Nervy White wins final two frames to sneak into semi-finals

SNOOKER: Jimmy White's fans cannot claim they are being short-changed by their hero during the Rileys Club Masters at the Wembley Conference Centre.

And they will be happy to shell out again today after the Whirlwind reached the semi-finals.

Unlike Peter Ebdon, through to the last four for the loss of just one frame, White has won both his games 6-5.

Four days after Matthew Stevens's exit, fellow Welshman Mark Williams went down by the same scoreline.

"This, though, was a complete reverse of that match," said White after setting up a mouth-watering last four showdown with Ronnie O'Sullivan, who later beat China's Ding Junhui 6-2.

White admitted: "Against Matthew I started terribly and clicked towards the end. Against Mark, I was feeling the pressure towards the end. But as I heard the darts player Phil Taylor say the other night: "if you've got to win ugly, win ugly".

White lost his focus after play was halted prematurely at the end of the third frame after Williams complained to referee Paul Collier about the uneven bounce coming from the cushions but primarily from the top rail.

When the game resumed Williams knocked in breaks of 78, 52 and 53 to square the contest at 3-3.

White responded with 68 to regain the lead. But back came Williams to obtain parity once more.

The 24-minute decider was littered with errors but White finally fell over the line with a top break of just 14.

HOCKEY: Leinster made a significant opening claim for the under-18 interprovincial title by beating the holders, Ulster, 3-0, at Harlequin Park, Cork, last evening. Leading 1-0 at the interval, the challengers looked impressive and clinical, scoring from three short corners through Chris Pelow (2) and Alan Sothern.

Earlier, Ulster earned a 2-2 draw with Munster who fought back with goals by Jonathan Bruton and Stephen Sweetnam after Andrew Coulter had put his side ahead at half-time. It was only with three minutes to spare that Michael Dorman levelled matters and it was a tired Ulster team that faced Leinster.

Meanwhile, Pembroke Wanderers' request for a postponement of their Leinster Senior League fixture against Corinthians has been turned down, so the game is due to go ahead at Whitechurch Park today (1.0).

It was a 4-4 draw when the sides met in November but Pembroke - hit by calls to the youth interprovincials and a domino-effect caused by injuries - will be stretched to gain a point this afternoon after taking an outright lead in the championship from Glenanne last Saturday.

BOXING: Howard Eastman has been given an extra incentive to pull off a major upset by beating Bernard Hopkins in Los Angeles tonight.

Eastman will be fighting for the undisputed title after all, after the IBF, WBA and WBO all agreed at the last minute to add their sanction to that of the WBC.

Hopkins holds all four belts but initially baulked at paying the extra fees required and said he was prepared to only put his WBC belt on the line.

But an historic deal has now been struck, making this the first time in boxing history that all four major belts have been up for grabs in the same fight.

Eastman's trainer Robert McCracken said: "It's an extra bonus that Howard will be fighting for all four world titles. It's what it's all about and it's what he's worked all these years for."

McCracken's confidence is in sharp contrast to the mood in the Hopkins camp, who have treated Eastman with respect but not stopped talking about future plans.

Hopkins's history-making 20th defence of his title has caught more headlines than the quality of his London opponent, who remains something of an unknown quantity in the States.

RUGBY: The Colleges interprovincial final between Munster and Leinster has been postponed until Friday, March 11th at Railway Union RFC, Dublin, with a 3.30pm kick-off.