FOUR NATIONS 2023: SCOTLAND TAKE TOM BALLANTYNE AND MIXED TROPHY
Scotland retained the Tom Ballantyne Trophy and triumphed in the newly introduced Scotland v England Mixed competition at the 2023 Four Nations tournament. Elsewhere, Scotland lost the Connie Miller Trophy to England and Ireland once more proved too strong in the fight for the Marshall Millennium Trophy.
This year it was the turn of Ireland to host the Four Nations which took place at Curl Aberdeen. With Wales not present on this occasion, only six trophies were contested for with Scotland involved in five of them: the Tom Ballantyne Trophy, the Connie Miller Trophy, and the Marshall Millennium Trophy as well as the novel Scotland v England Mixed competition and the overall Guy Dingle Trophy. A total of 32 members played for Scotland across 20 games.
An emphatic comeback secured the Tom Ballantyne Trophy for Scotland. Contested between Scotland Men and England Men, the delegation from south of the border held the lead at the halfway stage, albeit by only a single point. However, the Scots bounced back on Sunday and made sure to retain the trophy with a final score of 53 to 41 after six matches. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the same story for Scotland Women who contested the Connie Miller Trophy with England Women over two matches. The English side took a huge 10-points lead in the first leg, leaving their opponents with a mountain to climb. Held to a draw on Sunday, it wasn’t to be for the Scots who had to admit defeat and surrender the silverware on 10 points to 20.
In the Scotland Mixed versus England Mixed category, the Scots once more needed a Sunday comeback to clinch victory. With the first two matches in the books, England held a marginal lead of two points, meaning it was all to play for on Day 2. With the Scots winning both games on Sunday, they turned the fortunes around and took the overall title 28 to 21.
Elsewhere, Ireland were running away with the Marshall Millennium Trophy. After the first two mixed matches on Saturday morning, Ireland were already leading by 16. Another two mixed games later, it were 37 and a near impossible task for the Scots. The Irish continued their run in the women’s and men’s games on Sunday morning to extend their advantage and when they also won the final two mixed games, the scores culminated in an incredible 111 to 38 points.
The newly created Guy Dingle Trophy between all competing nations in mixed teams went to hosts Ireland.
Scores:
Tom Ballantyne Trophy: Scotland 53 – 41 England (Retained)
Connie Miller Trophy: Scotland 10 – 20 England (Not retained)
Scotland v England Mixed: Scotland 28 – 21 England
Marshall Millennium Trophy: Scotland 38 – 111 Ireland (Retained by Ireland)
Other Scores:
Turnbull Trophy: England 43 – 91 Ireland (Retained by Ireland)
Guy Dingle Trophy Winners: Ireland
