Bowls: Elgin pair end the reign of national champions

ELGIN will play Prestwick and East Fife will face Cumbernauld in the pairs championship when the National finals are played at Coatbridge at the end of March.

In their weekend playdowns at Dundee, Norman Barker and Mike Stepney, from Elgin, ended the reign of holders Ryan and Darren Burnett, from Arbroath, 18-10 to move into the semi-finals next year.

Prestwick’s Paul Foster and Alex Adrain will provide the opposition after a 19-18 win over Inverclyde’s Steven McLennan and Sandy Wotherspoon. East Fife combination Christopher Stein and Wayne Hogg beat Blainfield pair Chris Downie and Colin Hutchison 26-17 to seal their last-four tie against Cumbernauld’s Hugh McAvoy and Tom Simpson.

In the women’s competition, Sharron Leitch and Lorraine Malloy, of Balbardie, won through to meet Paisley’s Kath Houston and Ann Marie Fletcher in the semi-finals. Midlothian’s Stacey Laidlaw and Carol Ashby, and Caroline Ruxton and Leanne Fuyre, of Arbroath, play the other last-four game.