PETER Ebdon heads to Preston in search of LG Cup glory this weekend hoping to achieve his ultimate goal - becoming the number one snooker player in the world.

The 32-year-old took a giant step towards that target with his unforgettable last frame victory over Stephen Hendry at the Crucible in May.

And ahead of the competition in Preston, he repeated the praise for Chris Henry, his coach from Accrington, that he voiced to the nation minutes after his triumph.

"I really appreciate everything that Chris has done for me," he said. "We have been working together for some time and I suppose it would be fair to say he has completely remodelled my game."

To the average snooker fan or club player, the thought that Ebdon might have needed such a radical change would be nonsense. After all, here was a man established in the top ten in the world, a tournament winner and runner-up in the two biggest competitions in the game, the World and UK Championships.

"I knew I could play a bit but I had to take my game up to the next level," he explained. "The work I have done on my game with Chris means that I can now cope with the slippery tables.

"In the past, the tables were nowhere near as quick as they are now and it has taken a lot of hard work from both of us to get me to where I am today."

That is currently the champion of the world although his ranking is number three, a big improvement on just a couple of years ago.

As with Nick Faldo, when he remodelled his golf swing under David Leadbetter in the 1980s, there were teething troubles, and for Ebdon the low point was four seasons ago when he slipped to 13th.

That meant he was within sight of dropping out of the top 16 and he confessed: "That season when I moved back up from 13 to 12 was probably the hardest for me.

"I then went from 12 to seven and seven to three and now I want to be the number one. I see no reason why I can't because we are all out there fighting and competing.

"This season I want to become the first first-time winner of the World Championships to successfully defend my title and, if I can, I have a good chance of being the world number one."

Throughout the summer Ebdon has taken the opportunity to relax, have a break and spend time with his family.

But he has been back on the baize with his coach ahead of the new season and he admitted: "He left me absolutely shattered. I think our first session must have been about six hours and it was very tiring.

"I had only just started practising again and Chris came over from his home in Bruges. He looks at my game, we go through routines and he makes me work on the one or two things that he feels could be better, where I am slightly weaker."

Henry has also been instrumental in helping him work on the psychology of sport and he had to be mentally strong to survive the anguish of missing a simple black that allowed Hendry to win the penultimate frame in Sheffield in May.

"I know it was great for the television audience and the sport's profile but I'd have been happier to win 18-0," he smiled.

The success of last season has made Ebdon all the more determined to taste more and he, like many other players, is looking forward to returning to compete in Preston again.

The decision to move the UK Championships away from the town a few years ago was a big blow but Ebdon admitted: "It is always nice playing in Preston because the fans up here are very knowledgable, the Guild Hall is a great arena and there is always a food atmosphere.

"The LG Cup is an important tournament and I start on October 8. I lost to Stephen Hendry in the final of the UK's in Preston in 1996 but the place has some good memories for me.

Ebdon started his season by reaching the last eight of the Scottish Masters but he knows that many more battles lie ahead, starting in Preston.