Mark Allen’s pursuit of another UK Championship crown came to a disappointing end in York as he was stunned 6-1 by Scotland’s Scott Donaldson in the first round.

The Antrim man – winner of the tournament in 2022 – struggled to regain control in a match dominated by long, gruelling frames and an in-form opponent.

Allen, 39, found himself trailing 3-0 early on and managed to pull a frame back before the mid-session interval, raising hopes of a comeback.

Despite appearing well-placed to close the gap, Allen was unable to turn the tide as Donaldson maintained his composure in a contest where several frames stretched to nearly an hour.

placeholder image — Mark Allen looks on during his game against Scott Donaldson in the opening round of the UK Championship at York Barbican. (Photo by Martin Rickett/PA Wire)

The final result reflected Donaldson’s relentless pressure and Allen’s inability to find his best form on the night.

Reflecting on his defeat, Allen said: “I’m disappointed – I didn’t really see that performance coming. I prepared well for the tournament, but I was just completely outplayed and 6-1 was not a flattering score.

“I felt pretty good going out there, but the balls were not doing what was being asked of them.

“I was really looking forward to the tournament, I’ve got good memories of York but everything I’ve been good at over the last few years just didn’t happen. No complaints, just a bad day at the office.”

With this result, Allen becomes the highest-ranked player eliminated in the first round so far—an unexpected setback for one of the tournament’s favourites.

Meanwhile, Donaldson’s victory continues his impressive run, having already made headlines by overturning a 5-0 deficit to defeat former world champion Stuart Bingham in qualifying. The Scot will next face three-time UK champion Ding Junhui in the next stage.

"Snooker is a game at the end of the day, it's not life or death," said Donaldson, whose father Hector died aged 70 on 2 October.

"With what I have been through, I can tell you what's important and what's not important. When the pressure is coming on, I just tell myself 'it's a game of snooker' and get on with it.

"I was fine until I got to the top of the stairs - and the last time I was in this venue was with my dad. It was good emotion though. Tough to go through but once I got the first frame, after that I was all right."

Elsewhere in the tournament, drama unfolded on table two. China’s Zhang Anda edged out England’s Gary Wilson 6-5 in a deciding frame, recovering from 5-3 down. Zhang, who made a maximum 147 break in last year’s championship, will now meet reigning world champion Zhao Xintong, who cruised past Long Zehuang 6-1.