Mark Allen v Jackson Page: Prediction, Tips and Odds

Mark Allen has a storied history at the UK Championship, reaching the final three times, and he gets his tournament underway this year against Jackson Page, who has never gone beyond the first round of this competition.

The Welsh youngster did reach the final of the Championship League this year, however, and will be hoping to build upon some very solid performances in qualifying now that he is in the tournament proper.

Mark Allen v Jackson Page betting tips and predictions

Jackson Page +2.5 frames - 4/6

Mark Allen first reached the final of the UK Championship way back in 2011, losing 10-8 to Judd Trump. He would finish as runner-up seven years later when beaten 10-6 by Ronnie O’Sullivan before finally lifting the crown in 2022 after a 10-7 victory over Ding Junhui in the final.

That was part of the Northern Irishman’s impressive run across the last two seasons, lifting the Northern Ireland Open, the World Grand Prix and the Shoot Out in that time.

However, the silverware has dried up somewhat for Allen this term and his last crown came in February when beating Zhang Anda 10-8 in the final of the Players Championship.

After reaching the heights of world number one, the Pistol has failed to replicate those performance levels this year. The furthest he has gone is a semi-final appearance at the British Open, but he will be hoping to kick on at the Barbican in York.

He faces youngster Jackson Page in his first game and while the pair have never met in competition, Page could prove a stern challenge.

Action, as he is known, has won six of his last seven games, which includes victories over Hossein Vafaei, Ali Carter and Pang Junxu.

He was pipped by Carter in the Championship League final, his first ever ranking final, but he has put in some very solid performances recently and at just 23 years of age clearly has plenty of room to improve.

Allen did reach the semi-finals of the recent Champion of Champions but had a very soft draw to do so, beating Igor Figueirdo and Jak Jones before losing in the last four to Xiao Guodong.

Of his last six outings, only one was a victory by more than two frames. He has not been as dominant as he can be and may struggle to pull away from a belligerent and in-form opponent here.

Page learned his trade from Mark Williams, who has been at the top of the game since 1992, and he has shown some of the attributes that made the Welsh Potting Machine successful.

He can put in another impressive performance and is fancied with a 2.5 frame headstart on the handicap at 4/6.

Under 1.5 match centuries - 8/11

Neither of these men have been in particularly heavy scoring form this season and this game could become a scrappy affair, something that will arguably suit Jackson Page more.

The Welshman has only made six centuries this term at a rate of one every 27 frames, so it may fall to Mark Allen to do the heavy scoring.

However, the Pistol has been in fairly average scoring form, making 20 centuries this term at a rate of one every nine frames.

In this best-of-eleven format it looks worth taking the under on the line of 1.5 match centuries at 8/11 in what may end up a scrappy and drawn out affair.

Read more snooker betting tips and predictions on site

 Mark Allen v Jackson Page odds

Mark Allen - 4/11
Jackson Page - 11/5

View the full market and more odds for  Mark Allen v Jackson Page on site.

Read Mark Allen v Jackson Page how to watch, TV channel, date, venue, head-to-head stats, and more on site.

This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.