Maguire ends three-year title drought

Stephen Maguire secured the third ranking title of his career with a 9-5 defeat of Fergal O'Brien in the final of the Northern Ireland Trophy on Sunday night.

Victory for the 26-year-old Scot brought to an end a three-year drought as he lifted silverware for the first time since he won the European Open, held in Malta, and the UK Championship in 2004.

Maguire earned a cheque for £30,000 and climbed to third place in the latest world rankings.

Dublin's O'Brien had played some of the best snooker of his life in knocking out John Higgins and Ronnie O'Sullivan earlier in the week, but did not sustain that standard in the final at the Waterfront Hall in Belfast. The popular Irishman had to settle for the £15,000 runner-up prize and a jump to 19th in the rankings.

Maguire proved stronger in the final as he came from 2-1 down to win eight of the last 11 frames.

"I went a bit nuts for a while after I won the UK," said Maguire. "I was drinking too much and I put on two stones in weight. That cost me a season, maybe a season and a half. There was a time when I wondered whether I would ever win a tournament again.

"Being a father has changed me, I feel completely different. It's made me try harder. I've got a good chance to make a lot of money through snooker and I want my boy to have everything.

"I'm over the moon to win, it's been a long time coming. Getting to the semi-finals at the Crucible last season showed me that I was playing well enough to win any tournament and I came into this season full of confidence."

O'Brien hope

O'Brien, denied his second title after playing his first ranking final since winning the 1999 British Open, said: "I missed a couple of balls but I didn't play terribly. At 7-5 I made 39 then missed a red to the green bag. If I could have got to 7-6 I was right back in it but he made a good dish to go 8-5.

"Stephen was the better man on the day, he took his opportunities."