Clarkes can count on Wallace

Last June golfer Darren Clarke rang Patrick Wallace to inquire into how his snooker career was progressing, whether his world ranking was creeping up. Clarke had met the five-handicap golfer at the opening of four new holes at the local club in Dungannon.

In Wallace's eyes Clarke's interest was a significant gesture as, even outside the borders of county Tyrone, the Dungannon golfer was "a superstar". Still, the 31-yearold Wallace had little to tell of a professional snooker career which was delayed until after he had qualified as an accountant.

Now Clarke's parents have been continuing where their son left off and have been sending messages of encouragement to Wallace. As one of three Irish players in the quarter-finals of the world championship, Wallace now has more to tell.

Ken Doherty - who is, coincidentally, friendly with Padraig Harrington and hopes to play with him in the pro-am at this year's Benson and Hedges International Open - and Belfast's Joe Swail complete the Irish trinity.

Wallace's and Swail's expectations have already been exceeded by their jarring progress through the top half of the draw. However, Doherty, with Ronnie O'Sullivan's caustic jibe that he won't win the tournament still stinging, will take little comfort if he exits to Scotland's John Higgins when play resumes and finishes today.

Yesterday's first exchanges between Wallace and Swail and the two former champions, Doherty (1997) and Higgins (1998), indicated that there should be few presumptions about the outcomes. Wallace has pointed out that when he practises with his friend, it is the higher-ranked Swail who normally comes out on top, while Higgins, as number two seed, is ranked five places higher than Doherty here.

Still, it was Wallace and Doherty who drew first blood, Wallace winning a scrappy first frame and adding a second for a 20 before ending the session 6-2 ahead and Doherty claiming an early lead to go 3-1 up against Higgins but ultimately losing ground to trail 3-5.

More pertinently, Doherty showed an opening fluency that had not been that apparent in the earlier rounds, although he will have been disappointed to have allowed Higgins to then take four frames in succession.

Higgins snatched the second frame to level, before a 114 and 91 gave the Dubliner a healthy 3-1 mid-frame lead. But the Scot dug in and largely kept Doherty seated, the Irishman missing routine pots on three occasions to let the clinical Higgins in to clear up with breaks of 72, 98 and 46 for the two-frame advantage.

Doherty is unlikely to despair. Higgins has had what he says is probably his worst season in "six or seven years". The run sharply contrasts with Doherty's 16 wins from his last 17 matches. Play continues this afternoon.

Wallace diced with danger early on against Swail. In taking a 6-2 lead it must have occurred to the Dungannon player how perilous that tactic might be given Swail's heart-stopping ability to come back in matches most would have given up.

Once again Wallace looked at home in the limelight, approaching the game like he might a ledger. Nothing too risky, no outrageously high breaks, but a steady trickle of solid snooker that firstly took him to 3-1. Wallace's highest break in that phase was 52.

Swail came back but failed to find the kind of consistency that the more methodical Wallace was demonstrating. The 16th seed went for the long pots, got some and missed others while Wallace worked off what he was presented with.

A break of 65 for 5-2 and a 48 break in the final frame for 6-2 ensured that Swail, although not yet in anything approaching deep trouble, will have some clawing back to do today.