Lawn bowlers preview - 26 July

26 June 2002

Bowls fans will be treated to two crunch games on the first morning of the Games.

In the men’s fours, host nation England take on Malaysia, who have spent the four years since Kuala Lumpur 1998 under the tutelage of Australian coaching staff.

In the women’s fours event, the game of the morning session will be New Zealand v Northern Ireland. The Kiwis will find out for real whether their intensive training sessions on greens designed to imitate Heaton Park conditions were of benefit to them.

The favourite in the EAD singles, Ruth Small (ENG) is also in action against Moira Mukri of Malaysia in the morning session.

The pairs roll up in the second session, which begins at 12:30. South Africa v Norfolk Island will be hotly contested in the men’s competition while in the women’s event all eyes will be on New Zealand v Zimbabwe.

The men’s pairs and women’s fours continue in the evening session, which starts at 16:00. Norfolk Island will take on Australia in the pairs under the gaze of the BBC, and Scotland and Wales will square up in a clash of the home nations in the fours.

An interesting battle of the islets will also take place in the afternoon session. Jersey will take on Norfolk Island. Shrewd betters will put their money on Norfolk Island, but depending on the weather, conditions could favour the Channel island.

New Zealand take on South Africa and Scotland are up against Zimbabwe in the Group 2 match in the blind singles.

Info News Service/mb/pjt