Indoor bowling: Prestwick gents lose to Coatbridge

Dec 10 2010 by Mike WIlson, Ayrshire Post (main ed)

PRESTWICK gents team suffered an agonising loss away at Coatbridge on Saturday.

The match was in the balance throughout with Coatbridge having the stronger last hour to win 78-76.

Prestwick had some consolation as they claimed wins on the rinks skipped by Andy Kilday and Paul Boyd but the overall result sees Coatbridge move two points closer to Prestwick in the dogfight at the bottom of the section.

Blantyre have six points from six matches, Prestwick have six from seven, Coatbridge have four from seven while East Fife have four from six.

The bottom team in the section will be relegated automatically with the second bottom team going into a play-off to avoid relegation.

This week sees Prestwick entertain Paisley who have 10 points from seven matches played. They will be hopeful of a win to push on to claim a place in the Scottish final.

Prestwick ladies’ match was one of the games to suffer due to poor weather. East Kilbride were due to travel to Prestwick to play their Scottish League match but cancelled midweek as they felt conditions were dangerous to drive in.

The Scottish senior playdowns, which were due to be held at Prestwick on Sunday, were also a casualty as the Scottish Indoor Bowling Association cancelled these games to avoid people having to travel in poor conditions.

Prestwick seniors moved into contention to win their section with a 86-61 home win over Auchinleck. The visitors took a 20 shot lead before Prestwick adjusted and ran out winners on all four rinks to boost their chances of claiming the one spot in the Scottish League quarter-finals.

League leaders Glasgow cancelled their match with Ayr on Saturday due to the weather and so the league is now extremely tight with Glasgow on 12 points from eight matches, Prestwick on 10 from eight, Auchinleck on 10 from nine matches and Newton Stewart on 10 from eight.

The Under 35s had the worst possible result when they played Lanarkshire at Wishaw on Sunday. The format of the competition sees two points awarded per winning rink and two points for the overall score.

Prestwick started brightly but faded mid game and despite two rinks coming close it was Lanarkshire who won on all four rinks for a 10-0 result and win by 30 shots. The second leg will be played at Prestwick in mid January with the Bellevue Road side requiring a dramatic comeback to progress to the next round.

Prestwick juniors will play their latest Ayrshire Junior League fixture on Saturday when they visit Auchinleck. To have any chance of winning the league, a strong performance is required.

Rink 1: Darren Weir, Reece Martin, Adam Grant, Danial Wallace; Rink 2: Connor Cannell, Rebecca Houston, Steven Dunlop, Craig Cathie; Rink 3: Lyndsey Brown, Matthew Grant, Andrew Weir, Jordan Slaven.

Paul Boyd will carry the hopes of Prestwick at the Scottish international trial at Midlothian on Sunday. Paul, who has been part of the team for the last two years, hopes to perform well in front of the Scottish selectors and retain his place for the international series at Stanley Indoor BC in County Durham in March.

Paul Foster will also play the trial as will Scott McKenzie and Stewart Anderson from Auchinleck. The ladies international trial take place at Falkirk on Sunday with Ayrshire interest from Anne Brown (Ayr), Mary Anne Cooper (Ardrossan), Michelle Cooper (Ardrossan), Claire Johnston (Auchinleck), Jean Sykes (Auchinleck) and Josephine Williamson (Auchinleck).

The last week of the Ayrshire Fours league takes place at Auchinleck on Sunday with Prestwick against Galleon being the last competitive match to be played. With one game to go, Prestwick require at least a 6-2 win over their rivals from Kilmarnock to claim the title. The action kicks off at 2pm with the presentation of medals after the match is finished at around 6pm.

This Saturday is a busy one for the club with the start of the Christmas lunches within the stadium, an indoor car boot sale being run in aid of Help fo Heroes from 10am to 2pm and a Christmas cabaret night from 7.30pm. Tickets for the cabaret evening with Robyn Taylor, a top female vocalist are still available and are priced at £4. All welcome.

This is the last week to enter the Christmas open two bowl triples from December 28 to 30. Entry is open to all and costs £9 per team.

Each team will play on one of the qualifying days - either the Tuesday or Wednesday - with quarter-finals, semis and final on Thursday 30. All matches will be played in the evening from 6.30pm onwards.

The first prize is £300 for the winning team. Entries can be phoned to Gordon at the Indoor on 01292 477802.