45 GREATEST CRUCIBLE PLAYERS EVER

This year as snooker approaches its annual visit to Sheffield for the World Snooker Championship, the sport's blue riband event celebrates its 45th Anniversary at the Crucible Theatre.

To celebrate those 45 years at the "Theatre of Dreams", I've done some really deep research of the event to come up with 45 names that throughout the years fed the crowd with what we expect in Sheffield: snooker at its best.

In the 45 previous editions of the World Championship at the Crucible there's "only" been 21 different champions, and those 90 final spots have only been filled by 30 different players. In order to make this list (alphabetical, not ranked), I did not only consider my results' research, but also the legacy these players left at the Crucible. For example, some players in the list will never have made the semifinals, but have for sure starred moments that will never be forgotten and have contributed to the rich history the event has today.

Results are still the main source of this list though, so it's a shame I couldn't include the GOAT Dechawat Poomjaeng in it, although I'm sure no one can forget his Crucible appearance! Here's our list of The 45 Greatest "Crucible" Players Ever:

Alan McManus (Scotland)

Alex Higgins (Northern Ireland)

Ali Carter (England)

Anthony Hamilton (England)

Barry Hawkins (England)

Bill Werbeniuk (Canada)

Cliff Thorburn (Canada)

Dennis Taylor (England)

Ding Junhui (China)

Doug Mountjoy (Wales)

Eddie Charlton (Australia)

Fred Davis (England)

Graeme Dott (Scotland)

James Wattana (Thailand)

Jimmy White (England)

Joe Johnson (England)

Joe Perry (England)

John Higgins (Scotland)

John Parrott (England)

John Spencer (England)

Judd Trump (England)

Ken Doherty (Republic of Ireland)

Kirk Stevens (Canada)

Kyren Wilson (England)

Marco Fu (Hong Kong)

Mark Allen (Northern Ireland)

Mark Selby (England)

Mark Williams (Wales)

Matthew Stevens (Wales)

Neal Foulds (England)

Neil Robertson (Australia)

Nigel Bond (England)

Perrie Mans (South Africa)

Peter Ebdon (England)

Ray Reardon (Wales)

Ronnie O'Sullivan (England)

Shaun Murphy (England)

Stephen Hendry (Scotland)

Stephen Lee (England)

Stephen Maguire (Scotland)

Steve Davis (England)

Stuart Bingham (England)

Terry Griffiths (Wales)

Tony Knowles (England)

Willie Thorne (England)

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