Disappointment for O’Brien in Welsh Open

There was disappointment for Lucan’s Fergal O’Brien as he lost out to Jimmy Robertson in Round Three of the BetVictor Welsh Open.

Leading 2-1 at the end of the third frame, the 49-year-old O’Brien appeared to be in a good position to progress into the next phase of the tournament.

Yet this was the cue for Robertson to underline his own credentials and the East Sussex man subsequently dictated the terms of the next three frames to ultimately advance in the end.

Although he often lived in the shadow of fellow Dubliner Ken Doherty – a former World Champion and three-time Crucible finalist – O’Brien has enjoyed a fine career of his own in professional snooker.

A winner of the British Open in 1999, he also reached the final of the now-defunct Northern Ireland Trophy eight years later.

Stephen Maguire got the better of him in the latter decider, but when the two players met in the opening round of this year’s Welsh Open, O’Brien triumphed on a final score of 4-1.

He moved forward from there to face Thailand’s Thepchaiya Un-Nooh and squeezed through at the end of a seven-frame thriller.

This set-up an enticing showdown against Robertson with the winner potentially coming face-to-face with Judd Trump in round four – should the 2019 world champion overcome the challenge of Si Jiahui.

It initially looked like O’Brien might be the one to make it through, but Robertson stormed back in contention by building up a 73-0 lead in the fourth frame.

Even though the Lucan native eventually got some points on the board, he couldn’t haul back his opponent.

It was well poised for large chunks of the fifth frame, but Robertson once again came out on top to edge into the ascendancy.

With momentum on his side, he wrapped up the match with a frame to spare despite the best efforts of O’Brien to halt him in his tracks.