Ricky Walden ticks all boxes after his Shanghai Masters win (From York Press)

UK Snooker Championship at York's Barbican

10:52am Saturday 10th December 2011 in Snooker

RICKY WALDEN is hoping to draw on past experience to get him through to the final of the williamhill.com UK Championship.

The qualifier has never been as far in snooker’s second biggest tournament but, ahead of his last-four clash with Mark Allen today, he reckons he can use winning form to help him over the line.

Walden won the Shanghai Masters, a ranking tournament, back in 2008 and believes consistency will be the key to get past headline-hitting Allen.

“I think you can always roll back on winning in the past,” he said.

“I know I can do it, I’ve just got to do it more consistently.

“In the UK Championship, thankfully, it’s going my way at the moment.”

Walden, who reckoned he found his form in the second session of his 6-3 quarter-final victory against Shaun Murphy, added: “It means everything (to reach a semi-final).

“I have been working so hard throughout my career and to get to this stage is everything you dream of.

“Hopefully, I can go one step further, get to the final, and then go one step further again.”

Allen, meanwhile, who has reached his second straight UK semi-final, said he was delighted to be in the last four without having discovered his best form.

The Northern Irishman, attracting as much attention off the table for his row with Barry Hearn as for his performances on it, said: “I think it sort of speaks volumes for where my game is at the moment.

“I haven’t played well at all in any of the three matches, scoring-wise, but I think I have matured a bit as a player over the last few years and my safety really has got me through the first three rounds.”

On the prospect of facing Walden, he added: “He seems to be playing really well. I watched his match against Mark Williams and, although he wasn’t at his best, Ricky played very, very well in that match.

“Obviously, he’s a tournament winner in China a few years back and he is a good player on the big occasions.

“I will have to go out there and perform.”