Tranent and East Lothian stars win big at Scottish Bowls Championships at Northfield, Ayr.
A huge well done to Tranent Bowling Club duo Jim Bonner and son-in-law skip Brian Young who this week became Scottish Pairs Champions at the National Championships in Ayr!
The pair became Scottish Champions by defeating some big names in the Scottish Bowls scene and came out on top in a nervy final! Despite racing to an early 10-2 lead, the pressure was put back on them as their opponents from West End Stranaer, brought it back to 11-10. As true champions do, this only seemed to spur them on as Brian, played a perfect delivery on the 16th end to edge them 18-12 in front with one end to go, bringing a huge roar from the huge number of travelling “Belters”!
Not only is “Mr Bonner “ a Scottish Bowls Champion, but by day he is also Windygoul Primary School’s Janitor and leads the school Football Team throughout the academic year! I’m sure all the pupils at Windygoul will be delighted for the friendly face they see every day!
A special mention should be given to Megan Kivlin and Dean Riva who won the Youth Pairs title after a fantastic final end climax. The game, level after their allotted time, went to a one-end-shootout to decide who would become Scottish Champions. Megan and Dean played excellent throughout the Championship but young Riva had the last laugh by playing a final winning bowl his Uncle Alex “Tattie” Marshall would be proud of!! With a forehand delivery, which was nothing short of perfection, he made the winning shot and both Dean and Megan raced up the green to celebrate bringing the loudest cheer of the week from the travelling support! Well Done Dean and Megan!!
Another worthy effort in this year’s Championship were fellow Tranent Bowling Club stars, John McCrorie and his niece Dee Hoggan who qualified for the Mixed Pairs event and turned out as eventual runners-up after beating some huge pairs, to make the final! A fantastic effort for both who described the Championships on Social Media as “a dream week”.
With youth bowls on the rise in East Lothian, it is amazing to have such fantastic Role Models in the local area who can lead the way and hopefully inspire a future generation of bowlers to hopefully win titles at the top of the Scottish Game!
If your and adult or a child and are interested to get involved in bowls, contact your local Active School Coordinator who can give you all the information you need to start playing for free!
