Joe Perry is hard at work on the practice table preparing for the PTC Grand Finals in Galway, Ireland, next week.
“I’d love to do well in the Grand Finals,” asserts Perry. “There’s no reason why I, like many of the players, can’t go out to Galway and win the event…
“The shorter format makes the tournament much more open than an event like the World Championship. We’re all capable of beating anyone else.
Popularly known as ‘Gentleman Joe’, Perry’s practise base is in Cambridge, where his main playing partner is Neil Robertson.
“Last week I was ‘home alone’ as Neil was in China, but I had a few games with some of the lower ranked pros,” explains Perry.
“I’ve arranged a few games with Tom Ford too and also Mark Selby. I used to practice with Mark quite a bit a while back and you can’t really have better people to play against and prepare for tournaments than top players like Mark and Neil.”
Perry faces Stuart Bingham in his opening match in the PTC Grand Finals and Bingham is another former sparring partner of the Chatteris man.
“I used to play quite a lot with Stuart but we haven’t recently. It’s over an hour for Stuart to get here and he’s got plenty of people local to him.
“I’m looking forward to playing him in Galway. I’m sure they’ll be a bit of ‘teasing’ ahead of the match but once we get down to business we’ll be out for each other’s blood.”
Perry enjoyed a run to the Quarter Finals of the 2012 Grand Finals, also in Galway, ultimately losing to his practice partner Neil Robertson.
“I’ve got really good memories from last year. I loved it there in Galway, it’s a lovely place.
“Everyone was really friendly, both the snooker fans and the Irish people. It was a great atmosphere wherever we went.
“It’s also St. Patricks Day while we’re out there and that adds to the sense of fun that people are having. I’m not really a drinker but I’ll probably have a nice pint of authentic Irish Guinness to help them celebrate!”
After the Welsh Open Perry took a well earned rest for a week, before starting his preparation for the PTC Finals, and the build up to the World Championship.
“It’s such a long busy season now that you need to take little breaks when you can. It’s something to look forward to.
“We’ve just booked up for a family holiday in May after the World Championships. We’re taking the children to Greece.
“I’ve been before but this will be their first holiday at a proper resort and they’ll have lots of other children to meet and play with. We’re hoping it will be a really good experience for them.
“First though I’ve got the PTC and then the World Championship to concentrate on.”