Keighley ace Rebecca Kenna hopes improvement on the table with new cue

The 28-year-old world No 5 from Keighley lost 3-0 in the quarter-finals of the LITEtask UK Women's Championship at the Northern Snooker Centre in Leeds to eventual winner Ng On Yee.

But with better access to a practice table, having just set up her own shop in town, Kenna is hoping the change of cue can help her break into the top four.

She said: "I have been using a pool cue for eight years.

"It felt comfortable and I was making breaks with it, but the snooker cue is two inches longer and has a 9.8mm tip compared to a 9.2mm tip, which is a big difference and makes it easier to hit the sweet spot.

"It takes about as couple of weeks of practice to get used to it, but I wasn't able to practice as much as I normally do before the UKs as I have also opened up a snooker shop opposite Pilky's Cue Sports Club and Bar.

"It is in Mantra House, and I split my week up between doing some personal training and working at the shop, and with the practice table there it will hopefully help me get to the next level."

Kenna won all of her matches in Group C of qualifying last Saturday, beating Jodie Allen 2-1, Ilkley's Lily Dobson 3-0 and Shannon Metcalf 3-0.

Kenna then defeated Allen 3-0 in the last 16, but the frame that Kenna dropped against her in the group stage was crucial as it gave her a tougher quarter-final against two-time UK winner and defending champion Yee.

Kenna explained: "Other players who won all of their frames in the group stage were then seeded higher than me, but Jodie played well to win that frame.

"I kept things tight against Yee in the quarter-finals, but again she played well."

On Yee defeated nine-times UK winner Reanne Evans 4-1 in the final, and Kenna, who remains fifth in the world rankings, added: "I felt really confident going into the tournament and played okay generally."

Her next ranking tournament is the Eden Women's Masters at the South West Snooker Academy in Gloucester on October 28-29.