STAFF at Preston's Guild Hall have vowed to fight for the right to host snooker tournaments after the sport's bosses decided to ditch the venue from their circuit.

Snooker grand prix will no longer come to the Guild Hall, following appalling attendances at last year's event.

The news is a massive blow to the Hall, which no longer hosts snooker's UK Championships after that was moved to another venue.

This year will be the first for more than 20 years that televised snooker has not been held at the Guild Hall.

But despite the snub, Guild Hall bosses are determined to win the sport back for the 2001/2002 season.

A spokesman said: "We had hoped snooker would be coming back for a 23rd year.

"We accept crowds weren't as large as they have been but we will not give up.

"We want to compete for an event again, hopefully when it comes up for grabs from Bournemouth."

Guild Hall bosses will pitch their case to grand prix organisers in Sheffield in a fortnight.

A spokesman for the sport said: "Poor attendances were the major factor.

"We may go back to the Guild Hall in the future. It certainly has nothing to do with the venue, which is an excellent. We just want to try somewhere else." Even a 147 break by Ronnie O'Sullivan in the early rounds of last year's Grand Prix couldn't draw in the crowds.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.