Commonwealth Games 2014: Victory for Marshall and Foster sets a golden Games record for Scotland
It took the duo just 90 minutes to earn Scotland’s 12th gold
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Your support makes all the difference.Alex Marshall and Paul Foster handed Scotland their first bowls gold in eight years by hammering Malaysia 20-3 in the pairs final at Kelvingrove.
It took the duo just 90 minutes to earn Scotland’s 12th gold, which beats their previous Games record from Melbourne 2006.
The victory is Marshall’s third Commonwealth title after pairs victories in 2002 and 2006, but he said winning in front of a home crowd was his biggest achievement.
The 19-time world champion said: “This is just fantastic. I have won two golds before but this one tops the lot. Playing in your own back yard in front of your own fans – you just can’t beat it.
“That is our 12th gold medal of the games for Team Scotland, so that is another record broken, which is fantastic.”
The Scottish pair had reached the final full of confidence following a last-gasp semi-final win over England.
Marshall, the skip, celebrated with a clench-fist gesture to the crowd and was still pumped up as he and Foster hit the Malaysians with an early blitz, picking up 14 shots in the first seven ends to leave Fairul Izwan Abd Muin and Muhammad Hizlee Abdul Rais looking badly out of their depth.
They did draw the eighth end but the Scots romped into a 19-0 ahead – just two shots shy of an automatic win.
Malayasia picked up three shots over the 13th and 14th ends to ensure they did not suffer total humiliation.
But Marshall wrapped up a near-flawless victory in the 15th exchange with a single, before the Malaysians finally conceded with three ends still to go.
PA
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