Bowls: Rita aura inspires Bainfield Ladies

Bainfield Ladies won't finish top of Division 1C of the indoor bowls national leagues but the Edinburgh outfit can at least boast an unbeaten home record.

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A winless away run has killed their chances of challenging high-flying East Lothian but Bainfield can celebrate strong performances at the Hutchison Crossway Stadium as confirmed by their latest win over second-placed Balbardie.

The Bathgate-based team’s threat to leaders East Lothian was killed off in savage style by a Bainfield team that ripped the visitors apart in the shape of a 41-shot demolition (109-68), engineered by a red-hot rink skipped by Rita Reid.

Wins for the rinks skipped by Anna Anderson and Isabel Anderson combined to make life very uncomfortable for Balbardie but the visitors did gain a degree of consolation via a winning effort contributed by Sharon Leitch at the expense of Mandy O’Donnell.

Bainfield were celebrating their fourth win on their home carpet and a full-house five is only denied by the flood postponed match against foot-of-the-table Teviotdale remaining unresolved – perhaps unlikely to be played.

Reid and her Bainfield front-three of Jeanette Crawford, Kathleen Barr and Cathie Falconer blazed a 14-4 trail after eight ends that included three counts of 4 then, having lost a calamitous count of seven at end 11 to be closed to 16-12, answered that challenge with a mighty five then a three to 24-12 before storming to a 40-17 triumph over Josie Bachini with a whirlwind run of 3, 5, 2, 3.

Anna Anderson skipped Aimee Robertson, Karen Tumblety and Susan Allan into a 12-6 lead then, being tested at 13-11, whizzed to a 25-12 win over Delia Flannigan with a grandstand finish of 1, 1, 2, 4, (1), 3, 1.

Isabel Anderson carded a three and a five to skip Davina Crawford, Lily Murray and Betty Eaton into a 15-8 lead over Angie Uttley then stretched her seven-shot lead to 11 (25-14) before clinching a 28-19 victory.

O’Donnell and her rink of Heather Stoddart, Chloe Thomson and Anne Watson answered a 12-2 deficit after six ends with a 1, 1, 2, 1, 4, 1 fightback to peel at 12-12 but slipped to a 20-16 defeat from Catherine Lochran, Catherine Shearer, Kim Ross and Sharon Leitch.