:00:12. > :00:47.Hello and welcome to highlights of the quarterfinals of the singles
:00:48. > :00:51.competition of the world Indoor Bowls Championships at Potters in
:00:52. > :00:55.Hopton on Sea. There were two big derby games at
:00:56. > :00:59.the Blue Rink this afternoon, to keep the Potters crowd enthralled. A
:01:00. > :01:06.battle of the clans between Anderson and Marshall was one to whet the
:01:07. > :01:11.appetite. And two local lads were also in
:01:12. > :01:17.action, pairs partners and great friends, Harlow and Brett, went head
:01:18. > :01:22.to head for East Anglian bragging rights.
:01:23. > :01:27.But eight players in total battling it out for four semifinal spots.
:01:28. > :01:38.Let's look at how the draw looked at the start of play on Friday.
:01:39. > :01:45.First of all to the match between Alex Marshall and Stuart Anderson.
:01:46. > :01:48.Alex Marshall, as we all know, has a wonderful record here at Potters,
:01:49. > :01:52.having won the title on six occasions.
:01:53. > :01:56.His opponent, Stewart Anderson, now 30, is also a former champion here
:01:57. > :01:59.at Potters, having won the title back in 2013.
:02:00. > :02:06.We join this match in the sixth end of the first set with Marshall
:02:07. > :02:11.having made a fast start and leading 6-2. Commentary comes from Andy
:02:12. > :02:58.Thomson and David Corkhill. Not sure if Alex's bowl just touched
:02:59. > :03:04.the jack. It certainly looks very close. If it has touched the jack,
:03:05. > :03:07.spray chalk has allied and -- applied and if it goes into the
:03:08. > :03:11.ditch, it stays there. Anything that goes outside the confines of the
:03:12. > :03:18.rink to the sides is dead. But the... If it goes into the ditch, it
:03:19. > :03:22.must be a toucher to stay. So good bowls by Alex. I wonder
:03:23. > :03:27.should Stewart start attacking things and be more aggressive. I
:03:28. > :03:31.think so. The way Alex has started, he's going to have to try to change
:03:32. > :03:37.the running of this game. He's got a chance here. One will go. The back
:03:38. > :03:41.bowl is good. I'd agree with you, David. The opening ball looks a
:03:42. > :03:43.toucher but I don't think it's been sprayed. Well, we can't tell from
:03:44. > :04:17.here. It's just so close. Didn't make it for the touch. With
:04:18. > :04:22.that angle, it wouldn't have bounced back. The view that we have got here
:04:23. > :04:30.from the commentary box, actually, doesn't show us that angle as it
:04:31. > :04:34.were. However, Stewart's close here. The edge on the jack would have been
:04:35. > :04:40.really good for him. Well, I think he thought he was down the throat of
:04:41. > :04:42.that one. He thought he was good. Shaking his head here. It was very
:04:43. > :05:01.close. Half an inch. I haven't got an angle here. I don't
:05:02. > :05:05.know if Alex has another ball on the green apart from the one in his
:05:06. > :05:11.hand. Which means Stewart will be after it. Correct.
:05:12. > :05:19.So another one needed. This is looking better.
:05:20. > :05:23.Yeah, all the way. Nicely tucked in behind. Stewart will go for the two
:05:24. > :05:30.bowls. He'll try and remove both of them off the rink. Alex's final
:05:31. > :05:35.delivery. Perfect spot. Four inches behind the jack.
:05:36. > :05:45.Well, he's got to hit this, David, or he's in trouble.
:05:46. > :05:54.A mobile phone is going off somewhere, so they'll get that
:05:55. > :05:59.sorted very quickly. Always difficult. A large crowd.
:06:00. > :06:06.They are asked to make sure that their mobile phones are off. Surely
:06:07. > :06:12.got it this time. Oh. Again, just the one. Oh! If he'd got that just
:06:13. > :06:16.an inch less, the two bowls would have disappeared and he probably
:06:17. > :06:22.would have stayed in for three. As it is... One shot, Alex Marshall. It
:06:23. > :06:24.was a perfect strike, but unfortunately he got the ball,
:06:25. > :06:30.didn't move the jack. Unlucky, Stewart. He hit the target and
:06:31. > :06:34.that's all you could ask for. So Alex Marshall in sparkling form in
:06:35. > :06:39.the first set, which he eventually won 10-2 and he had the better of
:06:40. > :06:42.the early exchanges in the second set and heads 4-2 prior to the start
:06:43. > :06:57.of end six. Well I don't know if this is the
:06:58. > :07:06.right tactic. I know it's his favourite length, but he seems to be
:07:07. > :07:11.losing out to Alex on this length. APPLAUSE
:07:12. > :07:12.Apart from the audience -- a clap from the audience but it's a foot
:07:13. > :07:35.down. I'd expect Alex to beat that. Alex is loving this full-length
:07:36. > :07:38.jack. Stewart's got to try to change it about a bit. His bowls are
:07:39. > :07:45.ideally suited. And Stewart will know that if he goes much shorter,
:07:46. > :07:48.if he goes to the minimum 23, 24, well, there's very few people other
:07:49. > :07:53.than maybe Paul Foster that can match Alex at that distance. Yeah,
:07:54. > :07:57.but I think sometimes you've got to try things in a game, especially
:07:58. > :08:01.when you're being outbowled. And that's a good recovery.
:08:02. > :08:29.Very close. He's gone to jack. Oh, that's perfect. That's just perfect.
:08:30. > :08:33.He trade the track on the -- jack on the forehand. Stewart Anderson is
:08:34. > :08:37.saying to himself, "What on earth have I got to do here?" This is a
:08:38. > :08:43.difficult shot on this forehand. He plays it to perfection. Once again,
:08:44. > :08:48.forcing Stewart into the heavy bowl. Has to arrive at his own and come
:08:49. > :08:54.back. He's got a chance here off his own wing bowl. But these runners
:08:55. > :09:01.have often been under. It's better this time. Bowl on to bowl. Oh! He's
:09:02. > :09:07.just run away from it again! Good hit. Good hit. Remarkable hit but
:09:08. > :09:14.you can see by the reactions that he's still a shot down. One red.
:09:15. > :09:20.He's saying, "What am I meant to do?"
:09:21. > :09:27.Well, he's brought it out into the open. He's given him self a chance.
:09:28. > :09:32.-- himself a chance. Unless Alex puts this one into the top of the
:09:33. > :09:39.jack and then he's in even more trouble.
:09:40. > :09:49.Well, he's just going to go off the head a little bit and it's another
:09:50. > :09:57.shot. Perfect weight. Once again, it's another pressure shot. It is.
:09:58. > :10:02.Stewart Anderson doesn't show pressure very much. He really
:10:03. > :10:07.doesn't. He tries to keep... Just keeps very calm and gets on with it.
:10:08. > :10:12.Some players, you can tell, Andy, that they're just starting to fold.
:10:13. > :10:24.But that's not the case with Stewart. He needs a length bowl,
:10:25. > :10:27.though. Can't afford to be short. Short ball coming in. Well played.
:10:28. > :10:31.Well done, Stewart Anderson. That was not easy. That was a lot of
:10:32. > :10:39.pressure after a forehand runner to get a good, close bowl on the
:10:40. > :10:42.backhand. One green. Here we see the last delivery from Stewart. Had to
:10:43. > :10:47.draw within 18 inches. Draws the winner. However, Alex has got a good
:10:48. > :10:51.shot here. If he turns a jack for three, I think Stewart Anderson will
:10:52. > :10:59.just run for the hills with a white flag! Alex is looking at this. Well,
:11:00. > :11:07.he's trying for the bowl... And he's got the bowl! Oh, look at that! Oh,
:11:08. > :11:14.come on! Oh! Didn't even attempt the draw! One out. Looking at the
:11:15. > :11:20.second. Two out. Two shots, Alex Marshall. Oh, that was just amazing.
:11:21. > :11:24.He's playing so well, you'd think he'll just draw the jack but to go
:11:25. > :11:30.for that shortish bowl... Yeah, just got it perfect, didn't he? He had a
:11:31. > :11:37.chance, bowl or jack, it was quite a big target. Well... It's outrageous,
:11:38. > :11:43.isn't it? Yes. He's played really good. Brilliant stuff. Absolutely
:11:44. > :11:47.brilliant stuff. You know? It's... And he caught... The green brol
:11:48. > :11:50.caught one of the red ones on the way through. If it had gone clean,
:11:51. > :12:26.it would have been three. An, it would have been three.
:12:27. > :12:36.To be fair, Stewart is doing everything he possibly can. It's
:12:37. > :12:44.just one of these days that's he's basically been outbowled.
:12:45. > :13:16.That does not happen too often. No, it doesn't.
:13:17. > :13:24.I think the interesting thing for me, Andy, in this game is Alex has
:13:25. > :13:29.said, "OK, I played the big bowls in the last match against Mark Dawes,
:13:30. > :13:33.but this match I'm going to force my opponent to do that," and he's come
:13:34. > :13:36.out of the blocks with all guns firing and everything's working.
:13:37. > :13:40.Certainly has. This is a perfect display from Alex. He'll be
:13:41. > :13:48.delighted with his performance and in a way he'll be hoping he's not
:13:49. > :13:52.peaked too early. If he gets through this game, there's still two more
:13:53. > :13:56.games to get through. But this has been an excellent display. Yeah.
:13:57. > :14:00.Just needs to pass the green one. Not this time. I just wonder will
:14:01. > :14:04.Stewart go for the two bowls? Well, I think he tried to draw with the
:14:05. > :14:09.last one. He might be tempted now. I think he should. He should drive the
:14:10. > :14:13.two out. Yeah. Going for them. He's just been on the inside with a lot
:14:14. > :14:21.of his running bowls. Got the jack. Yeah. And the run-through. Red bowl
:14:22. > :14:24.in the ditch. Now, this gives him a chance because he's lying a couple
:14:25. > :14:28.and we'll just wait now. There's the marker going on for the jack. Let's
:14:29. > :14:33.see if the red bowl is taken away. It should be. Yeah. There it goes.
:14:34. > :14:39.Two green and no matter where Alex puts the bowl, Stewart will be after
:14:40. > :14:46.it, if it's the shot. Alex will try and draw the shot but
:14:47. > :15:10.at the same time try and hide the bowl. Welcome to the world of flat
:15:11. > :15:15.green tactics. In a strange way, it's a better shot
:15:16. > :15:20.that it's not too close to the jack, isn't it? It's tempting Stewart into
:15:21. > :15:21.drawing it. Correct. And it's very drawable the way it sits. He's well
:15:22. > :15:26.angled across. drawable the way it sits. He's well
:15:27. > :15:36.try and draw this, I think. No. He's going for it. Oh, is he under? Needs
:15:37. > :15:40.full contact! He's got it! Oh! Dear, oh, dear, made contact and put it on
:15:41. > :15:46.to his own green bowl. Yeah. It's one of those days. Yes. On another
:15:47. > :15:52.day, that would have been straight into the ditch but just clips the
:15:53. > :16:07.bowl. Alex 7-2 ahead and looking good.
:16:08. > :16:13.Well, he's one of those players, Alex Marshall, if you don't get him
:16:14. > :16:18.in the first round, he just gets better and better and better. And
:16:19. > :16:21.in the first round, he just gets have to say, though, this is
:16:22. > :16:26.probably the best I've seen him I would agree. I think he's been
:16:27. > :16:30.flawless. It's just been a great display of drawing bowls. I've
:16:31. > :16:33.watched him in practice prior to the game and he was playing well in
:16:34. > :16:37.practice. That is not always an indication that you're going to play
:16:38. > :16:45.well in the game but he's carried it on.
:16:46. > :16:52.Certainly now looking very good for a semifinals spot.
:16:53. > :16:59.Well, the only player who can get close to Alex is Paul Foster. He has
:17:00. > :17:06.four singles. He's a little bit younger, but not by much. And...
:17:07. > :17:10.He'll be trying very, very hard to get close to Alex's record of six at
:17:11. > :17:19.the moment. But Paul's away home this year and Alex is still going
:17:20. > :17:23.very strong indeed. Yes. Paul made an early exit to Matthew Orrey. A
:17:24. > :17:27.talented young English player. Playing David Gourlay. Should be a
:17:28. > :17:44.good game. APPLAUSE
:17:45. > :17:48.Well, Stewart Anderson has to score two shots on this end and we
:17:49. > :17:53.continue to the ninth and final end and then he'll need a four so,
:17:54. > :17:57.realistically, Andy, probably three minimum to give him any sort of an
:17:58. > :18:05.outside chance. I would agree but, once again, Alex has lined two.
:18:06. > :18:18.He'll go for cover. He's going for the awkward shot.
:18:19. > :18:21.15 ends played in this match so far. Stewart Anderson has scored four
:18:22. > :18:26.singles. Hard to believe. Hard to believe the way he's been playing,
:18:27. > :18:31.Stewart. But I'm afraid in sport sometimes we have an off day and I'm
:18:32. > :18:34.afraid Stewart's had one of these. I actually don't think he's played
:18:35. > :18:36.that bad at times. I just think he's been constantly under pressure.
:18:37. > :18:48.Yeah, I think that's the bottom line. Needs an edge to straighten
:18:49. > :18:58.him. I think that look on Stewart Anderson's face just about sums up
:18:59. > :19:01.the match. I think so! One of those days. One of those days. Forget
:19:02. > :19:06.about it. Talented player. He'll be back. I still think that Alex has
:19:07. > :19:10.generated this with Stewart. I think he would have played a lot better if
:19:11. > :19:15.he hadn't been under just so much pressure and... Alex looking to see
:19:16. > :19:20.what he's going to do. He's got the back covered. He's lying on two. He
:19:21. > :19:25.knows Stewart has to score at least two. So he's lost one in the ditch.
:19:26. > :19:29.If he split the two green bowls on the forehand or rested one of them,
:19:30. > :19:34.that would be it, I think. I think so, David.
:19:35. > :19:38.He knows that Stewart's got to play the hard, difficult four feet, five
:19:39. > :19:51.feet of weight. So he knows that the chances of getting trail here are
:19:52. > :19:55.difficult. So he's after the green bowl. Trying
:19:56. > :19:59.to split them. Oh! He didn't even get to the front of the one or
:20:00. > :20:04.behind the other one. We say up here he splits them, he splits them. You
:20:05. > :20:14.know. It's just... It's outrageous. It really is.
:20:15. > :20:19.I don't think he could have played much better. We can be very critical
:20:20. > :20:23.up here about lots of people playing but at the same time you have to
:20:24. > :20:28.praise people And they're playing well. Stewart just trying to get the
:20:29. > :20:39.edge of the bowl. It's not going to work this time. Two shots, second
:20:40. > :20:42.set and match to Alex Marshall. Look, there comes a time when
:20:43. > :20:47.players play at the very height or even beyond what you think they can
:20:48. > :20:54.play. You see Diane just acknowledging her husband's efforts
:20:55. > :20:57.today. But I think if anybody even thought about not giving Alex the
:20:58. > :21:02.praise he deserves after that, they're just, they're just mad.
:21:03. > :21:05.Stewart, I suppose some people would say it wouldn't have mattered how
:21:06. > :21:09.well you played when you're up against a man in the form that Alex
:21:10. > :21:13.was today? To be fair, I don't really know what to say. Alex was...
:21:14. > :21:19.Unbelievable. Absolutely unbelievable. Every time I lay, I
:21:20. > :21:22.thought I'd have it and next bowl in, he beats you. What can you do?
:21:23. > :21:27.Fair dues to Alex. That was some performance. It was some
:21:28. > :21:31.performance. In the commentary box, the guys said that's as good as they
:21:32. > :21:37.think they've seen you. They are the experts of course. How would you
:21:38. > :21:41.assess your performance? I think it's the best I've performed on the
:21:42. > :21:46.rink. You've won six titles and that was the best performance? I would
:21:47. > :21:50.say it was. I was getting my first bowl in a lot of times. When Stewart
:21:51. > :21:54.got him, I was -- in, I was beating him. I felt I could have beat
:21:55. > :21:59.anything today, to be honest. Stewart was a fantastic player. But
:22:00. > :22:02.he wasn't at his best today. He'll be back and he'll win this
:22:03. > :22:05.tournament again sometime. I'm over the moon to be in the semifinal
:22:06. > :22:08.again. A different match to your previous one where you had to dig
:22:09. > :22:13.very deep. How do you switch from one to the other? It's hard. As I
:22:14. > :22:17.said in my interviews, I take one game at a time. That's all you can
:22:18. > :22:22.do. I'm confident in my own ability and what I do. From the word go,
:22:23. > :22:26.right from the very start, if I can play my best, I know I'm hard to
:22:27. > :22:31.beat. So the six-time champion looking in ominous form. We're now
:22:32. > :22:34.going to look at the match between pairs partners and good friends
:22:35. > :22:39.Nicky Brett and Greg Harlow. Greg Harlow won the title here six years
:22:40. > :22:46.ago. And his opponent, Nicky Brett, got to the semifinal in 2010 and was
:22:47. > :22:50.voted Players of the Year in 2015. Nicky Brett made a good start,
:22:51. > :22:54.crowing the first set, which he won -- controlling the first set, which
:22:55. > :23:02.he won 9-3. The second set was closer. We join it with the score at
:23:03. > :23:08.three-all. Robert Paxton is now alongside David corkhill.
:23:09. > :23:11.It's a good idea to go long because, for a while, he was dropping his
:23:12. > :23:15.first bowl short. Now it's just a matter of getting it
:23:16. > :23:20.close, up to the jack or beyond, to put the pressure on. He's not bad.
:23:21. > :23:51.A decent start. If he doesn't get him with the first
:23:52. > :24:00.one, he's usually adept with the second one, but... I think that's
:24:01. > :24:31.the big difference at the moment. He's putting added pressure on.
:24:32. > :24:37.Looks like he's going to get caught here. Well, no, he hasn't. He's
:24:38. > :24:40.slipped underneath. He's going to make a connection with the red bowl.
:24:41. > :24:45.Now, this is a problem for Greg. Does he draw this or come in and
:24:46. > :24:50.attack the jack? I think he's got to draw it to be honest. There's not a
:24:51. > :24:52.great deal to hit. Anything between the two green bowls probably gets
:24:53. > :25:09.him the win. Played it very well. Yeah. Got it.
:25:10. > :25:13.APPLAUSE There was a tiny bit of extra weight
:25:14. > :25:17.on that to make sure he was arriving.
:25:18. > :25:23.Forced into the runner. Doesn't want to get his own bowl, though. If he
:25:24. > :25:28.takes that away, he could lose the count. Well, he has taken his own
:25:29. > :25:34.away. I'm not sure about that shot. I wasn't sure it was worth while The
:25:35. > :25:38.angles weren't great for Nicky there. But that's the way he's been
:25:39. > :25:42.playing. It's been working extremely well for him the last two or three
:25:43. > :25:45.years. There's a shot for Greg to have a
:25:46. > :26:04.look at here on the cover. Drawn the shot there, on a backhand
:26:05. > :26:09.and trying to drop it on some kind of angle. If he gets it there, it
:26:10. > :26:18.stops the trail shot but it scores another one to make three and puts
:26:19. > :26:23.the pressure on. It all depends how he feels about
:26:24. > :26:28.it. He could get a third and cover, take a chance that he gets the jack.
:26:29. > :26:32.I think he'll be backhand to the respot. Takes away the count to
:26:33. > :26:40.three on the repot Nick's got to kill the end.
:26:41. > :26:44.Well, he's on a line here for the third shot to put the pressure on.
:26:45. > :26:57.He's ignored the respot for some reason. That's not too bad. It's not
:26:58. > :27:06.bad, actually. It's not bad. That's a tricky draw. He ignored the cover
:27:07. > :27:27.and decided to go for the shots. Well, he has to get close to those
:27:28. > :27:31.front ones and that's where the problem lies. Yeah. Mmmm. I'm not
:27:32. > :27:37.sure about that. I thought he might have played the backhand draw. But
:27:38. > :28:12.that's a big count for Greg. Massive turnover...
:28:13. > :28:19.It's unusual for Nick to be short when he has that big bowl
:28:20. > :28:23.opportunity. But at the same time, after a drive, it's not easy, Rob.
:28:24. > :28:27.You know it's a percentage shot, isn't it, to go through and run at
:28:28. > :28:31.it? Take a couple off? Yeah, the angles weren't great there for him,
:28:32. > :28:37.to be honest. Probably played the right shot. Just didn't quite get
:28:38. > :28:41.through it. It's a big end for Greg now, if Greg can get a single here,
:28:42. > :28:50.or any sort of score. It will certainly put him in the driving
:28:51. > :28:54.seat for the second set. Well, he'd have given a lot for that the last
:28:55. > :28:57.end. Do you get nervous before the big bowls come up? There's a lot of
:28:58. > :29:01.them during your career? More so at the start of the game, I think. You
:29:02. > :29:06.want to get into the game and once you're on the mat and into the
:29:07. > :29:11.match, I don't think it bothers you really. The more times you play on
:29:12. > :29:13.the carpet in front of crowds like this, the... You love them really.
:29:14. > :29:29.Especially when they work! Well, he really cannot afford to
:29:30. > :29:33.lose any more shots here, Nick. If gre Greg wins this end, then he
:29:34. > :29:37.really is in the driving seat -- Greg wins this end, then he really
:29:38. > :29:41.is in the driving seat. That's not going to get back. That's a lovely
:29:42. > :29:46.should forehim now. An inch-and-a-half. Your... This front
:29:47. > :30:16.bowl is five inches past jack high. Gap is six nmps.
:30:17. > :30:21.A chance for Nick to slip another one in here. It drops off Greg's
:30:22. > :30:38.bowl. It doesn't give Greg much Well, I'm surprised at that. I think
:30:39. > :30:42.Greg's got a good shot on here in the backhand. A couple of yards
:30:43. > :30:45.running into that plant, his own bowl will probably go out. He will
:30:46. > :30:50.stay in and make two, maybe three out of it. I think he'll just draw
:30:51. > :30:55.here. He can't afford to get into the jack hand, the green bowl.
:30:56. > :30:58.That's true. If he drops off his own, he's very close, especially
:30:59. > :31:06.with a three-shot lead. Oh, he's very close. He's getting
:31:07. > :31:11.into that. Is he going to get the jack? If he gets the jack, he'll be
:31:12. > :31:13.one down, probably. Oh, that's dropped in nicely. I think that's
:31:14. > :31:29.the shot. He just got enough of it that his
:31:30. > :31:33.own bowl stayed in. Nick has a choice. He'll run this down the
:31:34. > :31:38.forehand, looking for the jack hand, clearing the ditch for two.
:31:39. > :31:44.Controlled weight. He can't afford to be a bowl tight. And it does come
:31:45. > :31:49.across: Oh, not the run-through. Oh! Goodness me! Well, immediate
:31:50. > :31:55.acknowledgement from Nick that that was a fortuitous result. Two shots,
:31:56. > :32:00.nick Brett. Oh! Made the double out of it! There's the run-through. Gets
:32:01. > :32:05.the jack and makes a double. Goodness me. Well, there's
:32:06. > :32:09.acknowledgement, yep. So Nicky Brett was just one shot
:32:10. > :32:12.behind Greg Harlow and that margin was still the same as they
:32:13. > :32:40.approached end nine. The tactics can change as well. Oh,
:32:41. > :32:45.definitely. Nicky wins the end, wins the match. Greg needs to win it to
:32:46. > :32:51.keep himself into it and force the tie-break.
:32:52. > :32:56.I'd say he deserves that to be honest, on his performance in the
:32:57. > :33:01.match. Fantastic game. Absolutely. It's been very interesting tactics
:33:02. > :33:02.in it as well and there's been... Very little to choose between the
:33:03. > :34:06.two players. Just pushing up. He's just got
:34:07. > :34:12.through this. He's coming down to have a look and
:34:13. > :34:19.I think it's very wise. I think he's got to look deep.
:34:20. > :34:24.I think the issue for him is just if Greg decides to play it, we've got
:34:25. > :34:28.all this area here where he's very, very dangerous. But at the same
:34:29. > :34:33.time, I think that green bowl is too far away.
:34:34. > :34:38.Yeah. You know, I think he -- I think he needs a closer bowl. If he
:34:39. > :34:42.does go deep, it gives the option, if Greg draws shot, to play an
:34:43. > :34:47.attacking bowl himself because he's got the cover. Yeah. He's going
:34:48. > :34:50.through there. Greg's making his way down already. Greg will only be
:34:51. > :34:55.drawing the shot. Yeah. I think it was the draw, I really do. But,
:34:56. > :34:59.again, if he had put one close, Greg had the hit and, you know, it's
:35:00. > :35:02.never easy to decide which shot to play there. You know, there's so
:35:03. > :35:06.many options available but you just don't want to leave him a foot for
:35:07. > :35:09.the shot. But there's no real rest there at
:35:10. > :35:16.the moment either. There's no shoulder. It's the perfect bowl from
:35:17. > :35:22.Greg. Well, he's very interested in it.
:35:23. > :35:27.I think his line is good. He's just up again. He's just up.
:35:28. > :35:30.Just the weight, that's all, nothing more than that. I think Nick might
:35:31. > :35:35.draw this. I don't think he can afford to leave Greg a foot to draw
:35:36. > :35:39.the shot. I'm not sure if he will. I don't think he can afford... If he
:35:40. > :35:43.draws up and drops off his own bowl, he's giving that rest. Greg might
:35:44. > :35:47.try and draw around the forehand. That would do, closer bowl either
:35:48. > :35:50.way. It doesn't matter which way he plays it. The problem with the
:35:51. > :35:55.backhand that Greg is playing at the moment is late bend. You know you've
:35:56. > :36:03.got to be up and it doesn't, doesn't turn right till the end.
:36:04. > :36:07.I think Nicky has done everything he can do... Oh. Has he left a
:36:08. > :36:13.shoulder? No, he hasn't. That's no worse than it was before. And it's a
:36:14. > :36:15.better and closer bowl. It's all about whether Greg decides to play
:36:16. > :36:23.for the respot. That's the key. Who has got the
:36:24. > :36:30.respot? And the respot we're looking at is the one to the left of the
:36:31. > :36:37.picture. That's it there. Now, Greg is in a position where, if
:36:38. > :36:41.he plays it, and gets it just absolutely on the high side, will
:36:42. > :36:47.the jack come over to this side? And which bowl will lie? Oh, well, now!
:36:48. > :36:51.I don't think that's made any difference to the shot. It's made a
:36:52. > :36:55.difference to my graphics, but not to the shot. I think he's playing
:36:56. > :37:04.for the jack still. It's possibly given him a little bit more space to
:37:05. > :37:07.get to it but Nick has done absolutely everything he can do win
:37:08. > :37:10.the match and it's up to Greg now if he can save it. The key is the two
:37:11. > :37:14.respots, toness hoppest. There's even a chance now if Greg got...
:37:15. > :37:18.He's looking at the other respot. There's a bigger gap now between the
:37:19. > :37:23.jack and bowl. And down the forehand, he might be able to edge
:37:24. > :37:27.the jack past the green. Let's have a wee look on the forehand. Time-out
:37:28. > :37:33.called. Greg has no time-outs remaining. The respot position is
:37:34. > :37:37.here. Greg is also looking to see what happens if it goes all the way
:37:38. > :37:43.through to the ditch. Can he carry along with it? So many options but
:37:44. > :37:47.none of thematically easy. He's looking at the angles and if
:37:48. > :37:51.none are good, he's got to back himself to draw. He's got about
:37:52. > :38:05.three inches. Surely he'll play weight to it.
:38:06. > :38:08.Three bowls two or three feet away. Alan Thornhill is asking for a
:38:09. > :38:13.little bit of quiet. Now we'll know what he's going to do. He's angled
:38:14. > :38:17.as if he's going to draw. He is. He's going to try and draw it. The
:38:18. > :38:21.angles weren't good for him. He didn't like the look of the respots.
:38:22. > :38:28.He's going to try and draw it. I tell you what, he's in the area.
:38:29. > :38:32.Needs to run a touch. Needs to run. Going to fall off, though.
:38:33. > :38:36.One shot, Nick Brett. Second set, tie and the match.
:38:37. > :38:40.What a great effort. If that bowl had dropped, it had a good chance of
:38:41. > :38:45.getting the shot. Didn't quite make it. A brilliant effort, though, by
:38:46. > :38:50.Greg Harlow. But the world number one just manages to make it.
:38:51. > :38:53.First of all, Greg, always disappointing to lose at any stage
:38:54. > :38:59.of a big tournament. How did you think you played today?
:39:00. > :39:06.Overall, I was pretty happy the way I played. I perhaps could have done
:39:07. > :39:08.more in the first set but every time I got in, Nick was closer and
:39:09. > :39:12.deserved the first set. I thought I'd probably done enough to pinch
:39:13. > :39:15.the second but didn't finish it off and left myself too much to do with
:39:16. > :39:18.the last bowl. That's my analysis. LAUGHTER
:39:19. > :39:22.Nicky, looking at the way the second set went, it looked as if you were
:39:23. > :39:25.up against it, but you got the opportunities and would it be fair
:39:26. > :39:32.to say that that's what turned it for new the second? I had a major
:39:33. > :39:38.bit of fort up at 6-3 down, snuck a two where I played a poor runner
:39:39. > :39:42.under the pace and I think them's the breaks really I got a huge bit
:39:43. > :39:48.of luck where Greg looked like winning the second set. We're going
:39:49. > :39:52.to look back at your last ball in the match. Here's a look at
:39:53. > :39:56.something a little bit better. Yeah, there was too much room to keep
:39:57. > :40:01.leaving him two and three goes at it so I had to try and get one near. I
:40:02. > :40:04.didn't want to do it any earlier than that because I left a runner
:40:05. > :40:08.and, you just touch easier to get out. Luckily it sort of finished
:40:09. > :40:12.perfect to be honest. Greg, we're going to ask you if you don't mind
:40:13. > :40:16.to go through your last bowl of the match because you had a chance to
:40:17. > :40:21.stay in it at this point. I looked at all the angles. His two time-outs
:40:22. > :40:24.-- I used two time-outs. There was nothing other than a perfect drive.
:40:25. > :40:28.Nick had got everything covered and unfortunately for me I'm probably
:40:29. > :40:32.about an inch tight and only just failed but, as you say, Nick's last
:40:33. > :40:37.bowl was the winner. And proved to be so, even if my bowl had fallen
:40:38. > :40:41.in, it was not quite going to win the day. And now to the first of
:40:42. > :40:45.Friday's quarterfinals between qualifier Jamie Chestney and number
:40:46. > :40:50.four seed Paxton packs. Here's what happened in that max -- Robert
:40:51. > :40:57.Paxton from Taunton and chest dhes, also based in the West Country, at
:40:58. > :41:01.Newton Abbott. It was a tight start, but Paxton
:41:02. > :41:06.nudged clear by two with a brilliant draw to the jack in the ditch at end
:41:07. > :41:12.six. That lead was extended to three
:41:13. > :41:16.shots at end eight as Paxton's pin-point accuracy scale to the
:41:17. > :41:20.fore. That left chest any needing a three
:41:21. > :41:24.at end nine to -- Chestney needing a three at end nine to tie the set, a
:41:25. > :41:28.scenario which always looked unlikely.
:41:29. > :41:32.The Commonwealth Games silver medallist made a better start to the
:41:33. > :41:39.second set, building a three-shot lead over the first two ends.
:41:40. > :41:43.He was forcing Paxton into playing running bowls, which weren't proving
:41:44. > :41:49.successful. But the set changed dramatically at
:41:50. > :41:59.end five. First of all, Chestney's drive left the door open.
:42:00. > :42:05.And Paxton duly rolled in for a full house, reducing his arrears to 5-4.
:42:06. > :42:10.A couple of singles put Chestney back in the driving seat, but Paxton
:42:11. > :42:16.stayed in the set with a perfect backhand runner at end eight.
:42:17. > :42:20.He still needed an unlikely two at end nine to halve the set and win
:42:21. > :42:26.the match. His draw to the respoted jack left a big gap for Chestney to
:42:27. > :42:34.force a tie-break. It looked a formality, but the final
:42:35. > :42:37.red bowl ran on and on. It handed Paxton an unexpected double and a
:42:38. > :42:47.place in the semifinals for the fourth time.
:42:48. > :42:51.The final score was 7-3, 7-7. And the last of our quarterfinals
:42:52. > :42:55.was between another qualifier, Matthew Orrey, against a former
:42:56. > :42:59.champion in David Gourlay. Matthew Orrey, 27, making his Potters debut,
:43:00. > :43:03.actually defeated Paul Foster in the first round, so can already be proud
:43:04. > :43:07.of his quarterfinal appearance here. His opponent, David Gourlay, in
:43:08. > :43:11.contrast, has a wealth of experience behind him and won this title back
:43:12. > :43:15.in 1996. Well, the winner of this match would
:43:16. > :43:18.play Nicky Brett in the semifinals and he is now alongside Corky in the
:43:19. > :43:26.commentary box. Matthew Orrey, the man from
:43:27. > :43:29.Grantham, trying to keep the pressure on David Gourlay in the
:43:30. > :43:34.second set. 4-2 behind, but it's a set he must win and this end is
:43:35. > :43:39.absolutely critical to that quest for the second set.
:43:40. > :43:45.The gap is 16 inches. No, the gap is 16 inches.
:43:46. > :44:12.David just asking how far the jack is from the T mark.
:44:13. > :44:19.How many players f they're one and two and three shots in front, if
:44:20. > :44:22.they win the seventh end then win the set? It would be a very high
:44:23. > :44:36.percentage. Good adjustment after the first one
:44:37. > :44:39.dropping so far short. Even a single here would give Matthew a great
:44:40. > :44:43.chance. Definitely needs to score the end. Otherwise it's... Well,
:44:44. > :44:46.it's not over but it makes it very difficult. Well, he'll be chasing
:44:47. > :44:51.the set in the last two. That's the trouble. He then needs to score four
:44:52. > :45:03.shots in the last two ends if he loses a single. It's a bit far away
:45:04. > :45:08.for David on that one. Not sure if he planned to put that past there.
:45:09. > :45:13.If it is a plan, it's an interesting one.
:45:14. > :45:21.Meantime, oh, wow. He's unlucky. On the target, on the forehand, there's
:45:22. > :45:25.one element of risk for David Gourlay here, that he goes through
:45:26. > :45:32.the gap and takes his own. But he would be very unfortunate to do
:45:33. > :45:43.that. It will come in handy if he gets any jack movement.
:45:44. > :45:54.Well... Um. Took one out but also took his closest bowl out.
:45:55. > :45:59.He's lying two, fully expecting to draw another one here. He'll hope to
:46:00. > :46:03.draw another but hope not to make it any easier for David's runner. I was
:46:04. > :46:08.thinking he might play the backhand to just try and come in behind the
:46:09. > :46:13.jack. He's trumped us, playing the forehand. Well, the thing about
:46:14. > :46:15.playing the forehand is if he frames it on the forehand, David will go
:46:16. > :46:25.again. As long as he makes it behind, it's
:46:26. > :46:29.good. That's fine. Yeah, good bowl. To be
:46:30. > :46:34.fair, good bowl. He might have played the backhand
:46:35. > :46:47.just in case anyway. He'd be frightened of falling short on that,
:46:48. > :46:54.giving David another chance. Down to the draw.
:46:55. > :47:02.Rest on the ball for second. Yeah. It's good.
:47:03. > :47:12.APPLAUSE He'd be happy enough with that.
:47:13. > :47:17.One shot, Matthew Orrey. APPLAUSE
:47:18. > :47:20.I think David would have been trying for the shot, but... He'd have
:47:21. > :47:29.certainly took second walking back up to play it. I would say so, three
:47:30. > :47:32.against him at the time. Well, a good crowd once again coming
:47:33. > :47:37.in for the evening session, Nick. And still in there for Matt Orrey.
:47:38. > :47:43.He's still got a good chance in this set. Yeah, he's, you know, after the
:47:44. > :47:47.first set, he's still hung in there. He'd want to improve his first bowl
:47:48. > :48:10.a little bit. But he's still in with a chance.
:48:11. > :48:16.One thing about Matt Orrey, as you said, the first bowl hasn't really
:48:17. > :48:19.been doing the damage you'd like it to do but he still looks very
:48:20. > :48:23.comfortable out there. He looks like he's at home on the portable rink
:48:24. > :48:27.and that's not always the case with the qualifiers coming through. It's
:48:28. > :48:34.certainly not. Not... It's not every day of the week you play in front of
:48:35. > :48:35.1,200 people and the TV cameras, and he's certainly handled himself very
:48:36. > :49:02.well. No extra shots for that, just for
:49:03. > :49:21.the non-bowlers that might be watching.
:49:22. > :49:28.We're often asked about the spray chalk. Please forgive me if the
:49:29. > :49:33.bowlers out there that know about it, there are an amazing amount of
:49:34. > :49:42.people who ask about it during a match.
:49:43. > :49:47.What would you do here? Take a little risk? I would now, definitely
:49:48. > :49:51.now, with the third bowl. If he loses a single here, he's going to
:49:52. > :49:54.be looking for a three in the last end and they're hard to find at the
:49:55. > :49:58.best of times. I think he has to give it a chance and he is giving it
:49:59. > :50:02.a chance in terms of the weight, but not in terms of the line, just over.
:50:03. > :50:06.I can't blame him for that. You know... It's not an easy shot to
:50:07. > :50:10.play. No, it's not. Definitely not easy to play, you know. He might
:50:11. > :50:14.have to take a bigger risk and go quicker because it may be easier to
:50:15. > :50:17.get it. Yeah. Go strong. If he takes his own bowl out, fair enough,
:50:18. > :50:21.there's nothing he can do about that. But the angle for his own bowl
:50:22. > :50:25.could easily take the other green one out. So definitely worth playing
:50:26. > :50:29.it. David will just try and slip another one in. There's no reason
:50:30. > :50:34.why he shouldn't because he'll be concerned about that one bowl
:50:35. > :50:42.disappearing. Certainly will. Good weight with his second to be fair.
:50:43. > :50:46.If he can bring her in... Well, he's definitely trying to draw one even
:50:47. > :50:49.closer. But come around that bowl, it's still decent. It's still handy
:50:50. > :50:54.there. I think Matthew has to go at this again and hope to get the bowl
:50:55. > :50:59.out clean. If it stays as it is, he'd need a three last end and
:51:00. > :51:02.they're not easy to come by and certainly in a closed set like this
:51:03. > :51:14.one. Well, this is different. A lot less
:51:15. > :51:19.weight. Must think he needs the double. I
:51:20. > :51:24.tell you what, he's very close here, Nicky. He has to hold on to miss his
:51:25. > :51:30.own. Oh! Well, great effort. Great effort. David will take the one.
:51:31. > :51:35.He'll walk away interest that. -- from that.
:51:36. > :51:39.One shot, David Gourlay. There's no way David Gourlay will play anywhere
:51:40. > :51:44.near it. He's happy to go into the last end two up. He realises this
:51:45. > :52:36.set has been very, very close. Yeah, definitely.
:52:37. > :52:42.David needs a good second here, just to:! Even when you drop the first
:52:43. > :52:46.one short, you're sort of thinking... Mmm, I I'd rather that
:52:47. > :52:51.one would have been six inches away. Correct. Sort of blocked the
:52:52. > :52:55.runner... His favoured runner to get out of trouble. He's played this
:52:56. > :53:00.well. There's the correction. APPLAUSE
:53:01. > :53:08.Yeah. I'd say he'd be happy with that one. It's a very, very good
:53:09. > :53:12.ball. - - bowl. David just at the side of the rink
:53:13. > :53:16.and Matthew Orrey takes his line from the marker. You can see the
:53:17. > :53:20.yellow marker almost in the centre of the picture at this end.
:53:21. > :53:23.And David Gourlay does that too, actually. He likes to see it as
:53:24. > :53:29.well. Some players do. Some don't. Some
:53:30. > :53:37.are what we call natural sighters. I might ask them to take them off
:53:38. > :53:41.tomorrow then! If if only! Some players in the outdoor used to leave
:53:42. > :53:44.their bags at the end of the rink on the line that they needed
:53:45. > :53:49.their bags at the end of the rink on just to give them a little guide.
:53:50. > :53:54.Let's put it that way. Very sneaky. As soon as you realised they were
:53:55. > :53:59.doing that, we took them away and put them underneath a bench
:54:00. > :54:03.somewhere! Little tricks of the trade, but certainly not at this
:54:04. > :54:08.level. This is good again. Oh, that's a
:54:09. > :54:11.beauty. That really is. Now it's really, really hard. Matthew
:54:12. > :54:16.dropping short with his bowl. That's always making it difficult but this
:54:17. > :54:20.is becoming almost impossible now for Matthew to develop a three.
:54:21. > :54:26.David must have been curling the first one. Absolutely. The first one
:54:27. > :54:32.he put in, I thought what on earth was going on. But he's banged them
:54:33. > :54:36.in. Little chat with Mike Davies on the way through. Time-outs aren't
:54:37. > :54:39.the issue. Matt was certainly looking to change something here.
:54:40. > :54:44.Otherwise, he's going to be... Curtains. There's no point in even
:54:45. > :54:48.trying to draw. I think he has to open it up at the front. If he
:54:49. > :54:52.misses, it's going to be really hard. Just trying to time it round
:54:53. > :54:55.the front. He probably is and that's a very difficult shot. He's in the
:54:56. > :55:02.area, though. Oh, yes! What a good bowl! But the
:55:03. > :55:07.back one will look on it -- lock on it and David Gourlay will be
:55:08. > :55:14.absolutely delighted with that. It's a great bowl from Matt, but... It's
:55:15. > :55:16.strange to think that a player would be delighted with the opposition
:55:17. > :55:20.playing a super shot but that just about cancels out everything. Yeah.
:55:21. > :55:23.It would be some shot to create, even from the position it's in there
:55:24. > :55:43.now. Looks like it's a stay-away job.
:55:44. > :55:47.Somethings around three feet jack high would be decent. If you want to
:55:48. > :55:52.play a cover bowl in... Yeah. I'm not quite sure how... Unless he can
:55:53. > :55:57.hit the front red on to the green and follow with a... Well, he's just
:55:58. > :56:02.mixing and matching here, isn't he? APPLAUSE
:56:03. > :56:06.There's just no way to create anything out of this. Do you know
:56:07. > :56:12.something? If I was Matt Orrey, I'd be tempted just to shake hands. I
:56:13. > :56:16.really would be. Yeah. You know, I just can't see anything and for
:56:17. > :56:20.people at home watching this, I've got the world number one beside me
:56:21. > :56:25.and he can't see anything. So I'm... If he makes three on this, David, it
:56:26. > :56:50.will be shot of the day. Shot of the year! I would suggest shot of the
:56:51. > :56:55.year. Good luck to Matt on this one. Big
:56:56. > :57:01.hit and hope. And he's pulled it. There it goes. Won the red. Match to
:57:02. > :57:04.David Gourlay. Well, David Gourlay, a very
:57:05. > :57:08.professional performance against the qualifier, Matthew Orrey. Controlled
:57:09. > :57:11.the first set 9-3. That scoreline was a bit unfair to Matthew but
:57:12. > :57:15.David Gourlay gets through 5-4 in the second set. It was a difficult
:57:16. > :57:18.set but he's over the line and he goes into the semifinal where he'll
:57:19. > :57:22.meet the world number one, Nicky Brett.
:57:23. > :57:27.Congratulations to David Gourlay, through to the semifinal where he
:57:28. > :57:31.will play Nicky Brett and that will be live on the red button on
:57:32. > :57:34.Saturday at the slightly later time of 10.45am.
:57:35. > :57:39.And then we're on BBC One on Saturday at 2pm for the second of
:57:40. > :57:43.our semifinals, Alex Marshall MBE up against Robert Paxton.
:57:44. > :57:51.And now to the moment that you've all been staying up late for.
:57:52. > :57:55.Corky's Shot of the Day. My shot of the day comes from the
:57:56. > :57:59.match with Alex Marshall and Stewart Anderson. Alex Marshall was
:58:00. > :58:03.fantastic in the first set, winning 10-2 but in the second set, Stewart
:58:04. > :58:08.Anderson has scored 4-2, he's lying in the shot that would bring him
:58:09. > :58:11.right back into it and Alex Marshall plays the most wonderful
:58:12. > :58:16.controlled-weight shot. Most people would have tried to draw this and
:58:17. > :58:23.turn the jack around the corner. But Alex Marshall decides to play the
:58:24. > :58:27.punt shot all the way through, absolutely perfect, takes two shots,
:58:28. > :58:31.and he lifts his score up to six shots 20 two, carry on with that and
:58:32. > :58:36.won the second set comfortably. He was the master today.
:58:37. > :58:39.Thanks very much, Corky. Now we know the identity of all four
:58:40. > :58:43.semifinalists, but included in that quartet is Alex Marshall, who is
:58:44. > :58:48.still on course for title number seven and very much the man to beat.
:58:49. > :58:59.From all of us here at Potters, good night.
:59:00. > :59:05.This is the story of how conquered superpowers conquered all.
:59:06. > :59:09.How British classics became British clunkers...