Partners on the bowling rink and best friends off it, Chloe Wilson and Shauna O’Neill were struggling to hide their emotions as they beat Wales in set straights to claim a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
The win was made all the sweeter after the duo suffered heartbreak on Monday night, missing out on the gold medal match after losing a tie-break to world champions Malaysia.
“I think when I saw Amy’s (Williams, of Wales) bowl come down I was panicking. I was thinking ‘oh no, we are going to have to go to another tie-break’ and it didn’t go for us the night before so the emotions weren’t great,” said O’Neill.
“When I saw it dip away and the dust had settled the sense of relief, pride, happiness – everything. I have never experienced that many emotions in my life time, it was just so nice.
“I think it makes it even sweeter that we have done it together, it means an awful lot to both of us, so I’m just really proud of what we have done together.”
The bond between the pair is clear to see in how they interact both on the rink and away from competition.
“I think it is handy when you like the person you are playing with,” O’Neill said with a smile.
“Chole and I have been through so much together. Highs, lows – everything – and because we have played so much together we know each other’s strengths, each other’s weaknesses, when we need a pick me up or a real good shake.
“We know each other inside out and that is what has really helped us in this tournament.
“To win a medal means everything, that is what we came here to do. It mightn’t be the colour we wanted, but we have fought really hard for this and we are really proud of our efforts.
“I wasn’t looking into it too much as being a bronze medal match, the way I said it to Chloe is this is our last pairs match together and we just wanted to make sure we went out and enjoyed it and leave the Commonwealth Games on a high.
“We just wanted to win and ever game we play we want to win. We didn’t treat it any differently and we are just really happy to get over the line.”
O’Neill will now turn her attention to the singles while the games are over for Wilson.
“I can’t wait to be the top supporter now,” laughed Wilson.
“I’m really looking forward to watching Gary (Kelly), Adam (McKeown) and Shauna in the singles. That is all for me, I’ll just be supporting Shauna in the singles and clapping all the good bowls in.”
O’Neill is targeting a second medal when she goes it alone.
“Hopefully this gives me the confidence going into the singles it is really important for me now to just ground myself and composure myself and reset,” she said.
“It is a new tournament and I need to treat it like that and be level headed.”
O’Neill’s quest for singles success started with a straight sets win.
