O'Brien enjoys a return to form
Monday, 28 February 2005 20:36Fergal O'Brien, in the doldrums for the last three years, returned to form to secure a place in the final qualifying round of the Embassy World Championship at Prestatyn tonight.
O'Brien, the 1999 British Open champion, was once as high as ninth in the world but has slipped to 47th on the latest provisional list.
But the 32-year-old Dubliner produced a top drawer performance to beat Joe Delaney 10-3 and move to within one round of the Crucible.
O'Brien, a world championship quarter-finalist five years ago, made breaks of 63 and 73 in building a 3-1 lead before Delaney drew level at 3-3.
Further runs of 44, 61, 114, 69 and 71 helped O'Brien wrap up victory and set up a clash with 1991 champion John Parrott when qualifying resumes on March 23.
