I’m a snooker legend but I would have had a very different career in horrific job if I didn’t make it

MARK WILLIAMS has revealed he would’ve been a COAL MINER had he not discovered his talent for snooker.

The Welsh wizard grew up in the small mining town of Cwm and was no stranger to the gruelling work undertaken by his dad and his friends’ fathers.

And had Dad Dilwyn not encouraged him to play snooker at all costs – which included skipping school to go practice at his local club in Bargoed – he would’ve found himself risking his health every day in the dark and dangerous coal mines.

The 48-year-old told The Telegraph: “[I was] brought up modestly – father was a miner.

“You see the struggles they have back in the day so you appreciate what you’ve got.

“If I didn’t make it as a snooker player I’d have been a miner like my father and his father. That’s where everyone ended up. No work about.”

Mark’s mum had absolutely no idea his dad was helping him skip school to hone the skills which would eventually make him a snooker icon.

He continued: “He was the one who would pretend I was going to school and take me to the snooker. My mother thought I was in school.

“He was the main one who took me to junior tournaments. All that petrol money. It was tough times for miners.”

The snooker club wasn’t the only place dad Dilwyn took Mark, who once went into the dark and dangerous depths of the mines.

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He recalled: “I got snuck in with these 10 or 15 men – snuck in the middle –and down the lift.

“It was horrific. The battery pack with a light on was nearly as heavy as me. Awful.

“I was glad to get back up. But I said to myself, ‘If I don’t make it in snooker this is where I’m going for 12 hours a day.'”

That experience lives long in the memory of Williams, who credits it to forging his mental fortitude and ability to cope under pressure.

He said: “A lot of players don’t believe it – they think I’m lying – but what’s the point of lying? I just don’t feel nervous or shake.

“When I missed a pink to win 18-15 against John Higgins [in the 2018 world final] I just missed it.

“I went back to my chair, said, ‘How the f— did I miss that?’ Sat down, thought, ‘No problem’ and next frame, popped a nice red in the middle and made a frame-winning break.

“I love playing snooker. I’m competitive with everything. If I win, great. If I lose, shake hands and forget about it. Not once have I cared.”