Bowls' Bronzed Aussies

22 Mar 06 07:42

Australia's men continued to perform well at the Lawn Bowls, downing Malta to win the Pairs bronze medal, 9-5, 7-7.

Fighting the heat, Australia's Barrie Lester and Nathan Rice kept on top of the Maltese pair of Francis Vella and Leonard Callus, to the cheers of a near-capacity crowd.

With both teams adopting an attacking approach, Malta appeared to have difficulty when bowling to the northern end, allowing Australia to win the first set.

In a nail-biting second set, Australia won three on the sixth end, but Malta responded precisely on the eighth to win two shots and take a 7-6 lead.

Holding one shot on the ninth, Australia's decision not to play their last bowl paid off when Malta's final drive overshot the mark, making the final set a draw.

A delighted Lester was jubilant with the third place finish.

"As I was leaving last night, a few of the volunteers said, 'if someone told you two years ago that you would have a bronze medal hanging around your neck, you'd be happy,' and I said, 'yes, I would have been happy.' A bronze medal is great," he said.

Malta's Callus conceded the win to Australia, "They both bowled really well. We weren't up to the occasion at the end."

The men's Gold and silver will be determined this evening in an all-British decider, as England battle Scotland.

For all the action on the greens, visit the Lawn Bowls Schedule and Results section of this Website.

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