GLOBAL SNOOKER NEWS

Dad-to-be Graeme Dott secured a narrow 5-4 win over Welshman Ryan Day after a topsy turvy decider which either player could have won.

Graeme Dott scraped into round two of the Totesport Grand Prix in Preston, but with his wife due to give birth any day now, he might have to dash home to Scotland to be present at the birth.

The match rattled along until the crunch final frame, in which Dott eventually secured victory with a yellow to blue clearance.

The first four frames were shared as Day opened with 64 and added 76 in the third, while Dott responded with 87 in the second and 41 in the fourth.

The diminutive Scot then fired in 113 to take the lead for the first time. Day's response was to smash in 94 to level and he cantered through the next to lead 4-3 but the World finalist sent the match into the decider with a superb 84.

James Wattana secured a solid 5-2 win over John Parrott, despite a bizarre incident in the fourth frame which Wattana lost on the three miss rule. The Thai could clearly see a red but chose an alternative shot and missed in three times, gifting the frame to Parrott.

But Wattana, who was match sharp after competing in the Euro-Asia Challenge and winning two consecutive Thailand ranking events, as well as his qualifying match in Pontin's, put the incident behind him to run away with the next three frames.

Parrott fought back well from a 50 point deficit to take the first, but overall his highest effort of thirty-two wasn't enough to put Wattana under any real pressure.

David Gray galloped to a 5-0 win against Lee Walker. Having nicked the opener with a run of 59 in response to Walker's 49, Gray added breaks of 53 and 50 and rounded off victory pinching the fifth as well, after Walker opened with 44.

Ian McCulloch gave the home fans plenty to cheer about, as he clinched a narrow 5-4 win over Liverpool's Rod Lawler. And he set the pace for the high break with a superb 134, just pipping Lawler, who compiled 133.

Alan McManus eventually shrugged off the challenge of Fergal O'Brien after a 5-4 win in which the last frame took just over an hour.

The Scot compiled successive breaks of 56 and 118 but was pegged at 2-2 at the interval. O'Brien ran in 86 to take the lead again and McManus responded with 70 and 58 to regain the upper hand.

The Irishman kept in the match with a frame winning 83, but after a mighty battle in the decider eventually lost out to a colours clearance by the Scot.

RESOURCES

2004 GRAND PRIX

TOTESPORT

RESULTS

Frame Scores:

Ronnie O'Sullivan 5-2 Mark Davis

66(58)-1, 115(115)-0, 4-69(69), 55(41)-12, 69(62)-9, 1-100(100), 66(53)-25

Dominic Dale 5-1 Scott MacKenzie

77(68)-39, 89(61)-12, 65-56, 67-89(56), 108(108)-0, 67(58)-66(51)

Ken Doherty 5-1 Anthony Davies

76-46, 38(38)-78(55), 100(71)-28, 71-48, 87-17, 69-38

Joe Swail 5-3 Mike Dunn

63-52(45), 40-67, 98(98)-0, 58(51)-70, 63-48, 73-29, 25-61, 66-56(5)

Andy Hicks 5-1 Matthew Stevens

16-75(67), 106(106)-0, 96(35,34)-29, 129(129)-0, 131(51,80)-0, 73(70)-46

Neil Robertson 5-2 Michael Holt

35-81(48), 72(72)-0, 10-73(73), 62-48, 63-9, 60(41)-46, 67(54)-16

Joe Perry 5-1 Shokat Ali

36-67, 100(100)-19, 81(52)-21, 70(40,30)-7, 66-42, 69(42)-45

Graeme Dott 5-4 Ryan Day

26-74(64), 107(87)-0, 4-98(76), 64(41)-39, 113(113)-21, 0-94(940, 13-80, 84(84)-8, 77-46

James Wattana 5-2 John Parrott

52(39)-63, 92(55)-8, 67-33, 16-21, 101-0, 64-28, 65(45)-50

David Gray 5-0 Lee Walker

67(59)-61(49), 73-46, 62(53)-12, 66(50)-51, 60-53(44)

Ian McCulloch 5-4 Rod Lawler

94(60)-31, 32-70, 7-133(133), 15-70, 72(72)-3, 134(134)-0, 66-41, 49-80(59), 71-44

Alan McManus 5-4 Fergal O'Brien

45-79, 62(560-15, 118(118)-1, 1-54, 4-94(86), 97(70)-13, 101(58)-1, 0-83(83), 61-50