Craigentinny secure Top 5 Singles title

The bowls final of the Edinburgh & Leith Top Five Singles Championship for the Ian McFarlane Trophy was a cracking affair with the destination of the title in doubt until Craigentinny clinched a 3-2 win over Currie at Postal to secure their third success in the competition.

Club champion Andrew Caldwell was in scintillating form to score an inspirational opening win for Craigentinny and the 2005 winner of the Junior Scotland Singles title gained late support from Craig McCall and Gordon Bold.

Craigentinny may have been the pre-final favourites but Currie were very much at the races, especially Kenny Melville and Andrew McKendrick who both played brilliantly to outshine their respective opposition and give Currie a 2-1 lead. And it looked as though that lead would become 3-1 when David Hill led McCall 20-18.

However, McCall held is nerve to find a 2, 1 finish to win 21-20, a victory which inspired Bold to beat Gordon Hill 21-16 and secure the crown.

The final opened with Caldwell in electric form against Paul Anderson, constructing a run of 2, 3, 3, 1, 3, 2 to lead 15-2. Caldwell then answered the loss of a single with a grandstand run of 1, 2, 3 to win in 13 ends.

Currie hit back through Kenny Melville who stood 13-8 ahead then accelerated to 21 with a run of 1, 1, 1, 2, 3 against Kevin Hunter.

Andrew McKendrick then beat David Brown 21-14.

Meanwhile, McCall trailed Hill at 10-6 and 15-11 before fighting back and Bold had been closed to 20-16 by Hill who continued to menace at the next until Bold conjured up a magic last-bowl winner – for game and title.