WORCESTER snooker ace Dave Finbow plans to retire from the sport at the end of this season.

The 33-year-old, ranked 47 in the world, made his announcement after a 7-4 win over David Gray at the first round of the UK Championships in York.

Finbow decided at the start of the season that the current campaign will be his last and said: "I don't enjoy playing like I used to, so this seems like the right time to get out."

Finbow was never behind against world No 30 Gray and made breaks of 99, 80 and 61 to set up a second-round meeting with Dave Harold today.

"It was a weird match, we both had some good breaks but there was a lot of scrappy stuff in between," he added. "It would be nice to have a good run in my last UK Championship but I can't beat Dave Harold if I play like that."

Victory over Harold could set Finbow up for a third round meeting with world champion Ronnie O'Sullivan. Martley's Terry Murphy is also in action today against Ken Doherty.