Stevens wins Rocket tie

Stevens: First round place

Dave's safety was unbelievable, you could have swapped the balls for chess pieces. It was like a perpetual cycle of doom.

Anthony Hamilton
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Former champion Matthew Stevens set up a plum draw with Ronnie O'Sullivan at the UK Championship after winning through the qualifiers, alongside Steve Davis, Judd Trump and Graeme Dott.

Stevens beat Adrian Gunnell in the final qualifying round in Prestatyn, where Davis beat Michael Judge to set-up an intriguing clash with Stephen Hendry in a battle of multiple world champions.

Welshman Stevens won the UK Championship in 2003 and has appeared in the Crucible final but has tumbled out of the top 16 with his recent struggles for form.

A 9-1 win over Gunnell not only dashed his dreams of playing in front of his home fans in Telford, but it also boost Stevens' hopes of returning to the sport's elite.

"Any time you win 9-1 you have to be delighted," said Carmarthen's Stevens. "Adrian beat me in the same round a couple of years ago so I know what a good player he is, although he wasn't at his best today.

Rocket tie

O'Sullivan will be waiting in Telford for Stevens in what could be one of the ties of the first round, with the two men squaring off on December 7.

"Ronnie is a great draw for me because I've got nothing to lose and everything to gain. I've been playing well and I know I can beat him. I wouldn't be playing if I didn't think I could still win tournaments. I tend to play better the further I go."

The two most successful players of the modern era will also be first round opponents in Telford with Davis and Hendry, who have 13 Crucible crowns between them going head-to-head.

"It will be fantastic to play Stephen - he's bashed me up all over the place over the years," said 52-year-old Davis, a six-time UK champion. "There will be a bit of nostalgia. If I play like I did today I will be happy."

Ken Doherty misses out on the first round after being beaten by Jamie Cope, but youngster Judd Trump made it through to a tie against Peter Ebdon with a 9-7 win over Mark Davis

Delighted

"I'm delighted, it was a very tough match, one of the best performances of my career," said 20-year-old Trump. "I hardly missed a ball in the second session and I only won 9-7. My safety was the best it's ever been.

Ricky Walden trailed 5-1 but bounced back strongly to beat Andrew Higginson 9-6, and he now takes on reigning world champion John Higgins, who he knocked out of the UK Championship five years ago.

Dott will face fellow world champion Mark Williams following a 9-5 win over Craig Steadman, while Anthony Hamilton won a marathon against Dave Harold, which contained a grueling 80-minute frame.

"Dave's safety was unbelievable, you could have swapped the balls for chess pieces," said Hamilton. "It was like a perpetual cycle of doom."