Perry starts Premier League career with memorable win - 18/09/2008

JOE Perry made a stunning start to his PartyPoker.com Premier League Snooker career with a 4-2 victory over defending champion Ronnie O'Sullivan.

Joe Perry on his way to victory over Ronnie O'Sullivan. Picture: Lawrence Lustig

Perry, who qualified for the event for the first time by winning the Championship League tournament earlier this year, raced into a 3-0 lead at The Anvil in Basingstoke.

O'Sullivan, the current world number one and also the reigning World Champion, claimed the next two frames before Perry finally edged a nervous last frame with a fine pot on the green.

"I'm really pleased with that and I didn't know what to expect from the match," said Perry.

"Once I won the first frame I started to relax until at the end and I got a bit twitchy. It's hard to beat Ronnie and this is the first time I've ever beaten him in anything but it was hard to get over the line.

"I was a bit nervous in the first frame and got a bit lucky but then went on from there."

A break of 40 in the first was good enough to give him an early advantage and runs of 50 and 55 saw Perry go into a 2-0 lead.

A double-your-money century in the third gave Perry at least a share of the points but O’Sullivan got back into it as he won the fourth and fifth frames as Perry looked rattled.

After two rounds of the 2008 PartyPoker.com Premier League Snooker the two debutants -Perry and Mark Selby sit in joint first place, while O'Sullivan, the winner in the last four seasons, has began with a draw and a defeat.

The next stage comes from the Assembly Rooms in Derby on Thursday, September 25. Perry is in action again as he meets six-time World Champion Steve Davis.

"It will be only the second time I've played him," added Perry. "I made my debut against him at the Crucible, he is a legend and we all love him."