Snooker: White hour produces whitewash

JIMMY WHITE, the favourite to win the Rothmans Grand Prix at Reading after the surprise elimination of both Stephen Hendry and John Parrott, last night cruised into the quarter-finals with a 5-0 whitewash of Mark Johnston-Allen.

Producing the same level of sustained heavy scoring which enabled him to thrash Johnston-Allen 9-3 in the final of this year's European Open, White was at the table for only 62 minutes.

White said: 'I concentrated well and I am obviously delighted with the way I played. I still feel a bit rusty after neglecting my snooker over the summer and I need a few matches to put that right.'

Tomorrow White meets the winner of today's fifth-round match between Neal Foulds and Steve James, the world No 10.

Mark Bennett set up an all- Welsh quarter-final meeting with Terry Griffiths by beating another fellow countryman, Swansea's Tony Chappel, 5-1. Alan McManus, who thrashed the former world champion, Cliff Thorburn, 5-1, will now play Nigel Bond or John Higgins in the last eight.