Maguire beats Lee to reach European Open final

Stephen Maguire was bewildered and happy, embarrassed and yet delighted after achieving a career breakthrough on the Mediterranean island of Malta today.

The 22-year-old from Glasgow was celebrating his shock 6-4 victory over fifth seed Stephen Lee in the semi-finals of the European Open at the Portomaso Hilton Hotel.

But world number 41 Maguire readily admitted that, while the result that secured his debut in a ranking event final was very welcome, his performance left much to be desired.

No-one could accuse Maguire of being overly self-critical. He committed too many unforced errors to list during a four-hour contest in which both players found the going tough from break-off to last ball potted.

Even so Maguire was better – or less worse – than Lee, who, despite his considerable big occasion experience, had what can kindly be described as an off day.

Lee, winner of four major titles and a Crucible semi-finalist last year, was all at sea and left the auditorium baffled.

“I’ve got through to the last four and find that suddenly I’ve got no game,” said the 29 year-old from Trowbridge, who beat Steve Davis and defending champion Ronnie O’Sullivan in the previous two rounds.

“I had loads of chances and didn’t take them. He was there for the taking but if you play as rank badly as I did you don’t deserve to beat anyone.

“It was a blow-up. It gets you in such a state of mind that you can’t think straight.”

Although overjoyed to set up a best of 17 frame meeting with local favourite Tony Drago or resurgent veteran Jimmy White for the first prize tomorrow, Maguire agreed that he will have to bring about a wholesale improvement if he is take the trophy back to Scotland.

“What a battle. I was starting to get embarrassed at the end but out there it was pressure like I’ve never known before,” admitted Maguire, who has also put 2002 world champion Peter Ebdon and John Higgins to the sword during the most memorable week of his five-year professional career.

“I’ve been very surprised how badly everybody has played against me here, especially Stephen but I’ll take it. His long potting is usually top class but he couldn’t do anything right. I don’t know what happened to him.

“John [Higgins] didn’t play well against me either and it seemed to me John and Stephen were both under pressure because the tournament has opened up so much and the big names that were left saw it as a big chance to capture the title.”

Maguire, who beat Lee 5-2 on their only previous meeting in the last 32 of the 2002 British Open, began brightly by shading a nervy opening frame on the yellow after Lee had missed an easy pink having been presented with a clear cut scoring chance. That set the pattern.

It should have been 1-1 but Lee over cut the last red to a top corner pocket in a second frame that lasted 31 minutes and Maguire cleared to pink for 2-0 to suggest yet another upset was on the cards.

However the third frame, an error strewn affair, went to Lee on the brown and, having opened the fourth with 47, he levelled at 2-2 when Maguire, set to counterattack, missed a slow rolled pink.

When Maguire, by now a little too ponderous for his own good, failed on a red to a middle pocket Lee pounced with 42 to lead for the first time at 3-2 but, poised to forge further in front, he handed the momentum back to his rival.

Lee wobbled a short-range red in prime position early in the sixth frame and Maguire’s subsequent 72 brought up 3-3.

The following two frames defied belief. Maguire committed numerous errors but Lee was truly awful as he lost a ludicrously low scoring seventh on the green and an equally embarrassing eighth on the brown to trail 5-3.

Maguire froze in the eighth – missing two blacks off the spot with the opportunity to wrap it up – but a frame later he retained sufficient composure to compile a 69 break for victory.