Day 1

:00:00. > :00:16.It is January and we are in Hopton-on-Sea so it must be time for

:00:17. > :00:19.the 2014 world indoor Bowls championship at the Potters Leisure

:00:20. > :00:21.Resort. Said back and relax as you get the ball rolling for seven days

:00:22. > :00:59.of live action. -- setback. Hello and welcome to day one of our

:01:00. > :01:02.coverage of the biggest Bowls tournament in the world. As ever,

:01:03. > :01:07.the best players will be in action throughout the week hoping to pick

:01:08. > :01:11.up those titles. Last year was all about the visiting tartan army as

:01:12. > :01:16.Scotland's finest were crowned kings of the Bowls Castle. With the

:01:17. > :01:21.success in the singles, men's pairs and mixed pairs, Alex Marshall, Paul

:01:22. > :01:26.Foster and Stuart Anderson returned home with plenty to smile about and

:01:27. > :01:30.they are back for more of the same. If I could win a title again this

:01:31. > :01:36.year, it would be a good step in my career. Being a double world

:01:37. > :01:42.champion would mean the world. This is the big one everybody wants to

:01:43. > :01:48.win. Hopefully we can go one better than last year in the singles. I

:01:49. > :01:51.have definitely got one title left in me. I am still competing at a

:01:52. > :01:57.very high level and the confidence is there. That is definitely an

:01:58. > :02:03.opportunity for another title. The English challenge fails to go past

:02:04. > :02:10.the semifinals in 2013 and they will be looking to bounce back. The

:02:11. > :02:16.ambition for this year is to win the world singles title. There are some

:02:17. > :02:22.talented players here but I can beat anybody if I play well. Stage one is

:02:23. > :02:26.to win round one, stage two is to be here in the semifinals and then to

:02:27. > :02:34.complete stage three is to win the title. And never right of the Welsh

:02:35. > :02:39.resolve as they have a few former champions hoping to lift the trophy

:02:40. > :02:44.once again. I was the last Welsh winner in 2000. Hopefully it will be

:02:45. > :02:51.our year. You have to try and perform and hopefully get a bit of

:02:52. > :02:57.luck along the way. England's Rebecca Field is the offending

:02:58. > :03:02.women's champion having been crowned Queen of the indoor game a year ago.

:03:03. > :03:05.If I play well enough and play how I can play, there's no doubt I can win

:03:06. > :03:16.again. This year 's challenge could come from teenage star Katherine

:03:17. > :03:23.Rednall. Or from Alison Merrien. She swept away Karen Murphy in the first

:03:24. > :03:27.round. So we are set for another incredible week of Bowls and if it's

:03:28. > :03:29.anything like the excitement served up last year, we are in for a

:03:30. > :05:19.blockbuster. later on Stuart Anderson will begin

:05:20. > :05:23.his defence of the singles title but first up it is Alex Marshall and

:05:24. > :05:27.Paul Foster going for an unprecedented fourth straight

:05:28. > :05:32.success in the men's pairs. The 2011 world indoor pairs

:05:33. > :05:40.champions, who successfully defended their world title. Pairs champions

:05:41. > :05:47.for the third successive year. Paul Foster and Alex Marshall. It is very

:05:48. > :06:09.pleasing. Especially to defend the pairs with Alex Marshall. We are

:06:10. > :06:14.both relaxed and enjoying our Bowls. Paul Foster is the best player in

:06:15. > :06:24.the world and we make a formidable pair.

:06:25. > :06:35.So it's Paul Foster and Alex Marshall up against Greg Harlow and

:06:36. > :06:45.Nick Brett. We are almost set for action so it's time to hand over to

:06:46. > :06:47.Richard beer. Hoping to lift these coveted -- trophies for the first

:06:48. > :06:49.time in their career, your appreciation please for Greg Harlow

:06:50. > :07:24.and Nick Brett. APPLAUSE And defending this title for the

:07:25. > :07:26.fourth year in succession, your appreciation please for Paul Foster

:07:27. > :08:05.and Alex Marshall. It is time to join our commentators,

:08:06. > :08:09.Andy Thomson and David Corkill. If Foster and Marshall were to win this

:08:10. > :08:18.the fourth time, how big an achievement would it be? It would be

:08:19. > :08:22.massive. The modern game is different with this portable rink

:08:23. > :08:28.and the standard of play around is very high so it would be a massive

:08:29. > :08:29.achievement. It took them seven or eight years to win the first one but

:08:30. > :08:54.now they are very difficult to beat. When you look at it, you've got four

:08:55. > :09:00.players on the provisional ranking list showing the top six. You've got

:09:01. > :09:08.four of the very best on show today. Used only have. This is a hard one

:09:09. > :09:14.to call. I agree with you, for top players. Really looking forward to

:09:15. > :09:33.this one. The usual situation into

:09:34. > :09:38.ballplayers, the first players lead and alternate Bowls. I really feel

:09:39. > :09:44.Paul Foster and Alex Marshall will have to be on top form. I talked to

:09:45. > :09:50.Paul yesterday and he thinks this will be their toughest test. I would

:09:51. > :09:57.agree. Two good opening Bowls by Nicky Brett. He has been playing

:09:58. > :10:17.superb. Paul Foster is also playing well.

:10:18. > :10:22.Over the last few years in particular we had a situation where

:10:23. > :10:26.we've seen Paul Foster taking over that mantle of Alex Marshall as the

:10:27. > :10:34.best player on the circuit at the moment. He has four world titles and

:10:35. > :10:46.Alex has five. Paul Foster has won all the other events as well. Alex

:10:47. > :10:49.has said this is his favourite venue and Youghal was played well here.

:10:50. > :11:19.Alex is playing exceptionally well. I suspect never Ball required here

:11:20. > :11:27.for Greg Harlow to get into this because those two balls are

:11:28. > :11:34.vulnerable. A slight correction from Greg. You would expect him to make

:11:35. > :11:43.it with this one. It is looking good. This will be a heavy shot now

:11:44. > :11:56.by Alex Marshall. He will be driving into this. Alex going to have a look

:11:57. > :12:08.at the head. It looked good all the way. Made the adjustment. Really, he

:12:09. > :12:12.has to come right in there. Damage limitation. There is a chance of

:12:13. > :12:20.pushing the ball into the head and taking something of. It is a

:12:21. > :12:24.forehand drive. Through the red Bulls. He match catch something. He

:12:25. > :12:29.would be happy to take one or two out. Three down. He would be happy

:12:30. > :12:48.to reduce the count to one here. Not a full driver. Controlled

:12:49. > :13:02.weight. He's chasing it. It must close. -- it must be close. A big

:13:03. > :13:08.start for the English pair. The value of the lead getting in.

:13:09. > :13:15.Exactly. Nicky Brett's opening two balls all week have been excellent.

:13:16. > :13:25.That is what Alex Marshall may be up against. I am sure Paula have a say

:13:26. > :13:56.in this as well. -- Paul will have a say.

:13:57. > :14:02.Some players don't actually play outdoor bowls. Greg Harlow is one of

:14:03. > :14:09.those players. He is specifically an indoor player. Nicky Brett plays

:14:10. > :14:17.bowls all the time. He loves the game. He plays all formats of the

:14:18. > :14:23.game. Mixed bowls, club Bowls. He just loves the sport. I don't think

:14:24. > :14:31.he'll be in the Commonwealth games though. He is out of favour with the

:14:32. > :14:53.outdoor selectors. I think he is too good a player to leave out.

:14:54. > :15:07.Greg will be looking for a little touch on the jack.

:15:08. > :15:17.Alex Marshall's wife, Diane, provides flat -- family support for

:15:18. > :15:27.this final. She's always there to watch her husband play.

:15:28. > :15:48.This looks close. We are waiting for Nicky Brett to make a noise. Yes.

:15:49. > :15:54.Well played. That is going to be no easy run for anybody in this match.

:15:55. > :16:01.I would expect this to be fairly similar end at end. All players

:16:02. > :16:09.playing well. You don't expect many loose ends. Alex Foch onto the

:16:10. > :16:11.forehand and he is very close. He needs to Harriet passed his own

:16:12. > :16:46.bowl. -- Harry it passed. Slightly under. This might just

:16:47. > :16:59.block Alex out. It certainly doesn't help him. He can probably still get

:17:00. > :17:00.around it. Alex is aware that his ball will swing around the shortest

:17:01. > :17:28.green bowl. Just a draw. Alex likes the look of this one. If

:17:29. > :17:30.he gets onto the green bowl, he could make three above this. Well

:17:31. > :17:46.played! The Empire coming on to measure. --

:17:47. > :18:28.the That is the sort of quality we

:18:29. > :18:36.expect out of this match. All players are playing well. A great

:18:37. > :18:44.bowl by Alex. 3-2, keeps the game tight.

:18:45. > :18:57.24, this is a short length. Poulter does favour a shorter length. --

:18:58. > :19:21.Paul. Both players favouring different

:19:22. > :19:22.hands. Nicky Brett has favoured the forehand and Paul Foster the

:19:23. > :19:50.backhand. A good reply. If you are a touch quick on that

:19:51. > :20:14.hand it will go past. Greg and Nicky still holding the

:20:15. > :21:28.one. This one has got a bit of work to

:21:29. > :22:06.do. Alex clicking his fingers which

:22:07. > :22:19.suggests it's probably heavy. A chance year for Greg. -- a chance

:22:20. > :22:28.year. This quality of much has to go down as a space shot opportunity. He

:22:29. > :22:39.would expect to draw another here. It just needs to bend. It's holding

:22:40. > :22:42.up. There was a little touch on the red ball and I still think it is one

:22:43. > :22:56.to green. That forehand just sticking a little

:22:57. > :23:08.bit and not coming back to the centre. That has got as much to do

:23:09. > :23:14.with the 24 metre jack. That will be the Scottish tactic because Nicky's

:23:15. > :23:25.bowls will be slightly less bias. It was Nicky's ball that counted. Back

:23:26. > :23:41.to his favourite length. 27 and a half.

:23:42. > :23:53.He is allowed one bad bullet game. -- one bad bowl a game. He won't

:23:54. > :24:17.have many. A lovely easy action by Nick Brett.

:24:18. > :24:38.This one needs to stop. Didn't make the correction.

:24:39. > :24:50.That is certainly looking better. It will be interesting to see if Greg

:24:51. > :24:58.plays the forehand in this direction. I will put my mortgage on

:24:59. > :25:02.Greg definitely not playing the forehand. He is not overly keen on

:25:03. > :25:07.the forehand. This will be a backhand draw. And yet almost

:25:08. > :25:14.everyone would think it's a forehand draw. It is just what the player

:25:15. > :25:18.fancies and I have played with Greg a lot and he does favour his

:25:19. > :25:24.backhand. And I would expect him to be close. He is on a good track.

:25:25. > :25:39.It's all a matter of the weight now and here it comes.

:25:40. > :25:52.That one looked good all the way. It was all about weight. He did not

:25:53. > :25:56.want to move the jack. Alex is the same. He likes his backhand. This is

:25:57. > :26:19.all about pace to get that. Slightly heavy. It is in a good place.

:26:20. > :26:29.It would be ideal if he could get past the jack with this. This is not

:26:30. > :26:38.far away. Well played, Greg Harlow! Absolutely perfect. It was perfect

:26:39. > :26:49.for a second but the jack has now been brought out into the open. He

:26:50. > :26:57.draws the shot but unfortunately moves it out and it gives Alex a

:26:58. > :27:01.target. It all depends now how much weight he wants to play but you

:27:02. > :27:12.would expect him to draw the jack through if he can get to that. It'll

:27:13. > :27:22.have to be very good. He could make to out of it. It is a hard shot. It

:27:23. > :27:28.is either a draw or a drive and I think he's going to favour the draw.

:27:29. > :27:40.That is the drive shot if he wants to take the two balls out. He drew a

:27:41. > :27:50.perfect ball on the second-hand -- second end.

:27:51. > :27:56.He is running after it which suggests he liked it. I think he is

:27:57. > :28:05.only slightly inside line with this. He is looking for the bend trailer

:28:06. > :28:14.back. He was so close to getting the jack. What a great effort and it was

:28:15. > :28:22.a very difficult shot. It was just about inch perfect. 6-2. A good

:28:23. > :28:52.start by the English pair. At is another loose ball by Nick

:28:53. > :29:38.Brett. He won't be happy with that. He is trotting up after this one so

:29:39. > :29:47.he must have made a correction. It is good enough. It's not that but

:29:48. > :29:50.it's not what he would have wanted. Nicky Brett will be slightly

:29:51. > :30:59.concerned. How is the wait? It looks slightly

:31:00. > :31:06.quick. -- weight. They are starting to struggle on the forehand side.

:31:07. > :31:09.And the backhand is still available. We may see different tactics as the

:31:10. > :31:21.game develops. Kept the line. He dominates the

:31:22. > :31:28.backhand, it is such a reliable hand. They will roll them in all

:31:29. > :31:35.day. This is just a draw for him, but he is coming up to see if the

:31:36. > :31:41.strike is on. He can't strike it, he will be lucky to take out one ball

:31:42. > :31:46.right and leave the others, but it is just a draw. I think so, just a

:31:47. > :32:07.yard off his last delivery. Both players are looking at this

:32:08. > :32:15.one. It is certainly better. It just needed a deep swing. What a ball. A

:32:16. > :32:24.bit unlucky, just dropped back on the jack. Second shot, I think he

:32:25. > :32:31.will be quite happy with that. He was two down and possibly facing a

:32:32. > :32:34.three down. The ball coming in, catches the jack and unfortunately

:32:35. > :32:52.moves it to the front ball. Still one down.

:32:53. > :33:06.Alex at a very wide on this, as he should be. -- out. Frightened to go

:33:07. > :33:23.near the head, basically. Sensible. A little discussion about what jack

:33:24. > :33:27.length to play. Alex is leaving it to Paul Foster and I think when you

:33:28. > :33:32.are playing pairs, it is so much about the lead. Just let them play

:33:33. > :33:39.whatever length they are happy with. That is why he said to Paul, I am

:33:40. > :33:42.happy to play any length. And not surprisingly, Paul has gone short.

:33:43. > :33:54.It was either going to be short or long. Just about making it. Jack

:33:55. > :34:32.length 23.5 metres. Half a metre up from the minimum length.

:34:33. > :34:38.On the forehand, hasn't really been totally successful on it, and

:34:39. > :34:44.sometimes when you are not, it is worth moving to the opposition side,

:34:45. > :34:49.if only to disturb them. At this length, he has decided to play the

:34:50. > :35:00.forehand but his form has slightly dipped. Pressure on them here to get

:35:01. > :35:03.a good close ball. Needs to give great something in the head. --

:35:04. > :35:11.Greg. It was a big bend he was looking

:35:12. > :35:33.for. That is better. Paul is saying to get in first,

:35:34. > :35:49.there is still a draw the four Greg -- there for Greg.

:35:50. > :36:06.Alex likes it. Just trying to beat the two red balls. Solid and drop.

:36:07. > :36:11.This looks like it is going to need some treatment. He won't be hanging

:36:12. > :36:33.back with this one. It is in the area. Great strike.

:36:34. > :36:41.That could be interesting, because this may be lying to shots. I think

:36:42. > :36:47.you have do put one on the card for somebody. It is difficult to get

:36:48. > :36:55.close to the jack. Not only that, no matter where Alex puts this... Is it

:36:56. > :37:01.one down or two den? That is the crucial question. No matter where he

:37:02. > :37:08.puts this, you would expect Greg to go for it. Sleeper that is what Alex

:37:09. > :37:19.is saying, if he goes close, then Greg will go for it -- that is what

:37:20. > :37:29.Alex is saying. It looks so easy, but anything within five feet would

:37:30. > :37:32.be enough for Greg just to draw. If he goes within three feet... Greg

:37:33. > :37:49.will go for the ball. Just scored a shot or get the shot

:37:50. > :37:56.close enough. It is well past a short one. Good enough. A couple of

:37:57. > :37:57.feet past the spot and that is where he has gone too. Greg will try and

:37:58. > :38:29.draw this now. Looks like the winner. Yes, it looks

:38:30. > :38:34.good. Sometimes you just have to play into the single shot and leave

:38:35. > :38:40.it at that. Probably got a little bit closer than he wanted to, but he

:38:41. > :38:48.was three down went he went to play his first ball, he turned the head

:38:49. > :38:55.around. It is your favourite comedy drawn drive. Closer to the them was

:38:56. > :38:59.comfortable, but... -- it is your favourite, the drawn drive. So keep

:39:00. > :39:14.some pressure on them. The jack is cast slightly further, I

:39:15. > :39:24.would think this will help Mickey Brett. -- Nicky. Finding the centre

:39:25. > :40:03.length easier with this. This is very much all about Nicky

:40:04. > :40:11.Brett coming back into the rhythm again. It is better and Greg will be

:40:12. > :40:17.very happy to see that. Yes, that is more like Nicky Brett. He has had a

:40:18. > :40:25.couple of ends off, let his skipper do the work.

:40:26. > :40:41.I lose one -- a loose one. Such grant of next, sees himself on the

:40:42. > :40:46.screen with his girlfriend. The lad from Croydon, what a challenge he

:40:47. > :40:54.has up against the defending champion -- Josh Grant is up next. I

:40:55. > :40:56.spoke to him earlier, he is quite confident, and drawing quite well. A

:40:57. > :41:05.talented player. Greg does not want to build this had

:41:06. > :41:34.any wider. -- this head clicking the fingers. It is OK.

:41:35. > :41:39.Sometimes, drawing a third is not a good idea. I think it was by

:41:40. > :41:44.accident. It is almost a case of leaving this open for Alex.

:41:45. > :41:53.Is he good enough to draw the shot? He certainly on a good line. It is

:41:54. > :42:01.all about weight. It is a great ball, well-paid Alex Marshall. --

:42:02. > :42:25.well played. And it has stayed up as well.

:42:26. > :42:55.Will he bend? Just didn't move the jack the way he wanted.

:42:56. > :43:02.Two or three inches to draw another. Not exactly a spare

:43:03. > :43:05.opportunity, but at this stage of the game, he will be thinking, I

:43:06. > :43:09.will have a go. I think he quite likes it. I don't think he has

:43:10. > :43:23.enough. It wasn't far, but it was being

:43:24. > :43:34.careful. It stretches things a bit, 11th ends to play to, four to go,

:43:35. > :43:40.three shots behind, there is time. I'm glad you reminded me, David, I

:43:41. > :43:42.had completely forgotten about that. You know all of these rules and

:43:43. > :43:45.regulations, there is always somebody in my here to remind them.

:43:46. > :43:52.-- in my ear. 23 metres, so this is about two

:43:53. > :44:31.inches above the minimum. The pairs final is, of course,

:44:32. > :44:36.always popular. A massive crowd in today. Large crowds, really, since

:44:37. > :44:43.the beginning of the Championships into the finals week. As it seems to

:44:44. > :44:48.step up a gear. Completely sold out, I believe, or not too far away

:44:49. > :45:09.from it for the rest of the week. It is amazing how the players talk

:45:10. > :45:15.to the ball. It will do nothing other than what it wants to do but

:45:16. > :45:21.you talk to it anyway. But it has to happen, you have to do it, to

:45:22. > :45:30.generate something else. Nicky is right on top of it again, keeping

:45:31. > :45:32.the pressure on. Nicky Brett takes full advantage, pushes the jack

:45:33. > :45:49.back, that is a good two. Probably the back for Alex. Personal

:45:50. > :45:50.choice again, they have been favouring the backhand, those

:45:51. > :45:58.players. Do you remember the book they

:45:59. > :46:08.produced a while ago, it was very funny, full of jokes and quips, and

:46:09. > :46:15.it was called A Load Of Old Balls, worth getting hold of a copy of it.

:46:16. > :46:30.This is a big problem now. I would expect Greg to draw another here,

:46:31. > :46:37.giving aspects problems. It is very good. Doesn't want to bring the jack

:46:38. > :46:48.out into the Open. That changed it, a little bit unlucky a great ball

:46:49. > :46:54.from Greg. Would have preferred to have left the jack alone. Gives Alex

:46:55. > :47:06.a slightly better chance. A bit of a chat about it, looking

:47:07. > :47:10.into the options, the draw and the backhand is available. Not

:47:11. > :47:14.particularly easy but a big turnover available on the forehand and it

:47:15. > :47:18.depends on what he wants to use. If you go slightly over the weight, you

:47:19. > :47:23.can be in trouble but if he can stretch the jack back into that

:47:24. > :47:29.position... It is a difficult weight, that is why they are taking

:47:30. > :47:34.their time. It is a yard on title shot, but we know how difficult that

:47:35. > :47:38.is. It brings that ball interplay, so you are looking at double

:47:39. > :47:42.situation. Certainly worth looking at it -- into play.

:47:43. > :47:51.There is another ball at the top of the screen, which you couldn't see,

:47:52. > :47:56.which is giving Alex problems. Yes, there is a ball around three or four

:47:57. > :48:07.yards short of the jack. This is a pressure ball.

:48:08. > :48:15.Inside the line, it has to have weight or it will pull across. It is

:48:16. > :48:24.not easy, it was a hard type of shot to play. Very difficult. Alex pushed

:48:25. > :48:34.the red ball, it might just be too down. -- two down.

:48:35. > :48:48.It also stopped Greg playing his favourite backhand. Yes, not as

:48:49. > :48:51.confident on this site. -- side. It looks very good. Certainly a third.

:48:52. > :49:13.And it looks like four. That really should seal up the set,

:49:14. > :49:24.even with three ends to go. 11-4, very difficult to see Alex and Paul

:49:25. > :49:45.coming back in this set. Jack length, 27 metres.

:49:46. > :49:55.It is unusual for players to come from the same club and compete at

:49:56. > :49:58.this level, but that is the case with Harlow and Brett. They have won

:49:59. > :50:05.a number of national titles together. Yes, a lot of good players

:50:06. > :50:09.have come out of that club. Obviously, the top two are accurate

:50:10. > :50:19.three and Nicky, to England skippers. -- on Greg and Nicky.

:50:20. > :50:27.Nicky is back into the groove, I think. Apart from this one! Don't

:50:28. > :51:04.say it, Andy, just don't say it! There were signs with Paul on the

:51:05. > :51:14.very short jack length that he was getting on top of things, but he has

:51:15. > :51:24.been rather inconsistent. Yes, he has, he will not be happy at the

:51:25. > :51:25.moment. Such a talented player, I am sure he will come back stronger in

:51:26. > :51:54.the second set. Playing really well, is Greg. The

:51:55. > :52:04.best player on the rink, I would say at the moment. Yes, any time he has

:52:05. > :52:11.looked as if he is in bother, he has pulled out a very big ball, either

:52:12. > :52:13.on the driver or the draw. He has been superb, the difference in the

:52:14. > :52:34.two teams, I would say. This one needs to run. At the

:52:35. > :52:46.moment, Harlow and Brett Lycett. -- lie set.

:52:47. > :52:54.Greg having a look at this, probably doesn't think he needs to put

:52:55. > :53:04.another ball into the head. Probably saying that to Nicky. It is a set

:53:05. > :53:10.lie, don't need to play the last two ends. I wouldn't go near this,

:53:11. > :53:17.especially not with the backhand, it just gives Alex a target.

:53:18. > :53:25.It is a tough shot for Alex to even get close to it, never mind get the

:53:26. > :53:29.shot. The set lie against it adds a little bit of pressure. It looks

:53:30. > :53:49.like the forehand, keep away from the head.

:53:50. > :54:00.That is good. Yes, it didn't need to be close. Probably closer to the

:54:01. > :54:04.centre line than he was hoping for, but I think he was just saying to

:54:05. > :54:09.himself, is there any chance Alex getting down and taking my two

:54:10. > :54:18.balls out, I don't want to lose a three under four? -- and 84. I think

:54:19. > :54:28.both of the players realise here, saying one is no good. Let's have a

:54:29. > :54:32.look at what is going on, trying to see... The natural shot would be to

:54:33. > :54:36.come down on the ball but even taking the green ball out and

:54:37. > :54:42.staying in its place, it is only a single and that is not going to

:54:43. > :54:48.crack it with two ends to go. He has looked at the forehand, nothing

:54:49. > :54:52.coming in that I can see. It looks to be impossible. Paula saying, "I

:54:53. > :55:00.don't know how you are going to get the shot" . Scratching his head, it

:55:01. > :55:03.doesn't look good. He's going to try and punched the green ball into it

:55:04. > :55:12.and hope that the jack moves forward, or something -- punch. This

:55:13. > :55:15.is Luke Shaw. Even Ronnie O'Sullivan would be struggling here. -- this is

:55:16. > :55:29.a snooker shot. Too wide. That is it, the first set

:55:30. > :55:36.to Harlow and Brett and deservedly so.

:55:37. > :55:43.It is comprehensive, no doubt about that. They restricted the defending

:55:44. > :55:49.champions to scoring in for ends, two and two singles. Big counts of

:55:50. > :55:53.travel and a full house of four in the first set has eased Nicky Brett

:55:54. > :55:58.and Greg Harlow into a very strong position. I was talking to Paul

:55:59. > :56:10.Foster yesterday and I was saying to him, of all the players playing, 80%

:56:11. > :56:14.will be magnificent but if any power struggles a tiny bit, the others

:56:15. > :56:18.will take over and that is what happened. Greg has made a few

:56:19. > :56:23.conversion balls, that is the difference. Paul has changed the

:56:24. > :56:30.length here, we have not had one of these, a long length. And rightly

:56:31. > :56:39.so, he has too change their tactics. -- has two.

:56:40. > :56:42.I think Nicky Brett will be happy with this length, slightly more

:56:43. > :57:12.biased ball, it won't put him off. Both players short of the target.

:57:13. > :57:16.They will adjust for the next one. Spike right Alex giving Paul a bit

:57:17. > :57:44.of encouragement. Time to get one on the top.

:57:45. > :58:02.Alex Marshall and Paul Foster are a very popular pair here, but I think

:58:03. > :58:07.you can feel the crowd with the local pair, getting behind them.

:58:08. > :58:12.Well, we are in England, so you would expect a bigger support for

:58:13. > :58:13.the English pair. I think the crowd have always been fair, they just

:58:14. > :58:23.want to see good bowls. Just a slight disturbance, so

:58:24. > :58:36.restart, change of ball. Alex has always had that lovely,

:58:37. > :58:45.smooth delivery, it hasn't changed throughout the years. . Certainly

:58:46. > :58:59.looking good with this one. He has drawn it, well played, Alex.

:59:00. > :59:02.Every time Greg has been asked a question on this backhand, he has

:59:03. > :59:23.reduced the goods. It needed the red ball to fall out.

:59:24. > :59:50.Great try. Same thing for Alex, if he can get

:59:51. > :00:01.up to the green ball I don't think it is running.

:00:02. > :00:06.Nicky has already called it, a choice of shots. Hit the target and

:00:07. > :00:14.take the red ball out or draw the shot. He's looking for the little

:00:15. > :00:17.rattler in here. I'm not convinced about that shot, because Greg has

:00:18. > :00:23.been playing this backhand so well, you feel he could draw that. But it

:00:24. > :00:29.is possible for the red balls to go in and take their own two out but I

:00:30. > :00:32.don't think it is really worth it. Nicky is such a positive player, I

:00:33. > :00:37.think he fancies the forehand runner. If you catch any ball here,

:00:38. > :00:48.you are going to take the red out. He always favours the positive shop.

:00:49. > :00:52.Dash and delete -- shot. Greg dropped away four or five inches

:00:53. > :00:53.short, I think he has listened to Nicky and will play the forehand

:00:54. > :01:27.runner. Running through it. Lots of chances.

:01:28. > :01:36.He was under the line. One shot, Foster and Marshall. It was off

:01:37. > :01:52.target but nearly got the shop. -- shot. Alex had a few chances.

:01:53. > :02:11.That jack looked about two inches out. I think there's a mark on the

:02:12. > :02:26.carpet, that's what it was. There was a little chalk mark.

:02:27. > :02:32.Paul was paying attention when he realised it wasn't on centre. He is

:02:33. > :03:02.dropping far too many balls short. That seemed to stop very quickly.

:03:03. > :03:12.Once you get into the centre of the rink, it is a slow the ball down. I

:03:13. > :03:17.think this is a lot that. -- a lot better. It is certainly a lot better

:03:18. > :04:07.than his first one. Judy Potter in her usual seat.

:04:08. > :04:25.Resplendent in powder pink,-that is called.

:04:26. > :04:35.Baby pink is just a bit stronger than that! I will take your word for

:04:36. > :04:43.it! Back to the balls. Just a draw here for Greg.

:04:44. > :05:07.He likes the look of this one. Great try.

:05:08. > :05:13.A sign of a good pay is when the lead is not in your skipper covers.

:05:14. > :05:21.He wants to be gentle with the jack. I think he is still holding

:05:22. > :05:35.onto it. Yes but he has given Greg a chance. This shot is difficult. I

:05:36. > :05:39.think you just draw it. If you touch the jacket is a bonus. -- touch the

:05:40. > :06:02.jack, it is a bonus. He must like it. Not enough. He

:06:03. > :06:23.needed a thinner edge. He had the weight.

:06:24. > :06:32.Wonderful international arena here at the Potters Leisure Resort. Paul

:06:33. > :06:35.has had enough of these 29 metre lengths. Anything shorter would be

:06:36. > :07:08.good for him. Short again. He is surprised that

:07:09. > :07:12.back. -- surprised at that. Alex will be wondering why Paul has just

:07:13. > :07:23.not founded today. Very unlike Paul Foster. Nicky has not really

:07:24. > :07:33.punished him. Alex still encouraging him.

:07:34. > :07:45.This looks a better line. It is certainly a better weight as well.

:07:46. > :08:00.That is so much better. Paul knows it shouldn't take him to balls to

:08:01. > :08:06.get there. But he has given Alex a very good chance. That is a good

:08:07. > :08:35.second. Paul just looked up and look at his

:08:36. > :08:42.watch and said, at last I've got one close! It is like having Big Ben on

:08:43. > :08:48.his wrist. I am surprised he does not fall over with the weight of

:08:49. > :08:58.that watch! It is absolutely Joe enormous! I think you need that! It

:08:59. > :09:04.might help me. This is a decent line. It just needs to hold. That is

:09:05. > :09:15.really good. Right up in front. That's what the difference is if

:09:16. > :09:20.your lead gets in. They have made a good start here. A bit of pressure

:09:21. > :09:26.on Greg. He needs to play a really big ball.

:09:27. > :09:34.He has really played this hand well. I think it is just going to go

:09:35. > :10:09.through. A great effort. It looks to be on a slightly

:10:10. > :10:36.narrower line. Not running. This might be a positive shot here

:10:37. > :10:48.from Greg. He is looking at the green ball into the head. He is to

:10:49. > :10:52.down so we can't be any worse off. Andy has been playing the draw

:10:53. > :10:57.rather well but there is an alternative on the forehand. He has

:10:58. > :11:06.got shoulder to come off. He is looking at the backhand. Either of

:11:07. > :11:18.these into the header to move the jack. They are a long way to push

:11:19. > :11:19.in. Certainly no guarantees. I think he is going to probably try and draw

:11:20. > :11:40.this. He is very close. He is very close

:11:41. > :11:50.with this. Still too down. Two to Scotland. A good effort but it is

:11:51. > :11:53.exactly what the defending champions wanted. They wanted to get off to a

:11:54. > :12:04.good start. I think Paul has abandoned the long

:12:05. > :12:52.end. Going more three quarters. Just a matter of time. It is going

:12:53. > :13:02.to make a massive difference to this match. I am sure Greg and Nicky will

:13:03. > :13:19.be a of that. A good reply from Nicky Brett. Well played.

:13:20. > :13:36.They might be a position ball already. -- they might be.

:13:37. > :13:48.Alex does not need to go near this. Paul's all is touching and Nicky's

:13:49. > :13:52.all about the quarter of an inch. That means it will be a draw for

:13:53. > :14:25.Nick Brett. He is normally quite accurate with

:14:26. > :14:32.his forehand runners. That is what Greg has asked for.

:14:33. > :14:45.He is on target. Great strike. On the response, start over again, as

:14:46. > :14:51.Greg said. I thought he might have drawn that because he was so close

:14:52. > :14:56.with his first ball. I agree. He just needed to touch the ball but it

:14:57. > :15:18.now becomes a two ball singles between Alex and Greg.

:15:19. > :15:37.He is certainly very wide. Right on the edge. A good weight. Still room

:15:38. > :15:39.for Greg. He is on the front inside edge of the matter to hold the ball

:15:40. > :15:59.up as long as possible. -- the mat. The bowl will stay as long as

:16:00. > :16:09.possible on the line. There is something disturbing him. It was

:16:10. > :16:29.just in his island. -- his eye line. Greg realises he has to go very wide

:16:30. > :16:33.to keep his ball up. It needs to stop. The extra weight is holding

:16:34. > :16:59.it. This looks too wide. He has gone

:17:00. > :17:07.off. Side ditch. That is the problem with the eager swinging ball. You

:17:08. > :17:15.really have to go very wide on the re-spot. His first ball was three

:17:16. > :17:24.inches away. Slightly wide and it goes off. It has left the door open

:17:25. > :17:55.for Greg. This looks better. It certainly does. They are on the card

:17:56. > :18:10.in the second set. A long way to go. Seven ends. Even in a tight game,

:18:11. > :18:13.you are talking about potentially 25 ends, that is usually enough to

:18:14. > :18:20.separate layers. Yes, normally at this level. The Scottish pay will be

:18:21. > :18:24.happy now they have started this set better and they are playing better

:18:25. > :18:56.balls. They will feel as though they are back in the game.

:18:57. > :19:26.Nicky quickly moves his hand. It needs to stop though.

:19:27. > :19:43.It certainly looks fit again. -- had. That is more like Paul Foster.

:19:44. > :19:48.Does Greg Harlow try and draw it off orders he come through it? He has

:19:49. > :19:54.played the backhand so well in this direction. I think this is just a

:19:55. > :20:02.draw. At that was a lovely ball I Paul Foster. If he starts to get

:20:03. > :20:09.into its form it's going to be very difficult for the English pair to

:20:10. > :20:15.hold them off. Greg is playing the forehand. It is a runner then,

:20:16. > :20:22.surely. I am slightly surprised. He has played the backhand so well on

:20:23. > :20:35.the draw. He has got it. Very good ball.

:20:36. > :20:49.A great strike from Greg but Alex has got about 15 inches here. Paul

:20:50. > :21:01.is not sure if he has pushed through this. If Greg puts this one on the

:21:02. > :21:04.nose of it, it will be a really good recovery. Massive recovery if they

:21:05. > :21:34.score a two-year. Paul is already applauding this

:21:35. > :21:41.bowl. Well played Greg Harlow. That is exactly what the hearings are all

:21:42. > :21:50.about. -- that is exactly what good hearings are all about. Greg Harlow

:21:51. > :22:02.has been the player of the game so far. This is close. It is just

:22:03. > :22:10.whether it gets back in time. It held out slightly. Halfway up, they

:22:11. > :22:29.both thought that was going to make it. A big turnaround in that end. By

:22:30. > :22:35.that man. A lot of this match has been down to the recovery bowls by

:22:36. > :23:52.the skippers. Greg Harlow has been winning that particular area.

:23:53. > :25:07.Good lead bowls. The shop is against Craig. -- the shot.

:25:08. > :25:26.A couple of feet, that was all. He could give the shot away here and

:25:27. > :25:33.actually still be better off in some respects. I would agree. They could

:25:34. > :25:40.probably try and put another ball in there. He is going to try and draw

:25:41. > :25:44.and hopefully not move the jack. He is better of a losing one rather

:25:45. > :25:52.than the potential of losing three or four.

:25:53. > :26:08.Too frightened to go near it. You can't blame them.

:26:09. > :26:17.Alex thinks it has finished in a good race but I don't think it has.

:26:18. > :26:23.There is still room around the ball. If you can remove that all, you are

:26:24. > :26:28.talking about bringing it through to hear. If the jack moves across into

:26:29. > :26:38.this area, you've got four shots and not only that, then the short ball

:26:39. > :26:47.is hampering him. I don't know if Greg is looking at a drive here. I

:26:48. > :26:58.think it is just a draw. Greg was so close with his opening delivery. You

:26:59. > :27:03.sort of know that Nicky is such an attacking player and Greg has to

:27:04. > :27:10.think to himself, I have to be strong enough here to play

:27:11. > :27:26.mailshot. -- strong enough to play his own shop. -- shot. He is too

:27:27. > :27:33.heavy. It will get back. -- it won't get back. I am surprised Alex is

:27:34. > :27:43.going down to play this. There is no way he is going near this head. Even

:27:44. > :27:47.my own favourite Highland drift would be too risky year. Just take

:27:48. > :28:09.the one. He is on the line to draw. Paul is

:28:10. > :28:18.saying, what are you doing? That was courageous. He could have easily

:28:19. > :28:28.given three away. He was confident enough to draw another. A big crowd

:28:29. > :28:36.here as expected. The perfect venue. Best venue in the world to play

:28:37. > :28:48.bowls. That is what they all say. All the facilities available and big

:28:49. > :29:01.crowds. And a bracing walk down the beach to build sand castles! Wear

:29:02. > :29:32.you down there this morning? No chance!

:29:33. > :29:42.Still an intriguing game. You just feel this is going to go to a

:29:43. > :30:12.tie-break. It is looking slightly that way.

:30:13. > :30:22.This looks good. This looks like the winner. Well played. Not an easy

:30:23. > :30:33.hand, the forehand. But very playable. Here we see Nicky Brett

:30:34. > :30:40.changing to the forehand. He plays the perfect draw. He makes it look

:30:41. > :30:46.easy. I have watched a lot of people practice but it's probably 80-20.

:30:47. > :30:52.People favour the backhand. This is just a draw here from Alex. This has

:30:53. > :31:09.to have very good weight. Perfect line, finding centre ring.

:31:10. > :31:25.He can still draw this on the backhand, it is Greg's favourite.

:31:26. > :31:48.I don't think he has quite got the pace. Just inside. Two feet, mate.

:31:49. > :31:57.Alex running after this one. Yes, it is a lot closer. It needs to hurry

:31:58. > :32:04.to get past the green one. He is dropping shot.

:32:05. > :32:12.It was a risky one, but your weight was good last time.

:32:13. > :32:17.This is not easy for Greg to score another, but he would be the shot

:32:18. > :32:35.away, so this this the confidence. -- this is for. I don't think he is

:32:36. > :32:41.running. He is going to drop shot. Keeps things nice and tight. The

:32:42. > :33:06.England players are still in good shape at the moment.

:33:07. > :33:47.Good starter. The Rumford home in the last four ends one pair looking

:33:48. > :34:18.for a tie-break, the other looking to be champions.

:34:19. > :34:28.A bit of a problem, because any lengthening of the jack and the red

:34:29. > :34:39.is in the perfect position. Nicky would have wanted that one slightly

:34:40. > :34:50.further. Just slightly through. Weight was nice.

:34:51. > :35:04.Greg will probably favour the forehand here. Greg waiting for Alex

:35:05. > :35:13.to come up. The 100 metres sprint therefore Alex. -- there for Alex.

:35:14. > :35:17.These players know each other so well, they can have a little bit of

:35:18. > :35:19.a lap in between but it is serious stuff. It is very competitive on the

:35:20. > :35:41.rink. The forehand draw. They should get back. That is a

:35:42. > :35:44.stonking ball. It really is perfect, he could not have walked

:35:45. > :36:02.down and put it in there any better. Exactly what it wanted. It

:36:03. > :36:18.is still draw rubble, four inches. -- drawable. He is looking at the

:36:19. > :36:23.heavy shot. It is the easier shot, I think. I am happy with that, on

:36:24. > :36:28.YouGov. If it catches the centre ball, the plant, both the balls will

:36:29. > :36:41.go. He's catching the middle of the shortest green ball, in the centre.

:36:42. > :36:52.Very close. He has got the jack. Great strike. A real bonus as well,

:36:53. > :36:57.because the jack point forward off the green ball, they will have a

:36:58. > :37:06.response, which will favour red. -- a re-spot. This isn't particularly

:37:07. > :37:08.easy, slight pressure on this one. He has been drawing so well, Greg, I

:37:09. > :37:39.would expect him to draw this. Taking his time. He has pushed it

:37:40. > :37:48.out wide, it is a good line. Also do -- it is all to do with weight. Well

:37:49. > :37:56.played, Greg Harlow. It is a big, big ball. It is not just the fact he

:37:57. > :38:04.has managed to get the shot, it is where the shot is. But there is a

:38:05. > :38:19.possibility here. There is a ball which is a toucher for red. If he

:38:20. > :38:22.gets the drive, get the jack, you are talking about running that green

:38:23. > :38:30.ball off the rink, which brings in this red one and this red one, and

:38:31. > :38:37.there is already read in the ditch. Speak what I think Alex will be at

:38:38. > :38:44.this. Jack gives him the shot, the drive gives him the shot. He has got

:38:45. > :38:51.a toucher in the ditch. The chance of scoring three shots out of this.

:38:52. > :38:54.He has also got to seconds, so if he does remove his closest ball, it

:38:55. > :39:08.still won't matter -- two seconds. It looks wide, missed the chance. He

:39:09. > :39:17.knew right away it was on the wide side. It has to go down as the

:39:18. > :39:22.chance. Not a particularly easy one, but he would have been disappointed

:39:23. > :39:27.to be that far away. Alex Tidwell, he was at least two down when he had

:39:28. > :39:41.his first strike, -- Alex did well. Still keeps the set tight.

:39:42. > :40:23.Jack Lynch, 25.5 metres. -- jack lengths. The

:40:24. > :41:05.14 or 15 inches away, so still room here for Paul. You certainly

:41:06. > :41:11.wouldn't want to get caught on that but he's not prepared to move on to

:41:12. > :41:19.the forehand. 16 inches, he feels he can draw around.

:41:20. > :42:05.It looks good. It is a shoulder for Greg to rest on.

:42:06. > :42:15.He is asking it to keep running. He gets past that one. On another day,

:42:16. > :42:20.he just clips that and it falls away. Nicky Brett will be happy with

:42:21. > :43:03.that. Chlorine to get down, the weight

:43:04. > :43:07.looks lovely -- clawing. No reaction from Paul, Paul feels it is against.

:43:08. > :43:19.We slightly favoured green from our rings. Yes, I think it is. The rings

:43:20. > :43:24.are very accurate. The camera is right over the top of the head, it

:43:25. > :43:29.is all down to expertise at the end of the

:43:30. > :43:58.The backhand is slightly blocked out there, so an awkward one, I don't

:43:59. > :44:02.know where the best place to put this one is. Drawing beforehand,

:44:03. > :44:09.just trying to get in amongst the reds, just in case? -- the forehand.

:44:10. > :44:11.It is very difficult, because it is also tight. It gives Alex a chance

:44:12. > :44:28.if he takes it wider. He is having a real go at this. Oh,

:44:29. > :44:34.no. He has fallen back on the red. That is so unlikely. It has given

:44:35. > :44:40.the shot away. If it was close, and it surely is not close now, that is

:44:41. > :44:52.so unlucky for Greg. It has to be read now. Yes, a massive difference,

:44:53. > :44:57.definitely one to read. -- red. You can play this with confidence on the

:44:58. > :44:58.high side, just a little drop in. Desperately unlucky for it to go

:44:59. > :45:11.wrong. Anything on the jack, I'm going to

:45:12. > :45:18.be giving a shot away. I think there is a case are just taking the one,

:45:19. > :45:21.Alex, here. One up, two to go, if you score another single, you are

:45:22. > :45:29.two up going into the last end. Highline drift.

:45:30. > :45:41.Try a wee draw, then. If I fall back on the jack, that is a problem.

:45:42. > :45:49.Once again, I'm going to predict Alex to be short. I just don't think

:45:50. > :45:56.he should be going near this. One shot, I think, is quite good here.

:45:57. > :46:04.It is all about your own confidence, but they don't play this forehand

:46:05. > :46:11.very often. Maybe it is better just not to go near it.

:46:12. > :46:18.I am quite good at these predictions now. You are getting better,

:46:19. > :46:21.absolutely. That was one not to bother with. I think Nicky will see

:46:22. > :46:29.that Greg has been desperately unlucky. Greg may question whether

:46:30. > :46:33.they should have gone near that. If you give the shot away in a

:46:34. > :46:38.situation like that, it is never easy. Alex had a hard shot to

:46:39. > :47:17.actually get the shot back, so it could be quite crucial, that.

:47:18. > :47:27.In the run for home, the last two ends, Scotland looking for the three

:47:28. > :47:36.end tie-break, England looking to win it. Good match, have enjoyed

:47:37. > :47:53.this one. Yes, I thought it would be a good match. It probably won't win

:47:54. > :47:55.the shot, but it does win the battle at the moment. I expect that to be

:47:56. > :48:10.beaten. It is all that pace this time. Big

:48:11. > :48:22.swinging ball, it will drop back, got to be close.

:48:23. > :48:31.The way Alex and Greg have been playing, you think they could fit

:48:32. > :48:47.their generic for balls inside that. Stay away from the jack. Unlucky.

:48:48. > :48:51.Very unlucky. -- four balls. Paul has asked the forehand, I think Alex

:48:52. > :48:55.fancies the backhand. That is why he is going to have a look. I can see

:48:56. > :48:58.why Paul is thinking about the forehand, simply because that is the

:48:59. > :49:11.shot that Greg is going to be playing. I reckon I am faster than

:49:12. > :49:35.you expect this time, it is Greg's time to run up.

:49:36. > :49:47.That is what Greg will be looking for.

:49:48. > :49:55.He is asking for a yard on, Nicky, that is hard. You are asking for

:49:56. > :50:01.perfection. Accurate three nose as well it is a difficult shot. Speaker

:50:02. > :50:12.three he needs to bowl inside the normal draw line with an extra two

:50:13. > :50:18.or three weight. -- feat in weight. That is a great ball, a wonderful

:50:19. > :50:26.ball by Greg Harlow. He didn't have the extra weight to lift the ball,

:50:27. > :50:32.but he had the perfect draw. Close for two, mate. And that is crucial.

:50:33. > :50:36.It was a cracking ball, pushed the red, lifted it up and it dropped

:50:37. > :50:40.back and the jack was moved. And that was the difference with Alex

:50:41. > :50:52.Marshall not getting in with his first delivery. Alex is certainly on

:50:53. > :50:58.the backhand now. I don't think Alex and Paul would be very disappointed

:50:59. > :51:05.at dropping a one here, David, but two makes a massive difference going

:51:06. > :51:09.into the last. Losing one, yes, they will still have to win the last end.

:51:10. > :51:21.A big ball, this. The jack is available on the

:51:22. > :51:28.backhand. If he gets it right, he could pick up three or four shots.

:51:29. > :51:36.It looks narrow. Well, actually, the weight wasn't too bad at all, it was

:51:37. > :51:40.very close. It was under the line. I think he has to be very careful. If

:51:41. > :51:45.it is two, it is almost better walking away from it, because you

:51:46. > :51:54.can come in on the forehand and drop his own ball away. If they favour

:51:55. > :51:58.two, they can afford to lose one on the last end. The defending

:51:59. > :52:04.champions are looking per to shot, then, that is a whole lot of

:52:05. > :52:10.difference. -- looking for two shots. That is what Nicky is talking

:52:11. > :52:17.about. He is saying on the high side, you are looking to bring in

:52:18. > :52:20.the outside ball. -- off the outside ball. I would say you are better off

:52:21. > :52:35.leaving it at two. He's playing the backhand. This has

:52:36. > :52:45.to be very wide. And he is very wide. I don't think he is going near

:52:46. > :52:53.this! That is the Highline drift shot but he hasn't pushed through it

:52:54. > :52:59.and that is very sensible. Most of the players do favour two.

:53:00. > :53:28.That is not going through, I'm going to put two down on my card. I agree.

:53:29. > :53:58.Two shots. A little cushion here for the

:53:59. > :54:13.English pair, who could afford to lose one but not two. Jack length,

:54:14. > :54:16.28.5 metres. So Paul Foster and Alex Marshall, as defending champions,

:54:17. > :54:22.playing in red all the way through the event. And Nicky Brett and Greg

:54:23. > :55:00.Harlow in green. The fact that they have managed to

:55:01. > :55:07.stay using the same colour bowls all through the pairs... That is OK,

:55:08. > :55:12.good start. I think Alex is quite happy about the ball behind the

:55:13. > :55:20.jack. I think that is why Paul deliberately made sure he was up

:55:21. > :55:26.with this one. Nicky, again, a touch is required. That is never going to

:55:27. > :55:27.be lost. He is better there. You are always better there than in front of

:55:28. > :55:38.it. Try and drop a little bit. Just a

:55:39. > :55:49.draw, draw the shot and hit the jack, it's a bonus.

:55:50. > :55:59.You are close here, Paul. He is, you can see Alex saying it. He has got

:56:00. > :56:09.it. He has the jack, definitely. Not only that, he has made two out of

:56:10. > :56:14.it. Greg is having a look at this head, to me, it is a simple backhand

:56:15. > :56:20.draw. It looks forehand but it has to be backhand for Greg. Very

:56:21. > :56:27.pensive, the defending champions. This large crowd have really enjoyed

:56:28. > :56:33.this. It has been a wonderful game. Not always the bowling, Andy, but

:56:34. > :56:37.the tension. And this man has certainly been the best player on

:56:38. > :56:42.the rink. Can he draw to win the game?

:56:43. > :56:52.It is on a wide line. It is all about pace. I think it is too heavy.

:56:53. > :56:58.It looks quick, no way it is getting back. Can't blame him, you're not

:56:59. > :57:08.going to get anything if you are short. It is a set line against at

:57:09. > :57:36.the moment. What does Alex do? Get a back touch in.

:57:37. > :57:43.That one is holding off as well. Greg doesn't really want to change

:57:44. > :57:52.the line very much, the cheque is still inside. Still have two thirds

:57:53. > :58:03.if you want to ride it appear. Nicky, no! If I was Greg here, I

:58:04. > :58:08.would be telling him to draw the shot on the backhand. He has played

:58:09. > :58:12.that so well. It takes one ball out, he has then got 18 inches to draw

:58:13. > :58:20.the shot, I would think he will draw it. He will draw the shot. The thing

:58:21. > :58:23.is, if Greg pops one in there, it is going to be hidden out of the way,

:58:24. > :58:28.it is going to be almost impossible for Alex to get a hand, whereas Greg

:58:29. > :58:33.is saying, if I take the back one out, there is too much space.

:58:34. > :58:41.Exactly, that is why it should be the backhand draw. I know that Nicky

:58:42. > :58:48.loves the little runner, but for me, this has to be the draw. The

:58:49. > :58:54.backhand draw. Nicky is looking at coming down here on the forehand,

:58:55. > :59:03.the ball out here, or this ball out, but that space is just too big.

:59:04. > :59:09.Exactly. Utah never delete you are talking about 18 inches in front of

:59:10. > :59:13.the jack, 18 inches behind the jack -- you are talking about. There is

:59:14. > :59:22.also the forehand draw, but I'm going to go back to Greg playing the

:59:23. > :59:25.backhand draw so well. He could draw it on the forehand, the jack is off

:59:26. > :59:29.centre towards the forehand, so it helps it a little bit. I don't think

:59:30. > :59:35.he likes the forehand down here, on the draw. I think sometimes you have

:59:36. > :59:42.to just say to your partner, "I really fancy playing this" . So

:59:43. > :59:47.undecided, that is not a good sign, I don't think. Really taking his

:59:48. > :59:55.time over this one. A little tap on the arm. Well, Nicky quite rightly

:59:56. > :00:02.has encouraged him. Greg has chosen his shop. Once a skipper decides

:00:03. > :00:12.what to do, you have to give him 100% backing. You cannot keep that?

:00:13. > :00:19.In the mind -- you cannot keep that question mark in the mind. I'm not

:00:20. > :00:37.sure I agree with this one. Playing the runner. He has taken one away.

:00:38. > :00:51.It's too far. If there had have been a definite

:00:52. > :00:58.three against them... I still don't think that was the right shot. He

:00:59. > :01:07.did the best he could with it. Took the one out. Pressure on Alex here.

:01:08. > :01:10.It seems quite easy in the commentary box to draw within 18

:01:11. > :01:20.inches, but there's a lot of pressure on this.

:01:21. > :01:28.There are very few people you would want on the matter more than Alex

:01:29. > :01:32.Marshall. My money would be on Alex to draw another here. Forcing us

:01:33. > :01:59.into the tie-break. He's definitely drawn another. Will

:02:00. > :02:07.it drop? It hasn't, it stayed up! That is dramatic. It looked good all

:02:08. > :02:16.the way. Alex Marshall and Paul Foster tightening.

:02:17. > :02:27.What a dramatic finish that was. He couldn't believe it.

:02:28. > :02:31.That length and distance, it looked an absolute certainty that ball

:02:32. > :03:02.would have dropped back. It's a lovely wide angled bowl

:03:03. > :03:11.coming in here to make the three early draws for Greg Harlow.

:03:12. > :03:15.Another opportunity for the full house this time. Drops in, makes the

:03:16. > :03:32.four. This was all very close, right up to

:03:33. > :03:36.the 10th end. Harlow drops the jack back for the double. That gives him

:03:37. > :03:40.the comfort of an extra shot. This bowl, will be looking at this for a

:03:41. > :03:45.long time. It looked absolutely perfect on the swing. No one knows

:03:46. > :03:55.how on earth that bowl didn't drop back into win the second set.

:03:56. > :04:09.Very comfortable in terms of the ens one. 10-7. They were always a little

:04:10. > :04:22.bit in front, the English pair. I'm standing next to this year's

:04:23. > :04:27.champions. Congratulations to both of you.

:04:28. > :04:34.Nicky, first of all it must be nice to get your name on that trophy,

:04:35. > :04:40.especially against those two guys who have dominated it for the last

:04:41. > :04:46.three years. Very nice. These boys are top class. They've shown it year

:04:47. > :04:49.after year. It's nice for us to eventually get it. You came out

:04:50. > :04:56.swinging, you were right on the top of your game. We have to be. Three

:04:57. > :05:01.years in a row, it looked like they could win six in a row, they are

:05:02. > :05:09.that good. We know that we had to play a plus. You've got the

:05:10. > :05:15.microphones on today, we could hear some of the discussion on that last

:05:16. > :05:22.bowl. What was the thinking? I leave the thinking to him! You took a long

:05:23. > :05:26.time to decide what you wanted to deliver. The choices were to draw

:05:27. > :05:30.the shot and it probably would have been the better shot have I have

:05:31. > :05:35.been successful, but the margins were small. The option was to take

:05:36. > :05:39.one out and draw the last bowl. All the way down the green we thought

:05:40. > :05:45.he'd drawn it and it just held off and failed. It must be somebody up

:05:46. > :05:50.there shining down for us. Another thinking question about, what were

:05:51. > :05:56.you thinking when Hattie delivered that final bowl? Can somebody else

:05:57. > :06:00.play it? The guys in the commentary box were saying if there's anyone

:06:01. > :06:07.you want to deliver that it would be Tattie. How are you guys going to

:06:08. > :06:12.celebrate tonight? Very quiet. The mixed singles start tomorrow, so it

:06:13. > :06:17.will be a quiet celebration. If you believe that! It's not what your

:06:18. > :06:19.wife has been saying up in the gallery! Your champions, Greg Harlow

:06:20. > :06:36.and Nicky Brett. The applause just dying down for a

:06:37. > :06:41.second but soon it will rise again, because it's time for the trophy

:06:42. > :06:45.presentation. It is presentation time. Will you

:06:46. > :06:51.please welcome your presentation party, the director of strategy for

:06:52. > :06:55.Just Retirement, Mr Peter Borlee, along with the chief executive of

:06:56. > :07:02.the world Bowls tour, Richard Madison.

:07:03. > :07:06.First to receive their runners-up cheque, your appreciation for Alex

:07:07. > :07:31.Marshall and Paul Foster. Now to the winners, receiving a

:07:32. > :07:46.Langham glass goblet each, a check and the title of the 2014 Just

:07:47. > :08:05.Retirement World, Champions, Greg Harlow and Nicky Brett.

:08:06. > :08:18.They have finally gone and done it, ladies and gentlemen. The 2014 World

:08:19. > :08:28.Indoor Pairs, champions, Greg Harlow and Nick Brett.

:08:29. > :08:40.Congratulation to Greg Harlow and Nicky Brett, enjoying that willing

:08:41. > :08:43.feeling here. Someone else who knows that feeling very well is the

:08:44. > :09:33.defending men's champion, Stewart Anderson.

:09:34. > :09:44.Only four men in the last 35 years have managed to successfully defend

:09:45. > :09:51.their men's title. So Stewart Anderson, can he become the fifth?

:09:52. > :09:55.Winning the title last year was the pinnacle of achievement for the

:09:56. > :09:59.28-year-old. He comes from Ayrshire, a club which has a rich history of

:10:00. > :10:04.producing top-class players, including six world champions, both

:10:05. > :10:05.men and women. We caught up with Stewart as he prepared to defend his

:10:06. > :10:20.crown. The famous one was Hugh Duff in the

:10:21. > :10:30.indoor singles. I was not to see him play, it was a bit gutting for

:10:31. > :10:35.myself. I'm still currently an international player at this time

:10:36. > :10:43.and moment. We have the winners bored, I'm lucky enough to be on it

:10:44. > :10:52.as singles champion. We come to one of the stars of the club, Carrie

:10:53. > :10:57.Maclean, she won it at the age of 15. She went on and won the world

:10:58. > :11:02.under 25 ladies singles at the age of 15 again. It's phenomenal for the

:11:03. > :11:08.club and it's great for herself as well. The talent we've got in the

:11:09. > :11:16.club is brilliant. It's good for the community here. Carrie McLean,

:11:17. > :11:19.certainly a name to watch out for. Comparisons between Carrie and

:11:20. > :11:23.Stewart's outstanding junior talent is coming through the same club are

:11:24. > :11:26.inevitable. The club manager and junior coach remembers the current

:11:27. > :11:33.world singles champion taking a little enticing into the club during

:11:34. > :11:42.his formative years. When he first walked in the door he was a bowler

:11:43. > :11:47.outside. But you knew he had natural talent. When he first came in, he

:11:48. > :11:53.found was a totally different game from insight outside. It's more of a

:11:54. > :11:58.game of skill inside. He had to polish it. He had to learn to just

:11:59. > :12:03.work at it, a wee bit harder to finally train his skills. I always

:12:04. > :12:09.said to him years and years ago, just play your bowls the way you

:12:10. > :12:14.can, let them do the talking and it will take you around the world.

:12:15. > :12:21.That's what has happened. I lost my very first game. I was ready to

:12:22. > :12:26.chuck it will stop she tried to turn me around and keep me going. Now I'm

:12:27. > :12:30.the current world champion, it's all down to Margaret. Stewart still has

:12:31. > :12:34.a love of the outdoor game and may well feature in Scotland's

:12:35. > :12:39.Commonwealth Games team in Glasgow 2014, but right now his main focus

:12:40. > :12:45.is indoors, and his defence of the title he was so overwhelmed to win

:12:46. > :12:48.last year. To play the final with that crowd, it gives you goose bumps

:12:49. > :12:53.going back, knowing you are the world champion and has had a great

:12:54. > :12:57.year. I can't believe a year has gone past already. I'm really

:12:58. > :13:01.excited. There is no more pressure on me, I'm always laid-back and I

:13:02. > :13:05.don't mind the challenge. There were over 100 people here when I came

:13:06. > :13:08.back will stop all the people shouting and screaming when I walked

:13:09. > :13:16.in the door. It was lovely to see them. No doubt all Scottish progress

:13:17. > :13:21.in the tournament will be again cheered on by the members here,

:13:22. > :13:24.where the Bowls club is very much the heart of the community. But the

:13:25. > :13:29.people here know the unassuming lad from just down the road in the

:13:30. > :13:35.village will be trying his very best to uphold the club's proud tradition

:13:36. > :13:39.once again. He will watch every bowl that is played and televised, we

:13:40. > :13:43.will watch the repeats and cheer him on. We would be totally delighted to

:13:44. > :13:48.bring him back next year as the world champion. The previous two

:13:49. > :13:52.world singles champions, Paul Foster and Andy Thomson, have gone down at

:13:53. > :13:58.the very first hurdle when it titles were defended in 2012 and 2013

:13:59. > :14:02.respectively. But as always, Stewart is taking a relaxed and

:14:03. > :14:06.philosophical approach to the tournament. Don't underestimate his

:14:07. > :14:13.ambition. The first year I went in I was an underdog. I still feel like

:14:14. > :14:16.that. But if I walk out and play against Paul Foster and Alex

:14:17. > :14:28.Marshall, I still feel an underdog. I still feel I can beat them.

:14:29. > :14:31.The defending champion, Stewart Anderson, is hoping to fill the last

:14:32. > :15:11.remaining spot in the last 16. I've been joined by Andy Thomson.

:15:12. > :15:14.The two guys warming up, Stewart Anderson and Josh Grant. In the last

:15:15. > :15:19.couple of years we have seen the defending champion, and I hate to

:15:20. > :15:22.bring it up, going out in the first round. Tiller there's a lot of

:15:23. > :15:27.pressure coming as defending champion. Myself and Paul Fella the

:15:28. > :15:32.first hurdle. Stewart has a tough game here. There's a lot of

:15:33. > :15:36.pressure. That is why defending champions have sometimes not

:15:37. > :15:57.produced a good performance. But it is possible that Stewart is the type

:15:58. > :16:00.of player that a lot of people could be thinking that he could have gone

:16:01. > :16:03.to the top a few years ago, people thought he was the next big thing.

:16:04. > :16:06.He lost in the final to Greg about four years ago, he came back last

:16:07. > :16:08.year and he's a talented player. I must ask you about Josh. He's 19, a

:16:09. > :16:12.shop assistant in Waitrose. He has had to play - Machtig time off work

:16:13. > :16:15.to be here today. It's a big day for him in front of the BBC cameras and

:16:16. > :16:21.up against a player of that ilk. How does he cope with it? He's from the

:16:22. > :16:26.same area. I know him very well. He's quite a calm, cool type of

:16:27. > :16:31.person. I think you will cope quite well. Josh Grant up against Stewart

:16:32. > :16:40.Anderson. That is our next match on the BBC. Making his first appearance

:16:41. > :16:42.on this portable rink is this national under 25s runner up. From

:16:43. > :17:16.Surrey, give it up for Josh Grant. Josh takes on twice a world under

:17:17. > :17:43.25s and the defending world indoor singles champion, Stewart Anderson.

:17:44. > :17:56.MUSIC: "Jump Around" by House of Pain.

:17:57. > :18:06.Fascinating game, two young players. Stewart Anderson at 28 stop young

:18:07. > :18:10.Josh Grant is only 19. I've been joined in the commentary box by

:18:11. > :18:17.world champion and many times runner-up, John Price. Thank you,

:18:18. > :18:22.David. It's an interesting clash, this one. Stewart is a young man

:18:23. > :18:26.with a lot of experience. This is a whole new ball game for Josh. David

:18:27. > :18:35.and Goliath you might say. An element of that.

:18:36. > :18:41.But sometimes when it comes to the youth side, John, you get the

:18:42. > :18:48.situation where it just doesn't faze them. Exactly. We could all go back

:18:49. > :18:53.to our younger days, you just went on the green and rolled the bowls,

:18:54. > :19:15.sometimes the more you know the more difficult it becomes.

:19:16. > :19:21.Stewart Anderson gets out of the blocks pretty quickly generally, so

:19:22. > :19:28.it will be very much up to this young man to try and hold on. Keep

:19:29. > :19:32.him under pressure. He will have a lot of support here, I feel. Yes,

:19:33. > :19:53.and he's started well. Stewart, this is what he is renowned

:19:54. > :20:05.for, he will draw a lot of close bowls, try and surround that Jack.

:20:06. > :20:16.Josh's main supporter is his girlfriend there.

:20:17. > :20:48.He's just missed his line with that. Stewart has settled very quickly.

:20:49. > :21:07.I might be tempted to have a little runner here. Yes, he's going for the

:21:08. > :21:39.runner. That looks narrow. I always felt the first end of any

:21:40. > :21:42.match, you are a bit nervous. No matter how experienced you are, it

:21:43. > :21:47.doesn't really matter. You want to get into it and you just want one

:21:48. > :21:54.bowl within five or six inches, just to take the pressure off, to settle

:21:55. > :21:55.into it. Stewart Anderson's popped three in there, missed the chance of

:21:56. > :22:05.a full house. Additional pressure, being on

:22:06. > :22:13.television for the first time for Josh. It's very easy to think that

:22:14. > :22:16.players just arrive at the portable rink and play like they do back at

:22:17. > :23:46.their home club, but it's not always the case.

:23:47. > :24:17.Stewart Anderson will be taking no risks with this young man. No place

:24:18. > :24:21.for sentiment in a portable rink when you are defending your title.

:24:22. > :24:28.You have to get in, treat him as if he is one of the best in the world.

:24:29. > :24:32.Try and get the job done. If Josh can score a few shots and keep

:24:33. > :24:48.straight under pressure, that will build the match.

:24:49. > :24:55.Just the one at the moment. Still therefore Stewart. The movement on

:24:56. > :24:58.the jack is good, but he will just draw in at the moment, just a reach

:24:59. > :25:18.and draw. Recovery boar, last delivery. --

:25:19. > :25:51.recovery bowl. Perfect line, he just didn't push

:25:52. > :26:18.it. This is the marker for this match,

:26:19. > :26:19.Alan Thornhill. Very experienced. Commonwealth Games, the outdoor and

:26:20. > :26:53.is one of the panel members. A little bit of room there. It's

:26:54. > :26:56.important for Josh to take these opportunities, he is not going to

:26:57. > :27:09.get too many loose deliveries out of Stewart.

:27:10. > :27:20.Stewart Anderson spent some time in Wales. Moved back to Scotland, spent

:27:21. > :27:21.a year or so down there and moved back to Scotland. Suddenly his game

:27:22. > :27:35.just seemed to build up again. Yes, I think Stewart is probably a

:27:36. > :27:50.Scottish boy at heart. Didn't really settle with the delights of Wales.

:27:51. > :28:32.Josh just falling a little bit short on the overcorrection.

:28:33. > :28:43.This is better, this is more like it. Stewart Anderson missed a chance

:28:44. > :28:51.to close the door. That will make him feel good.

:28:52. > :28:57.Josh has got to look at maybe applying a bit of pressure to

:28:58. > :29:11.Stewart and see what Stewart comes back with.

:29:12. > :29:23.Big effort, really good try by Stewart. He's done it again. A bit

:29:24. > :29:28.of space, but once again the last bowl delivery of Stewart Anderson

:29:29. > :29:29.gets in. Takes a shot away from Josh Grant. That's not going to be easy

:29:30. > :29:51.to beat. Doesn't waste any time on the mat.

:29:52. > :29:56.He's sticking to the forehand delivery.

:29:57. > :30:15.The last two ends have been a little bit loose, but Stewart Anderson has

:30:16. > :31:13.come in with the last delivery to make it count.

:31:14. > :31:38.Well, a bit unfortunate. It slid across the face of the jack.

:31:39. > :31:52.That's another good ball from Stewart. Well, Josh is having a go

:31:53. > :31:56.at this. Always on the right side though. That's the problem he is

:31:57. > :32:02.going to face if he does start attacking. If you are missing, you

:32:03. > :32:07.can get yourself in a lot of trouble against somebody of Stewart's

:32:08. > :32:10.capability. He will be in a heap of trouble, there is no doubt about

:32:11. > :32:16.that. It is fine if you are hitting well, but once it starts going

:32:17. > :32:24.wrong. Stewart put another one in behind. So the problem here for Josh

:32:25. > :32:27.now, he has gone with the second ball really. There is no difference

:32:28. > :32:38.in position so you would think well, he will go again. At the back of his

:32:39. > :32:45.mind he is thinking "If I miss again, I would be at a four." Well,

:32:46. > :32:51.that's a good hit. Well played. APPLAUSE

:32:52. > :32:58.He came in after it as well which is good. I will give him good credit

:32:59. > :33:03.for that because he was, he could have easily gone back and he decided

:33:04. > :33:10.that's the right shot to play. He ditched the jack. Plenty of nerve.

:33:11. > :33:34.Oh, absolutely. He is giving it a good go. Oh, I

:33:35. > :33:39.don't believe it. Right up to the edge.

:33:40. > :33:45.APPLAUSE And Josh was thinking to himself, "I

:33:46. > :33:48.have got a chance here." The shot is against him and to be truthful with

:33:49. > :33:53.you, it is going to be a hard bowl to beat that, John. You can see it

:33:54. > :33:55.on the drive, it would be worthwhile going for it. He is playing, it,

:33:56. > :34:09.Dave. Great ball. A great shot. Well

:34:10. > :34:17.played. Clean as a whistle! APPLAUSE

:34:18. > :34:24.The 19-year-old is on the card. Always good to see. It should settle

:34:25. > :34:33.him down a little bit. A couple of great bowls there, John? Yes, a

:34:34. > :34:37.gutsy performance. Two good hits. He will be feeling good now. His heart

:34:38. > :34:41.will be beating a little bit faster and he will be chuffed. That could

:34:42. > :35:03.be the catalyst to put a few balls on the jack.

:35:04. > :35:25.That's the idea. Longer jack lengths.

:35:26. > :35:41.And Stewart's dad Billy comes down to watch him and an excellent baker,

:35:42. > :35:47.I think it is fair to say, John. He usually has a tin of goodies for

:35:48. > :35:52.folks here in the background. We will have to order a few doughnuts

:35:53. > :35:57.and get some in the commentary box. A couple of hot cross buns. There is

:35:58. > :36:04.no chance, mate. Those back there will have eaten it all!

:36:05. > :36:12.You are forgotten about up here. We have got jelly babies so we can't

:36:13. > :36:18.grumble. I love my jelly babies. Stewart is in again. That's the

:36:19. > :36:23.problem Josh will face. Stewart is monotonous on the draw and he will

:36:24. > :36:28.crowd the jack. You need to be matching him really, David. Yes, it

:36:29. > :36:31.is all about weight with this one. He has good line. He pushed over it

:36:32. > :36:59.and Stewart has to cover those. Stewart, anything past the jack here

:37:00. > :37:05.is good. He could be in a situation of allowing a third shot. A good

:37:06. > :37:11.looking line. Here it comes. Yes, there is the cover ball. Maybe a

:37:12. > :37:16.little bit further required. A jack is possible to go now, but you know,

:37:17. > :37:21.what do you do here John? Do you play a similar ball? Do you take the

:37:22. > :37:28.risk? I think he has got to be tempted to play just through this

:37:29. > :37:33.and hope that he gets the jack. You could leave it short and you think

:37:34. > :37:36.well, that's no good, is it? Well, he is going for it on the other

:37:37. > :37:41.side. If he misses, he will certainly lose a four. It is in the

:37:42. > :37:46.area. Good connection. Oh well played. Very well played. That's a

:37:47. > :37:51.good connection, Dave? Very good connection. Three down to four up by

:37:52. > :37:57.the looks of it. He will be wishing that had been the last bowl. I think

:37:58. > :38:04.he picked the right shot there. He played right through it. It was a

:38:05. > :38:09.bigger target. He played it well. I would expect Stewart to draw second

:38:10. > :38:16.anyway. He will not be looking for the shot. That really would be a

:38:17. > :38:19.bonus. Yes, so he is certainly wide enough, there is no doubt about

:38:20. > :38:28.that. It is all on the weight now. How is his weight? If he is quick,

:38:29. > :38:32.he is in trouble. Oh, he just caught the ball. If that was past the ball,

:38:33. > :38:37.I think he would have been drawing it. I think he would have been

:38:38. > :38:43.drawing it as well. He missed the green. Stewart will have a look. One

:38:44. > :39:16.green. Well, he has done well so far. He

:39:17. > :39:22.has been under a bit of pressure, but he is playing good recovery

:39:23. > :39:27.shots is Josh Grant. He is only three behind. And five ends played.

:39:28. > :39:28.He just needs a couple of descent ends and all of a sudden, he is

:39:29. > :40:31.right there. Well, that's better. He made the

:40:32. > :40:39.adjustment. You just feel he is not far off playing a really steady game

:40:40. > :40:49.here. Stewart has loosened up a little bit.

:40:50. > :41:00.A nice easy delivery from Josh. Nothing too complicated there. A

:41:01. > :41:10.good line in. Yes, he is trying hard. This should drop back in for

:41:11. > :41:14.another shot. APPLAUSE

:41:15. > :41:25.Still more than enough room for Stewart Anderson.

:41:26. > :41:40.Yes, that's number one. Well, that gives him an opportunity. He was in

:41:41. > :41:51.a lot of trouble. I just wonder will he have a little pop at the bowl

:41:52. > :41:58.bearing in mind his success with the running bowls.

:41:59. > :42:07.That looks wide. As soon as you put the extra weight on there is just no

:42:08. > :42:14.chance of it getting back. That's the hard shot, John, isn't it? He

:42:15. > :42:16.was just over a yard of weight, but he doesn't get back on the higher

:42:17. > :42:35.line. This is a nice draw for Stewart. He

:42:36. > :42:40.could add another here. It takes him away again. Well, that's a definite

:42:41. > :42:45.spare shot opportunity. Plenty of room. There it goes. Sliding in. Not

:42:46. > :42:54.a problem. APPLAUSE

:42:55. > :42:57.He is going to get the odd loosish end with a young and inexperienced

:42:58. > :43:01.player and you have to take advantage of those, John, but

:43:02. > :43:04.claelically, we are talking about four ends where we have had single

:43:05. > :43:08.shots scored, that's tight stuff. So it is a nervous first end and it was

:43:09. > :43:19.a little bit loose in the last, but apart from that, if he can keep it

:43:20. > :43:24.nice and tight. I always think defending champions are a bit

:43:25. > :43:28.nervous anyway. Yes, it is never easy coming back to defend a title

:43:29. > :43:32.and Stewart would have wanted a good start and really this is a good

:43:33. > :43:42.start from him. It is a comfortable start. He has got a five shot lead.

:43:43. > :43:45.He would be happy with this. He is getting the first bowl in more often

:43:46. > :44:27.than not. A good start by Stewart Anderson.

:44:28. > :44:35.Well, that wasn't intentional. I think he was trying to get past the

:44:36. > :44:38.red ball. Well, that's what I'm saying, Stewart Anderson came out

:44:39. > :44:44.and packed it in. He grouped the three balls together, but hasn't

:44:45. > :44:48.really done that since. Josh really needs to get himself going with the

:44:49. > :44:57.first two bowls. That's more like it. That's t idea.

:44:58. > :45:47.-- that's the idea. Well, you play a similar bowl. No

:45:48. > :45:54.danger. A good green. This goes again. Big

:45:55. > :46:20.effort. Well, that's surprising from our

:46:21. > :46:35.angle. Yes. It is often quite hard to tell. Stewart Anderson is a quick

:46:36. > :46:48.player. Well, if you can miss the front one or push it in, he has got

:46:49. > :46:53.a chance. That was harsh on the young man.

:46:54. > :47:01.That was a long way away that bowl and to finish there and through a

:47:02. > :47:06.gap as well, John. He wasn't intending that. Stewart is a good

:47:07. > :47:09.sportsman. That's bowls for you! Stewart will always acknowledge

:47:10. > :47:15.that. There are some players you play against and you usually find

:47:16. > :47:19.them at the club that will never acknowledge a fortunate bowl, but

:47:20. > :47:25.the top players always do and Stewart is a gentleman on the rink.

:47:26. > :47:34.I think Josh you are inside the line with this. Unlucky to lose a single.

:47:35. > :47:59.It can be a cruel game. Yes, small margins. A tough old game. Well,

:48:00. > :48:48.girlfriend Nicola is not saying too much to mum.

:48:49. > :49:07.That's a good reply. Well done. Two great bowls from both players.

:49:08. > :49:14.You can't imagine the jack ending up where it is, John, you know after a

:49:15. > :49:25.bowl like that and it actually made it somewhat harder. A big wide draw

:49:26. > :49:30.here so he will drop back. This is pretty close as well. Yeah, it is a

:49:31. > :49:52.good bowl there. He is trying to push his own green

:49:53. > :49:56.bowl. Well, that was a good effort on that side with that weight. Well,

:49:57. > :50:02.a front plant would have been perfect, but unfortunately, he

:50:03. > :50:10.didn't get back in again. That's a good bowl at the back. A really good

:50:11. > :50:20.try with that weight as well from Josh. Stewart might just leave this

:50:21. > :50:27.and drop around the back. Well, it is a set lie situation. So point in

:50:28. > :50:32.being brave and going chasing shots when you don't need them. Positions

:50:33. > :51:10.far, far better. A good effort again, David. Same

:51:11. > :51:14.thing. Oh, that's a really good try. Very unfortunate. A solid

:51:15. > :51:17.connection. It is such a hard shot and he played it so well. And

:51:18. > :51:34.nothing for it. He has got a sense of humour and he

:51:35. > :51:41.can still laugh about it! I don't think he has seen too much amusement

:51:42. > :51:51.in it. He is just accepting the fact that it is not going his way at the

:51:52. > :51:56.moment, but it could well change. A good bowl by Stewart. That's about

:51:57. > :52:00.as much as he could do really. I think he is going to play it again.

:52:01. > :52:05.Same bowl and hope that it dips the extra inch or two and get the bowl

:52:06. > :52:11.out solid and stay himself. He needs a double. One shot is no good, but

:52:12. > :52:23.it is a bit of a practise shot for him.

:52:24. > :52:32.Well, he is having another good go at this. A slight correction. Lovely

:52:33. > :52:59.weight for the job. A difficult shot.

:53:00. > :53:09.Well, it wasn't a walk over for Stewart. He had to play some good,

:53:10. > :53:16.steady bowls. Josh Grant contributed to the set. He is going to have to

:53:17. > :53:20.be a bit mor consistent. Josh is having to play too much recovery

:53:21. > :53:21.bowls if you like. Too many weighted deliveries to get himself out of

:53:22. > :54:17.trouble. Yes. A good bowl again. That's a better

:54:18. > :54:46.start. As I was saying, John, it is all

:54:47. > :54:50.about just that little bit of extra pressure if Stewart misses one bowl

:54:51. > :54:54.he is suddenly two or three down instead of having lots of room to

:54:55. > :55:05.draw. This just sneaks in front of the red and it has. It is a number

:55:06. > :55:09.one. That's very good. He is asking a question of Stewart here because

:55:10. > :55:12.this man is more than capable of delivering. You have got to do that.

:55:13. > :55:17.You have got to put him in a position where he has got to recover

:55:18. > :55:22.and he played a good end, Josh. This looks a little bit over played. Now

:55:23. > :55:26.suddenly Stewart is going to have three or four against him with the a

:55:27. > :55:28.last bowl and that can make you a bit nervy if you face two or three

:55:29. > :55:53.of those. A good line again, Dave. It is all

:55:54. > :55:59.about weight. He could be very close again here. Needs to run. He is

:56:00. > :56:05.going to be a little bit unlucky. Well, unfortunately that's going to

:56:06. > :56:11.give Stewart a shoulder. Josh knows that himself. He was very unlucky

:56:12. > :56:15.with that. That was a good delivery and just didn't get enough ben.

:56:16. > :56:25.Another six inches of bend and he is in the way, but he just left that

:56:26. > :56:37.angle off that bowl. We just had a delivery of Christmas cake and

:56:38. > :56:45.biscuits in the box here. It is one of our few guilty pleasures, John.

:56:46. > :56:49.That's all. Well done, Stewart. Yes, he is going for the runner, four

:56:50. > :56:55.against. Well, he looks like he is inside. He might take one or maybe

:56:56. > :57:02.two away. Yes, he managed to get two away. Damage limitation.

:57:03. > :57:04.APPLAUSE That's a good end for the young man.

:57:05. > :57:45.A good start to the second set. He is starting to operate a bit

:57:46. > :58:04.better now with the first delivery. A very good ball by Stewart

:58:05. > :58:36.Anderson. Stewart Anderson provisionally

:58:37. > :58:45.number ten. He is equal with Jason Greenslade in the World Tour world

:58:46. > :58:50.rankings group, just behind you John. Yes, it is all very congested

:58:51. > :58:53.in the middle part. It is nice to be fighting for the Champions League

:58:54. > :58:56.spot rather than fighting for the relegation. I have been there a few

:58:57. > :59:01.times in recent years. You could be there with Swansea the way things

:59:02. > :59:05.are going? And Stewart is looking to improve his ranking position. Two

:59:06. > :59:08.great bowls again there. This looks like it will be a little bit of

:59:09. > :59:25.weight from Josh. He has been very good with the weight shot.

:59:26. > :59:34.He doesn't waste any time. In the area, Dave. He gets a good run

:59:35. > :59:41.through. Well played. That was the perfect way to play it. Just getting

:59:42. > :59:45.off the ball and stun the weight out and carry through. He played well.

:59:46. > :59:56.Yeah, a good shot. Stewart has to do it again. This is

:59:57. > :00:14.looking good. And in front. A bit of a choice,

:00:15. > :00:20.does he draw and try and keep it tight, so if he loses anything he

:00:21. > :00:23.only loses a single, or does he go again and take the bowl out and

:00:24. > :00:32.leave it to Stewart to have to draw the shot? I think he might be

:00:33. > :00:34.tempted to go again. Even if he gets into the jack it's not a problem, if

:00:35. > :01:00.he gets it off the rink. Running bowl and getting back down

:01:01. > :01:04.again to dead weight is difficult at the best of times, but in the

:01:05. > :01:09.portable rink you really need a lot of experience to play that shot. You

:01:10. > :01:13.will think that Stewart will probably get in with this one. He's

:01:14. > :01:26.got the line and wait, I'd expect him to draw another.

:01:27. > :01:39.No mistake. Two beauties from Stewart Anderson.

:01:40. > :01:46.You've almost got two sections of singles play. The first section with

:01:47. > :01:48.the first two and then the second section. He played a really good

:01:49. > :03:18.end. Stewart is shaking his head, as if

:03:19. > :03:22.he thought that one was absolutely the same as the previous delivery

:03:23. > :03:27.but it doesn't always work out that way.

:03:28. > :04:03.This looks lovely line Stewart Anderson. Not quite. Good grouping,

:04:04. > :04:29.though. Stewart Anderson doesn't go for the

:04:30. > :04:37.big drive, he is conservative, he draws well. Think about the game.

:04:38. > :04:49.Is very good bowl. It was a good end. That's the beauty. I quite like

:04:50. > :04:51.the look of this loud as well. First time the rink and he's given a good

:04:52. > :05:36.account of himself. Absolutely. What a bowl! Josh looking to score a

:05:37. > :05:42.potential two shots in this end and suddenly sees it taken away from

:05:43. > :05:48.him. There's not a lot you can do about that, when somebody plays a

:05:49. > :05:50.bowl as good as that. There's not many people who can take a bowl as

:05:51. > :06:10.good as that! Had to be there, had to give it a

:06:11. > :07:34.chance. Opportunities abound for both

:07:35. > :07:39.players. That's good stuff. A very good reply, good quality game at the

:07:40. > :08:03.moment. Some good shots with the running bowl.

:08:04. > :08:08.I think he thought he was closer than that. He had a very good line

:08:09. > :08:30.in. For Josh, he really needs to be

:08:31. > :09:14.playing the same bowl, rather than adjust anything.

:09:15. > :09:21.Nothing easy about this one. He's not happy about it. Didn't push it

:09:22. > :09:29.through. I think his line was pretty good, he

:09:30. > :10:12.just didn't push into it. It may not be in but it's a very

:10:13. > :10:25.good bowl. It is in. The rings say it's a very,

:10:26. > :10:38.very close. A decent line. If he runs he's got

:10:39. > :11:23.to run on that line. Big effort. That's the first real break in the

:11:24. > :11:27.match. A little gap of four shots now. He will be looking to power on

:11:28. > :12:05.the next couple of ends. A little bit of space here, Josh can

:12:06. > :12:08.get in with the first bowl, he needs to score this end. Stewart's dad,

:12:09. > :12:22.he's looking a little concerned. A quick thank you to Billy, the

:12:23. > :12:25.shortbread is wonderful! Much appreciated. He never fails at any

:12:26. > :13:12.event, does he? He is a good lad. The usual trap, isn't it? You try to

:13:13. > :13:23.correct and you over correct. Stewart could close the door here.

:13:24. > :13:28.He's stayed on the high side of the jack. The front bowl dropping down

:13:29. > :13:44.as well. Two problems now for Josh. Stewart making a run for home. If he

:13:45. > :13:52.gets this end he is in a strong position. He could just draw this

:13:53. > :14:04.off and turn the jack around the corner.

:14:05. > :14:18.It's a great effort, it really is. Drop back... Great bowl.

:14:19. > :14:50.I'm not sure he's made the shot. The marker feels it's very close.

:14:51. > :14:57.Stewart, you don't want the jack but if you hold to the bowl and drop

:14:58. > :15:08.back you could make three. That's a beautiful delivery!

:15:09. > :15:12.Josh didn't do anything wrong with his delivery, Stewart just came in

:15:13. > :15:27.and aced him. Life is tough! He will play for it now down the

:15:28. > :16:20.backhand, push into it, bowl on to bowl on the jack.

:16:21. > :16:57.The damage has been done. This is a long way back for Josh Grant.

:16:58. > :17:03.There are a few questions being asked of Stewart Anderson at the

:17:04. > :17:08.start of the second set. He responded strongly, he played a

:17:09. > :17:13.couple of really good ends. Get two troubles. He's made the break. Four

:17:14. > :18:15.ends to go, seven shots up. The last two ends have been a big

:18:16. > :18:21.blow for Josh. The lad hasn't done too much wrong really. No, he's

:18:22. > :18:25.played some excellent bowls, he played a brilliant third bowl

:18:26. > :18:33.against second shot. He lost the three out of nothing really.

:18:34. > :18:41.It looks like it might be dropping a little bit. It has. Again, he's a

:18:42. > :18:48.good line bowler, he's getting the line. He's played three bowls that

:18:49. > :19:09.have made the centre line, but he's just missed out on his weight.

:19:10. > :19:22.The score doesn't suggest how close it's been. Often the case.

:19:23. > :19:34.Another great bowl again, monotonous when he's in this kind of form. To

:19:35. > :19:39.be fair, he's had a bit of room in this match on a number of ends, but

:19:40. > :19:41.he's come up with the big bowls to come up with the big counts as well.

:19:42. > :20:00.This isn't easy for Josh. Well played, that's a great bowl.

:20:01. > :20:45.Big smile. Goodlad well done. When you play a last bowl like that

:20:46. > :20:49.it shows you have kept your nerve. We've seen some very experienced

:20:50. > :20:53.international bowlers just crash out there. This young man is keeping his

:20:54. > :21:00.nerve. Doesn't look like there's too much that will fluster him. He's

:21:01. > :21:03.played some really good bowls, some good conversion shots as well.

:21:04. > :21:07.There's lots of potential here. He will be more than pleased with his

:21:08. > :21:11.first performance on the portable rink. He's just unfortunate to catch

:21:12. > :21:18.somebody of the calibre of Stewart Anderson on good form.

:21:19. > :21:25.Stewart is good, he will crowd that jack, make it very difficult for you

:21:26. > :21:26.to score more than a single. That's what makes him so dangerous, the

:21:27. > :22:39.ability to close out ends. I wonder if Stewart Anderson will be

:22:40. > :22:47.tempted to run this now. It looks like a good target.

:22:48. > :23:01.He shaved it! I wonder what Josh is going to do here. At 9-3, does he

:23:02. > :23:04.put one in again and hope that it finishes a foot short? I'd gamble

:23:05. > :23:21.and go again. He needs to drop back. I'm a little

:23:22. > :23:26.bit surprised. It is a good bowl, but I'm a little bit surprised. I

:23:27. > :23:34.thought he might have tried to block it. Stewart will go again.

:23:35. > :24:06.He needed Stewart to miss that to give him a real chance in the set.

:24:07. > :24:10.He made two goes at it. I think if Josh had kept his forehand, even if

:24:11. > :24:14.he'd been a foot short scoring in the line, there's always a chance

:24:15. > :24:18.that if Stewart had hit that ball, it might have locked in the green

:24:19. > :24:19.and taken Stewart away. It was just too open, Stewart wasn't going to

:24:20. > :24:30.miss twice. You've got to hope that somebody

:24:31. > :24:31.strikes that they don't get that perfect connection. He played a

:24:32. > :25:39.really good end again there. You would have expected him to have

:25:40. > :25:44.adjusted. This one goes on the jack. Well... It's a little bit too

:25:45. > :25:48.late, unfortunately. Josh will be thinking, why did I go with this

:25:49. > :26:00.length jacket at the start of the match?

:26:01. > :26:07.He's looking good again. That's a third, but again, the door is still

:26:08. > :26:09.slightly open. If that had been in front of the jack it would have been

:26:10. > :26:31.different. It looks like second bowl. That's

:26:32. > :26:44.enough because if it keeps Josh to one shot, the match is over.

:26:45. > :26:54.This is a difficult shot. He needs more than two, really.

:26:55. > :27:04.He does, but it looks like he's just trying to draw it to me.

:27:05. > :27:08.It looks like it's just the one shot. If it is, they will shake

:27:09. > :27:43.hands. Yes, conceded, Joshua. The best he

:27:44. > :27:48.could do was call four shots on the last end to make it a draw. Stewart

:27:49. > :27:53.Anderson negotiates the 19-year-old from Croydon and send him home. But

:27:54. > :28:01.a good defence of his title, and he's into the second round.

:28:02. > :28:08.It was always going to be a tough draw for young Josh to get past the

:28:09. > :28:13.defending champion. It certainly was. He pitted himself well,

:28:14. > :28:18.particularly in the second set. He hung in there. Stewart finished him

:28:19. > :28:22.off with some really good bowls. Stewart was really in good form

:28:23. > :28:27.here. I think he will take confidence for the rest of the

:28:28. > :28:29.tournament. This was coming into the first end will stop we thought this

:28:30. > :28:41.could be very difficult. Even when he wasn't on target,

:28:42. > :28:42.sometimes Lady luck smiles on you when you are the defending

:28:43. > :28:53.champion. And moving into the second set, if

:28:54. > :28:59.you see how this bowl turns around. Josh, again, line, possibly two

:29:00. > :29:10.shots. Josh left with very little to play

:29:11. > :29:16.here except to try and rest the ball off. Just didn't have the weight. It

:29:17. > :29:23.is one shot to Stewart Anderson and he is through to the second round.

:29:24. > :29:29.Josh, I will concede you first of all. This is a new experience for

:29:30. > :29:38.you, playing in front of the cameras on the BBC against the defending

:29:39. > :29:40.champion. How tough is that? Quite tough, took me a while to settle

:29:41. > :29:49.down. I thought I played well in the second set. It was tough.

:29:50. > :30:01.What have you learned from this experience? This carpet is tough,

:30:02. > :30:04.so, yeah. We wish you the rest of -- Best of luck, you're only young, you

:30:05. > :30:08.got time off work to come here. Before we talk about you, a bit

:30:09. > :30:17.about your opponent today and the talent he has. Yes, he can play

:30:18. > :30:20.bowls and he got forced to play over the weight, he had learnt to play

:30:21. > :30:27.not those shots. He is young, he will be back here soon enough. I was

:30:28. > :30:34.young here as well, the same as Josh. He will learn. I was speaking

:30:35. > :30:37.to Andy Thomson, the last couple of men's champions have gone out under

:30:38. > :30:43.the first round, are you glad to get that under your belt? I must admit I

:30:44. > :30:48.was nervous coming onto the green, it took me four or five ends to

:30:49. > :30:53.settle into my game. I was hoping it was not three in a row! Only four

:30:54. > :30:56.other men have defended their title successfully in the last four

:30:57. > :30:59.years. Does the weight of history ever enter your mind? I am just

:31:00. > :31:07.looking forward to Wednesday now against rot. -- against Rob.

:31:08. > :31:12.Congratulations, Josh, hopefully there will be more for you in years

:31:13. > :31:17.to come here at otters. Well done to both of you.

:31:18. > :31:22.Well done to Stewart Anderson, he is through to the last 16. Up against

:31:23. > :31:27.him, we will find out who he plays, we will look back on the other last

:31:28. > :31:31.16 match still act banding. It was between the former world champion

:31:32. > :31:40.and Commonwealth champion Robert Weale against Michael Stepney, who

:31:41. > :31:47.had to come to a tough qualifiers. We will pick this up in the

:31:48. > :31:51.tie-break and once again, David Corkill is in the commentary box.

:31:52. > :31:56.And alongside him we had Andy Thomson.

:31:57. > :32:05.Robert Weale, seeded 16th of this world indoor singles championship,

:32:06. > :32:11.really needs to win this match. He has dropped down to provisional 18th

:32:12. > :32:19.for the season. The qualifier, Michael Stepney, from Scotland, from

:32:20. > :32:27.Elgin. He won the first -- he won the first set comfortably, Robert ,

:32:28. > :32:41.and now it is all too late for as Michael Stepney came back.

:32:42. > :32:50.In tie-break situations, it only takes one good one or one lucky one

:32:51. > :32:54.to win it for you, Dave. It is the way tie-breaks work, it is not a the

:32:55. > :32:59.naked shots, you just have two when the end so the rules are slightly

:33:00. > :33:01.different. -- you just have to win the end. They are not bad bowls, not

:33:02. > :33:32.close enough. Michael Stepney has really worked

:33:33. > :33:40.his way into the snatch. He was blown away in the first set. -- into

:33:41. > :33:46.this match. Robert Weale was very consistent, but he had come back

:33:47. > :33:49.strong, still not operating with his first bowl but the recovery bowls

:33:50. > :33:55.have been good. He had been particularly good with the third

:33:56. > :34:05.bowl. That was a good second bowl then, Robert needs to react to this.

:34:06. > :34:22.A tighter line by Robert. It is in the area.

:34:23. > :34:28.A portable rink, the jack bounces quite a lot. On some normal club

:34:29. > :34:38.carpets, the jack almost touching itself to the bowl. -- the jack

:34:39. > :34:44.almost attaches itself. He is looking for a good bowl to drop

:34:45. > :34:53.back, he is high and wide. It is still useful. Three red, you only

:34:54. > :34:59.need one. So what does Robert do, though the auger on the re-spot?

:35:00. > :35:05.Probably the re-spot position, so anywhere where that last green bowl

:35:06. > :35:13.is, or go past the re-spot. Cover the green bowl. I think Michael will

:35:14. > :35:20.probably run the gamble. He is slow on the mat, Robert, and that time

:35:21. > :35:27.clock is coming down. Two seconds, plenty of time! Not even close! If

:35:28. > :35:35.the hooter goes off, you certainly hit. He has covered almost

:35:36. > :35:38.everything now. He has got the re-spot covered, he maybe could have

:35:39. > :35:46.done with a little more on that to have the best back. A big question

:35:47. > :35:47.being asked here now. There is probably still enough room to draw

:35:48. > :36:08.the shot. Time out called. Mike has three

:36:09. > :36:15.time-outs remaining. He has got three bowls in the end, a good

:36:16. > :36:18.cobble bowl. -- cover bowl. You campaign the percentages onto the

:36:19. > :36:22.jack and try to run it all the way through the gap if you can. You

:36:23. > :36:32.would have to be lucky on the bounce to get that.

:36:33. > :36:37.It did not go right, because the jack is now off the confines of the

:36:38. > :36:43.rink, it will go onto the re-spot position. It is the first end to

:36:44. > :36:51.Robert Weale. He needed the jack all the way through. It depended how it

:36:52. > :36:55.bounced. You had to get through a lot of bowls, a lot of timber there.

:36:56. > :37:02.He was a little bit unfortunate. A good strike.

:37:03. > :37:13.It is never certain to get the results, though.

:37:14. > :37:21.We are back to Robert Weale's favourite position, 26.5 metres.

:37:22. > :37:28.Using the mat on this backhand, the shorter jack linked, to allow the

:37:29. > :37:35.all to pull back into the centre of the rink.

:37:36. > :37:49.It is all the way back in again. That is a very good open up my

:37:50. > :38:29.Robert. -- are very good opener by Robert.

:38:30. > :38:36.That is good, that is really good. I think if I was Michael now, I would

:38:37. > :38:41.be tempted to tap that. He has got to go with that one. He has got to

:38:42. > :38:48.go into it quickly. He is in the area by the looks of it. He was

:38:49. > :38:53.having a good look on the way down but the forehand just hold of. He

:38:54. > :39:09.just started it little white, a lot of weight on that.

:39:10. > :39:16.He is going for the blocks, he has got the re-spot fishing covered,

:39:17. > :39:27.probably. That is good, a really good blocker. He may be would have

:39:28. > :39:30.liked it to be a bit shorter. He did well to find the centre, a good

:39:31. > :39:34.bowl. It is always a gamble when you play a bowl like that, if you do not

:39:35. > :39:44.make the centre line, you could give the guy a target. If he is looking

:39:45. > :39:47.at the re-spot, you have got a few. Really, I think he needs to be

:39:48. > :39:51.crunching the jack in this sort of area to try and bring it out to

:39:52. > :39:57.this. If he gets it absolutely right, it will be going into there

:39:58. > :40:06.and it brings another bowl into play at the bottom. That is the way to do

:40:07. > :40:34.it. You have got all of the options covered there!

:40:35. > :40:41.I would go a little bit deeper than the green bowl myself now. I would

:40:42. > :40:42.as well. He has got everything covered. Anything at the back of the

:40:43. > :41:03.rink. Where are you going with this? He is

:41:04. > :41:13.all right. That is pretty good, actually. He had not covered to be

:41:14. > :41:28.truthful. It is a bowl to save the match for Michael Stepney.

:41:29. > :41:38.Time out called. Mike has one time out remaining. That is really where

:41:39. > :41:46.he needs to be. But if he is fortunate, in that sort of area, if

:41:47. > :41:49.the bowl goes with it, he is trying to bring the jack through. If you

:41:50. > :41:56.come with the jack into that sort of area, he could stop on it. He needs

:41:57. > :42:08.a solid connection. Hope that his bowls fly through with it.

:42:09. > :42:16.This is a really tough shots to play. Trying to wrest the bowl with

:42:17. > :42:23.a forehand. It is never going to get back. That was never really going to

:42:24. > :42:27.be on for me. A good end by Michael Stepney. He has fought back very

:42:28. > :42:32.well, took it really back into Robert Weale but it is Robert

:42:33. > :42:36.Weale, number 16 in the world, who gets through this first-round match,

:42:37. > :42:41.and that he had to win, against the Scot Michael Stepney.

:42:42. > :42:52.So the line-up for the last 16 is now complete. There are eight former

:42:53. > :42:56.champions in there, and on tomorrow morning's red button coverage, we

:42:57. > :42:57.will see Jason Greenslade against Robert Paxton. How does the betting

:42:58. > :43:14.looks? Tomorrow on BBC Two, we are going to

:43:15. > :43:18.show you the final of the mixed pairs, and we are going to take a

:43:19. > :43:25.look back at how those semifinals unfolded. First up, the match

:43:26. > :43:30.between the defending champions. Let's pick this up in the first set,

:43:31. > :44:29.the eighth end and the defending champions are leading 7-4.

:44:30. > :44:42.That is threatened a half. -- a foot and a half.

:44:43. > :45:13.Keep coming, hurry in that line, hurry. Unlucky.

:45:14. > :45:39.This needs to hurry a little bit. And David Gourlay has got his work

:45:40. > :46:04.cut out once again. Very close, Paul. Very close, keep

:46:05. > :46:20.running. Up again. That is the backhand blocked right

:46:21. > :46:23.away. It is five inches short, he can come around it. Look at it in

:46:24. > :46:37.the forehand as well. David Gourlay will be looking at the

:46:38. > :46:39.options, he can clear the red bowl, he has got an available shot on this

:46:40. > :46:45.side as well. Anything at the area at the back

:46:46. > :47:20.would be good. He is close again. What a bowl! That

:47:21. > :47:33.is a great shot by David Gourlay. He is playing very well.

:47:34. > :47:47.That is going to be very hard shot to beat.

:47:48. > :47:52.Paul Foster, he can draw it in there on the forehand. The difficulty for

:47:53. > :47:56.him is, if he plays any pace on this, the jack is going to extend

:47:57. > :48:02.through and that will give David Gourlay an extra opportunity to

:48:03. > :48:07.score double. He has to keep it nice and tight, play it on the forehand,

:48:08. > :48:14.let the bowl track back on the natural bias.

:48:15. > :48:20.He is struggling for weight. It is not an easy spare shot for David but

:48:21. > :48:33.it is important. David is looking at all sorts of

:48:34. > :48:37.options to try and see if it would be easier to score an extra shots.

:48:38. > :48:42.It is really, either side will work for him. The repeat of his last

:48:43. > :49:13.bowl, or play it out wide in the forehand.

:49:14. > :49:19.Didn't push through it. It is going to be a single. Still, keep them in

:49:20. > :49:34.touch going into the last end, 7-5. David Gourlay immediately asking

:49:35. > :49:39.Eleanor Gass to put a long jack lengthy in, try and listen this up

:49:40. > :49:40.to have a chance, score a double, try and get something out of the

:49:41. > :50:22.set. That's amazing, that's a good start.

:50:23. > :50:32.Well played, Eleanor, very good start, well played.

:50:33. > :50:41.A very good opening bowl. The skipper is always happy to see

:50:42. > :50:51.anything within a foot when you are looking for a double.

:50:52. > :51:08.Two feet, same again. Can he do it again?

:51:09. > :51:15.David is just trying to get this one to stop little bit. It is better

:51:16. > :51:26.through than short. Watching this one, but it seems to

:51:27. > :52:23.be sweeping away very quickly. David Gourlay, happy to leave the

:52:24. > :52:27.forehand of Paul Foster as he tries to get between the two red bowls. A

:52:28. > :52:37.big dip needed. He has missed the chance. Surprised at that. I

:52:38. > :52:44.expected David to have... This is going to come over.

:52:45. > :52:48.Trying to get a really good close second shot. That is all he needs to

:52:49. > :53:08.win the set. As Paul just said, not close enough.

:53:09. > :53:34.I would expect David Gourlay to add another.

:53:35. > :53:41.David Gourlay can come around on the forehand, nice and wide, try and

:53:42. > :54:03.drop in on that. The backhand looks a bit sticky.

:54:04. > :54:09.This is very wide from David Gourlay. He had to be on the wide

:54:10. > :54:11.side but he has really pushed this one out, I do not think it will get

:54:12. > :54:25.back. Having taken the first set, Foster

:54:26. > :54:29.and Thomas sauntered home in the second, 9-1, and they are through to

:54:30. > :54:36.the final tomorrow. But who will they play? Bullet the Andy Thomson

:54:37. > :54:39.Greg Harlow? They shared the first two sets so we joined it at the

:54:40. > :55:42.start of the tie-break. It's good. It's good, Catherine.

:55:43. > :56:21.Well done. It looks good from number one. Just

:56:22. > :56:54.sneak in. It looks good. It is all on the. --

:56:55. > :56:59.it is all on the weight here. There it is, number one, three and

:57:00. > :57:06.tie-break, things are different. It is not keen related shots, it is

:57:07. > :57:08.just about scoring. -- it is not a keen related shots. That is a really

:57:09. > :57:52.good bowl. Andy will be looking to try and

:57:53. > :58:02.tight in this up little bit. Bring the jack between the two red bowls.

:58:03. > :58:08.He is not even bothering, which surprises me a little bit. He is

:58:09. > :58:16.going deep on the high side, in case Greg decides to have a go on it, he

:58:17. > :58:26.has covered the re-spot position. If he has a go on it, the weight... If

:58:27. > :58:36.you can get the jack back, I know there is that bowl there. He needs

:58:37. > :58:43.the two red is clean. Yes, a controlled weight.

:58:44. > :58:51.Never easy to pick out the line on the forehand.

:58:52. > :59:00.He has got a connection, but I don't think that is going to make it.

:59:01. > :59:10.They are asking the marker, whose shot, because they are not sure. If

:59:11. > :59:20.it is that close, you have to draw the shot, Andy.

:59:21. > :59:29.It could be green, cannot mess about with it. Looks like it is very

:59:30. > :59:30.close. It is not easy when things are three, four, five feet away,

:59:31. > :59:45.cannot take any risks. Got a good result out of it. This

:59:46. > :59:50.does not look right. Really does not look right. It looks under to me.

:59:51. > :59:59.Oh, it held on. Certainly very narrow, but manages

:00:00. > :00:14.to get the single. I trust you with the last bowl. It

:00:15. > :00:15.looked a little bit narrow to me but its weight was good. Takes the

:00:16. > :01:09.single. Just outside it, two feet, three

:01:10. > :01:13.feet away. This is really when you are thinking to yourself, please put

:01:14. > :01:24.one on the jack. It's still a touch over. Bend hard,

:01:25. > :02:19.bend hard. It ideally wanted to be a little bit

:02:20. > :02:32.deeper than that. Wanted to be around behind the two red balls.

:02:33. > :02:57.I don't think he's got the weight to hold this. He just dropped away. I

:02:58. > :03:50.had a feeling that was going to drop off on the inside.

:03:51. > :03:57.It looks a bit quick, it's just holding off on that backhand. Any

:03:58. > :04:29.extra weight at all and you just drop one through.

:04:30. > :05:23.Gregg, the same as? I think so, yeah. It's a bit late to change now!

:05:24. > :05:38.Absolutely no time wasted whatsoever with Katherine Rednall. Andy Thomson

:05:39. > :05:42.is trying to call this one, and there is the reason why. Right in

:05:43. > :05:50.behind the jack. That is a brilliant bowl. It looks better there but

:05:51. > :05:56.you've been playing that hand all game. It's up to you, either way. Do

:05:57. > :06:04.you think I can win it? It looks better there but... It's up to you.

:06:05. > :06:09.It's always good to be decisive when you are skipping, but the best

:06:10. > :06:10.things sometimes is to leave it, to make their own choice, whatever they

:06:11. > :06:22.are more comfortable with. Anything short of the jack on the

:06:23. > :06:36.forehand would be good. That's 14 inches, that's a very good

:06:37. > :06:38.bowl there. It's probably a good idea if Andy stays away from it and

:06:39. > :07:08.let's Greg get the shop. --. This was the perfect draw shot on

:07:09. > :07:09.the forehand from Katherine Rednall. Absolutely wonderful, right in

:07:10. > :07:25.behind it. Excellent delivery from the

:07:26. > :07:29.18-year-old from Suffolk. One of the youngest players in this event,

:07:30. > :07:45.along with one of the oldest. Andy Thomson. Now a grandfather.

:07:46. > :07:53.Whichever you feel most confident with... You don't want to hear the

:07:54. > :08:05.truth! The thing about the jack -- backhand

:08:06. > :08:10.is you always jamming the jack into the ball.

:08:11. > :08:39.What do you reckon? A man of your calibre, draw it off, mate.

:08:40. > :08:45.Well, just slightly outside. Andy must be tempted to leave this as

:08:46. > :08:52.well. He really doesn't want to leave the shoulder.

:08:53. > :09:06.A foot behind? Two bowls through. The most capped English indoor

:09:07. > :09:11.player, Andy Thomson. He comes from St Andrews in Scotland, before he

:09:12. > :09:13.moved down to London as a 21-year-old. He has to be very

:09:14. > :09:20.careful here, he doesn't want to get too close to this. She wants to call

:09:21. > :09:23.it a try and make it in front of the green bowl. That's not bad. It could

:09:24. > :09:39.be second bowl. Greg will have a good look at it, no

:09:40. > :09:43.doubt they will have a chat and debate. After five minutes they will

:09:44. > :10:00.work out just whatever you feel like playing.

:10:01. > :10:06.The only time when you are allowed to kill the end is in the last end

:10:07. > :10:10.of the tie-break. You have to nominate it, which is exactly what

:10:11. > :10:16.Greg has done, so he'll be playing heavyweight into this.

:10:17. > :10:32.An awful lot will depend on just what connection he makes.

:10:33. > :10:41.He's in with a chance. Wrong side of it!

:10:42. > :10:51.That was a very good game, great effort by Greg Harlow at the end.

:10:52. > :10:54.Very, very close with his last delivery, but it is Katherine

:10:55. > :10:58.Rednall, the 18-year-old from Ipswich and Andy Thomson, the

:10:59. > :11:06.58-year-old from London who will be playing in the final of the mixed

:11:07. > :11:13.pairs. Andy Thomson and Katherine Rednall,

:11:14. > :11:17.who at the eight team -- age of 18 is 14 years younger than the former

:11:18. > :11:22.champion. That is tomorrow and BBC Two.

:11:23. > :11:28.We've now got a chance to summarise what has happened today. Exciting

:11:29. > :11:35.day, Greg Harlow and Nicky Brett, the men's pairs champions. And fully

:11:36. > :11:39.deserved. Nicky was a little bit annoyed but he did shape up. Greg

:11:40. > :11:46.Harlow was outstanding today. I thought Alex played well. It was

:11:47. > :11:50.great to see Nicky particularly winning a trophy here. He's gotten

:11:51. > :11:56.to the semifinal stages of the singles competition, he's come close

:11:57. > :11:59.but never gone over the line. You get the first hurdle over and you

:12:00. > :12:05.feel so confident. Playing with Greg, he was on fire today. They

:12:06. > :12:08.thoroughly deserved to win it. I must ask you about Stewart Anderson,

:12:09. > :12:15.the defending men's champion. He had a good record, coming back here...

:12:16. > :12:19.He overcame that and admitted to feeling the pressure today. Yes, he

:12:20. > :12:23.knew the history of that and didn't want to be part of that elite

:12:24. > :12:27.group. Having said that, his young opponent played well but left him

:12:28. > :12:31.enough room. I think Stewart will be happy to get over that hurdle

:12:32. > :12:35.comfortably. Stewart Anderson plays Robert Weale in the next round. He

:12:36. > :12:40.has had his problems coming into this tournament. He got injured

:12:41. > :12:48.playing skittles. I couldn't believe that! As it happens, your legs did

:12:49. > :12:50.go away, that happens sometimes when you are stretching. A pretty nasty

:12:51. > :12:55.injury in the hamstring. Having said that, Robert will be a much bigger

:12:56. > :12:57.test. We got highlights on BBC Two tonight. You can enjoy all the best

:12:58. > :13:03.of the action from today. We will be back on BBC in the

:13:04. > :13:17.morning on the red button at 10am. We will also see Nicky Brett against

:13:18. > :13:21.Mervyn King in action again tomorrow. That visit from our first

:13:22. > :13:23.day of coverage here. We've crowned the first champions, Greg Harlow and

:13:24. > :13:25.Nicky Brett.