23 Jul 2025
Barnsley Archery Club hosted the fifth Archery GB National Tour stage at Shaw Lane Rugby Football Club. Barnsley is a former mining town in South Yorkshire, England, with a rich and diverse history that dates back to the Roman times. It’s known for its coal mining heritage, markets and brass bands however it was the weather that us Scots were all familiar with!
It was intermittent torrential downpours across most of the weekend making it harsh shooting conditions for all involved but did not dampen their spirits.
There were quite a few Scottish archers in action, let’s see how they got on:
Recurve Men
It was a 7th place finish for Balbardie Archers’ Ross MacLeod in the Men’s Recurve. After finishing 27th in qualification with a score of 610, progressing all the way to the quarter finals in the head-to-heads. MacLeod then faced Olympian Conor Hall who proved to be too strong. Nonetheless, an excellent performance – well done Ross!
Joshua Phillips (Links Archers) kicked off qualification with a 635 in the Men’s Recurve category. He then went on to meet Olympian Patrick Huston for the third time on the tour in the Last 16 in the head-to-head rounds. A 9th place finish overall for Phillips who seems to rise to the occasion on the big stage. Great performance again, well done Joshua.
There were a few other performers in the Recurve Men’s category. This included Gilbert Jamieson placed 29th with 608 in qualification, reaching last 32 and finishing 17th overall. Callum Newlands was not far behind, placing slightly higher in qualification at 28th with 609, reaching the last 64 in knockouts and overall finish of 33rd. It was a similar story for Ayrshire’s Shay Boyd, who as you can tell from photos doesn’t look too thrilled at the conditions!
Recurve Women
Lethen Archers’ Debbie Geddes got off to good start with a qualifying finish of 19th and score of 570. In the knockout rounds, she fought hard but was beaten in Round 64 although an impressive 17th place finish overall.
Likewise, Kayleigh Ivanov and Kristin Ward also put in solid performances in a very competitive field comprising of world champions and Olympians. They both positioned 23rd and 26th in qualifying and final ranking of 17th respectively.
Compound Men
This was the ideal preparation for Finlay Clark who is with GB team this week to compete in World University Games. An impressive 8th in qualifying with score of 693, set him up nicely heading into the knockouts. Winning his opening tie 143-133, Finn managed to reach the Last 16 round, finishing 9th overall and in the National Tour Compound Men standings. Finn continues to deliver a consistently high level of performance and will looking to take this into the final stage.
Paralympian Nathan MacQueen MBE was not too far behind with a 687 score placing 13th in qualifying. He was pipped by opponent in head-to-heads losing 10-8 in a shoot-off. Great to have someone of Nathan’s calibre competing. James Ross was flying the flag for East Kilbride Archery Club. He started off not too badly with 654 in qualifying placing 28th. In the knockout stages, he was narrowly beaten 146-137 however lots of positive to be taken, finishing 17th overall.
Compound Women
Sarah Prieels of Edinburgh University Archery Club was used to the high-pressure environment of the National Tour. The Belgian who was once 3rd in the world rankings has a wealth of experience under her belt and this certainly showed throughout. A solid qualifying round of 688 put her 6th place, advancing to the knockouts. After a series of convincing victories, her opponent Hallie Boulton managed to edge the win 147-145 making it a quarter final finish for Prieels and overall 5th.
Robyn Geddes was hoping to match her mum Debbie’s impressive performances at Barnsley and she managed to do that. A 678 score in qualifying, placing 14th was strong start out the blocks. Unfortunately, she was unable to make it past opponent Jenny Bryan who took the win 141-134 demonstrating how close the level of competition was between archers. This rounded off a successful day of shooting and even Robyn claiming that ‘Barnsley remains my favourite of the AGB National Tour Stages!’.
Barebow Men
At Stage 5 we witnessed a resurgence from Steven Brison of Dundee Archery Club in the Barebow Men’s category. By his own admission, Brison has maybe not performed to the levels he expects this season, but it seemed he may have been saving his best performance for Barnsley. This was evident in qualifying with a score of 596 in 6th position. In the head-to-heads, it was a fantastic run of performances for Brison, eventually progressing to the Bronze medal match but losing out to opponent Jack Riordan. Well done Steven, great performance and 4th place finish!
Simon Reeves of Balbardie Archers competed alongside Brison in this category. A steady shoot in qualifying, Reeves then faced up against hid fellow compatriot Brison. Some close ends, but Brison pulled away with the victory. Great effort though Simon!
Ainsley Ward, National Team Manager shared his thoughts on the event:
“It was great to see so many Scottish archers at this leg, shooting competitively and delivering some exciting results. Again, I love to see the camaraderie with this group and the way they support each other up and down the line, sharing experience and cheering on fellow Scots. From a drizzly morning to a torrential afternoon, this was a great and well-organised tour leg, with possibly the best burgers on the outdoor calendar!”
To view results from the weekend, click here and for photos, click here.
