ALISON CAMACHO showed her hand in Belfast yesterday, when she won her first two group matches in the World Indoor Bowls Council women’s championship, and staked a claim for a place in the knockout stages.

The Jersey star was never threatened as, watched by her husband Ilidio, she swept past Canada’s Leanne Chinery, 12-3, 15-6, and Malaysia’s Haslah Hassan, 10-3, 8-3.

‘I’m delighted with the way I’ve started, but there’s a long way to go yet, because I still have to play the defending champion, Julie Forrest, and the world outdoor champion, Margaret Johnston,’ said Alison last night.

John Lowery, too, had a good day in the men’s event, though he must have been disappointed with his opening defeat at the hands of the holder Mark O’Riordan, from the Thornaby club in Cleveland.

Lowery’s prospects looked bleak as O’Riordan won in straight sets, 13-1, 7-5.

He then slipped to 1-7 after only five ends in the first set against Holland’s Wim van Belzen.

A brilliant full house of four shots kept Lowery in contention, and he completed a famous recovery by scoring a set-tying double on the seventh end of the set.

Leading 6-3 after six ends of the second set, he stamped his authority with a last-end treble to seal a vital 7-7, 9-3 victory, and kept his hopes of a place in the knockout stage very much alive.

Camacho and Lowery were due to launch their bids for a place in the semi-finals of the mixed pairs event this morning with a crunch clash with Ireland’s Wilma Adair and Jeremy Henry.