EAST Lothian’s lady bowlers missed out on a place in the semi-finals of the knockout cup following an 8-2 loss at the hands of Arbroath, writes Matt Osborne.

Having dispatched league leaders East Fife in the last round, the county side headed to Abbeyview high on confidence.

The East Lothian ladies started the better and held the advantage at end five.

However, Arbroath got to grips with the carpet and slowly reduced the deficit over the next hour and were just one shot behind by end 10.

Yvonne Veitch held a sizeable lead to all-but secure two points for East Lothian and remain in contention for two points for the overall score as a result.

However, East Lothian would need another victory to secure the win, a victory that was in sight as Janet Fairnie reduced her individual deficit to just one shot.

Unfortunately, Arbroath skip Leanne Fury would put the tie to bed as she scored five shots without reply and sealed her team’s place in the last four.

The ladies return to league action this Saturday as they host Balbardie knowing any win will help their cause for survival.

Meanwhile, Falkirk completed a rare league double over East Lothian’s gents at the weekend.

Having won the home contest earlier in the campaign, Falkirk knew a repeat would see them leapfrog East Lothian in the table.

In a close opening five ends, the sides were separated by just a single shot, 17-16.

A heavy scoring period for Falkirk saw them open a 41-24 lead at the halfway point and hold the advantage 58-42 at end 15.

East Lothian did respond over the last few ends and levelled the match at 65-65 to force a tense finish.

But it would be the visitors who would find an answer to the questions asked, as they saw the game out 73-68.

The result leaves East Lothian third in the table and they head to Abbeyview in the final league fixture.

Finally, East Lothian claimed a quarter-final spot in the mixed knockout championship with victory over Berwickshire on Sunday.

Reigning club champion Stuart Thomson set the bar with a 21-16 victory in the singles contest.

Additional wins in the triples and fours saw the club clinch an impressive 8-2 win and a place in the last eight.

They await the winners of Abbeyview versus Tweedbank, with the later stages scheduled for April.