Australian Billiards & Snooker Council

News

Aussie Rules
30 Oct 2006

*** The following article is taken from the World Snooker website ***

Neil Robertson became the first Australian player to win a ranking tournament by beating Jamie Cope in the Royal London Watches Grand Prix final.

The confident 24-year-old from Melbourne overcame a late bout of anxiety in his first ranking final to clinch a 9-5 success in Aberdeen.

The Antipodean ace was given a rousing reception by the packed Exhibition and Conference Centre as he lifted the silver trophy and received a cheque for Ł60,000.

A key point in the match came as early as the fourth frame when Cope missed a simple red leading 59-1 and his opponent made a brilliant clearance to go 3-1 ahead.

From that point, the intense pressure seemed to get the better of 21-year-old Cope, who had never previously been beyond the last 16 of a ranking tournament.

Robertson stormed 8-2 ahead and, despite temporarily losing his focus and seeing his lead reduced to 8-5, he finally edged over the finishing line.

Stoke cueman Cope, nicknamed the Shotgun for his fast, explosive style, had played some outstanding snooker on his way to the final but misfired too often at the last hurdle.

Watched by fiancee Danielle and father David, he picked up the consolation of a cheque for Ł30,000 plus a bumper bonus of Ł24,000 for his 147 maximum break earlier in the week.

Robertson has been recognised for some time as an outstanding talent though it has taken several years for him to break into the highest echelon of the sport.

After turning professional in his late teens and travelling 12,000 miles to compete on the circuit in the UK, he struggled to make an impact. Unable to make ends meet and missing his family, he came close to giving up snooker.

But Robertson’s father convinced him to persevere. The turning point came when he won the 2003 World Under-21 Championship, which gave him the belief he needed to go with his exceptional natural ability.

He has stormed up the rankings from No 68 to No 13 in just two seasons and is now up to seventh on the provisional list.

The player nicknamed the Melbourne Machine had not previously been beyond the quarter-finals of a ranking event, losing at this stage five times.

But when he beat Ronnie O’Sullivan 5-1 in the quarters on Friday that barrier was broken and from that point he looked unstoppable.

Arguably the best long potter in the world, Robertson’s other key strength is making pressure clearances and he has proved that on many occasions in Aberdeen.

It is hoped that his success could spark a wave of interest in snooker in Australia similar to that which Ding Junhui has led in China.

Cope, desperate to get off to a good start, led 38-0 in the first frame tonight. But his opponent fought his way back with some smart tactical play and after gaining a snooker on the last red, Robertson cleared up to extend his lead to 6-2.

The next was also a fragmented affair, Robertson eventually winning it with a fine pot on the final brown to take a five frame cushion. A run of 63 in the tenth frame brought him to the brink of victory at 8-2.

With the burden of expectation lifted, Cope showed his break-building talents with a superb 105 to take the contest to a mid-session interval.

Robertson began to think about the winning line and made several unforced errors in the next, missing an easy penultimate red at 42-41. Cope took advantage for 8-4.

Frame 13 was another very scrappy affair with both players’ cue arms suffering. Cope nicked it on the brown after Robertson has missed a tough pot along a side cushion to draw within three frames.

Robertson left the arena to regroup mentally and came back refreshed. He knocked in an excellent long red to initiate a run of 55. One more trademark red later and the man from Down Under was on top of the world.