Mixed fortunes for boccia teams in pool action

ParalympicsGB’s BC4 boccia mixed pairs had no answer to defending champions Slovakia but the trio of Stephen McGuire, Louis Saunders and Evie Edwards have vowed to up their game if they meet again.

After an opening win over Brazil, the British trio went down 8-0 to the Slovakians, who are also world champions, leaving them in a fight to make the semi-finals.

Currently second in their pool, it could be a straight shootout with Canada for the second semi-final spot, and McGuire knows the team will have to be more clinical from here on in.

He said: “They are very, very strong, physically, and that shows why they’re world champions and Paralympic champions.

“We could have been a bit more clinical. We were creating opportunities, we just needed to take them. If we play them again and take our opportunities, it will be a better game.”

Edwards echoed his thoughts, saying: “I think if we’re all just a bit more clinical, we can take them next time. We can do it.”

Saunders, meanwhile, was in admiration of the trio of Samuel Andrejcik, Michaele Balcova and Martin Streharsky, saying: “Slovakia are the top, top team so it was brilliant to play them and just understand what makes them the best in the world is good to learn from.”

Elsewhere in the team events, chance of progress is looking a tall order for the BC1/2 mixed team and the BC3 mixed pairs.

In the former, individual champion David Smith has already set his sights on Paris after defeats to China and Thailand alongside Claire Taggart and Will Hipwell.

He said: “It was an interesting game. Thailand are a really good team, we probably expect them to win the tournament if we’re honest, so we knew it was going to be tough.

“I think overall the information we got, and how we handled ourselves under the pressure, was good. We could have easily sunk and they could have scored 18 or 20 after we went eight down.

“But we actually won the next two ends, so that is really encouraging and I can’t wait for Paris, I tell you.”

And there was also disappointment for the team of Scott and Jamie McCowan, playing with Beth Moulam in the BC3 after defeats to Korea, on a tie-break and Greece, 4-2 – with the latter a particularly tough one to swallow for the trio.

Scott McCowan said: “We tried really hard there and I thought we played a great game.

“I’m struggling a bit more to explain how we lost because at the start we played at a really good level, particularly in the last end. We thought we had the game plan and tactics to play well enough but we didn’t get the job done so it’s extremely disappointing.”

All three teams will be back in action on Friday.