Seven young hopefuls from across the UK are to compete in the final of Future Stars of Snooker 2011 which takes place on 11 August at Rileys sports bar in Victoria, London.

 

They'll be competing for the title of Future Star 2011 and a cash prize of £5,000.

 

The seven youngsters will undertake 5 tasks set for them to test their skills and accuracy, each task is pointed and will be scored accordingly. The final will be judged by snooker legend Ronnie O'Sullivan.

 

The Future Stars of Snooker is a competition which was introduced for the first time in 2010 by Rileys & Ronnie O'Sullivan to find the next star of snooker.

 

Ronnie O'Sullivan says: "This is an amazing opportunity for the kids. There's a lot of money to be made in professional snooker nowadays, especially with all the new tournaments Barry Hearn has introduced."

 

Ronnie adds: "It's great to see snooker appealing to a younger crowd, I think the likes of Judd Trump coming into the game has been a real boost for the sport. Last year's standard in the final of Future Stars was unbelievable; there are a lot of talented youngsters around and I'm really looking forward to seeing how these kids do."

 

To get through to the final the boys had to win their heats in local qualifiers which took place at Rileys clubs across the UK in March, before going on to take part in regional finals in April and winning.

 

Maurice Kelly, CEO of Rileys said: "We introduced this competition to help give someone a start on their career path in snooker. The £5,000 prize money goes towards providing assistance with tournaments and general expenses, so we hope it pays off for one of these boys. As Ronnie says, there is good money to be made in professional snooker and we'd love to see a Future Stars competitor go on to make it big."

 

The seven finalists competing for the title of Future Star 2011 and £5,000 prize money are: Dylan Craig from Greenfield, Glasgow; George Pragnell from Norwich; Robert Dagnall from Rainford, St Helens; Adam Bobat from Fareham, Hants; Toby Simpson from Long Eaton, Nottingham; Steven Hallworth from Skellingthorpe, Lincoln; Jamie Clarke from Pemberton, Llanelli

 

And here's a bit more about each of the finalists...

 

Name: Dylan Craig
From: Greenfield, Glasgow
Nickname: Hawkeye
School: St Andrews RC
Fav player: Stephen Maguire
Football team: Glasgow Celtic
Highest break: 95
Tournaments won: 10
Walk On Music - I Gotta Feeling, Black Eyed Peas


 

Name: George Pragnell
From: Norwich
Nickname: The Genius
School: Thorpe St Andrew High
Fav player: Ronnie O'Sullivan
Football team: Tottenham
Highest break: 147
Tournaments won: 3
Walk On Music - Stay Too Long, Plan B


 

Name: Robert Dagnall
From: Rainford, St Helens
Nickname: Rob
School: Rainford High Technology College
Fav player: Ronnie O'Sullivan
Football team: Man Utd
Highest break: 122
Tournaments won: 2
Walk On Music - When We collide (Matt Cardle)


 

Name: Adam Bobat
From: Fareham
Nickname: Pocket Rocket
School: Henry Cort Community College
Fav player: Ronnie O'Sullivan
Football team: Portsmouth
Highest break: 141
Tournaments won: 8
Walk On Music - Smoke on the Water


 

Name: Toby Simpson
From: Long Eaton, Nottingham
Nickname: Bart
School: The Long Eaton School
Fav player: Stephen Hendry
Football team: Man Utd
Highest break: 75
Tournaments won: 2
Walk On Music - Eye of the Tiger


 

Name: Steven Hallworth
From: Skellingthorpe, Lincoln
Nickname: Lincoln Legend
School: Priory Academy LSST
Fav player: Ronnie O'Sullivan
Football team: Arsenal
Highest break: 120
Tournaments won: 6
Walk On Music - I Want It All, Queen

 

Name: Jamie Clarke
From: Pemberton, Llanelli
Nickname: Dream Machine
School: Coedcae School
Fav player: Mark Williams
Football team: Swansea City
Highest break: 139
Tournaments won: 62
Walk On Music - Top Gear theme music