IT'S an all-Welsh affair on the blue rink at Potters on Saturday as two veterans of the sport prepare to do battle.
Robert Weale v John Price
Tenth seed Weale is the 8-13 (Boylesports) favourite to usurp old sparring partner Price in the the final tie of the second round of the World Indoor Singles, with his opponent a best price of 11-8 with bet365.
Both these players have won this event in the past, Price in 1990 and Weale in 2000, while Price has also lost in the final four times. Should his luck have been reversed in 1992, 2000, 2003 and 2005 then Price would have been heralded as much as five-time winner Alex Marshall.
The 49-year-old-going-on-59-year-old Price has since dropped out of the world's top 16, while Weale has remained a constant figure among the game's hierarchy and reached the final for a second time last year when losing out to Billy Jackson.
These are both canny players in their own right and justification can be given to both players for coming out on top, although Weale does seem to have the Indian sign over Price having won their last encounter at the Scottish Masters in 2003, while he also beat Price in the world final in 2000.
Price seemed to be coming back to his best when finishing runner-up at the Scottish International Open in 2008, but since then he's endured a run of early exits in events which was eventually halted in Perth in November when he saw off Mark Royal and Tim Stone in reaching the last eight. He was excellent against Kiwi qualifier Phil Bennett in the first round and he is the sort of player who pulls out a decent result when least expected to.
Weale also progressed to the quarter-final in Perth, which included victory over Marshall, but the problem with the Hereford man is that you never know quite which Robert Weale will turn up. Having only three ranking events a season certainly doesn't help when trying to investigate form lines and with such large gaps in between tournaments, one never quite knows how well players are playing.
This match certainly could go either way, but an interesting stat that may sway you Price's way is that Weale has gone out at this stage of the competition four times when the year ends in an even number – 1998, 2002, 2006 and 2008. So Price could be the value punt at 11-8 after all.
Verdict: Will be close, could go to tie-break, but Price to nick it.
