International Bowls Highlights Bowls: Scottish International Open

Hello and a very warm welcome to the Dewars Centre for the Scottish

International Open. Today was the first day of our coverage chair on

BBC Two Scotland and what a day it was. On the brink behind me there

were plenty of champions on display. There were three Scots in action,

including the world champion Paul Foster. He set out to capture

another championship following his victory in Perth two years ago. His

opponent was Lee Rowland. Last year Mervyn King of dashed hopes of a

home victory when he dispatched Stewart Anderson and the final. He

began his defence with a match against Mark Radigan. But first up,

a man shot to draw a crowd - Alex Marshall. Hopefully the eve five

times world champion will claim victory on home turf. They say

victory comes to all those who wait. Three matches were on today to

So, let us deal with one of the final matches on here this

afternoon. It was an absolute peach. It was Les Gillett against Alex

Marshall. There is no-one on the tour with a CV as impressive as

Alex Marshall. The only man to have won the world title five times. At

that other titles and you have the ultimate bowler. He has not won

here in Perth though, something he is determined to fix. Les Gillett

had to come through qualifying to The world No. 7 started the

brighter of the two, closing the first set. We join it at the 9th

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great shots played. Les Gillett is not far away here. It is almost a

is a man who has handled pressure on many an occasion. He will have

the advantage of last bowl, no not favour the brave. It was a

what he will need to play next. Alex Marshall is in defending mode.

Will he try to drop it? I am not bear to look. Gillett is also

the respot. Both players with a bowl to play. It looks like one red,

but it is immaterial, let's be out in the open and gives him a

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Gillett. Marshall has left a bit of space. He thought he was going to

be killed by his own red bowl at even before it came to a halt. --

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Gillett. He has turned away. Is he heavy? It is all about the weight.

He has drawn it!. -- it! Les Gillett takes the second set and

sends it through to a tie-break. Incredible. It did not look as if

the end it is just enough. It just goes to show, you cannot always

trust body language. He doesn't like it, he turns away. He is not

finish to that set. It is never dull in Perth. Les Gillett wins the

second set. We have a tie-break, the game of the day. Alex Marshall

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is not hanging around. He just tried to draw the green at all and

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drop it off the jack. -- for good as the last one, but it is

still good. That was a terrific played well, but he needs to get

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have a look. That is fair enough, given what is at stake at the

moment. He plays this backhand so well. He will be so relieved with

that. Could not have played that any better, it just Nestle's off

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Redburn. It was close, but not close enough. The second end goes

is trying to draw the deadweight to the jack. If he had fallen back in

off this red, he would have got the shot in. You can see kissing on

there. If it had just dropped back, mark. He needed to get it past the

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bat. It did not reach. He was just near that green bowl. It is going

to be a defensive game for Les It is not looking good for the Scot

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to try and give himself the last as well as we thought it might. It

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Marshall has one and had the right Marshall. A place in round two up

wild card, into the tournament producing a major upset. Alex

Marshall, the world No. 7, is out. Marshall, the world No. 7, is out.

What a performance from the Englishman.

Les, quite incredible. He had just beaten Alex Marshall, the five-time

world championship -- five-time world champion.

Unbelievable, to overcome him in Scotland, I knew I had to play well

and produced the goods in the second set. Alex's bowls did not

quite react on the longer set so. It was two sets again, keep going,

keep going, and it paid off. To be fair to Alex, it probably wasn't

his best game, but I took full advantage.

That you certainly did. Alex, it all started off fairly well, but in

the second set Les got back into it. I was happy with how I played in

the first set, in the second set I did not play much better. If I had

the right weight I lost my line, so it was a bit of a mixed bag.

And for you, Les, you had dropped outside the world's top 16. Ian

Bond said you should be in there with the quality of play you have.

You must be feeling good now you have taken Alex Marshall out of the

tournament? Obviously, to be fair there is not

a lot and it in the top 16. We all have good days and bad days. It

does not make you a bad bowler overnight, and I have been playing

reasonably well. I am happy with my form and if it continues hopefully

I will be here at the weekend. Congratulations to you.

Astonishing, the five-time world champion, Alex Marshall, out of the

competition. Paul Foster won his last game,

winning his fourth world title. He was in action against the qualifier

at Lee Rowland. One of the real strengths of Paul

Foster's game is his draw. The world champion found the target

playing with a little bit of weight Paul Foster continued to pile on

the pressure, once again relying on that deadly draw. The Englishman

also has a pretty impressive line and length. He started to find its

during the second set. But, whatever Lee Rowland had to

offer, Foster better that. -- bettered it.

The debutants did not have enough to beat the world number one and

to beat the world number one and Forster won, 12-3, 10-5.

The players to reach the final will receive a handsome cheque, but it

is almost impossible to make a living from playing bowls, so most

have a day job. Mervyn King has a beautiful one, in Norfolk.

beautiful one, in Norfolk. One of the nicest places in Norfolk

I could not really stick being inside. I did a manager's job 15

years ago and did not stick that the very long. Then I was a

gamekeeper, bedside, and when the bowls came along I had to go self-

employed, so I moved to pest- control. I get 21 days' holiday a

year, and with playing for England that takes up 10 or 14 days at a

time, so because of that I went It is a bit appropriate for next

week, having Hyland cattle, at least it will make me feel at home

Mervyn King is the winner of the Scottish International Open in

2010... 2010...

It was a big final, we probably both, to be fair, did not play as

well as we had in the previous games. Not as classic as it could

have been, but at the end of the day I am happy to have one and come

up on top at that occasion. The standard of the players is getting

so good and you know all for a fact you have got to play well. If you

have one bad season your ranking list is wiped out and people can

easily slip out. The main thing is to try and be consistent. I have

been well up in the rankings and I have been right down-and-out.

Probably six years ago I was gone if I had not won the world

championships, then I got back in the top 16, just, and worked my way

back up to where I am now. It is about being consistent, but one bad

here and with the quality of players out there now, you have to

do well. I am not big-headed anyway, I try and play my bowls and will

put his bidder. Obviously it has been good enough over the years,

and it is all about being consistent. You need to get your

first bowl going, and defeat at -- if I can get my first bowl down it

settles you down. That is where I have seen a lot of the tournament,

the person who wins is the person who plays most consistent. That is

what you have got to be to win Where else would you want to be on

a day like this? It is nice now, but it can be very cold - a bit

like Scotland on a bad day! You have to feel a bit jealous of

Mervyn King - a wonderful job and a wonderful bowler. He was up against

the young Scottish qualifier this afternoon, Mark Radigan.

You may recognise this face, if you watched our coverage two years ago

you would have seen him in the Young Masters. The 17-year-old from

Hamilton was up against a formidable opponent this afternoon,

defending champion at Mervyn King. It was King who got his nose in

front in the first set. We join it at the start of the six red.

Commentary from Paul Mitchell and David Corkill. -- at the start of

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played indeed. He delivers a peach One green.

Mark Radigan coming down to have a look at the head as a result of

He really wanted the bowl first, got the bowl -- jack first. This is

a very strong position for Mark Radigan. I would be very tempted

just to bowl one of jack Hyde on the forehand. Give himself a little

bit of width. -- to roll one jack get out of, but he will be looking

for the split with this. Nice to see a smile on the face of

Mark Radigan. If he can manage to get the split

absolutely right I think this green bowl will slide away. The jack may

unlucky with the jack moving back? I think he has. The one green.

He has had a couple of rubs against the green, really. It looked like

he had done well, Mervyn King, then the problem. It took all the pace

and Govett, if he had got the green bowl first it would have been right

out. Mark, by an even playing this? have done something he did not want

to do there. As you say, terrific of pressure here. That is two ends

Mervyn King has put in three or four bowls very close and lost a

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ends. Two he has lost by singles, the other two he has lifted heavy

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is so good at spotting bowls. This is a challenge.

Mark Radigan comes up to have a look. He describes himself as very

competitive. He has got a fair bit of work to do here.

The he has got a chance to come in that way if he wants to play at on

the forehand. The percentage shot is to come deep

on the jack and try and squeeze it through, if he can, to this

position. If he can get the jack somewhere like that it could be a

double. A very difficult shot. effort and a good shot to drive, a

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him speed up off the end. Just an a good player in her own right.

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She won the mixed pairs. Masters final in 2,000 added. He

was 6-8 down in the first set and tank the set, so he has been in

this position before. -- and tied the jack to hide it from his young

to come up after the first two bowls and the referee has said, you

must come up and have a look at impressed by the way he has been

playing this game, because Mervyn It was a really good drive, I did

not realise he could drive as accurately as that, he should have

been doing it much earlier. That forehand drive is difficult on a

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been raised spotted. He -- re- net. What are the chances of

getting a four in the last? Not very high, but absolutely perfect,

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got gaps like that that can be quite challenging. -- I don't mind

try and scored a three if he can. bowls people would not think of

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turn over green. He knows this is potentially

dangerous for him. That is what he is after, the inside edge, so the

jack does not move too far. He bowl.

Not at the perfect result, though. He has put pressure on him with

this. Just caught the wrong side. The inside edge was what he was

after. If Mervyn King makes one mistake here it could be a problem.

He is coming across the head. That well when he has to, but he decided

to come in on the backhand. Always the danger you can get yourself

blocked off if you do not take the open hand, but Mervyn King was

comfortable here. Most unusual to come across the

head, most players would stay on the hand, but nice, and Mervyn King

caused 10-6. The match continued in a similar vein, despite stout

resistance Mervyn King continued to tighten the screw, the match ending

tighten the screw, the match ending 10-6, 11-1.

Commiserations to Mark Radigan, a fine display, Mervyn King through

to the second round. That is almost it, but our esteemed commentator

David Corkill likes to show was what he thinks is the finest shot

of the day. My short of the day is taken from

the match of Les Gillett and Alex Marshall. Alex Marshall is six

shots down with two shots against them. Les Gillett plays the most

remarkable bowl. By the two here are Les Gilletts,

By the two here are Les Gilletts, and Alex Marshall must play the

brilliance, and that is why it was brilliance, and that is why it was

my short of the day. A great shot from Alex Marshall,

but it does not matter - he is gone, but it does not matter - he is gone,

because today we completed the second round line-up. Defending