Colin Mitchell holds his nerve to win Carrick Knowe club title

Completed under floodlights an epic encounter had always looked in prospect given the high quality opposition of Johnny Priestley, Paul O’Donnell, and current Scotland cap James Hogg. An additional bonus was the winners earning the right to carry the Carrick Knowe banner into next season’s District Playdown of the national championship.

Mitchell and Co entered the penultimate end defending a 14-12 lead and a single brought the opposition under even greater pressure. Hogg and his front-two built the better head at the next end and held the four shots needed to snatch victory on the line.

Mitchell was left to take the final bowl and his ‘yard on’ was precisely on target to ‘chap and lie’ and effectively reduce his losses from 4 to 2 thereby producing a single-shot victory.

“There was a great atmosphere playing under the floodlights and the banking was treated to a fierce battle that went right down to the wire,” said Mitchell.

n Stevie Thomson has won the Champion of Champions title of East Lothian with the 51-year-old from Castlepark hallmarking a sterling campaign with a 21-19 victory over Billy Mellors in a 29-end final at West Barns.

The seven-times club champion was contesting his third C of C final and carded a maximum 4 to go 19-17 up on his illustrious Haddington counterpart. He triggered the victory salute three ends later with a single to 21.

Thomson dealt Bobby Brunton of Dunbar an exit in the semi-finals while Mellors beat Lindsay Bell of Aberlady.

n Haddington was the venue for the finals of the East Lothian County Championships and the host club came close in the main event but Colin Dick was denied the title by John Gearty of Cockenzie and Port Seton who won 21-6.

Steven White of ELCO came out on top in an epic 21-19 battle against Jack Ferguson of Longniddry in the final of The Junior Singles.