A CHARITY bowling tournament took place in Neilston at the weekend as the village aims to extend its defibrillator provision.

Neilston Bowling Club hosted the two-day event to raise funds towards the installation of another public access defibrillator (PAD) in the village.

The PAD is set to be placed on the outside of the bowling club and will serve the entire community.

Committee member Gordon Ballantyne said: “Hopefully it won’t be too long before we see Neilston’s fourth PAD installed.

“The defibrillator is already paid for and we are now just waiting to have it installed. It might be as quick as a week or two away.

“We are very excited for this to be put in place, as this is for the public. It is not just for club members, it’s for anyone who needs it.”

The fundraising weekend was held towards the end of another bowling season in Neilston.

Sunday’s competition was sponsored by funeral directors D Moodie and Co. As a result, the winning team scooped a top prize of £160.

As well as Sunday’s competition, the bowling club hosted an open wappenshaw-style game on Saturday.

Overall, more than 50 competitors took to the rinks over the weekend.

Alongside the competitive action, the club also hosted social events to raise further cash for the PAD initiative.

Organisers put together a raffle, auction and even a disco for those who came along to offer their support.

Mr Ballantyne added: “It was really brilliant. We had people along who are members of the club, as well as some ‘outsiders.’

“We don’t have a total for how much money we have raised yet, as we were still gathering donations from the disco that took place in the evening.

“Overall, it was a cracking weekend and the bowling was always competitive.”

This latest PAD installation comes at a time when there is a big drive to see defibrillators installed around Barrhead.

Led by the Levern Valley Defibrillator Community Partnership, plans are in place to gather enough cash to have 10 PADs installed around the town.

At present, there are three PADs in Neilston, as well as two in Uplawmoor, which have been organised by the Neilston and Uplawmoor First Responders.

The emergency services volunteer group will assist the Barrhead partnership as it seeks to install its first machines.