Australia and Scotland hard to split
Australia and Scotland continued to trade blows over the course of the penultimate day during their Test Series’ at Royal Leamington Spa, with little separating either nation.
National Coach Steve Glasson recalled an “interesting day, with lots of twists and turns”, where a couple of light showers was enough to “take the edge off the greens” to turn the tide of the day.
In the Open classification, it was a topsy-turvy day with Scotland firing on all cylinders during the opening two sessions of the four in total that will determine this third and deciding Test.
At the half way mark of the test, Scotland were deserved leaders, with the ledger reading 11 Points (+ 35 shots), ahead of the Jackaroos 5 points (- 35 shots).
Fortunately for Australia, a brief respite for lunch at Royal Leamington Spa clearly worked wonders for the green and gold contingent, with the afternoon’s results favouring them and providing a definite twist in the Series.
With three wins from four matches secured, the Test and the entire Series now hangs in the balance with just one session remaining, to be staged on Sunday at 10am (England time) – 7pm AEST.
At the end of Saturday’s play, Scotland has the ascendency, 13 points (+ 8 shots) to Australia’s 11 points (- 8 shots).
The final disciplines will feature singles and fours in both women’s and men’s event, with every bowl and shot to impact on the end result.
In the Para-Sport component, the differing second Test schedule saw two matches of Bowlers with a Disability Triples and two games of Vision-Impaired Mixed Pairs over the opening two sessions of the day.
The Bowlers with a Disability Triples team held up their end of the bargain, with an emphatic first up morning victory, while the previously winless Vision-Impaired Mixed Pairs duo turned the series on its head, registering their first blow to the Scots.
These victories ensured a positive ledger advantage, two wins plus 27 shot, leading into the second session’s repeat of encounters, where a Vision-Impaired Mixed Pairs draw secured the second Test in favour of Australia.
The third Test again saw a change to the format, with the Vision-Impaired Pairs remaining the same however the Bowlers with a Disability Triples discipline diverted to two pairs matches – with both nations fielding four players among their squad.
The Vision-Impaired Pairs backed up their earlier form, securing another hard fought win, while Bowlers with a Disability Triples shared rink wins with a comprehensive victory from Tony Bonnell and Josh Barry providing some margin going into Sunday’s last session, to be played in the same format.
The snapshot is the Jackaroos Bowlers with a Disability Triples team hold an overnight advantage of 1 win plus 18 shots.
No matter the result, there will be no reprieve for the Jackaroos contingent.
Following the conclusion of the Scottish Series, the Jackaroos then hit the English Motorways and head west, where they will take Wales in a further Test Series throughout the coming working week before returning back to Birmingham for a Test against England next weekend.
Bowls Australia would also like to extend its appreciation to Commonwealth Games Australia (CGA) for supporting and funding the BCiB Australian Jackaroos’ tour of the UK, in preparation for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Australia v Scotland Test Series Test 3 results:
Session 1
Women’s pairs: Samantha Shannahan/Karen Murphy lost to Emman McIntye/Lauren Baillie-Whyte 11 – 17
Women’s Triples: Kelsey Cottrell/Natasha Scott/Chloe Stewart lost to Rebecca Houston/Dee Hoggan/Carla Banks 10 – 18
Men’s Pairs: Aaron Wilson/Corey Wedlock tied Darren Weir/John Fleming 17 – 17
Men’s Triples: Ray Pearse/Ben Twist/Aaron Tey lost to Alan Air/Jason Banks/Connor Milne 14 – 17
Vision-Impaired Pairs: Jake Fehlberg/Lynne Seymour def Melanie Innes/Robert Barr 18 – 8
Bowlers with a disability Triples: Chris Flavel/Tony Bonnell/Barry Brennan def Bill Allan/Pauline Wilson/Glen Livingston 24 – 7
Session 2
Women’s Singles: Chloe Stewart lost to Dee Hoggan 8 – 21
Women’s Fours: Karen Murphy/Sam Shannahan/Kelsey Cottrell/Natasha Scott def Emma McIntyre/Rebecca Houston/Carla Banks/Lauren Baillie-Whyte 14 – 8
Men’s Singles: Corey Wedlock def Jason Banks 21 – 20
Men’s Fours: Ray Pearse/Ben Twist/Aaron Teys/Aaron Wilson lost to Alan Air/Darren Weir/John Fleming/Connor Milne 7 – 19
Vision-Impaired Pairs: Jake Fehlberg/Lynne Seymour tied Melanie Innes/Robert Barr 16 – 16
Bowlers with a disability Triples: Barry Brennan/Chris Flavel/Josh Barry lost to Pauline Wilson/Glen Livingston/George Guthrie 11 – 20
Australia won Test 2, 5 points +18 shots to Scotland 3 points -18 shots
Session 3
Women’s pairs: Chloe Stewart/Kelsey Cottrell def Emma McIntyre/Lauren Baillie-Whyte 14 – 11
Women’s Triples: Karen Murphy/Samantha Shannahan/Natasha Scott def Rebecca Houston/Dee Hoggan/Carla Banks 22 – 8
Men’s Pairs: Ben Twist/Aaron Teys lost to Darren Weir/John Fleming 18 – 20
Men’s Triples: Ray Pearse/Corey Wedlock/Aaron Teys def Alan Air/Connor Milne/Jason Banks 20 – 8
Vision-Impaired Pairs: Jake Fehlberg/Lynne Seymour def Melanie Innes/Robert Barr 14 – 11
Bowlers with a disability Triples: Barry Brennan/Chris Flavel lost to Scotland 12 – 16
Tony Bonnell/Josh Barry def Scotland 23 – 4
Test 3’s upcoming final round:
Women’s Singles: Chloe Stewart
Women’s Fours: Karen Murphy, Sam Shannahan, Kelsey Cottrell & Natasha Scott
Men’s Singles: Ray Pearse
Men’s Fours: Ben Twist, Aaron Teys, Corey Wedlock & Aaron Wilson
Vision-Impaired Pairs: Jake Fehlberg (Director Grant Fehlberg) & Lynne Seymour (Director Bob Seymour)
Bowlers with a disability Triples: Barry Brenna & Chris Flavel plus Tony Bonnell & Josh Barry
