A pair of history makers

They are teammates, friends, coach and student, and yesterday, history makers for Singapore at the World Cup of Pool.

Aloysius Yapp, 26, and Toh Lian Han, 50, continued their fairy-tale run at the Brentwood Centre in Essex, England as they beat the American second seeds - world No. 1 Shane Van Boening and the 56th-ranked Skyler Woodward - 9-3 in the semi-finals.

The sixth-seeded Singaporeans faced Spain's fourth seeds Francisco Sanchez Ruiz (world No. 5) and David Alcaide (No. 18) later on in the final. The results were not available at press time, but the winners will help their country lift the World Cup for the first time and pocket US$60,000 (S$83,440).

The Republic's best finish at the tournament was a quarter-final run in 2007, when Toh partnered Chan Keng Kwang.

World No. 7 Yapp said: "We are honoured to achieve a historic finish for Singapore. It feels great to play alongside my coach Lian Han against some of the best players in the world.

"There were ups and downs and sometimes we got lucky, while other times things went against us. We learnt to try to keep our calm and focus, and we hope to continue doing Singapore proud."

This is the second time he and world No. 68 Toh have eliminated former world champions in the event, having beaten 2012 winners Finland 9-6 in the quarter-final.

Cuesports Singapore president Justin Lee was proud of his players' performances, and said: "Our athletes continue to inspire and allow Singaporeans to dream.

"Whatever the outcome of the final is, we are proud of Aloysius and Lian Han, and our association will continue to help them pursue and achieve their goals and ambitions."

The duo played near-flawless pool to overcome the Americans, who won the lag to start the match. But a poor push by Woodward allowed Toh to play a good safety to induce a foul as Singapore mopped up the remaining balls to draw first blood.

With this 9-ball event featuring an alternate-shot and winner-break format, it allows for the possibility of a team pulling off an extended run at the table.

Singapore did exactly that as both Yapp and Toh broke well - potting two balls on every break - and ran out the next three frames to establish a 4-0 lead.

Toh then scratched on the 5-ball while trying to play for position for the 6-ball to hand the United States a way back into the match.

Van Boening and Woodward, the 2008 champions who beat Yapp and Toh in the first round at the 2017 (7-0) and 2018 (7-5) editions, then clawed back two frames but failed to build any meaningful momentum after that. They either did not have clear shots after their breaks or missed routine pots.

Up 7-2, Yapp missed a straightforward 9-ball that would have sealed the victory, but Woodward missed the 8-ball in the next frame to return the initiative which their opponents did not waste.

Toh said: "It's always an honour to represent Singapore in international competitions and a joy to team up with Aloysius.

"I may be his coach, but he is also a friend and we form a good team.

"I may be older, but I also feel nervous at times and it's good we can be there for each other, discuss strategy and reassure one another during this event."