Mark Allen shows true colours with private comment to Shaun Murphy as star makes claim - The Mirror

Peace has broken out between Shaun Murphy and Mark Allen following the war of words between the snooker rivals which erupted earlier this season

Mark Allen showed his class with a sporting gesture after Shaun Murphy’s 147 break at the Masters.

The pair, who have been close friends, have been embroiled in a war of words over the last few months. At the UK Championship in November, Murphy, while on BBC commentary duty, accused Allen of deliberate slow play in his semi-final against Barry Hawkins.

Allen hit back on social media, telling Murphy to “leave personal feelings out of the commentary box”. He added: “All because I called out some of his recent BS.”

Murphy subsequently denied there was anything personal behind his comments, although the pair have clashed on a number of issues in recent months. Allen admitted the pair had “grown apart” prior to their semi-final meeting at the Masters.

However, there was a clear show of respect before, during and after Murphy’s 6-3 victory, which featured a stunning maximum break. After the Magician sunk the black to bring the house down at Alexandra Palace, Allen quickly congratulated his rival. It was a classy gesture from Allen, who put aside their intense rivalry to appreciate the achievement.

Speaking on his onefourseven podcast, Murphy, who had missed a maximum attempt against Neil Robertson earlier in the week, revealed what Allen said to him. He said: “He was very complementary, he was kind and very sporting. I think he said something like, ‘you made up for the other day’. It was nice.”

Murphy, who is on the WPBSA board, then expressed his hope that the bad blood between the pair was now behind them. He added: “It would be nice to put that whole thing to bed, to be honest.

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“Differences of opinion are fine and we’ve had a number of differences of opinion throughout our lives. We’re both very opinionated.

“It’s not a shock that our opinions don’t always align. But that’s how progress is made, that’s how change is made.

“So it would be nice to put all that to bed. We’ve been friends for a long time and I hope we’re friends for an even longer time. I’m sure it won’t be the last time we have a disagreement.”

Murphy went on to win the tournament for the first time since 2015 by beating world champion Kyren Wilson 10-7 in Sunday's final.