The pride of Yorkshire snooker was at home in Leeds today feeling totally browned off after the collapse of his bid to win the Travis Perkins UK Championship.

Failing to pot the far from difficult brown under pressure in the deciding frame saw him lose his third round match 9-8 to world number 19 Allister Carter at York's Barbican Centre.

"I was awkward on the brown as I had to rest my hand on the middle pocket to make the shot," he explained his disastrous miss.

And he reacted to his defeat by saying: "I'm gutted. I gave it my all."

Starting yesterday's session 4-4, Carter went two ahead, Hunter levelled, the Essex man went 8-6 up and then the world number four won two error-strewn frames to take it to a decider.

Hunter was let back into the frame when Carter, leading 56-0, went in-off. A 50 break with four colours left put Hunter on the verge of victory but he muffed his chance.

Peter Ebdon's dramatic deciding frame 9-8 defeat by Wiltshire's Stephen Lee late last night means that for the first time in the history of the UK Championship, now in its 28th year, none of the world's top eight players are in the quarter-finals.

Ebdon, the world number eight, fought back from 8-5 down to draw level, including a superb 136 clearance in the 15th frame. He was 58 behind in the decider with 59 on the table, made a break of 36 to keep his hopes alive but then missed an easy brown.

Lee made a poor safety shot on the colour and Ebdon sank it with a fine long pot to trail 69-52.

He then potted blue in the middle pocket but the cue ball rolled back off the baulk cushion into the opposite middle pocket for a five-point foul. Lee sank the blue and Ebdon conceded.

Lee, the world number nine, is now the highest ranked player left. His next opponent will be the winner of today's third round match between Steve Davis and Stephen Maguire, the 23-year-old hot-shot from Glasgow who is now 6-4 favourite to win the title.

John Parrott maintained his rediscovered top form with a 9-5 win over young Welshman Ricky Walden for a quarter-final duel with the winner of today's match between Alan McManus and Mark King.

Updated: 09:55 Tuesday, November 23, 2004