Paul Williams, a highly respected coach in the South West of England, has sadly passed away.
Pictured above: Paul Williams (right), Andy Hicks (centre) and Haydon Pinhey (left)
Williams, from Falmouth in Cornwall, coached many players from the area at Bell's Court Snooker Centre and always had an emphasis on working with juniors. He also had a spell coaching at the South West Snooker Academy in Gloucester. He was a fine player himself, a former Cornwall County Champion who made breaks of 141 in two consecutive years in the local league.
He was right-hand man of former Crucible semi-finalist Andy Hicks. "Paul was like a brother to me," said Hicks. "I knew him for 24 years and we never had a cross word. He spent a lot of time travelling with me to tournaments and we was always great fun to be around. He was only in his late 50s so it's a shock for everyone. He will be sorely missed."
Haydon Pinhey added: "Paul was a great guy with a very funny sense of humour who always had me and Andy laughing. It’s a big miss but he will never be forgotten. RIP big man."