Champions show their class

Click here for Saturday's results

Defending champion Paul Foster and two-time former champion Tony Allcock moved the third round of the World Indoor Singles Championship on Sunday.

Allcock was the first to progress to the next round, beating fifth seed and 2000 winner Robert Weale 12-3 8-7 at Potters Leisure Resort in Great Yarmouth.

Foster had a more difficult encounter, coming from behind to defeat Reading's Mark Bantock in a best of three end tie-break decider.

Bantock easily won the first set 13-1. But Foster immediately hit back, taking the second 7-2 and the tie break 2-0.

"I can't believe I won - I wasn't in it in the opening set," said the Scot.

I've been here for the last two years and I just can't get on to the ranking list

Greg Moon

"However, I managed to get hold of the jack in the second set, opted for a shorter length, and it worked."

Bantock admitted he played some of the best bowls of his career, but he still could not defeat the champion.

"Paul then showed just why he's the world champion," he said. "He dug deep, turned the tide and went on to win - and that's what it's all about."

Hong Kong's Noel Kennedy battled to a 10-5 7-7 win over Ely's Greg Harlow, beaten finalist at the BUPA Care Homes Open at Blackpool in November.

Earlier, former champions Richard Corsie and Andy Thomson signalled their championship intentions.

Scotland's Corsie, three times a winner, turned on the style to ease past County Antrim's Neil Booth - a gold medallist in the Commonwealth Games fours - 11-1 9-6.

Thomson, from Kent in England, rolled back the years to defeat Greg Moon, last season's English national champion, 10-3 9-5.

Corsie, who took the title in 1989, 1991 and 1993, arrived at the venue at Hopton-on-Sea in Norfolk just minutes before the start of his game - but that did not affect his performance.

"It was good to discover there's plenty of life in the old dog yet," said the 35-year-old former Edinburgh postman.

"I am pleased I finished strongly because I felt it would have been unjust if the match had gone to the tie-break."

Booth said: "I didn't threaten at all in the first set, I wasn't allowed to, but I felt I gave him a better match in the second."

Thomson said after his win: "This is definitely the best I've played in these events for a number of years now.

"I was totally in charge in this game, but I kept thinking about the BUPA in Blackpool where I was in the same situation against Alan Thurlow from Australia.

"I lost a few bad ends and it all turned sour for me, but I learned from that experience and just did the business today."

Moon said: "I didn't think I played as well as I can, but I wasn't allowed to. I believe Andy is the man on form these days, he was brilliant today, as he was at the BUPA."

I blew it a bit in the first set after setting myself up nicely

Adam Jeffrey

Australia's Adam Jeffery also powered his way into the third round.

Jeffery, from the St. John's Park club outside Sydney, saw off the challenge of England's number sixteen seed David Holt 8-10 12-2 2-0.

"I blew it a bit in the first set after setting myself up nicely" admitted 30-year-old Jeffery.

Jonathan Ross, the newly crowned Irish Singles and fours champion who plays from the Belfast Indoor club, also eased through when he beat Egham's Wynne Richards.

Richards, a runner-up in this event to Hugh Duff in 1988, could not recapture his first round form against New Zealand's Andrew Curtain and went down 9-6 9-0.

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Saturday's results:

Mark McMahon (Eng) bt Neil Furman (USA) 12-1 10-6
Noel Kennedy (Hkg) bt Greg Harlow (Eng) 10-5 7-7
Paul Foster (Sco) bt Mark Bantock (Eng) 1-13 7-2 2-0
Tony Allcock (Eng) bt Robert Weale (Wal) 12-3 8-7
Richard Corsie (6, Sco) bt Neil Booth (Ire) 11-1, 9-6
Andy Thomson (14, Eng) bt Greg Moon (Eng) 10-3, 9-5
Adam Jeffery (Aus) bt David Holt (16, Eng) 8-10, 12-2, 2-0
Jonathan Ross (13, Ire) bt Wynne Richards (Eng) 9-6,9-0

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