Stan Moody is the 19-year-old snooker prodigy who believes he can ignite his sport in the same way teenage darts phenomenon Luke Littler has captivated audiences worldwide.
Moody, the youngest competitor in this year's World Snooker Championship draw, makes his Crucible Theatre debut on Monday against world number two Kyren Wilson. He enters the tournament ranked 44th globally but carries the confidence of someone destined for the elite.
"I think it's quite fair," Moody says of comparisons to Littler. "Snooker's a lot harder than darts, I'd say. There's not many young players coming through."
His qualification makes him the first English teenager since Judd Trump in 2007 to debut at snooker's most prestigious event. The 'Littler effect' in darts has seen equipment sales soar and viewership boom—a transformation Moody hopes to replicate for the green baize.
"Hopefully. I think people think it's a boring game, an old man's game, but it's not—it can be fun," says the Halifax native, who turned professional in 2023 after winning the WSF World Junior Championship. "That's why I like to play more attacking, play fast, and encourage young players to do it and believe they can do it."
There are echoes of Trump's early 'sexy snooker' philosophy in Moody's approach. He finds inspiration in Littler's dominance at just 19 but acknowledges snooker presents different challenges.
"Snooker's a lot harder to dominate, especially nowadays, with the standard where anyone can beat anyone," Moody explains. "Darts isn't really like that—there's a top few who are very good and Luke's generation is amazing and that's what I'm trying to be in snooker. Got a bit to go yet but I'll keep going, keep trying."
His path to Sheffield was dramatic. Battling tonsillitis during qualifying, he discharged himself from hospital to defeat China's Jiang Jun, having already beaten Robbie Williams. This resilience follows earlier breakthroughs that caught the sport's attention.
At just 15, Moody made waves at the 2022 Snooker Shootout, defeating Lu Ning and earning praise from legend Jimmy White, who called him a "serious player." This season, he reached quarter-finals at both the Wuhan Open—where he stunned former world number one Ding Junhui—and the British Open, defeating Wilson along the way. He also scored a victory over John Higgins at the World Open earlier this year.
Despite his baby-faced appearance, Moody possesses mature self-belief. "I know I can play to this level. I've beaten a lot of top players. It's about doing it consistently and I'll climb up the rankings," he states.
As he prepares for his Crucible bow, Moody represents not just a promising talent but a potential catalyst for attracting a new, younger generation to snooker—aiming to prove the sport is far from just an "old man's game."