WEMBLEY-bound Shaun Murphy last night became snooker's newest champion with an outstanding victory over Stuart Bingham at the Benson and Hedges Snooker Championship in Malvern.

The 18 year-old Northants prospect came of age at the Willie Thorne Snooker Club recovering from a worrying 5-2 interval deficit to snatch a lucrative first prize courtesy of a 9-7 victory.

"I didn't come to the tournament expecting to win it but it's a dream come true," said Murphy, one of the youngest B&H champions in the 11 year history of the event.

"To play at Wembley will be out of this world. I've been many times as a spectator and it just looks a fantastic place to play snooker. It's going to be awesome and I'm looking forward to it already."

Murphy's reward for his eighth win in 11 days was a £5,000 first prize, the first professional title of his fledgling career and a trip to the 2001 Benson and Hedges Masters next February.

"It's such a tough tournament to win even though the top 16 are not here. I can hardly believe I've won and I'm sure it will be a few days before it sinks in."

Bingham started the match as favourite and he justified the odds by opening up a 5-2 advantage following the afternoon session. Breaks of 66, 94, 47, 62 and 37 punished some uncharacteristic Murphy errors.

And when Bingham cleared up the last red to the pink in the seventh frame at the end of the opening session Murphy's chances of victory looked to be slim.

However, he refused to panic and slowly but surely began to reduce his arrears. Three frames he snatched on the pink and a fourth on the black as the tension began to grip both finalists.

A break of 99 brought Murphy back on level terms for the first time since frame two. He continued to improve opening up an 8-6 lead before Bingham's break of 63 made the scoreline 8-7.

Between them the pair contributed 14 centuries throughout the tournament but what proved to be the final frame was a low scoring affair.

Bingham seemed certain to send the match to a decider but, using the rest to try and pot the blue, he missed and moments later Murphy potted blue and pink to complete game set and match.

"Shaun is a strong player and is capable of anything," said Bingham, who picked up £3,000 by way of consolation.

"My aim was to try and win two of the first four frames tonight which I thought would have put me in a commanding position.

"Instead, I lost it 3-1 and Shaun was right back in it. It's not sour grapes but I feel he did have most of the running.

"I'm gutted to have lost because it's really winner takes all here. Last night I was dreaming of what it would feel like playing at Wembley and standing there with the cup but unfortunately the dream didn't have a happy ending."