UK Championship: Mark Allen beats Jak Jones 6-5 to progress to third round

Northern Ireland's Mark Allen beat Jak Jones 6-5 to progress to the third round of the UK Championship in York.

World number seven Allen eased into a 3-0 lead, before his Welsh world-ranked number 71 opponent pulled one back.

A break of 141 helped the Antrim player move 4-1 ahead and he followed that up with a 71 in the next to lead by four.

Jones reduced his deficit by taking frame seven and a 104 moved him to within two, then he won the next two frames, but Allen took a tense decider.

A break of 52 in the opening frame of the night at the Barbican Centre set Allen on his way and at 5-1 up the 33-year-old looked to be cruising into the last 32.

Jones fought his way back into the contest however and when a break of 80 in the ninth frame saw him trail 5-4 a comeback victory looked to be on.

The Welsh player won the next to draw level but a relieved Allen secured the final frame to book a place in the next round where he will face world number 39-ranked Ben Woollaston on Monday..

Allen had defeated Jimmy White 6-3 in the first round.

He is a two-time runner-up at the UK Championship, including last year when he lost out to Ronnie O'Sullivan in the final.

Allen has reached the semi-finals of four of his last seven tournaments and after the UK Championship he will defend the Scottish Open title he won 12 months ago in December.

Another Antrim player, Jordan Brown, lost 6-2 to Stephen Maguire in the second round on Sunday.