JOHN PARROTT, the 1991 champion and ranked in the top four ever since, was within a sliver of defeat before potting the final pink to beat Bradley Jones, a 22 year-old qualifier from Croydon, 10-9 to reach the last 16 of the World Championship at the Crucible Theatre yesterday.

The world number 199 made nonsense of his ranking in leading 9-8 but just caught the near-pocket jaw with a pink from distance which would have left him a routine match ball black.

"I take my hat off to him," said Parrott. "His ranking is a joke. If there are a 198 players like him I'm going to stick to 4 Question Of Sport. He played to an exceptional level of ability, won more frames in a single visit than I did and showed commendable bottle."

Fatherhood has concentrated Jones's mind wonderfully. Last season, he did not earn a penny from the circuit and was forced to take a job making deliveries: "A hundred and thirty pounds a week. Getting up a six o'clock in the morning. When it started snowing, that was it."

Realising that for all his natural talent, he had never practised enough, he worked on his game to such effect that he has recorded wins over such players as Alain Robidoux, the Canadian number one and Northern Ireland's Joe Swail. His loser's cheque for £9,450 will carry his season's earnings beyond the £15,000 mark and at the end of the season he will be ranked around 90th.

Alan McManus also had to go the distance to beat his fellow Scot, Billy Snaddon, whom he trailed 8-4. He was about to fall five down with six to play when he managed to turn the match with a 65 clearance to snatch the frame on the black. He levelled at 8-8 and prevailed 10-9.