Rebecca McMillan from Weston’s St Andrews Bowls Club had a brilliant, medal-winning week at the World Bowls Indoor Championships on the Channel Island of Guernsey.

The 31-year-old care worker won a silver medal in the mixed pairs, partnered by her fellow English champion Harry Goodwin, and also reached the quarterfinals of the women’s singles.

The English duo missed out on the gold medal by just a few inches as Australia’s Samantha Atkinson and Ray Pearse edged the one-end tie-break in a tense final after both teams had won one set.

Australians Atkinson and Pearse went into the final as favourites, their nation were the returning defending champions of the competition, but McMillan and Goodwin put up a great fight.

The match started with McMillan and England opening the scoring with a single, but the Aussies bounced back and scored on the next six ends to storm to a 9-1 win in the first set.

England hit back in the second set though, picking up a five and a three on the opening two ends, giving them a rapid start which took them on to win the second set 9-2, setting up the one-end shootout in which they fell just short.

Watched live by her parents Andy and Marie, her partner Tim and daughter Maisie, as well as St Andrews vice-chairman Tony Lay, McMillan and her partner Goodwin, who had never played together before the championships, showed great coolness under pressure throughout the tournament, losing only one group match on their route to the final.

The pairs they defeated included world-ranked Jason Greenslade, who went on to win the men’s singles, a competition in which Goodwin lost in the semi-finals.

In the women’s singles, McMillan’s reached the quarters, her victims included Ireland star Sandra Bailie.

The St Andrews player excelled in the one-end tie-breaks until Scotland’s Natalie McWilliams beat her on the extra end in the quarterfinals.

While their top player was enjoying the indoor conditions in Guernsey, St Andrews’ other members played three matches in the chilly weather and won all of them.

In a mixed friendly match against Ashcombe Park St Andrews came out 121-78 winners; in a women’s friendly match St Andrews beat Isle of Wedmore 41-28; and in a tourist match against Wight Tourists the home team won 117-94.