Scotland enjoy golden day at British Bowls
Scotland enjoyed a successful second day at the National Centre for Bowling, Ayr, as the British Bowls Championships came to a close and the Para British Bowls Internationals continued.
There was plenty for the home crowd to celebrate across the British Bowls Championships, with Scotland claiming five gold medals and a number of silver medals across a busy day of finals.
Iain McLean produced a strong performance in the Men’s Singles final, defeating England’s Isaac Jenner 21-12 to claim the British title.
There was further Scottish success in the Women’s Pairs, as Lyn Houston and Rebecca Houston delivered an excellent 21-8 victory over England’s Caroline Cullum and Chelsea Spencer.
Scotland also took gold in the Men’s Triples, with Peter Thomson, Andy Furye and Darren Burnett coming through a competitive final against Wales. The Scottish trio defeated Roger Harvey, Joe Mower and Daniel Davies Jnr 17-14.
In the Men’s Over 55 Fours, George Sharp, Pat Kinhart, Ranald McDonald and David Smeaton completed an impressive campaign with a 15-11 win over Ireland’s Richard Kelly, Robert Toner, John Leonard and Paul Smyth.
Scotland’s final gold of the Championships came in the Men’s U25 Pairs, where Kieran Dodds and Danny Stevenson defeated England’s Kieran Jaycock and Thomas Jaycock 17-10.
There were also strong silver medal performances for Scotland throughout the day. Abbi Orderley, Christine McCrimmond, Ina Todd and Pam Murchie were narrowly beaten 16-14 by England in the Women’s Fours final, while John Reid Jnr, Robbie Cuthill, Stewart McAlees and John Fleming lost out 18-15 to England in the Men’s Fours.
Jacek Goldie was involved in one of the closest finals of the day, narrowly losing 21-20 to England’s Ollie Jeapes in the Men’s U18 Singles. Jack Davidson also secured silver in the Men’s U25 Singles, losing 21-17 to England’s Charlie Beeton, while Megan Sproat and Rachel Pirie finished runners-up in the Women’s U25 Pairs after an 18-10 defeat to Ireland’s Rachel and Hannah Cochrane.
In the Para British Bowls Internationals, Scotland enjoyed an excellent day of results to strengthen their position in the overall standings.
The morning session saw Scotland defeat Wales 10-2, with Ross Noble impressing in the VI Singles thanks to a 20-12 win over Matthew Thorne. There were also strong PD Singles victories for Alex Paterson and John Wardrope, who defeated Keith McKnight 21-11 and Paul Brown 21-12 respectively.
Scotland then followed that up with a superb 12-0 victory over Ireland in the afternoon, winning all six games and finishing with a 117-54 shots advantage. Mel Inness, Mark Fleming and Lee Mitchell opened with a 17-5 win in the VI & PD Triples, while Alex Paterson continued his strong day with a 21-4 victory over Peter Trimble in the PD Singles.
After five sessions, England remain top of the Para British Bowls Internationals standings on 44 points, with Scotland close behind in second on 41. Ireland sit third on 18 points, with Wales fourth on 17.
Play continues on Thursday, with Scotland set to face England in a key match in the Para British Bowls Internationals.
Full scores, schedule information and livestream links are available via the British Bowls page.