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RESULTS: GERMANY 9-7 HOLLAND, POLAND 5-9 PHILIPPINES A
IN A CLASH of the pedigreed European giants, Germany, consisting of Ralf Souquet and Thorsten Hohmann, held off the late challenge of Holland to book a spot in the semi-finals of the PartyCasino.net World Cup of Pool at the SM Mall North Annex in Quezon City, Manila.
The match ended 9-7 and the closing stages were highly exciting as both pairs fought for the opening that would give them a run at the finishing line. The Germans broke well throughout while the Dutch matched them with some quality shots.
"Niels was making all the jump shots but the break is a very important factor. We played well and just missed a few positions but luckily we got through," said Hohmann afterwards.
DENNIS ORCOLLO and Ronnie Alcano, representing Philippines A, moved into the last four of the PartyCasino.net World Cup of Pool as they shook off the stubborn challenge of Poland to win 9-5 at the SM Mall North Annex in Quezon City, Manila.
Like their countrymen Reyes and Bustamante, they were under pressure from the large crowd gathered and also from the Polish pair of Radoslaw Babica and Mateusz Sniegocki who looked very comfortable in the early stages, given the circumstances.
But no team has truly mastered the break in this competition so far but Orcollo and Alcano delivered some outstanding breaks to help them canter to the finish line.
"I'm really happy. It was very hard to play this match but now we're getting closer to playing in the final. I would like to say thanks to all these fans for coming to support the team," said Orcollo
MINUTE-BY-MINUTE BLOG
RESULTS: GERMANY 9-7 HOLLAND, POLAND 5-9 PHILIPPINES A
9.49pm: There shouldn't be any problems and there aren't. Alcano is laughing before potting the 8-ball, the crowd cheer, Orcollo downs the 9-ball, both players punch the air and the crowd go mad. Game over for Poland.
9.48pm: A crushing break from Alcano sees two balls pocketed and another hanging over the edge. This looks to be all over.
9.47pm: The second straight-forward rack for Philippines in a row as they move to the hill. Poland can only sit, wait, hope and pray.
9.46pm: No host side has ever reached the semi-finals of the World Cup of Pool but now we could have two of the last four this year being from the Philippines.
9.43pm: There are no problems, no panics and no dramas, just good shooting pool as it is now 7-5 to the hosts.
9.41pm: Babica gives it some welly off the break. It doesn't matter though as all 9 balls remain on the table. A chance for the Philippines A to move two ahead once more.
9.34pm: Poland hold their nerve to claim the next. We have been treated to two very tense and dramatic matches tonight and there will be many more twists and turns to come.
9.31pm: That mistake comes when Orcollo misses a blue 2 that he would normally expect to pot.
9.30pm: Alcano sends three balls down on the break and only a bad blunder will stop it being 7-4.
9.28pm: The Europeans still haven't got back to the table after that Babica scratch and the way Philippines A are playing, they may have to wait a while before they do so again.
9.23pm: Poland should regain the lead but Babica scratches and with only a few balls left on the table, Philippines A accept the gift.
9.15pm: Poland run out the eighth. Not the most exciting message that has appeared on these blogs but factually correct anyway.
9.05pm: Sniegocki loses position going from the 1-ball to the 2 but is saved by his partner who pulls a successful potted jump shot out from nowhere and they go on to win the rack.
9.01pm: But Babica's later miss on the green 6, which wobbled about but would not drop, means Philippines can now go two in front. 4-2 to Philippines A.
9.00pm: Alcano makes a bank shot and is successful as the 3-ball vanishes off the table but Orcollo's jump shot to hit the pink 4 is left out in the open.
8.58pm: They might not be able to make it four in a row as an illegal break passes control to Poland.
8.55pm: Philippines take the fifth rack and also take the lead for the first time. Three in a row for Philippines A.
8.43pm: Sniegocki leaves the 1-ball on into the centre pocket and that sets off the Philippines. They were 2-0 down not it should be 2-2. Orcollo makes it happen.
8.40pm: Orcollo plays safe and Sniegocki leaves it over the side pocket. The Filipino crowd, knowing the rack is soon theirs, start cheering before Alcano pots the ball and cheer louder after he has done so. 2-1 to Poland.
8.35pm: Sniegock pots the 4-ball but leaves Babica in a horrible position. He tries to make the best of it but leaves the green 5 on. Philippines A should win their first rack of this quarter-final. But Alcano leaves Orcollo a stinker after poor positional from the 8-ball to the 9-ball.
8.33pm: Head referee Michaela Tabb calls a foul against Dennis Orcollo as no ball appears to have hit a rail after contact. She asks second referee Cielo Lopez to adjudicate via the televsion replay and she says the shot was legal.
8.25pm Another very confident run out from a Radoslaw Babica break gives them a 2-0 lead. MateuszSniegocki is reckoned to be one of the fast improving young talents on the EuroTour and he looks nerveless under the circumstances.
8.22pm A confidence boosting run out from the Polish lads gets them on the board at 1-0.
8.20pm The last quarter-final is between Poland and Philippines A.
FINAL SCORE: GERMANY 9-7 HOLLAND
QUOTES: RALF SOUQUET (GERMANY): "It was tension all the way through but we felt good even until the end. For some reason we couldn't make any ball off the break and the table started playing funny at the end as the rails were a bit bouncy so that made it a lot harder for both teams.
THORSTEN HOHMANN (GERMANY): "Niels was making all the jump shots but the break is a very important factor. We played well and just missed a few positions but luckily we got through."
20.06pm: Hohmann plays a safety as he didn't want the risk of scratching, van den berg leaves the 7-ball over the middle pocket and it is game over.
20.03pm: But Holland have another chance but Feijen misses the pink 4 and will be upset about that. Ooh that was a bad miss!
20.01pm: Feijen opts for rail first and he produces his second crowd-pleasing shot in a row. Van den Berg has to play safe and Souquet plays a potential match-winning bank shot on the red 3.
20.00pm: Feijen pushes out at the start of the 16th rack. Germany turn down the offer and Feijen, not for the first time executes a jump shot perfectly. The crowd, who have been quiet patiently waiting for the Philippines A match, come alive. Unfortunately for them, Holland have to play safe before Hohmann does likewise.
19.55pm: It always seems to be van den Berg potting the 9-ball and he does so again. It's 8-7. We've only had one hill-hill contest in the whole competition. If Holland win the next then we will have our second.
19.47pm: The same player misses a 1-ball in the next but Souquet fails with a tricky 1-7 combination.
19.44pm: Nick van den berg pots the 9-ball it's 8-6 and you could cut the tension with a, er, tension-cutting device.
19.41pm: Germany look to have Holland in trouble with a well-enforced safety but Feijen's fine jump-shot on the 2-ball, which is pocketed, could be the turning point of the whole match.
19.38pm: You can forget your cars, this is German efficiency at its best. Methodical and precise. They make is 8-5 and are on the hill.
19.34pm: Holland return to the table early in the 13th and get a stroke of luck when the cue ball lurches towards the pocket but just stays out. But van den Berg misses the blue 2 with his next shot and Germany have a chance for 8-5.
19.27pm: Typical! Just as soon as I describe it as a pool purists dream Feijen misses a straight-forward pink 4. Germany gobble up the chance like a fat child at an all you can eat buffet and it is now 7-5.
19.26pm: It's the calm before the storm here at the SM North City in Manila as the crowd are silent but things will go crazy when Dennis Orcollo and Ronnie Alcano are in action next. But this match is a pool purists dream. Superb safety battles and few errors all round.
19.23pm: Germany finish off the rack from there and are now only three racks from glory.
19.15pm: The Dutch leave a tight safety as van den Berg parks the cue ball behind the 9-ball. The German escape leaves the 2-ball out in the open and Holland have a chance. But they then lose possession and leave a sight of the red 3.
19.14pm: It's quite a flat atmosphere at the moment but it will certainly liven up later as Philippines A meet Poland in the last quarter-final.
19.10pm: Another good break and it is a slow progress through the balls but also an effective one. A pumped up van den Berg pots the 9-ball for the second successive rack, clinches his fist and sees that the scoreboard now says 5-5.
19.07pm: Van den Berg completes the formalities, although the 9-ball wobbles around in the pocket before falling to give him an unexpected fright.
19.06pm: The Dutch break is a good one and 5-4 is lurking suspiciously around the corner.
19.05pm: Holland's Nick van den Berg pulls one back for the Dutch. They still trail 5-3.
19.04pm: Souquet's one-rail escape attempt misses its target and Holland have ball-in-hand as they look to do the business in the rest of this rack.
19.02pm: But that doesn't lead to Holland winning the rack in that visit as Feijen later opts to play safe on the red 3. The Germans have a conference planning their next move.
18.58pm: Germany have no luck off the break in the next and are forced to push out. Feijen's jump shot gets lucky as the 1-ball cannons into the 4-ball and drops.
18.55pm: For the first time in the match Germany move three ahead. Holland have a lot of work to do if they are to reach the final four for the first time in World Cup of Pool history.
18.46pm: But Germany soon restore their two-rack advantage as Hohmann and Souquet take another small step closer to the semi-finals.
18.36pm: This match was always expected to be a close one with the standard of players involved. All have played in the Mosconi Cup and represent some of the finest players in Europe. Feijen and van den Berg have a chance in the next and grab it for 3-2.
18.30pm: The Germans, the competition's third seeds, extend their lead further and are now in front 3-1.
18.22 With ball in hand the Germans fire home the remainder to take the lead at 2-1.
18.16 After a long commercial break we're back in the magnificent arena at the SM Mall which has been full throughout the event. Hohmann makes an illegal break and the Dutch look good for a methodical run out but Nick misses the green 6 and compounds the error by scratching.
18.10 Germany get their chance in the second and the clinical duo of Ralf Souquet and Thorsten Hohmann run out to level things.
18.05 Holland downed two balls from the opening break of the match and from there Van den Berg and Feijen ran out to take the lead
