THERE will be a new name inscribed on the York Masters snooker trophy this year.

The competition, which sees many of York and North Yorkshire’s best Conservative Club and division one CIU players going head-to-head, was claimed last year by Melbourne's Ashley Hugill.

The 21-year-old beat Jordan Worobec 5-1 in the showpiece event but has since seen his aspiring professional career take off since then - culminating with a 5-1 victory over UK Champion Neil Robertson in German Masters qualifying at the end of last year.

It means the potting sensation is not among the 24 entrants who have been drawn into eight groups of three ahead of the start of battle on March 5.

Worobec will launch his bid for the title in Group H with games against Acomb duo Nick Marchant and Roland Cox, while likely favourite Dan Potter, who reached the 2014 final only to fall to Steve Gregson, is placed in Group E with Heworth's Andi Ireland and tournament host Adrian Barraclough.

The event is played on his World Snooker standard tournament table above his Quickslide showroom in Layerthorpe.

Group C sees an intriguing trio set to face-off with Clive Whyte, Phil Hart and Mick Borg, currently the high break leader in the York Conservative Clubs' League with 87, drawn against each other.

Pickering and Malton Conservative Club player Lee Taylor also returns to the fray and will meet Paul Holmes and Tom Lewis in Group F.

The top two in each group will go through to the last 16 and the initial stages will see matches played over a best-of-five frames format. The final, over best-of-nine frames, is scheduled to be played on April 29.

York Masters draw and schedule

March 5, Group G: Richard Lillie v Barry Rankin, Group H: Nick Marchant v Jordan Worobec; March 6, Group E: Dan Potter v Adrian Barraclough; March 7, Group F: Paul Holmes v Lee Taylor; March 8, Group D: Glen Mountain v Kevin Gall; March 11, Group C: Clive Whyte v Phil Hart; March 12, Group B: James Kilmartin v Paul Mahoney, Group A: Jon Milner v Mark Hodson; March 13, H: Marchant v Roland Cox; March 14, H: Holmes v Tom Lewis; March 15, C: Whyte v Mick Borg; March 18, G: Keith Thornhill v Rankin; March 19, E: Barraclough v Andi Ireland, D: Mountain b John Dowd; March 20, H: Worobec v Cox; March 21, B: Kilmartin v Pete Glover; March 22, A: Hodson v Martin Johnson; March 25, G: Thornhill v Lillie; March 27, F: Taylor v Lewis; March 28, E: Potter v Ireland; March 29, D: Gall v Dowd; April 1, C: Hart v Borg; April 3, A: Milner v Johnson; April 4, B: Mahoney v Glover.