McManus tumbles out to qualifier

ALAN McMANUS finished on the receiving end of one of the great Embassy World Championship upsets at Sheffield's Crucible Theatre last night.

World number six McManus went out 13-10 in round two to Lee Walker, ranked 183 places below him.

No player positioned so low on the ranking ladder has reached the Crucible quarterfinals before. Terry Griffiths was a rookie and so unranked when he on the tournament in 1979.

Walker, 21, has now won eight matches, including six qualifying rounds, to guarantee a pay day of £31,500. Last season, his earnings were just £275.

"I didn't realise I'd won that much," grinned Walker, through to the last eight to face Stefan Mazrocis or Alain Robidoux.

"I can't believe it, and it hasn't really sunk in yet what I've achieved. But I love the atmosphere out there - it's tremendous. Hopefully, I'm the man for the big occasion."

There were two crucial turning points that sent the contest Walker's way. He looked certain to trail 8-4 midway through the second session but recovered from 66-29 down with only one red left, obtaining 26 points in fouls.

He then fluked a red in the last frame of the second session to fashion a break of 60 and ensure he didn't drop 10-6 in arrears.

Stephen Hendry and Mark Williams, meanwhile, finished deadlocked after two sessions and 16 frames of their last 16 meeting.

Earlier, Ronnie O'Sullivan hit the front against Darren Morgan in their second round clash. The 21 year old Londoner resumes this morning with a 9-7 advantage.