The swimming competition drew to a close tonight at the Optus Aquatics Centre, with Team Scotland bagging one more medal courtesy of swimming sensation Duncan Scott, to bring the team’s total in the pool to nine.
Scott, who before diving in this evening, had already achieved the accolade of being the most decorated Scottish athlete at a single Games, continued his incredible vein of form collecting silver in the 200m Individual Medley, another event he has never competed in at international level.
In a race where the lead changed hands after every leg, Scott had his work cut out turning for home back in sixth position. Knowing his speed was at the back end of the race, Scott moved up a gear and powered down the final 25m, pushing Mitch Larkin (AUS) all the way to the wall. Larkin touched home in 1:57.67 to collect his fourth gold of the meet, a new Games Record.
Scott won silver in 1:57.86, a new PB, while Clyde Lewis (AUS) picked up bronze in 1:58.18. Catching his breath after the race, Scott said: “That was tough; it took me a while to get out the pool there. It was a good race and great to see Mitch (Larkin, AUS) win his fourth gold. There were loads of guys in that race who could have won it, or touched me out or been in in the top three. It was a real battle, a real dog fight. I enjoyed it but it was tough.”
Speaking about his incredible success in the pool, Scott continued: “I sat down with my coach beforehand like we always do at every meet and talked about the possibilities, the good things that could happen and the bad things. This is definitely on the good things spectrum. I’m delighted with how things have gone so far but there’s still a relay to do and I think there’s a chance there.”
That chance came in the last race of the night, where Scott was the anchorman in the 4x100m Medley Relay and lined up with team-mates Craig McNally, Ross Murdoch and Mark Szaranek.
At the breaststroke leg Murdoch had taken the team into the bronze medal position, but the South Africans were too strong and the Scots ended in fourth. After the race Murdoch said: “I’m really proud of what we did tonight. There was an outside chance of a medal and we put ourselves on the line trying to secure it, but it wasn’t to be. We wore our kilts as if to go into battle and I’m incredibly proud to do that and be part of this team.”
The girls were also in action in their medley relay final and Kathleen Dawson, Corrie Scott, Keanna MacInnes and Lucy Hope all swam their hearts out to break the Scottish Record in 4:05.17 for fifth.
In other finals Camilla Hattersley concluded her Games with a seventh place finish in the 400m freestyle, while Cassie Wild, Kathleen Dawson and Lucy Hope finished fifth, sixth and eighth respectively in the 50m backstroke.
Focus now turns to the Diving competition which starts tomorrow Wednesday 11 April and runs until Saturday 14 April. Preliminary rounds start at 10:00 (01:00 UK time), while finals begin at 19:00 (10:00 UK time).
Head Coach John Dalziel today has named two injury-enforced changes to the Team Scotland Rugby Sevens squad to compete in the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games (Saturday/Sunday 14/15 April).
Scotland 7s core squad player Gavin Lowe (hamstring) and Glasgow Warriors back-row Matt Fagerson (ongoing hamstring complaint), have returned home and have been replaced by Ally Miller (Edinburgh Rugby) and Robbie Fergusson (Scotland 7s), both of whom were part of the extended squad at the Hong Kong leg of the World Rugby Sevens Series.
The team, who arrived in the Games Village on Monday night (9 April), will face Papua New Guinea, Malaysia and South Africa in Pool A, from which only the top-ranked team will advance to the semi-finals for a chance to take home a medal.
Scotland Rugby 7s squad for the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Gold Coast
Glenn Bryce (Edinburgh Rugby)
Jamie Farndale (Scotland 7s)
Robbie Fergusson (Scotland 7s)
James Fleming (Scotland 7s)
Nyle Godsmark (Scotland 7s)
Darcy Graham (Edinburgh Rugby)
George Horne (Glasgow Warriors)
Ruaridh Jackson (Glasgow Warriors)
Lee Jones (Glasgow Warriors)
Max McFarland (Scotland 7s / Glasgow Warriors)
Ally Miller (Edinburgh Rugby)
Jo Nayacavou (Scotland 7s)
Scott Riddell (Scotland 7s)
Team Scotland’s shooters were on target with a silver and bronze medal on day three of action at the Belmont Shooting Centre in Brisbane.
Neil Stirton, competing in his fourth Commonwealth Games, made the final in the Men’s 50m Rifle Prone alongside fellow Scot, Lenny Thomson with the pair qualifying fourth and fifth respectively.
In the final, Neil shot strongly to finish with a silver medal on 247.7; with Wales’ David Phelps taking gold with a Games Record 248.8. Lenny; competing in his first Games finished eighth.
Commenting on his performance Neil said: “This is my fourth Commonwealth Games. It’s great to still be doing it at 37. I’m absolutely over the moon to come out here and be competitive with the best in the world.
“I’ve known these guys for nearly 20 years and it’s great to have friends on both sides of the podium. I had a few loose shots in the middle and I think that cost me the gold, but I’m happy with the performance.”
Earlier in the day, Ian Shaw and Sandy Walker competed in Day Two of the Queen’s Prize Pairs. The two full-bore shooters were sitting in fourth after the first day of action; climbing into the medal positions with a score of 582-49v.
Ian, who already has a silver and bronze medal in the event from Delhi 2010 and Glasgow 2014 respectively said of their performance: “It’s hard to put into words how I’m feeling right now. We’ve put in a lot of hard work over the last four years so it’s a fantastic achievement. It still hasn’t sunk in quite yet!
“A lot of our success is down to the Lottery funding we’ve received from sportscotland – I don’t think we’d have done quite as well as we have if it wasn’t for their support.”
Sandy added: “I’m ecstatic! We knew we were in with a chance but getting to the bronze medal position was amazing. I’m so pleased to have got a medal at my first ever Games.
“Having Ian there and learning from his experience has been massively helpful. He’s at his sixth Games so has kept me on the right track and I definitely think that’s played a huge role in our success.”
Jess Liddon was also in action today in the Women’s 25m Pistol competition. She was sitting in third after the Precision qualification event but finished in 10th after the Rapid qualification to miss out on a place in the final.
Ian and Sandy are both back in action tomorrow in the Queen’s Prize Individual Day One from 10:00hrs (01:00hrs UK time). On the Shotgun range, Calum Fraser and David McMath compete in the Men’s Double Trap from 09:00hrs (00:00hrs UK time), while the women’s Double Trap Final will see Linda Pearson shoot at 10:30hrs (01:30hrs UK time).
Scotland made it four wins out of four in the Men’s Basketball competition as they went on to beat Nigeria 66-61 in Cairns on Tuesday night. The journey of the Scotland underdogs now continues to Australia’s Gold Coast, with Team Scotland set to face hosts Australia on Saturday in the semi-finals of the competition.
Speaking after the historic win, Scotland Captain Kieron Achara paid tribute to his team-mates: “This is a surreal kind of feeling, one that was definitely worth the wait. This was our goal and we believed it – but to execute it is a totally different thing. It is a phenomenal achievement; the guys have played outstanding.”
Achara, who missed out on the last Commonwealth Games in 2006, admits it has been worth the twelve-year wait: “Honestly, this is the proudest I have ever been. I am trying to live in the moment and enjoy it but we are still so determined. Our goal is to medal and we have two cracks at it now.”
Every player on Rob Beveridge’s twelve-man roster was able to experience the quarter-final action, including the team’s youngest player, Callan Low. The seventeen-year-old spoke of his excitement about going to Gold Coast to compete for a medal: “If you had had asked me this question two years ago, I would never have believed it could happen. I think we are capable of rising up to the occasion of playing Australia and it is going to be a fun environment to be in.”
The team will make yet more history as they transition down to Gold Coast to continue their preparation for Saturday’s semi-final where they will become the first Scottish team sport to have competed in a Commonwealth Games semi-final.
Day six at the Games brought three more medals for Team Scotland: silver for Neil Stirton at Shooting in the 50m Rifle Prone; silver for swimmer Duncan Scott in the 200m Individual Medley; and bronze for Ian Shaw and Sandy Walker, competing in Shooting’s Fullbore Rifle Pairs. The Scottish medal tally stands at 28 (6 gold, 10 silver and 12 bronze).
There was also cause for celebration from Team Scotland’s Basketball players as the team won 66-61 against Nigeria, guaranteeing them a spot in the semi-finals; making them the first ever Scottish team sport to make it to a semi-final in a Commonwealth Games.
For full details, please see the feature pieces on Shooting, Basketball, and Swimming.
Swimming and Weightlifting action concluded today and tomorrow will see the Diving get underway at the Optus Aquatics Centre.
Athletics
Eilish McColgan and Steph Twell contested a fast Women’s 1500m final to round out the third day of athletics action on the Gold Coast, acquitting themselves well to finish sixth and seventh respectively. Hot favourite Caster Semenya eased away from the field on the last lap to win by over two seconds in a Games record of 4.00.71, leaving the rest to fight for the minor medals, and fight the Scots did.
McColgan was well placed with 200m to go, but couldn’t quite find the finishing speed to get her hands on some silverware, finishing just less than a second down on bronze. Twell on the other hand finished like a train for seventh, her 4.05.56 season’s best the quickest she’s run for eight years, and faster than she ran to win bronze at Delhi 2010.
Both women will return to the track for the 5,000m, their specialist distance, on Saturday at 15:20hrs (08:20hrs UK time).
In her first race of 2018 Sammi Kinghorn swapped the sprints for the 1500m and despite battling hard all the way to the line, had to settle for fourth.
Zoey Clark contested the Women’s 400m semi-finals in typically Scottish conditions, withthe rain hammering down on the Carrara Stadium. Despite running a strong race, Clark ended up fourth in 52.06, missing out on a final place by just over half a second. She’ll be back in action in the 4x400m Relay later in the week.
A trio of Scots were in qualifying action earlier in the morning, flagbearer Eilidh Doyle making sure of her place in the Women’s 400m Hurdles Final, despite running blind from lane eight. Using all of her experience, the two-time Commonwealth Games silver medallist ran a clean, measured raced to come home clear of the field in 54.80 and ensure she’ll have a good lane for the final on Thursday at 19:30hrs (12:30hrs UK time).
In the men’s 800m it was mixed emotions for Jake Wightman and Guy Learmonth, the former running a mature race to advance automatically to Thursday night’s final, whilst Learmonth was left to rue an injury he picked up earlier this winter, leaving him short of his best form.
Badminton
The individual Badminton action got underway today, with Team Scotland represented in the Men’s Doubles, Mixed Doubles and Women’s Doubles. In what proved to be a perfect afternoon, Julie MacPherson and Martin Campbell set the ball rolling with a 2-0 victory over Pakistan, then Campbell returned to court with Patrick MacHugh to beat Ghana 2-0 in the Men’s Doubles.
Alex Dunn and Adam Hall also scored a 2-0 win in the same event against the Seychelles, with MacPherson and Eleanor O’Donnell rounding out the straight game victories, also against the Seychelles in the Women’s Doubles.
After a bye in the first round, Singles players Kirsty Gilmour and Kieran Merrilees will get their campaigns underway tomorrow, with the draw taking place later this evening.
Beach Volleyball
Team Scotland’s Beach Volleyball Men’s and Women’s Pairs were in quarter-final action today against England and Canada respectively.
Despite a spirited fightback in the second set, Robin Miedzybrodzki and Seain Cook lost 0-2 to England, ending their Commonwealth Games campaign on the Gold Coast. Speaking of the result, Robin said “We’re pretty disappointed not to hang on to that second set and
push it to a third. We’re very happy with our overall performance in the tournament and to finish fifth, but we would have liked to have got into the semi -final to push for a medal.
“It’s been an amazing journey with Seain and I can’t thank him enough for everything he’s put in to it and all the coaches and supporters back home.”
Lynne Beattie and Melissa Coutts took on Canada this evening, but the world number one pair proved too much, despite a passionate effort from the Scottish pair who lost 0-2.
“Canada are the number one team in the world. We knew how tough it would be,” said Coutts.
Beattie added “We had a tough draw but we were delighted to have made the quarter-final.”
Boxing
Vicky Glover was first up in the Women’s Featherweight division facing Canadian, Sabrina Aubin-Boucher. It was a tough technical fight that Vicky seemed to have the best of, but the split decision went the way of Canada. Aqeel Ahmed faced the formidable Amit from India, currently ranked eighth in the world. The Kier Hardie boxer fought well but was unable to overcome the experienced Indian.
Scott Forrest then faced his regular sparring partner Cheavon Clarke of England in the final bout of the afternoon session. In a fight that took everything out of both boxers the decision went the way of the Englishman. In the evening session, Stephen Newns faced a lively fighter from Fiji and despite landing a number of punches throughout each round the decision
A further three fighters are in quarter-final action tomorrow with Reece McFadden facing Pakistan’s Syed Muhammad Asif at 14:02hrs (05:02hrs UK time) before John Docherty faces England’s Ben Whittaker at 15:17hrs (06:17hrs UK time). Nathaniel Collins is the final fighter in the ring against home favourite Harry Garside at 20:17hrs (11:17hrs UK time).
Cycling
Team Scotland’s cyclists finished out of the medal reckoning in the Individual Time Trial at the Currumbin Beachfront today. Katie Archibald came closest in fourth behind Katrin Garfoot (AUS), Linda Villumson (NZL) and Hayley Simmods (AUS), with fellow Scot Neah Evans in eighth.
John Archibald finished furthest up the pack in the Men’s event, despite crashing early on in the 38.5km race, when the bike slipped from underneath him on a bend, causing him to slide into the barrier. Battling back heroically to finish in 11th place, the effects of the heat, exhaustion and adrenaline were evident as he crossed the line. Mark Stewart and Kyle Gordon finished 16th and 27th respectively
Hockey
Both Team Scotland’s Men’s and Women’s Hockey squads played their last pool games today ahead of the classification games later in the week.
The men played New Zealand this morning, with forward Alan Forsyth scoring two goals for Scotland. However, the world-class team dominated the game and New Zealand ended with a 5-2 win.
In the evening, the women played a tough game against Australia, the reigning Commonwealth Champions. After 60 minutes of some serious defending from the Scottish women, and more than a few penalty corners for both sides, Australia ended 2-0 up. The classification draw will be made tomorrow night at the conclusion of the pool games.
Lawn Bowls
Darren Burnett played a hat-trick today, first beating Guernsey’s Muhammad Soufi Rusli 21-13, then Brunei Darussalam’s Abd Rahman Omar with a score of 21-8, and rounding the day off with a 21-19 win against Malaysia’s Muhammad Soufi Rusli.
Team Scotland’s B2/B3 Mixed Pairs were beaten 14-8 by Australia, meaning they’ll play Wales tomorrow in the bronze medal final which takes place at 19:00hrs (10:00hrs UK time).
In other preliminary games today, the Women’s Pairs played Brunei Darussalam, walking away with a 32-9 win. The Men’s Fours were up against Singapore, winning 29-5, and the Women’s Triples were defeated by Malaysia, ending the game 17-10 down.
Netball
Team Scotland’s Netballers put on an impressive show in today’s Pool B match-up with Malawi. A red-hot start for Scotland saw the team race ahead in the early stages of the game but Malawi were able to claw it back, giving the packed Gold Coast Convention Centre a game to roar about.
With just twenty-seven seconds left on the clock, Scotland were given a life-line to try and tie the game as Malawi had a player sent off. However, after missing a crucial penalty in the last ten seconds, it was the African side who were able to hold on to their 51-50 win.
Squash
The doubles competitions got underway today at Oxenford Studios with all five Scottish Squash players in action. After injury ruled her out of the Singles, Lisa Aitken made a strong return alongside Kevin Moran in the Mixed Doubles; winning 2-0 against the Cayman Islands.
After the match Kevin said: We’ve proved our quality coming into this event so there’s no reason for us to think otherwise. We didn’t come here to reach the last 16 or the top 8. We’re really going to go for it.”
In the Men’s Doubles, current World silver medallists Alan Clyne and Greg Lobban made light work of their first match against Zambia, winning 2-0 inside 15 minutes.
After the match Alan said: “It’s all coming together. This is the big goal.” Greg added: “It would be the pinnacle of both our careers. We’re hoping to get the gold.”
The Women’s Doubles pair of Lisa Aitken and Alison Thomson faced England in a tough match on the show court. The Scots pair pushed England hard, almost taking the first game. It finished 11-10, and England followed up with the second game to take the match 2-0.
Looking ahead to their second match, Lisa said: “I think we just need to keep on with what we have been practicing, what we’ve been rehearsing and what we have been training for the past three weeks. Beyond that, we know how we want to play, and it’s just focusing on that and making sure we are doing the right things”
Lisa and Alison are first up in the Women’s Doubles tomorrow against the Cayman Islands at 11:45hrs (02:45hrs UK time) and then England at 18:45hrs (09:45hrs UK time). Alan and Greg play Guyana at 18:45hrs (09:45hrs UK time); before Lisa and Kevin continue the Mixed Doubles against India at 20:15hrs (11:15hrs UK time).
Table Tennis
On day one of the Men’s Singles competition Craig Howieson and Colin Dalgleish both faced two matches each in the group stage.
Craig started well with a 4-0 victory over Mauritius number one Rhikesh Taucoory, before taking on Mark Dowell of Barbados in the evening session with an identical scoreline to take him into the Round of 64 tomorrow.
Colin overcame a shaky start to defeat Devesh Hukmani of Belize 4-1; before facing a tough opponent in Malaysia’s Javen Choong. Despite taking the first game, Colin couldn’t keep the momentum going, eventually losing 4-1.
After his second match, Craig said: “Having not won a Singles match in the Team competition, I’m really glad to have put all of those matches behind me with some good performances today. I played a lot of balls and made those guys put a lot back on the table. My technique was there and I’m feeling under less pressure now, which is great. It’s a big day tomorrow – I could have two Singles matches and the first Doubles match pretty much back to back.”
Gavin Rumgay gets his Singles campaign underway tomorrow after teaming up with Howieson for the Men’s Doubles, which gets underway tomorrow with a match against Norther Ireland at 12:25hrs (03:25hrs UK time).
Para-Powerlifting
There was heartbreak for Micky Yule as for the second Games in a row he finished just outside the medals at fourth place in the Men’s Heavyweight Final. Having battled back from a double leg break over the last 12 months, it was a miracle that he could even compete, let alone get so close to a medal.
After failing his opening lift, Yule was successful at 172kg and 174kg to put himself in bronze medal position, knowing that Indian Sachin Chaudhary was the only man who could deny him a medal. Unfortunately for the war veteran, he did.
Afterwards Yule commented: “That number four is cursing me at the moment. I’m getting closer and closer but just not nailing it down. I’m gutted but I’ll go again for Birmingham, which will be like a home Games for me as I’ll bring the whole of clan Yule down from Scotland!”
It was a bittersweet morning for Team Scotland at Broadbeach Bowls Club as the Men’s Pairs played Wales in the final, battling hard but losing the game in the last end, and walking away with a silver medal.
Twice-winners of the Men’s Pairs gold medal, Alex Marshall and Paul Foster cruised through to the final undefeated in the preliminary, quarter-final, and semi-final stages. But a third gold wasn’t to be for the pair, as they played a thrilling and intense final against their Welsh counterparts, Daniel Salmon and Marc Wyatt.
With the two teams neck-and-neck for the entire game, Marshall’s last bowl was unsuccessful in moving Wales from their winning position which saw the Scots go down 10-12.
Alex said: “It was a great final – but we’re obviously a bit disappointed. We dominated the first ten or eleven ends. Paul played some great bowls and I made a few good conversions. Wales came out really strong in the second half and it was the last few bowls which won the game.
“We came here to defend our title and while walking away with a silver medal isn’t the result we wanted, it’s still a brilliant result for Scotland.”
Paul added: “Wales were confident throughout and both teams really stuck in there right up until the last bowl was played. Naturally we are a little disappointed but we put up a great defence of our title and I’m glad we got to the final.
“We’re not going to be despondent about this – we’re going to bounce back and are looking forward to delivering in the Men’s Fours.”
Today saw the beginning of the preliminary stages for the players’ second disciplines: Men’s Fours, Women’s Pairs, Women’s Triples, and Men’s Singles.
In Para-Bowls, the B2/B3 Mixed Pairs beat the host nation 15-11, meaning they qualify for the semi-final event, where they will play Australia tomorrow at 16:01hrs (07:01hrs UK time).
Frank Baines brought Team Scotland’s Gymnastics medal tally to three today when he carried off a stunning performance to bag bronze on the Parallel Bars.
Coming in close behind Cypriot, Marios Georgiou on 14.533 and England’s Nile Wilson, also on 14.533, Frank’s score of 14.400 guaranteed his spot on the podium, and Team Scotland’s 25th medal of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Part of a historic first Team Event medal for Scotland at Glasgow 2014, Frank had already collected his first medal of Gold Coast 2018 with bronze in the Men’s Team Event on Thursday (5 April). Today’s bronze brings the Gymnastics tally to three following bronze in yesterday’s Floor final for Daniel Purvis.
Following his performance, Frank said: “I knew that I had a chance at a medal if I came out here and performed consistently. I’m really happy with what I did out there today, and it’s always incredible to win a medal – that shows my hard work has paid off.
“Competing at my second Commonwealth Games has been an amazing experience and I went out there and did my best, so to be rewarded with a second medal is a great feeling. Contributing to what looks like it’s going to be Team Scotland’s most successful overseas Games is also pretty special.
“It’ll be nice to relax with the coaches, teammates and family over the next couple of days now that the hard work has been done!”
Frank also competed on the Horizontal Bar today, and was joined by teammate Hamish Carter, with Frank placing 4th on 13.333 points, and Hamish in 8th with a score of 11.033.
Medals in Lawn Bowls and Gymnastics took Team Scotland’s total to 25 (6 gold, 8 silver, 11 bronze) on day five at the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.
Having made the final undefeated, Alex Marshall and Paul Foster faced Wales in the Men’s Pairs final in the morning sun at Broadbeach Bowls Club. The pair had the better of the opening exchanges, but in the final ends were unable to take control with the score ending 12-10 in favour of the Welsh.
In the final day of action at the Coomera Indoor Sports Centre, Frank Baines took bronze on the Parallel Bars. Having finished fourth on the apparatus four years ago, Frank scored 14:400 to secure his place on the podium; adding to the Team Event bronze and the Floor bronze won by Dan Purvis yesterday.
For full details see the individual feature pieces on Lawn Bowls and Gymnastics.
Athletics
The morning session went smoothly for the Team Scotland athletics contingent, Zoey Clark, Allan Smith and David Smith all advancing through their qualifying rounds. The two Smiths were in opposing pools of the Men’s High Jump qualifying round, but both cleared 2.21m to book spots in Wednesday night’s final. On the track, Clark ran a measured 400m heat to finish strongly, finishing second in 52.07 to secure an automatic qualifying place from tomorrow’s semi-final at 21.16hrs (12.16hrs UK time).
Beth Potter made Team Scotland history on Monday evening as she became the first Scot to contest two sports at a single Commonwealth Games, competing on the track over 10,000m having already finished 12th in the Triathlon and 7th in the Mixed Triathlon Relay.
Running on tired legs, Potter dug deep, only losing contact with the lead group just after halfway. Running on her own for the final few laps, the gutsy Glaswegian was able to savour the moment, eventually finishing 18th in 33.26.78.
“That was a tough race for me. I wanted to do it and I’ve made history competing in two events at the same Games.
“I knew it would be hard after the Triathlon, but I have never ducked out of anything in my life and I don’t want to start now. If the pace had been a little bit slower I think I could have stayed with the pack that bit longer and that would have helped me a lot. I enjoyed the experience though and the crowd were great – I heard a lot of support for me out there which was nice.”
In the women’s 1500m heats Steph Twell and Eilish McColgan booked their places in the final at 22:04hrs (13:04hrs UK time) on Tuesday. Both finishing strongly, Twell was fourth in the second race to book an automatic place, whilst McColgan was fifth in the previous heat, good for a fastest loser spot.
Beach Volleyball
Scotland’s Men’s Pair Seain Cook and Robin Miedzybrodzki faced Canada in the final pool game at Coolingata Beach. The match ended 2-0 to the Canadians, but the Scots pair had already done enough to qualify for the quarter-finals. They’ll face England tomorrow at 12:00hrs (03:00 UK time) for a place in the semis. The women’s team are also through to the semi-finals and will play Canada in the evening session at 21:30hrs (12:30hrs UK time).
Boxing
Sean Lazzerini was first in the ring for Scotland today in the Light Heavyweight division. In a tight fight against home favourite Clay Waterman; Sean was on the wrong end of a split decision with the Australian progressing to the next round.
Glasgow 2014 crowd favourite Reece McFadden got his campaign underway with a bout against Keevin Allicock of Guyana. It was a solid performance, with glimpses of the personality that wowed the Glasgow crowds as he took the fight on a split points decision.
Reece said: “It’s my first fight and it’s great to get the ring rust off me. I can assure you I’ll get better and better. “It’s been difficult waiting for the fight, but the facilities have been excellent and I’m just loving every minute of it. I want to change that bronze medal from 2014 to gold. It’s my destiny. I cannot wait. It’s good to give the crowd a bit of entertainment. That’s why I’m here – to win and to entertain. I’ve enjoyed every single minute of this. I love boxing.”
Nathaniel Collins was the final Scottish fighter to begin competition with a tough contest against Colan Caleb of Nauru. It was a tough fight, but Nate boxed well and landed the better of the punches to take the bout on a split points decision.
Quarter-final bouts are the order of the day tomorrow at Oxenford Studios. Vicky Glover is up first against Sabrina Aubin-Boucher of Canada at 12:47hrs (03:47hrs UK time), before Aqeel Ahmed gets his Games underway an hour later against the Indian fighter Amit. A home nation clash between training partners Scott Forrest and England’s Cheavon Clarke at 15:47hrs (06:47hrs UK time) will be one of the bouts to watch tomorrow, before Stephen Newns looks to book a semi-final spot by defeating Winston Hill of Fiji at 19:32hrs (10:32hrs UK time).
* All fight times subject to change following draws and scheduling.
Cycling
Team Scotland’s Cycling squad will look to build on their ten-medal track success on the Road in tomorrow’s Men’s and Women’s Individual Time Trial at the Currumbin Beachfront from 10:00 hrs (01:00 hrs UK time) and 14:45 hrs (05:45 hrs UK time) respectively.
Katie Archibald, Neah Evans, John Archibald, Kyle Gordon and Mark Stewart will take part in the days’ races against the clock over a 25.5km (Women’s) and 38.5km (Men’s) distance.
Hockey
After a defeat and a draw in their opening two games, Team Scotland’s Women’s Hockey players showed what they are really capable of, with an impressive 5-0 victory over Ghana. Playing high tempo hockey, the team showed tenacity and poise in front of goal to set up a crunch match against Australia at 21:30hrs (12:30hrs UK time) tomorrow; a win would see them into the semi-finals.
Of the win Lloyd-Alexander said: “That shows what we’re capable of and we needed that for our confidence. We’ll definitely take that through to the match against Australia tomorrow as the winner of that game goes through to the semi-final – there’s not much more motivation than that.”
Netball
Following an impressive win over Wales on Saturday, Team Scotland’s Netball team were faced with a tough match-up against the World number 2, New Zealand. At the end of 60 minutes, New Zealand ran out 60-29 winners. Two more, tough group games follow for Scotland with Malawi on Tuesday and Uganda on Wednesday.
Lawn Bowls
The Men’s Pairs final was just one of a number featuring Team Scotland at the Broadbeach Bowls Club today.
A new round of preliminary stages got underway today, with the Women’s Triples and the Men’s Singles and Fours all competing in their first matches. Darren Burnett was up first in the Men’s Singles and made short work of Edward Bell, his Samoan opponent, winning 21-2 in just 12 ends.
Up next were the Men’s Fours against Brunei Darussalam, winning 25-9 and the Women’s Triples versus Norfolk Island, winning 16-9. Darren was then back in action against Niue’s Dalton Tagelagi, cruising to another win of 21-3. The Women’s Triples also played their second game against Cook Islands, winning 28-10.
In Para-Bowls, the B2/B3 Mixed Pairs defeated the home nation 15-11, seeing them progress through to the semi-final event taking place tomorrow at 16:00hrs (07:00hrs UK time), where they’ll play Australia once again.
The B6/B7/B8 Open Triples played their last preliminary round game against South Africa, fighting until the end, but losing 15-7 – unfortunately ruling them out of any further part in the competition.
Shooting
The Men’s 10m Air Pistol was first up at the Belmont Shooting Centre with Aedan Evans competing for Team Scotland. With a score of 559-12x, Evans finished just outside the qualification standard for the final in 12th.
In the Women’s 10m Air Rifle, Seonaid McIntosh qualified for the final in seventh place with a score of 410.4, with sister, Jennifer narrowly missing out by 0.2, finishing with 409.4. In the final Seonaid started well and made it through the first three eliminations; eventually finishing in fifth.
Sandy Walker and Ian Shaw are sitting in fourth position after day one of the Queen’s Prize Pairs. They return to the range tomorrow at 10:00hrs (01:00hrs UK time). Also competing tomorrow are Neil Stirton and Lenny Thomson in the Men’s 50m Rifle Prone; and Jess Liddon in the 25m Pistol, both from 09:00hrs (00:00hrs UK time).
Squash
Competing in the Men’s Singles Classic Plate Final, Kevin Moran took to the court against Micah Franklin of Bermuda. In keeping with his form over the past couple of days, Kevin won 3-0, which sets him up nicely going into the mixed doubles, which starts on Tuesday 10 April.
Swimming
Camilla Hattersley put in a gutsy performance in the final of the 800m Freestyle on the penultimate evening of the swimming competition. Euan Inglis lined up alongside a world-class field in the 50m Breaststroke final finishing 7th in 28.03, while Craig McNally put in an impressive performance in the final of the 200m Backstroke. The Scottish Record Holder for the event finished 7th in 1:58.32, almost a two second improvement on his heat time.
Sean Campsie finished the 100m Butterfly in 53.51 for 8th while Toni Shaw completed her Team Scotland debut with yet another PB in the SB9 100m Breaststroke, finishing seventh in 1:27.99. In other events Kathleen Dawson, Cassie Wild and Lucy Hope showed determination and all secured a place in tomorrow’s final of the 50m Backstroke, while Jack Thorpe and Scott McLay finished 11th and 12th respectively for the 50m Freestyle.
Scottish swimmers competing in the heats on the final day of the swimming competition are Camilla Hattersley, Abbie Houston and Hannah Miley (400m Freestyle), Mark Szaranek, Dan Wallace and Duncan Scott (200m IM). Scotland is also fielding teams in both the men’s and women’s 4x100m Medley Relay events.
Weightlifting
There was disappointment for Zach Courtney in the Men’s 105kg competition, as he was forced to withdraw after the snatch, having lifted 130kg. Courtney had been on great form over the last 12 months, but an untimely illness left him short of his best. Still just 23, he has plenty of time ahead of him and will look to make amends in Birmingham in four years’ time.
Team Scotland’s track and field athletes get their Gold Coast 2018 campaign underway at the Carrara Stadium on Sunday 8 April with possibly their strongest squad for decades, and a number of medal chances across a range of disciplines.
After four medals four years ago in Glasgow and 2014 medallists Eilidh Doyle, Lynsey Sharp and Mark Dry all returning to the fray, the team will be hoping to do even better ‘down under’. There will be several athletes with hopes of emulating Libby Clegg’s victory in Glasgow, Scotland’s first gold on the track since Yvonne Murray took the 10,000m title at the Victoria 1994 Games.
Flagbearer at the Opening Ceremony, Eilidh Doyle will hope to lead by example as she takes to the track for the 400m Hurdles and the 4x400m Relay. Having silver in both Delhi and Glasgow, the Olympic, World and European medallist would love to to go one better on the Gold Coast, but knows it won’t be easy.
“There’s a lot more competition this time round,” she said. “There are three Jamaicans, a Canadian and a very good South African, so it definitely isn’t going to be straightforward to win a medal. Off the back of indoors I’ve shown my flat speed is there, so it’s just about getting the hurdling right and running a good race. If I can nail my race then I think I’ll be happy whatever that brings.”
Lynsey Sharp’s 2014 Games also had a silver lining, as she recovered from illness to finish second in the 800m on an emotional evening inside Hampden Park. Since then the Edinburgh athlete has revised her personal best to 1.57.69, but like Doyle will face stiff competition from the likes of Caster Semenya for a place on the podium.
On the field, Mark Dry and Chris Bennett go in the Men’s Hammer, which kick starts the Athletics action on the Gold Coast. Dry won a brilliant bronze four years ago, but since then has had double surgery on his hip. None-the-less both Dry and Bennett have made the Olympics since Glasgow and have thrown over 76 metres, so will be in the hunt for a medal at 14:00hrs (05:00hrs UK time) on Sunday.
At the opposite end of the programme Callum Hawkins and Robbie Simpson will contest the final event of the Games when the Men’s Marathon gets underway on Sunday 15 April. Hawkins was fourth at the London 2017 World Championships last summer and will have high hopes over 26.2 miles next weekend.
Also in action on the roads is World Champion Sammi Kinghorn, as she steps up to the marathon distance on the final day of action. Before that however she goes in the T54 1500m final on Tuesday evening. Other para-athletes in action are Amy Carr and Maria Lyle in the T38 long jump and T35 100m respectively.
The middle distance events have the strongest Scottish representation, Guy Learmonth hoping to improve on a breakthrough sixth place finish in Glasgow four years ago. Jake Wightman will also go in the 800m before returning to the track alongside Chris O’Hare in the men’s 1500m, with both men hoping to mix it with the best in the Commonwealth.
In the women’s events, Delhi 2010 1500m bronze medallist Steph Twell will contest both that event and the 5,000m, as will an in-form Eilish McColgan. Doubling the distance, Beth Potter will complete a historic double when she lines up in the 10,000m on Monday evening, having already finished 12th in the Triathlon and seventh in the Mixed Triathlon Relay at the Games. Lennie Waite also goes in the 3,000m Steeplechase.
Allan Smith, David Smith and Nikki Manson will all contest the High Jump, whilst 18 year old Holly McArthur is in action when the heptathlon that gets underway on Thursday 12 April.
Back on the track Zoey Clark has enjoyed a meteoric rise over the last 18 months, winning medals as part of the GB 4x400m Relay team at both the World Indoor and Outdoor Championships. She’ll look to go one better than her semi-final place in the individual 400m at the World Championships last summer, as well as forming part of the Team Scotland 4x400m Relay quartet who’ll be aiming to be in the shake-up for medals on the final day of action.
Daniel Purvis added to the mid-afternoon flurry of medals for Team Scotland today (Sunday 8 April) as he picked up bronze in the Men’s Gymnastics Floor final.
With a score of 13.733, despite a penalty deduction for stepping outside of the boundary line, Dan came third behind Cypriot, Marios Georgiou on 13.966 points and Canada’s Scott Morgan on 13.833. Team Scotland’s other gymnast in the final, Hamish Carter, was hot on their heels with a final score of 13.633 to finish fourth.
With his medal total now at two after having collected his first bronze in the Men’s Team Event, today marked the last day of competition for Dan in his second Commonwealth Games.
Glasgow 2014 saw Dan collect three medals, gold for Parallel Bars, silver for the Men’s Team Event, and bronze for Rings – an apparatus he also competed on today, placing 7th in the final.
Speaking after the day’s events, Dan said: “It’s fantastic to come away with a medal – it was a tough final which shows just how hard gymnastics is, particularly when there are back-to-back events.
“There was everything to play for in the Floor final; I just tried to go as clean as I could on my execution and stay on my feet. The standard just keeps getting better which is brilliant, but that makes competing even harder, so I was really happy to pick up bronze today.”
Other Team Scotland gymnasts in action at the Coomera Indoor Sports Centre included Shannon Archer and Cara Kennedy who placed fifth and seventh in the Women’s Vault final.
Tomorrow will see Frank Baines vie to collect a medal in the Parallel Bars final at 15:19hrs (06:19hrs UK time) and also in the Horizontal Bar Final at 16:45hrs (07:45hrs UK time), alongside teammate Hamish Carter.