Barry Hearn keen to talk with Mark Allen after criticism

World Snooker chairman Barry Hearn said he is willing to meet player Mark Allen to settle their differences.

The UK Championship runner-up said Hearn should resign, believing that he was making snooker worse by the changing the format of competitions.

"I see that he's quite happy to have a meeting and I'm delighted to sit down," Hearn told BBC Sport, having threatened legal action against Allen.

"I wish we'd had it before if he felt so strongly."

Allen, 25, expressed his discontent after the 6-3 first-round win over Adrian Gunnell at the UK Championship in York.

The Northern Ireland player said he was disappointed that the format for the 35-year-old competition had been altered from a best-of-17 frames in the early stages to best-of-11.

"I've got no doubt he'll tweak the World Championship. The whole tradition of the game is going to pot," said Allen at the time.

Hearn, 63, had not ruled out the possibility of legal action who took offence at the personal nature of the remarks.

After finishing runner-up to Judd Trump in the final of the UK Championship on Sunday, Allen responded: "That would be a good idea if I don't go to court. He threatened legal action but hopefully it doesn't come to that.

"If we can chat about it and sort our problems out between ourselves that's the way men should do it."

Allen will also face a World Snooker disciplinary committee for swearing during the post-match news conference.

Hearn added on Sunday: "His comments were disappointing. The disciplinary process begins because of the language he used. It was unacceptable. As far as personal attacks on me, I'd rather he said something to my face."

"The [World Snooker] AGM is on 19 December. I trust Mark will be there.

"We'll sit down and I'll explain the [snooker] strategy. He made derogatory comments about me, which I took personally, but he didn't make constructive points.

"He admitted that what we're doing is good for snooker in long run but not in the short term. I called his comments 'silly' because he wasn't proposing anything."