WCOP 2009 - Day 4 Update

Matchroom Sport Press Release:

Philippines A Hit A Gear

PHILIPPINES A consisting of Dennis Orcollo and 2006 World Champion Ronnie Alcano finally hit a gear at the SM Mall North Annex in Manila as they won eight racks in row to overturn Russia and book their spot in the quarter finals of the PartyCasino.net World Cup of Pool where they will play Poland.

Looking less than comfortable in their first round match against Thailand yesterday, they didn’t look much better in the early stages as a comfortable looking Konstantin Stepanov, the former European No.1 and his partner the 17 year-old Ruslan Chinakhov opened up a 3-0 lead.

The big pro-Pinoy crowd were soon silenced as their orange-clad heroes struggled to get to grips with a situation that was running out of their control. Fortunately for them, an attack of nerves got to Chinakhov and he made some critical misses that turned the momentum in the home teams favour.

As they won the racks and took the lead, the Philippines started to play the relaxed quality pool that they were capable of and in the end they ran out comfortable winners.

“It was tough at first but we started to play well and the crowd were great. There are lots of good teams in this event but we feel good that we are starting to play well,” said Orcollo.

Alcaide Gifts England In Act Of True Sportsmanship

ENGLAND have advanced into the quarter-finals of the 2009 PartyCasino.net World Cup of Pool after beating Spain 8-6. It was an exciting match with neither team getting the upper hand.

The critical moment came in the 13th rack when Spaniard David Alcaide called a foul on himself when he adjudged himself to have double hit the cue ball.

It was a marvellous moment of sportsmanship as Alcaide was clearly the only person in the building to know what had happened as the ref missed it, as had the English team and everyone else but it was a fine example of honesty from Alcaide.

"David called a foul on himself and the referee had missed it and the players did as well," said England's Darren Appleton. "But I've known David three or four years and he showed what he is all about and a great sportsman."

Appleton's team-mate, Imran Majid, added: "We had to battle hard to stay in the match, they played some good stuff and we played some good stuff.

"We needed to win so we will take it and look forward to the next match. To be honest, we're just pleased to get over that one."

The victory means England meet local heroes Efren Reyes and Francisco Bustamante, the Philippines B team that won the first competition back in 2007.

"To play in the Philippines and to play the best two players of all time will be fantastic," added Appleton. "Efren is the greatest player to have picked up a cue so we have nothing to lose. As long as my partner manages to put the white ball in the right spot we will be alright."

Quarter-Finals Schedule (Saturday 5th September)

USA v China (2.00pm)
Philippines B v England (to follow)

Germany v Holland (6.00pm)
Poland v Philippines A (to follow)

Complete Results So Far

Second Round

Philippines A 8 – 3 Russia
England 8 – 6 Spain
Holland 8 – 4 Japan
Poland 8 – 5 Chinese Taipei
Germany 8 – 4 France
China 8-3 Finland
Philippines 8 – 5 Italy
USA 8 – 5 Indonesia

First Round

Holland 8 – 3 Vietnam
Russia 8 – 3 Denmark
Poland 8 – 0 Belgium
Chinese Taipei 8 – 6 Singapore
Philippines A 8 – 5 Thailand
England 8 – 4 Malaysia
Germany 8 – 0 Hong Kong
Japan 8 – 6 Croatia
Italy 8 – 5 Austria
Finland 8 – 3 Sweden
Philippines B 8 – 3 Qatar
USA 8 – 7 Malta
Indonesia 8 – 3 India
Spain 8 – 3 Australia
China 8 – 5 Korea
France 8 – 1 Canada

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