Northern Ireland international Gerard Greene crashed out of the Embassy World Championship in Sheffield when he lost 10-3 at the hands of Peter Ebdon.
Greene started brightly, and the two were neck-a-neck for the first six frames, however Ebdon soon stepped up a gear and relegated the Ulsterman to a mere spectator as he rattled off seven frames without answer.
Ebdon will now face either Greene's fellow Ulsterman Joe Swail or Tony Drago of Malta for a quarter-final spot.
A triumphant Ebdon paid tribute the the defeated Greene and insisted that he is a better player than today's match suggested. "Gerard is a far better player than he showed today and I'm sure he will be disappointed. I'm sure though he will be back," he said.
Ebdon also believes that he has what it takes to retaining the crown that he won here last year. "Other players have been favoured but it was the same last season. I came through then and there's no reason why I can't do it again. It's all down to being strong and I do believe I can retain my title."
Filed by Rob Wright
