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Emily Kernick and Dominic McVittie, England, and Wales’ Ross Owen and Lauren Gowen
Two of the top seeds in the World Bowls Indoor Championship made shock exits from the singles event at Aberdeen IBC, Scotland, as the event reached the final stages.
Home favourite Stewart Anderson, World Bowls’ Series Number 15 seed, a former back-to-back winner of the coveted title, was beaten in straight sets by England’s singles champion Dominic McVittie in the quarter-final, while his teammate Emily Kernick knocked out highly decorated Aussie star Kelsey Cottrell (WBS No 3) 2-0 at the same stage.
It’s the final push to win a world title in the men’s and women’s singles and mixed pairs tomorrow (Friday).
Seven countries will be bidding for glory – Wales, England, South Africa, Australia, Malaysia, Scotland, New Zealand.
The mixed pairs finalists are already locked in. Wales’ Lauren Gowen (WBS 56) and Ross Owen (WBS 23) will play the aforementioned English duo who enjoyed a particularly successful day on the Aberdeenshire carpet.
In the quarter-finals, the English ousted the defending nation Australia – Cottell and Jack McShane (WBS 3) in the quarter-final and sneaked over the line on the last end of a tiebreak against Scotland’s Claire Anderson and Stewart Anderson, the latter a twice winner, while the Welsh outfit beat Ireland’s Zoe Minish, a former junior mixed winner, and Andy Kyle, 2016 singles victor, before accounting for Alison and Ian Merrien, of Guernsey, in the semi-final. The Channel Islanders’ picking up their third medal in the event having been silver winners twice previously.
WOMEN’S SINGLES
In the women’s singles semi-finals, Kernick (WBS 80) will play Malaysia’s Emma Firyana Binti Saroji, while Scotland’s Sophie McGrouther will take on the challenge of New Zealand’s Tayla Bruce (WBS 18).
Kernick is bidding to be the first English winner in nine years, while Malaysia will be looking to retain the title Nor Farah Ain Abdullah (WBS 1) won 12 months ago in Guernsey, Channel Islands. Saroji beat South Africa’s Masters gold medal winner Esme Kruger (WBS 8) to clinch her place in the last four.
Current three times winner of the Under 25 national singles, McGrouther, was a back-to-back bronze medallist in the World Bowls Indoor Championship in 2023 and 2024, while Bruce is a Commonwealth Games bronze medallist and champion of champions and World Bowls gold medallist. In the quarter-finals, McGrouther beat four times singles winner of this event Alison Merrien MBE (WBS 23), with Bruce, the only woman in the field to have won every one of her seven singles matches so far, getting the better of Scottish singles winner Claire Anderson.
MEN’S SINGLES
In the last eight of the men’s singles, Wales’ Ross Owen, a bronze medallist at the World Bowls champion of champions in 2024, maintained his 100 per cent record in the discipline beating Hong Kong, China’s Anthony So 8-2, 8-4, while South Africa’s Masters gold medallist Jason Evans (WBS 37) clinched his place in the penultimate round on a tiebreak against Ian Merrien, of Guernsey, to continue his run of success.
The semi-final draw sees Wales play England in a repeat of the British Isles Indoor Bowls Council’s men’s singles final just over a month ago, while Australia will do battle against South Africa with 21-year-old McShane, the youngest competitor in the competition looking to repeat the success of Aron Sherriff in 2023 and Evans with his sights on being the first SA winner.
The semi-finals of both disciplines kick-off finals Friday at 8.30 am followed by the final of the mixed pairs, then women’s singles and men’s singles.
Since Sunday, 64 bowlers have been competing in the World Bowls and International Indoor Bowls Council co-sanctioned event.
In addition to the world titles, World Bowls Series ranking points are up for grabs, plus the winners of the men’s and women’s singles will also receive an invitation to compete at the World Bowls Tour World Indoor Bowls Championships at Potters Resorts in January 2026.
World Bowls Indoor Championship results can be followed at the World Bowls match centre: Results portal
Live scoring can be found at: Live scoring
For full player list, roll of honour and more event information, see programme book: Programme
RESULTS
MEN’S SINGLES
Play-off: Dominic McVittie (England) bt Mark McGreal (Isle of Man) 6-9, 8-1, 6-0; Jack McShane (Australia) bt Pete Bonsor (Spain) 9-4, 7-4; Ian Merrien (Guernsey) bt Keanu Darby (New Zealand) 8-5, 9-4; Anthony So (Hong Kong, China) bt Muhammad Azami (Malaysia) 10-1, 9-6.
Quarter-finals: Australia bt Andy Kyle (Ireland) 5-4, 3-6, 3-1; Ross Owen (Wales) bt Hong Kong, China 8-2, 8-4; England bt Stewart Anderson (Scotland) 9-4, 6-3; Jason Evans (South Africa) bt Guernsey 7-4, 3-8, 4-1.
WOMEN’S SINGLES
Play-off: Emily Kernick (England) bt Lauren Gowen (Wales) 5-4, 3-5, 2-1; Claire Anderson (Scotland) bt Rachel MacDonald (Jersey) 9-1, 4-9, 6-0; Sophie McGrouther (Scotland 2) bt Caroline Whitehead (Isle of Man) 9-5, 14-0; Esme Kruger (South Africa) bt Connie Rixon (Malta) 9-4, 7-2, 2-1.
Quarter-finals: Emma Firayana Binti Saroji (Malaysia) bt South Africa 7-4, 8-1; Tayla Bruce (New Zealand) bt Scotland 7-1, 3-6, 4-0; England bt Kelsey Cottrell (Australia) 5-4, 7-5; Scotland 2 bt Alison Merrien MBE (Guernsey) 4-6, 9-1, 4-0.
MIXED PAIRS
Quarter-finals: Claire Anderson and Stewart Anderson (Scotland) bt Soledad Robertson and Loukas Paraskeva (Cyprus) 8-6, 16-2; Emily Kernick and Dominic McVittie (England) bt Kelsey Cottrell and Jack McShane (Australia) 9-2, 7-5; Alison and Ian Merrien (Guernsey) bt Kim Watt and Boaz Markus (Scotland/Israel) 8-1, 9-3; Lauren Gowen and Ross Owen (Wales) bt Zoe Minish and Andrew Kyle (Ireland) 8-3, 4-3.
Semi-finals: Wales bt Guernsey 7-0, 6-3; England bt Scotland 2-7, 6-5, 3-2.
Report compiled by media officer – Ceris Hewlings ceris.hewlings@keypublishing.com
