World Snooker Championship ref banned from officiating one star speaks out on epic scenes

The referee banned from taking charge of her husband's matches at the Crucible has spoken about the 'honour' of witnessing Mark Allen's 147 this morning. Highly respected official Tatiana Woollaston , but would have been delighted with his effort against Mark Selby on Thursday night.

The world No.44 came through a marathon affair . There was more than eight hours of playing time during the clash, with the Englishman setting up a second-round match with Si Jiahui.

Less than 12 hours after watching her husband's surprise victory, Tatiana was back on duty for the match between Mark Allen and Chris Wakelin. She was treated to the best seat in the house , the first of this year's World Championship.

Allen remains up against it, trailing 12-4 before the evening session. However, after the morning play the experienced referee took to social media to laud the iconic moment.

She wrote on X: "Nine years after my first 147 I finally get to officiate another in the Crucible Theatre at the #HaloWorldChampionship and what a break that was by Mark Allen! Honoured! #ilovesnooker."

Despite not being permitted to referee her husband's matches, the Belarusian can publicly show her allegiance. After watching him overcome Selby and being on officiating duty as Allen hit his maximum, she wrote: "Smiles all around" with a smiling emoji.

Tatiana made her Crucible debut at the Covid-affected 2020 tournament. Last year, she oversaw a single-table match in Sheffield for the first time, the semi-final between David Gilbert and eventual champion

This is the first time that the Woollaston pairing has faced this dilemma. Only once before did he qualify for the World Championship, back in 2014, where he went out in the first round.