WORTHINGTON’S NEWPORT POOL OPEN
For immediate release
Monday, October 1st, 2007
WILLIAMS AND HAZELEY SAFELY INTO QUARTER-FINALS
Talbot set to face Wittingham in last eight clash
NEWPORT (Shropshire): The draw for the 2007 Worthington’s Newport Pool Open singles’ quarter-finals and doubles semi-finals was made on Sunday night and has thrown up some tantalising encounters.
Last year’s beaten finalist Ray Talbot faces a potential banana skin home tie against Irene Wittingham and the Audco’s Andy Lycett will play the winner of the delayed last-16 tie between Russ Woodhouse and Rob Perry.
In the penultimate singles’ second round match, Neil ‘Hurricane’ Hazeley downed championship organiser Neil Perkins in a five-set thriller. After a rocky start by both players, Perkins edged into a one-nil lead with a six-ball clearance, but Hazeley hit back with some outrageous long pots to nothing to sneak into a deserve two-one lead.
The ‘Hurricane’ was on top in the fourth, but Perkins dug in with some solid safety play and ground his way back into the game. A long black into the top left-hand pocket levelled the match, when a miss would have handed the game to his opponent.
Perkins stormed into a five-ball lead in frame five and looked set to close out the game with his last two balls, but he potted a red only to see a static yellow drop cruelly into an adjacent pocket.
Hazeley took full advantage of the two shots to leave himself with two balls on the table, but neither player showed an immediate interest in going for the winning black. Perkins then jawed his final red and could only watch agonizingly as Hazeley ghosted a superb long pot down the left-hand pocket to book a quarter-final encounter with Hinstock’s Colin Pink.
Audco’s John Williams disposed of the King’s Head’s Matt Collins in four frames to set up a home tie with the King’s Head’s Ian Perry, but the snooker supremo had already suffered a shock doubles’ defeat alongside outgoing Newport Pool Open champion Paul Trevor.
The pair came up against the father and son crew of Ian and Robert Perry. Perry Senior had already shown in his singles’ second round that he meant business and he managed to take the hot favourites to a deciding fifth frame, before booking his and son Rob’s passage into the doubles’ semi-finals.
Pre-event underdogs Neil Cartright and Ian Fearnley continued their superb cup run with a shock quarter-final doubles’ win over the fancied Tavern duo of volatile Greg Heathcote and Ben Longstaff. “We might have been unfancied dark horses, but people will start to take us seriously now we have beaten four of the best people in the tournament,” admitted Cartright. They now meet Anthony Heathcote and Andy Lycett in the semi-finals.
In the second semi-final, the Perry family team now face an away clash against Terry Taylor and G. Taylor from the Junction Inn at Norbury.
The latest round of matches in both competitions must be completed by Sunday, October 14th. Winners must send notification of the result by text message to 07831 123153, clearly stating the match score and players’ names.
The Worthington Newport Open Finals’ night, where the singles’ semi-finals and both third-place play-offs will also be played, will take place on Tuesday, October 23rd at the Audco Sports and Social Club in Newport.
Match results – week 9
Singles
Matt Collins (King’s Head) lost to John Williams (Audco), 1-3
Neil Perkins (Tavern) lost to Neil Hazeley (LSC), 2-3
Doubles
Greg Heathcote/Ben Longstaff (Tavern) lost to Neil Cartright/Ian Fearnley (Tavern), 1-3
Paul Trevor/John Williams (Audco) lost to Robert Perry/Ian Perry (King’s Head), 2-3
Quarter-finals
Singles
Neil Hazeley (LSC) v Colin Pink (Tavern)
Andy Lycett (Tavern) v Russ Woodhouse (Tavern) v Robert Perry (King’s Head)
John Williams (Audco) v Ian Perry (King’s Head)
Ray Talbot (Tavern) v Irene Wittingham (King’s Head)
Semi-finals
Doubles
Anthony Heathcote/Andy Lycett (Audco) v Neil Cartright/Ian Fearnley (Tavern)
Terry Taylor/G. Taylor (Junction Inn) v Robert Perry/Ian Perry (King’s Head)
Newport Pool Open Finals’ night timetable – Tuesday, October 23rd, 2007
(Audco Sports and Social Club, Bellman’s Yard, Newport)
19.00hrs 1st singles semi-final
19.45hrs 2nd singles semi-final
20.30hrs Doubles 3rd place play-off
21.15hrs Singles 3rd place play-off
22.00hrs Worthington’s Newport Open doubles final
22.45hrs Worthington’s Newport Open singles final
Note: all times may vary
Ends
For further information:
Neil Perkins, NDP Publicity Services, Tel: 07831 123153
www.ndp-publicity.com