]

@@pauljohnbodie5631 - agreed, Willie Thorne’s verse is comedy gold.

[@Kekuahiwi]

I so appreciate the honesty and self-reflection of snooker players. The humility of Steve Davis and Stephen Hendry in their commentating and self assessments is all the greater for the competitive spirit that drove them to excel and be champions.

[@beatriceblake5201]

Hendry isn't just massively knowledgeable about snooker, he's got a properly dry sense of humour.

[@CalumnMcAulay]

You have to admire Steve's honesty here. Straight to the point and respectful in doing so.

[@enkaan1676]

It took a good few beatings before he became so honest . He used hate everyone.

[@jassonsw]

Back in the day I used to be a big Alex Higgins fan and thought Steve was the most boring, unemotional player but as time has gone on and he's opened up you can see Steve was a seriously steely competitor and a real gentleman to boot. He just didn't drink 20 vodkas per match and have an "entertaining" social life. Maybe that's why he's still looking so good and still winning on the senior circuit.

[@gulfstream7235]

Absolutely agree. Thought he was as dull as dish water back in the 80's until seeing him being interviewed years later. A great player and great bloke.

[@stuartburns8657]

Yes, I think the media did him a great disservice, and let's be honest, when a person is so dominant in any sport it builds an odd kind of resentment.

[@ayubmatadar1136]

Sir I couldn’t agree with you no more.

[@castleanthrax1833]

I always thought Steve had a very "dry" sense of humour. It wasn't often on display bc he was concentrating so much on his game, but when it came out, I thought he was hilarious.

[@opencurtin]

I personally think Steve Davis was one of the finest cuest ever and his stance on the table was really a classic stance he just was a very special player in a very special era of snooker .

[@krishnan-resurrection714]

the only era of snooker ... because it is now finished !!! 😉

[@jonjosenna5581]

Loved this interview Two great Champs being humble and honest. Class.

[@martynkellett]

What a lovely man. I recently watched his games at the Mosconi Cup, you can see the charisma and love from the crowd. The man is an absolute national treasure.

[@jonsaddler3067]

Great interview 2 of the 5 historical legends of snooker the others being Joe Davis, Ray Reardon and Stephen Hendry

[@louiem2]

Great interview! You can always feel the admiration from Ronnie whenever he speaks to Steve. He always seems fascinated by his mindset and the way he was always seemingly able to robotically defeat opponents.

[@ilovetattoos9682]

A very humble and honest man he was a wining machine in the 80s

[@R-Tap]

A hero of my childhood and a legend today. Love Steve.

[@kulh1962]

Davis might not be seen as the best player of all time, but when you take into account what he did and gave to ALL subsequent players, he IS the most significant player ever.

[@SCFMH]

The most significant player ever was Joe Davis: fifteen world championships, negotiated contracts for snooker on the telly, first maximum break, retired undefeated, collapsed and died while watching his younger brother play in the world snooker championship in 1978.

[@kulh1962]

@@SCFMH not for me. He played in a time where he made the game better but not technically. SD redeveloped the stance, cue action, grip, professionalism, raised the status, first millionaire, first 147 on tv, first century of centuries, and every single player after him copied his new style until it became the new way to play. His stance and technique are now ubiquitous with the game

[@simonclarke8098]

@@kulh1962 One could argue it was actually Alex Higgins, but I'd agree Steve Davis revolutionised the sport. Him and then Hendry changed the game so to speak. Ronnie has done nothing of the sort. And pre Steve Davis, it was basically a rich mans sport.

[@acropolisnow9466]

@@simonclarke8098 Actually O'Sullivan has the quickest 147 in TV history.

[@kulh1962]

@@TheGreatPerahia by that logic we'd have to wait until the end of time to find out lol

[@peterelmer9114]

A very good interview; Steve Davis comes across as a proper and fair professional. I think he bridged the gap between the old school and the new.

[@thelimey351]

Steve is very honest about his career, he's a top bloke. I sometimes think that the reason Ronnie has lasted so long is because he can vent and then switch off for a bit, that means he isn't totally dominant for years but it works for him in terms of longevity - that is not in Steve's nature.

[@olivergrumitt2601]

Steve Davis will always be remembered not only for the great player and champion he was but he has also been a great ambassador for snooker and a wonderful gentleman. I only wish all sportsmen could behave and represent their sports as he did and still does. His days of glory are long over but certainly his place in the history of snooker will always be secure.

[@baz810]

Absolutely loved this interview. I don't think Steve could have been anymore honest if he tried and I think it was the fact that Ronnie interviewed him that he opened up so much. There's so much respect between these two. Davis may not have been as good as Hendry as even he admits, but the irony is, Hendry ending Davis' reign as the king of snooker made Davis lovable. He wasn't hated anymore for winning everything. Hendry went on to do that but he'll never have the affection that the public ended up having for Steve.

[@BeasleyStreet]

A national treasure...not just a great of the game, a great man, and there's a difference .

[@Alpinatom]

Good to see Ronnie showing Davis that respect. Two of the games greats. Great interview. Need more of this Ron 👍

[@huepix]

what a champion. has nothing more to prove. he was the greatest of his time, and at his best, as good as, if not better, than anyone who ever played. And he kindled a world wide resurgence of players and fans.

[@Jonusthedj]

Just what a conversation. I remember having Steve Davis Snooker on my Amstrad.

[@foadiron]

I played it on the Spectrum. It was a great game to play with your mates.

[@RB747domme]

I might be showing my ignorance here (I grew up in the States before emigrating to the UK in the late 80s), but what is an amstradd? A type of TV? We didn't have that brand in the US.

[@Jonusthedj]

It's an old computer. Google it.

[@tonythemadbrit9479]

Good for both of them. No ego, lots of honesty, and a great interview.

[@brianlev-ari1222]

Great interview and great to see the respect between them, Not many people give such an honest interview like Davis I really like it & make him bigger in my view, very appreciated

[@Psalm11950]

The Golden Era of Snooker. Great characters and some fantastic players but Davis was a winning machine

[@FART-REPELLENT]

Whatever happened to Bill Web & Puke the Snooker player from Canada?

[@krishnan-resurrection714]

great characters indeed ...now what have you got ? ...yung sun soo and chun wie willy ...only their own mothers can tell em apart .....it was entertaining while it lasted ....- but No Longer !!!!

[@enlightenment6278]

Love your candor Steve, you are a true legend!

[@SuperTerminator50]

2 Snooker Legends being brutally honest and showing huge respect for each other...

[@wibblewabblewoo6249]

See a different side to Ronnie interviewing like this. Wonderful to watch two genius legends etc (insert appropriate word here) having such a lovely conversation!

[@James-pnwth]

Steve’s mature reflections on his own psychology and the nature of victory and defeat here were captivating and heartwarming. I became even fonder of him watching it. Utopia Strong are a hell of a band too!

[@grenvillephillips6998]

Brilliant interview which offers insights into the pressures and of course the mutual respect between pros.

[@chrismuller2136]

One of the best interviews in snooker, thanks for this great insight Steve

[@dennisgreene7164]

Lovely fella - big fan of soul music. Gentle, kind and classy.

[@wilf5068]

being an alex higgins nut i despised him in the day as he dealt out some career ending blows to the peoples champ but looking back he was a class act and as a life long player myself he was a cut above all the rest and set the standard for years id buy him a drink anytime now .

[@davidkemble3419]

I was always for Alex Higgins when the two played. However, I always had the highest of respect for Steve Davis. He was totally focused on playing his best to win, not at all costs but to the best of his ability.

[@elgar104]

Really clear thinker. A great deal here that would be useful to many in other sports and other walks of life. Proper legend. Would love to shake his hand one day and thank him.

[@sj460162]

Fantastic watch this. Two great champions talking openly and honestly about their careers and respect for each other. Ive always been a maasive Steve Davis fan, he was an incredible match player and I genuinely felt that had Hendry not have knocked his confidence so much his awesome safery game would have prevailed. Love these cuppa tea interviews...even the mrs was leant over me watching it sat up in bed.

[@pauljohnbodie5631]

I don't think so. It wasn't just Hendry, it was, as Davis said, Doherty and the rest of them. Take away Hendry, Davis might have dominated for a few more years but not much more than that.

[@chadlynch6992]

His brutal honesty is on unbelievable he is a LEGEND no dought. As a American i still can't believe he beat Strickland at the Mosconi Cup!!!

[@FraggyStyles]

In all fairness to Steve Davis you’re only as good as those around you. Ronnie and hendry only happened due to Steve Davis. Such a legend

[@hughmungus1235]

??? Higgins you mean

[@FraggyStyles]

@@hughmungus1235 ??

[@hughmungus1235]

@@FraggyStyles Alex Higgins is the one who kept snooker going and the reason for the players today

[@FraggyStyles]

@@hughmungus1235 yeah for sure but so was Davis

[@Hi-kq1vi]

Steve is being pretty disrespectful to the top 16 of that era. Yes there was nowhere near the depth of the modern era & top players were highly unlikely to lose to world number 40 or 50 like they often do nowadays-but the very top guys were great-Thorburn, Griffiths, White, Reardon, the two Taylors, Alex Higgins, Knowles, Charlton etc. Steve generally wasn't spanking those guys in major finals-it was guys like Hallett & Reynolds. Steve was himself beaten by those guys or pushed hard quite a lot. The playing conditions were also totally different in the 1970's & 1980's-the cloths were very thick & not great for making lots of centuries like the modern fine cloths.

[@richardtooley7692]

You can see the respect and admiration Ronnie has for Steve in that interview

[@dondamon4669]

Gotta love Steve Davis! He gets so emotional! What a nice man

[@TizerisT.]

cant be many times he's been described as that

[@eminemdrehybrid]

Always loved Steve Davis a professional a gentleman and a great commentator 👏👏👏

[@Rubbafingaz1]

So nice to see the respect finally awarded to Davis by an even greater legend of the sport! Those years he faced on 'They Think It's All Over' were hard for him (and me) to watch, even though we all knew it's just satire. He's a God of the Sport and will go down in history as one.

[@zatoichiche]

I love these clips, wish Ronnie would do a proper series of interviews.

[@JesseCrucible]

Even on his worst days I still loved to watch one of my hero's

[@markgilmore2077]

For the bloke once called 'interesting', this video is absolutely fascinating and so revealing. Well done Steve and Ronnie - top interview.

[@Timemachine74]

Love Steve’s look of disbelief when Ronnie tells him how he idolised him

[@DevilboyScooby]

Steve often has a bit of a rabbit in the headlights look though, to be honest 😂

[@flappospammo]

Steve is such a humble guy , considering his incredible achievements

[@timcorns9351]

As said already, really great sports interview! Well done to both 👏🏻

[@duncanwilson7390]

Great mutual respect they have for each other

[@iblacka1]

I hated Davis when he played but now he turned into a beautiful human being!! How can anybody give this interview the thumbs down.

[@tacman1974]

I love Steve Davis!! Had a poster in my living room named Steve Davis and family with Steve, his wife and his two little children!! Interesting stuff!!! Great player, a genuinely good, interesting man!!!

[@chuckdrake2592]

Always thought Davis was infact very interesting and very down to earth for a man that dominated his sport for a decade! Great man

[@Slowdived80]

Two of my fav players of all time

[@wheretheresawilltheresaway7752]

it must be difficult but also refreshing for steve to be so honest about his career always be my number 1 legend .

[@deannoble673]

What a good interview. Steve Davis is one of the few pro's in any sport/game that can put into words what its like to be a top competitor. Always insightful and honest. By the way didn't Ronnie do a good job as an interviewer.

[@glemonsbhatkin514]

Amazingly honest and thorough. Really insightful guy is our Steeeve. Great stuff!

[@ashp5648]

Pair of legends both great players

[@roberttaylor6577]

Steve was not only a superb player / competitor but also a tv celebrity that was confident in front of the camera from the off

[@BC-1]

Steve Davis is realistic and humble, a great man for sure.

[@lewisgreen2957]

What a great interview! Well done Ronnie.. Two legends👍😊

[@night2seesaw1]

Yes a very honest interview, which is nice to see, Steve Davis, John parrot, still the face of snooker.

[@ronmckay504]

When Davis was playing during his winning years I never realized how good his sense of humor was. He is really Funny to listen to during his Interviews and Commentary. That goes for Ronnie and Hendry too. They all seemed so very serious at the Table and until recent years never really spoke that much on Camera.

[@chicofoxo]

I remember him turning up on "They Think It's All Over" - great fun

[@aucourant9998]

That was a really honest interview. Great.

[@ABPerlov]

O'Sullivan probably only truly respects one person in snooker and that is Steve Davis. Steve Davis is so modest for being one of the greatest snookers of all time. Wicked sense of humour as well.

[@Caton71_fitness]

Steve’s the legend of the sport

[@PeterJPickles]

18 million Brits stayed up till the late hours in 1985 to watch this legend, back when Britain only had 18 million tv's :) this man made snooker what it is today. British Icon.

[@theelectricmonk3909]

Yep. I was 12 years old, my sister was 9; we both stayed up with our parents and watched to to the end - despite none of us being actual snooker fans. A true legend of sport.

[@guitarreilly]

Only 3 channels at the time. I’m sure Jim ll fix it had 20 million views

[@PeterJPickles]

@@guitarreilly It probably did as it was on prime time BBC1, not midnight on BBC2.

[@guitarreilly]

@@PeterJPickles jimmy saville wanking would've got 18 million back then

[@krishnan-resurrection714]

yeah now snooker does not even get a Tenth of the viewing figures ....-because it is so boring and Tedious ....another bit of british history resigned to the dustbin of life RIP snooker 😄

[@garethparr9482]

Great interview ronnie. And Steve just an icon

[@DavidJones-jy5qn]

Steve Davis my fave player of all time met him once a Legend on the Table off the table a perfect gentleman the nicest snooker player u could ever meet one of the best experience of life a lovely man u will be always my idol 👏👏👏😀

[@bagofnails6692]

That was a really nice chat between the two of them.

[@bigtoelittlefinger6133]

Could listen to these stories aw day should huv been an hour long and aye am Scottish and love it

[@andrewoliver8930]

Davis changed the game into a truly professional sport where training was taken seriously.

[@divinewind7405]

This is an amazingly honest interview: Fantastic 👏👏👏👏

[@katoness]

Love his honesty, Talk about eating humble pie!!

[@jamesjarrett52]

Love Steve, used to hate him as a kid. He speaks so honestly and eloquently.

[@jeffhgv]

My unprofessional opinion is, the difference between Steve And Ronnie, Steve always played’ against someone, Ronnie only seems to ever play himself not interested or pressured by who he’s playing.

[@gimmick2509]

Mark Selby does a brilliant job of getting under Ronnie's skin though.

[@drc77777]

@@gimmick2509 True, but I think that's more down to Selby's brand of snooker than him as a figure/opponent

[@dumitriuradu8481]

It's the easiest thing to find excuses when you lose. But sport is unforgiving. The sooner you accept that selby is a better competitor than ronnie, the better

[@francishunt562]

@@gimmick2509 Ronnie refused to play at Selby pace in 2020 world championship and beat him. Selby was fuming.

[@gimmick2509]

@@francishunt562 yes, but Selby is still the special opponent for him. It's already become the snooker Real-Barca. The classic rivalry between talent+hard work and hard work x2. Like Hamilton vs Rosberg

[@wakstar1]

Davis is an absolute boss and brilliant to listen to.

[@raasappusinnathambi6725]

Davis is honest and bold. Thank You Steve.

[@alexmay8378]

Best all round snooker player I've ever seen.

[@jurandirleonardodasilva5621]

Steve Davis foi um dos melhores que já vi jogar, em seu auge era quase imbatível, mas então surgiram outros gênios como Ronnie Sullivan, Stephen Hendry...Porém, não esqueçamos John Higgins, Alex Higgins, Jimmy White e outros...

[@Mark-sc4bu]

Ronny often comes across as arrogant but it was great to see his deference to Steve Davis and genuine respect and admiration for the man that almost single handedly dragged snooker into the truly professional era. Great interview: Steve Davis was so open and honest talking about the struggles of the elite when they are no longer at their peak, or another has stepped into their shoes. Revealing and enjoyable to listen to.

[@tantona9315]

Davis is a top bloke and a lot more interesting than he gets credit for! A great story teller and exhibition entertainer.

[@deanhawthorn5783]

what a great thing to watch......honest truth

[@keithdavidson4723]

Really nice chat between two great champions.

[@stevehallam6495]

A very honest assessment from Davis. A bit like boxing it is hard to judge the standard across eras. He was dominant but not overly tested by those at the time. He was a massive figure and certainly instrumental in the rise of snooker as a tv sport.

[@Ziggyziggy1]

Besides the great love of snooker, These legends tell us a difrent story of skill talent hard working snd mental strength.

[@qed456]

Steve is a VERY intelligent guy , his analysis of himself is keenly perceptive and you can see why he is a good chess player as well

[@warrengday]

Wonderful and insightful, thanks for posting.

[@robertwoods1380]

Sir Steve Davis. A true man of honor. I’ll never forget he was interviewed by a guy who tried as hard as he could the say something negative about Earl Strickland for some of his antics at that tournament. He did NOT but gave him praise. Just like here.

[@robindowse4473]

Steve Davis was the first professional snooker player that behaved professionally. All those that came after realised the smoking, drinking, drugs and endless parties were not the way to win tournaments. Stephen Hendry raised the bar and took the game away from "potting only the balls on and playing safe," to an aggressive clear in one visit style of play. Ronnie O'Sullivan took that bar and ran with it forcing the other players to raise their game to match him. It is hard to believe that the standard can get much higher without a change of rules or equipment. Steve, Stephen and Ronnie are definitely the Triumvirate of the Modern game.

[@dkizxpt-su3ze]

Nonsense. Alex Higgins trumps them all

[@mysteryman480]

This is the comment I agree with the most. The two biggest paradigm shifts of the 80s and 90s were: 1. Steve's professionalism and discipline. 2. Stephen's aggressive approach.

[@skyhawk747]

Great interview, both of these guys are legends. Ronnie has a great style of interviewing and I hope he ends up a commentator etc when he decides to rest his balls!

[@chris_3636]

I really like Steve now. In the 80s I just wanted anyone to beat him. He was to snooker in the 80s what that great Liverpool side were to football in the 70s and 80s and I got sick of seeing them win everything. Like he said, the standard wasn't so good then, but when you look at the 2022 semi-finalists O'Sullivan, Williams, Higgins and Trump it's a measure of how good snooker is now, and makes Ronnie's achievements all the more remarkable. Long may it continue.

[@watchvidjedi]

What a great interview.

[@FunkyTR]

great interview. a couple of legends.

[@cloudstrife206]

I love this interview

[@macdofglasgow772]

So interesting asnd honest especially regarding the mental aspects of winning and losing.