THE finals at West Lothian Indoor Bowls Club produced a sensational upset with the defeat of former British Isles Pairs champions Thomas Mann and Neil Speirs, who were bidding to win the title for a fifth time in a row.
Ewan Wilson and Bryan Cooper grabbed the headlines after falling 11-2 behind after six ends but the underdogs refused to fold and produced a battling performance to pull off a shock 21-17 triumph.
The first turning point came with a run of 1, 4, 4
, 1 that transformed a 12-5 deficit into a 15-12 lead but it proved short-lived as the four-times champions recovered with a 3 and 2 to regain the lead at 17-15.
With just three ends to complete it was once again odds-on for a Mann/Speirs win, however, the two internationalists were left stunned as Wilson and Cooper served up a magnificent 2, 3, 1 finish.
The Wilson clan were denied a second title celebration when Ewan's father, David, and his partner, Carole Clarkson, blew an early lead to be pipped 12-11 by Wendy Archer and Calum Logan in a nail-biting climax to the Mixed Pairs.
The League Cup was won by George Sneddon, Cameron Greer, Des Hagart and Joey Strickland after beating Andrew Cruickshanks, John Cruickshanks, Andrew Watson and Peter Finnegan 19-7.
Bainfield also staged their final of the men's Pairs last night with Graeme McIntosh and Barry Hill beating Craig Moss and Paul O'Donnell 13-10.
• EDINBURGH and Leith stage their Scottish Counties trial match at Mayfield tomorrow (2.00pm) and the 32 names include a surprise package in James Hogg, who has just been crowned Singles champion at East Lothian indoor.
Hogg joined Carrick Knowe last season and although still a member of Castlepark has decided to switch his outdoor allegiance from his native East Lothian to E&L as he now resides in the Capital.
The full article contains 333 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
