SNOOKER:Mark Allen is facing the possibility of a three-month suspension after refusing to back down from his claim that fellow snooker star Marco Fu has been cheating.

Allen and Fu met in the first round of the UK Championship last night at York’s Barbican Centre.

Following his first-round defeat to Cao Yupeng at the World Championship in April, the Northern Irish man accused his conqueror that day of playing a banned push shot, and also named Hong Kong player Fu as a player he believed to have broken the rules in the past.

Allen (26) stood by that position in an interview ahead of the championship.

He has been asked to explain himself by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association.

The association has written to Allen, who was served with a three-month ban, suspended for six months, for his comments at the Crucible concerning Cao, Fu and Chinese players in general.

Fu has denied ever cheating and has never been found guilty of any offence.

A World Snooker spokesman confirmed yesterday that Allen was facing a fresh investigation, as his comments concerning Fu came a day before his six-month probation period was due to expire.