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Detail Reports

Robin Rounds

Wales 5-5 Scotland

Favourites Scotland salvaged a draw in their opening Nations Cup tie against holders Wales at Reading's Hexagon Theatre.
After leading 4-2, the Scots lost three frames in a row which left Wales only one short of victory with one to play but world champion Stephen Hendry came to their rescue when he forced a 5-5 draw by beating Darren Morgan in the decider.
Hendry said: "It was important for us not to lose to Wales because they are one of our strongest rivals.
"It was a team effort but I'm obviously pleased with how well I played."
Morgan commented: "The result was a fair reflection of the chances each team had but it's disappointing not have won the last frame."

England 7-3 Northern Ireland

Ronnie O'Sullivan, England's top ranked player, completed a hat-trick of frame wins but was upstaged by team mate Stephen Lee, the world No.6 who is two places behind him on the rankings.
Even Ireland's Dennis Taylor, admitted, "I thought his performance was sensational. To go out in your very first team match and make a break of 141 plus an 81, is unbelievable.
"Scotland were down in my book as the most likely team to triumph at the end of the week but England must have a great chance considering the way Lee is playing."
Lee's century came against Terry Murphy. It was a Nations Cup record and also equalled his highest in major competition.
O'Sullivan, who knocked down a break of 105 against Anglo Irishman Gerard Greene said, "Before the start Stephen and myself knew we would be playing three times as John and Jimmy agreed it was best to make way for youth.
"For whatever reason, everyone wants to see England lose. We are not liked and the other teams want to beat us more than anyone else. But we are really fired up and want to win this for our country."

Republic of Ireland 8-2 Northern Ireland

Fergal O'Brien completed a hat trick of victories as the Republic of Ireland thrashed neighbours, Northern Ireland, 8-2 to move ahead of England at the top of the table.
O'Brien who recorded a break of 68 during his match with Gerard Greene, won the second, fifth and eighth frames as the Republic enjoyed a far more comfortable passage than they did a year ago when the North were beaten 6-5.
Defeat left Northern Ireland rooted at the bottom of the table and virtually out of contention for Sunday's final.
"This was a good all round team performance though at one stage it look as if the result might be a lot closer. It's also a nice start for us," said Doherty.
"On paper, it was always going to be difficult considering we finished bottom of the pile last season. But stranger things can happen and on this form we could cause an upset or two like we did when beating England in the semi-finals of the 1996 World Cup."

Scotland 4-6 England

England captain John Parrott put the final touches to claim their first win over auld enemy Scotland in professional team snooker for 13 years.
Parrott played a tactically tight last frame to see off the challenge of Alan McManus after Stephen Hendry had got Scotland back into it with a superb 137 total clearance in the ninth frame.
"That was the best I've felt all season. I was focussed throughout on what I had to do. But we cannot rest on our laurels as we still need to beat Wales or the Republic of Ireland if we are to go through.
"The Welsh have a formidable team and the Irish are always difficult to play against," said the England captain Parrott.
The Scots were now licking their wounds after England's victory put a huge question mark over their appearance in Sunday's final.
One point from two matches leaves Scotland having to rely on others if they are to challenge for the first prize with England needing to win only one of their last two to be certain of going through.
However, Scotland captain John Higgins, who started his fire today, refused to concede defeat, saying Scotland were still in with a chance of qualifying for Sunday's final.
He said, "If England can beat Wales on Saturday, it will all change. We don't usually root for the English but we'll have to make an exception.
"England are a strong unit this season and are playing to a good standard as well. It might have been a different story had we pegged them back to 3-2 but we didn't and now have to concentrate on winning our last two games against the Irish."

Wales 6-4 Republic of Ireland

Welsh hopes of retaining their Nations Cup championship improved considerably following this victory and went second in the Nations Cup table.
All four of the Welsh team won at least one match as they raced 6-1 ahead with Dominic Dale who had lost to Ken Doherty, completing a break of 100 in frame seven.
The Welsh, winners of the inaugural Nations Cup 12 months ago, lost the last three frames having led 6-1, could prove more costly than they imagined by the time the last two matches are completed on Saturday and the final tables drawn up for the frame difference.
Their skipper Morgan said: "I'm disappointed that we led 6-1 and then lost the last three frames because it could let Scotland in by the back door.
"But if someone had offered us a 6-4 win at the start of the day we would have bitten their hands off."

Wales 8-2 Northern Ireland

A one-sided contest saw the Welsh win the last five frames to take their points total to seven with one more match to play, against England when a draw will be good enough to take them through to the final. England and Scotland have to play two more matches but with the holders winning so handsomely, the Scots now know that not only must they win them both, they need to pick up a minimum of 12 and more likely 15 of the remaining 20 frames to gain a back door entrance to the final should the Welsh slip up in their round robin. "Before we started the match we just wanted a win. 8-2 makes up for yesterday and things are looking good for us now so we're very pleased," said Darren Morgan the Welsh captain who was just a little concerned about Wales' previous match.
During the match, Matthew Stevens was called for six successive misses and lost 30 points to Terry Murphy in frame four. And the total penalty from both player in that frame was 46 points.

England 8-2 Republic of Ireland

England booked their place in the final of the Nations Cup with an emphatic victory over the Republic of Ireland. It also ruined any lingering hopes the Irish might have had of challenging for the first prize.
Captain John Parrott led from the front, winning the sixth frame against Ken Doherty after a flawless tactical performance that tied the Irish skipper in knots.
After that, Stephen Lee and Jimmy White put England over the winning line with Ronnie O'Sullivan winning all three of his frames.
Parrott said: "We have got over the first hurdle but we still have to finish the job by winning the final.
"The match was closer than the score suggested and we knew that the Irish would never give up so it was a good overall team performance."
Ken Doherty, captain of the Republic, remarked, "England have a strong team and will be hard to beat."

Scotland 6-4 Northern Ireland

John Higgins made his first maximum 147 break as Scotland threw themselves a lifeline as they attempt to squeeze into the Nations Cup final via backdoor.
Higgins, who has compiled seven maximums in practice, made his first in competition to give his Scottish side a 4-3 lead over Northern Ireland.
But the world no.1 was required to pot the last three balls to see off Joe Swail and make it 5-4 before the ever dependable Stephen Hendry made 104 to beat Terry Murphy and wrap up the victory.
The result means that Scotland will qualify for the final if Wales lose to England, who are already assured of a final place, and the Scots beat Republic of Ireland by a handsome margin.
Higgins' 147, against Dennis Taylor in the seventh frame, was the sixth this season, 16th in front of the TV cameras and 35th in professional competition.
Jubilant Higgins said: "It's brilliant to make a 147 but in many ways potting the last three balls of the next frame was even more important.
"The maximum looked a possibility when I reached 32. There were no reds on the cushion and no dodgy shots to take on but winning the ninth frame was probably more important because had I lost it, we were definitely out."

England 3-7 Wales

England will face holders Wales in the final of this year's Nations Cup.
The Welsh needing only a draw against England in their last group match, moved into an unassailable position when taking a 5-3 lead leaving the last two frames as surplus to requirements.
Man of the moment was skipper Darren Morgan who beat Jimmy White in the opening frame and then rival captain John Parrott to make sure Wales would be in the final.
Dominic Dale, the Welsh No.3, also recorded a break of 114 against Stephen Lee, his second century in the eight frames he was involved in.
It left Scotland facing a meaningless tie with the Republic of Ireland in the evening with only the honour of finishing third in the group to play for.
The jubilant captain said: "We fancied Scotland pulling out all the stops if we had lost so this is a massive result for us.
"This result has proved our victory over Scotland last year was no fluke. But to retain the trophy will be the icing on the cake would be to win it again.
"I had an hour with Terry Griffiths at the practice table before things got under way and he told me where I was going wrong and it has made a big difference," said Morgan who revealed he was devoid of confidence before the event started a week ago.
However, the England captain John Parrott said, "We'll play differently in the final tomorrow. We'll be more concentrate because we know we have to win tomorrow."

Scotland 1-9 Republic of Ireland

Scotland's Nations Cup campaign ended in embarrassment when they were thrashed by the Republic of Ireland in the final group match. It's their heaviest ever defeat in the Nations Cup.
In the bookmaker's slip, it was 150 t0 1 with this scoreline. Congratulation if you won the money.
The Scottish squad had already lost any chance of reaching the final when Wales beat England in the early afternoon. That result meant that Wales and England were well clear of the Scots on points in the group table.
It left Scotland facing a meaningless tie with the Republic of Ireland last night with only the honour of finishing third in the group to play for.
But the Irish were geared up for last night's dead game and compiled a series of high breaks to flatten the tartan quartet.
"We all have to share the responsibility of a defeat like this and none of us played how we can," said captain John Higgins.
"It's disappointing to come down here and not do ourselves justice."
"It was a disappointing campaign for us and we knew that we couldn't expect England to do us any favours. We didn't perform to the standard we know we can throughout the event," he added.
The defeat left Chris Small as dejected as anyone after playing a total of eight frames of snooker. He never won any of them.

Wales	5-5	Scotland
Favourites Scotland salvaged a draw in their opening Nations Cup tie against holders Wales at Reading's Hexagon Theatre. After leading 4-2, the Scots lost three frames in a row which left Wales only one short of victory with one to play but world champion Stephen Hendry came to their rescue when he forced a 5-5 draw by beating Darren Morgan in the decider. Hendry said: "It was important for us not to lose to Wales because they are one of our strongest rivals. "It was a team effort but I'm obviously pleased with how well I played." Morgan commented: "The result was a fair reflection of the chances each team had but it's disappointing not have won the last frame."

England	7-3	Northern Ireland
Ronnie O'Sullivan, England's top ranked player, completed a hat-trick of frame wins but was upstaged by team mate Stephen Lee, the world No.6 who is two places behind him on the rankings. Even Ireland's Dennis Taylor, admitted, "I thought his performance was sensational. To go out in your very first team match and make a break of 141 plus an 81, is unbelievable. "Scotland were down in my book as the most likely team to triumph at the end of the week but England must have a great chance considering the way Lee is playing." Lee's century came against Terry Murphy. It was a Nations Cup record and also equalled his highest in major competition. O'Sullivan, who knocked down a break of 105 against Anglo Irishman Gerard Greene said, "Before the start Stephen and myself knew we would be playing three times as John and Jimmy agreed it was best to make way for youth. "For whatever reason, everyone wants to see England lose. We are not liked and the other teams want to beat us more than anyone else. But we are really fired up and want to win this for our country."

Republic of Ireland	8-2	Northern Ireland
Fergal O'Brien completed a hat trick of victories as the Republic of Ireland thrashed neighbours, Northern Ireland, 8-2 to move ahead of England at the top of the table. O'Brien who recorded a break of 68 during his match with Gerard Greene, won the second, fifth and eighth frames as the Republic enjoyed a far more comfortable passage than they did a year ago when the North were beaten 6-5. Defeat left Northern Ireland rooted at the bottom of the table and virtually out of contention for Sunday's final. "This was a good all round team performance though at one stage it look as if the result might be a lot closer. It's also a nice start for us," said Doherty. "On paper, it was always going to be difficult considering we finished bottom of the pile last season. But stranger things can happen and on this form we could cause an upset or two like we did when beating England in the semi-finals of the 1996 World Cup."

Scotland	4-6	England
England captain John Parrott put the final touches to claim their first win over auld enemy Scotland in professional team snooker for 13 years. Parrott played a tactically tight last frame to see off the challenge of Alan McManus after Stephen Hendry had got Scotland back into it with a superb 137 total clearance in the ninth frame. "That was the best I've felt all season. I was focussed throughout on what I had to do. But we cannot rest on our laurels as we still need to beat Wales or the Republic of Ireland if we are to go through. "The Welsh have a formidable team and the Irish are always difficult to play against," said the England captain Parrott. The Scots were now licking their wounds after England's victory put a huge question mark over their appearance in Sunday's final. One point from two matches leaves Scotland having to rely on others if they are to challenge for the first prize with England needing to win only one of their last two to be certain of going through. However, Scotland captain John Higgins, who started his fire today, refused to concede defeat, saying Scotland were still in with a chance of qualifying for Sunday's final. He said, "If England can beat Wales on Saturday, it will all change. We don't usually root for the English but we'll have to make an exception. "England are a strong unit this season and are playing to a good standard as well. It might have been a different story had we pegged them back to 3-2 but we didn't and now have to concentrate on winning our last two games against the Irish."

Wales	6-4	Republic of Ireland
Welsh hopes of retaining their Nations Cup championship improved considerably following this victory and went second in the Nations Cup table. All four of the Welsh team won at least one match as they raced 6-1 ahead with Dominic Dale who had lost to Ken Doherty, completing a break of 100 in frame seven. The Welsh, winners of the inaugural Nations Cup 12 months ago, lost the last three frames having led 6-1, could prove more costly than they imagined by the time the last two matches are completed on Saturday and the final tables drawn up for the frame difference. Their skipper Morgan said: "I'm disappointed that we led 6-1 and then lost the last three frames because it could let Scotland in by the back door. "But if someone had offered us a 6-4 win at the start of the day we would have bitten their hands off."

Wales	8-2	Northern Ireland
A one-sided contest saw the Welsh win the last five frames to take their points total to seven with one more match to play, against England when a draw will be good enough to take them through to the final. England and Scotland have to play two more matches but with the holders winning so handsomely, the Scots now know that not only must they win them both, they need to pick up a minimum of 12 and more likely 15 of the remaining 20 frames to gain a back door entrance to the final should the Welsh slip up in their round robin. "Before we started the match we just wanted a win. 8-2 makes up for yesterday and things are looking good for us now so we're very pleased," said Darren Morgan the Welsh captain who was just a little concerned about Wales' previous match. During the match, Matthew Stevens was called for six successive misses and lost 30 points to Terry Murphy in frame four. And the total penalty from both player in that frame was 46 points.

England	8-2	Republic of Ireland
England booked their place in the final of the Nations Cup with an emphatic victory over the Republic of Ireland. It also ruined any lingering hopes the Irish might have had of challenging for the first prize. Captain John Parrott led from the front, winning the sixth frame against Ken Doherty after a flawless tactical performance that tied the Irish skipper in knots. After that, Stephen Lee and Jimmy White put England over the winning line with Ronnie O'Sullivan winning all three of his frames. Parrott said: "We have got over the first hurdle but we still have to finish the job by winning the final. "The match was closer than the score suggested and we knew that the Irish would never give up so it was a good overall team performance." Ken Doherty, captain of the Republic, remarked, "England have a strong team and will be hard to beat."

Scotland	6-4	Northern Ireland
John Higgins made his first maximum 147 break as Scotland threw themselves a lifeline as they attempt to squeeze into the Nations Cup final via backdoor. Higgins, who has compiled seven maximums in practice, made his first in competition to give his Scottish side a 4-3 lead over Northern Ireland. But the world no.1 was required to pot the last three balls to see off Joe Swail and make it 5-4 before the ever dependable Stephen Hendry made 104 to beat Terry Murphy and wrap up the victory. The result means that Scotland will qualify for the final if Wales lose to England, who are already assured of a final place, and the Scots beat Republic of Ireland by a handsome margin. Higgins' 147, against Dennis Taylor in the seventh frame, was the sixth this season, 16th in front of the TV cameras and 35th in professional competition. Jubilant Higgins said: "It's brilliant to make a 147 but in many ways potting the last three balls of the next frame was even more important. "The maximum looked a possibility when I reached 32. There were no reds on the cushion and no dodgy shots to take on but winning the ninth frame was probably more important because had I lost it, we were definitely out."

England	3-7	Wales
England will face holders Wales in the final of this year's Nations Cup. The Welsh needing only a draw against England in their last group match, moved into an unassailable position when taking a 5-3 lead leaving the last two frames as surplus to requirements. Man of the moment was skipper Darren Morgan who beat Jimmy White in the opening frame and then rival captain John Parrott to make sure Wales would be in the final. Dominic Dale, the Welsh No.3, also recorded a break of 114 against Stephen Lee, his second century in the eight frames he was involved in. It left Scotland facing a meaningless tie with the Republic of Ireland in the evening with only the honour of finishing third in the group to play for. The jubilant captain said: "We fancied Scotland pulling out all the stops if we had lost so this is a massive result for us. "This result has proved our victory over Scotland last year was no fluke. But to retain the trophy will be the icing on the cake would be to win it again. "I had an hour with Terry Griffiths at the practice table before things got under way and he told me where I was going wrong and it has made a big difference," said Morgan who revealed he was devoid of confidence before the event started a week ago. However, the England captain John Parrott said, "We'll play differently in the final tomorrow. We'll be more concentrate because we know we have to win tomorrow."

Scotland	1-9	Republic of Ireland
Scotland's Nations Cup campaign ended in embarrassment when they were thrashed by the Republic of Ireland in the final group match. It's their heaviest ever defeat in the Nations Cup. In the bookmaker's slip, it was 150 t0 1 with this scoreline. Congratulation if you won the money. The Scottish squad had already lost any chance of reaching the final when Wales beat England in the early afternoon. That result meant that Wales and England were well clear of the Scots on points in the group table. It left Scotland facing a meaningless tie with the Republic of Ireland last night with only the honour of finishing third in the group to play for. But the Irish were geared up for last night's dead game and compiled a series of high breaks to flatten the tartan quartet. "We all have to share the responsibility of a defeat like this and none of us played how we can," said captain John Higgins. "It's disappointing to come down here and not do ourselves justice." "It was a disappointing campaign for us and we knew that we couldn't expect England to do us any favours. We didn't perform to the standard we know we can throughout the event," he added. The defeat left Chris Small as dejected as anyone after playing a total of eight frames of snooker. He never won any of them.

FINAL

Wales 4-6 England

England claimed a dramatic victory over holders Wales in front of a capacity audience to win the 2000 Nations Cup in Reading.
John Parrott and Ronnie O'Sullivan were England's heroes. The captain held his nerve to compile a 98 break in the final frame while against rival skipper Darren Morgan.
"It's definitely one of the biggest buzzes I've ever had as a professional and that was as good a break as I have ever made," said jubilant captain.
"I am so pleased with all the hard work we put in as team. We have had a great camaraderie all week and of course we also have a genius in the side. Ronnie O'Sullivan is as good as anyone who ever picked up a cue, there hasn't been anyone better in terms of having so much natural talent. You can use him any way you want," he added.
And the star, Ronnie O'Sullivan, won 13 of the 15 frames he played during the tournament, including all three in the final.
He said, "This is the best moment of my career so far though I have won many titles. Nothing can compare to this, compete in a team, and especially for England. I never realise how we are pround to win for our country."
Wales captain Darren Morgan said: "They deserved to win but they'll be the first to agree that all the running went their way."

Wales	4-6	England
England claimed a dramatic victory over holders Wales in front of a capacity audience to win the 2000 Nations Cup in Reading. John Parrott and Ronnie O'Sullivan were England's heroes. The captain held his nerve to compile a 98 break in the final frame while against rival skipper Darren Morgan. "It's definitely one of the biggest buzzes I've ever had as a professional and that was as good a break as I have ever made," said jubilant captain. "I am so pleased with all the hard work we put in as team. We have had a great camaraderie all week and of course we also have a genius in the side. Ronnie O'Sullivan is as good as anyone who ever picked up a cue, there hasn't been anyone better in terms of having so much natural talent. You can use him any way you want," he added. And the star, Ronnie O'Sullivan, won 13 of the 15 frames he played during the tournament, including all three in the final. He said, "This is the best moment of my career so far though I have won many titles. Nothing can compare to this, compete in a team, and especially for England. I never realise how we are pround to win for our country." Wales captain Darren Morgan said: "They deserved to win but they'll be the first to agree that all the running went their way."

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