Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BROWN & OUT
Jordan to learn from Crucible defeat as he and countryman Allen crash in first round
DEBUTANT Jordan Brown admitted he learnt a valuable lesson as he bowed out of the World Championship.
The Antrim potter slipped to a frustrating 10-6 first round defeat to triple world champion Mark Selby at the Crucible.
But the 32-year-old has backed himself to become an even better player as he said: “I’ll definitely learn something from this experience. I’ll reflect on this defeat, it’s a learning curve.
“I forced chances out of Mark but I just missed too many balls.
“I know he missed a few but you can’t afford to miss as many as I did against somebody like him.
“He took advantage of my mistakes, that’s why he’s a great champion like he is. He still finds something to win.”
Brown, who won three tough matches to qualify, trailed 5-4 overnight after a gutsy start to his Sheffield debut. And he stuck close to Selby at 7-6 down, before his experienced opponent won three frames on the spin to triumph.
“I actually watched my match back in the evening and I felt I was the slightly better player,” revealed Brown.
“I had confidence going into the last session, I felt really relaxed and involved in the match but it just wasn’t to be in the end.
“My main aim was just to enjoy my match no matter what.
For me it was great to be part of such a special tournament.
“I’d definitely love to get back to the Crucible. I’ve been so grateful for the opportunity.”
Brown had match breaks of 76 and 58 but a sluggish Selby (inset) edged his way through thanks to runs of 119, 50, 65 and 68.
“I’m sure he’ll be back here, he’s
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Darren Gough announced his retirement from Test cricket. too good a player not to be,” said Selby. “He held up quite well but he’ll be disappointed with how he played because I know he can play a lot better than that.”
Meanwhile, Mark Allen crashed to a shock 10-8 defeat to debutant and world No.89 Jamie Clarke last night.
The Antrim man led by just a frame despite pocketing four centuries in the morning session. But the five-time ranking event winner went off the boil, saw his 5-4 lead evaporate and was outplayed by Welshman Clarke in the concluding session.
Breaks of 53, 80 and 74 did the damage as Clarke held his nerve under real pressure. “Even when Mark was knocking in centuries for fun I believed I could win the match,” reflected Clarke.