Journalist for the i newspaper, Bowls England National Finals commentator and a name well-known to bowlers, Emily Ferguson will be reviewing most days of the action at Victoria Park.

Sophie Tolchard and Amy Pharaoh were the only England players to take to the greens bright and early on Wednesday, where they recorded another superb win in the Women’s Pairs. They had lots of support, with over half a dozen spectators wearing Egyptian headdresses in honour of Amy’s surname. In their first game against Fiji they got off to a flying start. After six ends the duo were 8-2 and extended it to 11-3 after nine ends. Their opponents managed to pull back to 12-10 after 13 ends but Tolchard and Pharaoh stepped up their game to finish 19-13.

Not long afterwards they took to A1 to play Scotland in a tense match, but both players were on outstanding form and didn’t give the Scots much room to manoeuvre. After seven ends they were 10-2 up and at 12 ends they were 14-5 up. They continued to excel over the course of the match and finished 19-7. They are now top of their group and will progress to the Quarter Finals on Friday morning.

Jamie Walker played on B Green at 11:30am in his second round of the Men’s Singles. He played Jamaica and recorded a fantastic win, finishing 21-8. He has two games tomorrow which he will need to win to secure his place in the next stage of the competition.

Michelle White and Gill Platt played their first game on A Green on Wednesday afternoon in their Bronze Medal Match of the Para Women’s Pairs B6-B8 against South Africa. They got off to a disappointing start and were 10-2 down after six ends. They managed to pull back slightly to 12-5 after 10 ends but were unable to cross over the line and finished 16-7. Sadly this meant the pair missed out on a medal.

The Men’s Fours, consisting of Louis Ridout, Nick Brett, Jamie Chestney and Sam Tolchard, played against Fiji at the same time when they achieved a convincing win of 23-8. At 6pm they played India and recorded another impressive scoreline, having been 18-3 up after 10 ends. The team continued their fine form throughout the match and finished 20-11. This means they finish top of their group and will progress to the Quarter Finals on Friday.

Alongside them at 6pm, Alison Yearling and Chris Turnbull played their final match of the sectional play against New Zealand. As with all their other games they were joined by their respective directors, Susan Wherry and Mark Wherry. The first two ends looked promising as they picked up two double shots, but it wasn’t meant to be and the pair lost 19-8. They finish fourth in their group stage which means they have qualified to the Semi Final stages on Thursday evening.

Jamie-Lea Winch, Natalie Chestney and Sian Honnor played just one match in the Women’s Triples at 3pm against New Zealand. They got off to a strong start and were 10-5 up after 10 ends. But sadly they got stuck on 10 for five ends. They managed to pull back slightly but ended up losing 18-14. But despite the loss they are still top of their section and have secured their place in the Quarter Finals. As the sectional play of the competition is still ongoing, the team do not yet know their opponents.

You can find a full Team England Lawn Bowls & Para Lawn Bowls schedule by clicking here, or on the button below.

The Commonwealth Games is organised by Birmingham 2022, further information about the event can be found here.  The Bowls England Team are currently busy ensuring that we maximise this golden opportunity for our sport.  Please be aware that, during this period, we are operating a reduced phone and email service, and responses to queries maybe delayed.