Inverness’ Greg Lobban was staying positive despite suffering defeat in the men’s final of the World Doubles Championship in Glasgow.
Lobban and partner Rory Stewart, who were seeded sixth, suffered a 2-0 loss against England’s Declan James and James Willstrop in Saturday’s final.
A fantastic winner from Lobban had put the Scots 10-8 ahead in the first only for England to fight back and win 11-10.
The English pair claimed the second game 11-6 to take the title but Lobban was pleased with their run to the final.
He said: “The tournament was fantastic.
“I had a good run in the men’s with Rory and with Lisa (Aitken) in the mixed draw. Tonight, we came really close.
“It’s tough to take but looking at the bigger picture, getting to the world championships is a big achievement that we’re very proud of.
“This is the first time Rory and I have played together in a major competition so to come second in the men’s draw is a great achievement.
“We knew coming in we were one of the best teams and had a really good chance so I’m pleased we came away with something.”
Willstrop was delighted to lead England to a first championship gold since 1997.
He said: “That was tremendous.
“We knew that we had to just be absolutely on it. We gave them full respect because they deserve it. And hopefully we deserve it. We’re chuffed to bits.
“It’s a huge event, it’s a world title. We’re so grateful to Scottish Squash, to the WSF and for everyone who’s joined together to put this together and make it a huge event.”
Not the result we wanted, but all credit to @LobSquash and @Rorystewart_17 for their brilliant performances all week. Nothing but pride here!
Congratulations to @declanjames1 and @james_willstrop for the title and for a fantastic spectacle 👏 https://t.co/8E76MkIXfC
— Scottish Squash 🏴 (@Scottish_Squash) April 9, 2022
Fellow Inverness player Alan Clyne and Douglas Kempsell won the bronze medal match, beating Daryl Selby and Adrian Walker 11-9, 10-11, 11-9 in a match lasting 61 minutes.
Clyne said: “We were seeded five coming in but we felt we had a good team and could beat anyone out there.
“It didn’t quite go our way last night.
“We had our chances but didn’t finish how we wanted. However, we got the bronze medal so we have to be happy with that.
“Me and Dougie have known each other for so long we know each other’s games, so despite this being our first major tournament playing together, I felt we gelled quickly and played well.”
Meanwhile, Lobban and Lisa Aitken beat the Welsh pair Joel Makin and Tesni Evans 11-8, 11-9 to clinch third position in the mixed doubles.
Aitken spoke about her pairing with Lobban: “We’ve practised a lot and we’re really good friends off the court.
“We have a connection that fills each other with confidence. We’re very sure of what we’re trying to do. I think when you’ve got that sort of trust in your partner, all you need to do is relax and play.”
World Doubles Championships ‘22 | So proud of the Scots this week – We’ve never had such stacked finishing positions quite like it. Every single partnership showing that they’re in a strong position to medal at @birminghamcg22. No easy draws. No let ups. Just incredible effort. pic.twitter.com/QLm3dcNcGS
— Kevin Moran (@KevSquash) April 9, 2022
