Up first was the latest instalment in one of sport’s age-old rivalries when Scotland and England faced off in the Para Mixed Pairs B2-B3 final.

England drew first blood when Ron Homer (lead) and Sally-Ann Lewis-Wall (skip), ably supported by directors Sue Davies and Elizabeth Shipley, sealed the first set 7-2.

But with skip Mary Stevenson revelling in her maiden Games final and lead Robert Barr not in any mood to relinquish the title he won at Birmingham 2022, the hosts sent the match to a single-end tiebreak, during which Barr delivered one of the best pressure shots of the tournament to seal gold in front of an ecstatic Glasgow crowd.  

Stevenson was overjoyed at winning a first Commonwealth Games medal at the age of 63.

"It's been fantastic," she said. "The crowds have been great, the company has been great, and I'm just over the moon even to get here."

Wales and New Zealand contested the bronze-medal match, with the Welsh team – lead Julie Thomas, Jamie Jones (lead director), skip Steffan James and John Wilson (skip director) – prevailing after a tiebreak.

England v Malaysia at the double 

Next up was the first of two England v Malaysia finals, with Amy Pharaoh and Sian Honnor facing Aleena Ahmad Nawawi and Syafiqa Abdul Rahman for the Women's Pairs title.

The Malaysian pair had impressed throughout the tournament and were keen to upgrade the silver medal Rahman won in Birmingham, but the experienced England duo did just enough to see off their challenge, taking their collective Commonwealth Games medal haul to a remarkable 10.

“The whole tournament has flown by, it just feels like we were on day one,” said Pharoah.

“It hasn't quite sunk in yet, but we are absolutely elated that we've been able to achieve a dream.”

Bronze in the Women’s Pairs went to Northern Ireland, who edged out Wales in another close game, with emotions bubbling over as Chloe Wilson and Shauna O’Neill came to terms with their medal-winning performance.

“I'm just so proud of our efforts throughout the tournament,” said O’Neill.

“We never gave up, we always backed each other and we were doing it for Northern Ireland. I'm just really proud that we got over the line and won that medal.”     

O’Neill had little time to reflect on her achievements, with her Women’s Singles challenge getting under way later in the day.

The last final of the session decided the Men's Singles medals, and in a repeat of the Women’s Pairs result, England defeated Malaysia in the gold-medal match while Northern Ireland sealed bronze.

England's Sam Tolchard enjoyed a dream start to the final when he took the first set 8-0, but the brutal nature of this format was evident when Izzat Shameer Dzulkeple struck back for Malaysia in the second.

Another tiebreak looked to be looming before Tolchard rallied and took the final two ends.

Like O’Neill and Wilson, the realisation of a lifelong dream brought Tolchard to tears after the match.

Loved ones including his mum, sister Sophie, son Leo and partner Selina Goddard - who had been representing New Zealand in the Women’s Pairs - were watching on, but Sam’s thoughts turned to his late father who died when he was 15.

“To have Mum, Sophie, Selina and Leo here means everything to me. I wish my dad could be here, but sadly he's not. Hopefully I've done him proud.”

Tolchard and Dzulkeple were joined on the podium by Northern Ireland's Gary Kelly, who defeated Aaron Wilson of Australia - champion at the previous two Commonwealth Games - in a repeat of the 2022 gold-medal match.