RECORD-equalling bowls great Paul Foster said this week it was “a dream come true” when he returned from the Commonwealth Games with a gold and silver medal.

And the Troon man admitted he felt his late father, Hugh, who passed away was looking down on him when he teamed up with great friend Alex “Tattie” Marshall and team-mates Derek Oliver and Ronnie Duncan to win the fours title.

This came five days after Foster and Marshall had taken silver in the pairs event at Broadbeach on the Gold Coast.

He is now level with legendary sprinter Allan Wells with four golds, while Marshall has overtaken the 1980 Olympics 100m champion with a haul of five.

But, remarkably, Foster is already hoping he can make plans to travel down the M6 and play in the next Games much closer to home in Birmingham in 2022.

He said: “Now I’m back home it has been another fantastic Commonwealth Games for me personally and it was a team performance. I always have great expectations but to play at the highest level and come back with a gold and silver is a dream come true.

“We played well in the pairs. It’s not sour grapes but in the pairs the guys against us had three unbelievable flukes. We got no rubs of the green and could have been 14 or 15-1 up but they got back to 6-5.”

However he always felt there could be major success in the pairs.

“Losing the pairs gave us another incentive to be successful in the fours. 

“The two guys Alex and I were playing with Ronnie and Derek had just got gold in the triples and that was a massive boost for us. We knew if we played as well as we can we would be there or thereabouts. We all played really well and deserved the gold in the end up. 

“There are so many hundred odd athletes get nothing and are disappointed but to come back with two medals is a great achievement and I’m very proud of it. We bounced back well by winning the fours. We got one break in the final and they got three or four. But we dug in deep and managed to get a four at the last end. What made it tastier was beating Australia in their own backyard. 

“There’s one way to silence a crowd and that’s by producing your goods. 

“The hairs were standing on the back of my neck singing the national anthem, it was unbelievable. Nothing will compare to Glasgow, winning two golds in front of a home crowd but this up with Glasgow.”

The bowler has been highly impressed with the support he has received.

He added: “While I was there I got so many messages of congratulations and people have been stopping me on the street to say, well done.”

He felt his dad was with him while enjoying success and added: “I feel he was up there watching and that gave me an incentive. Alex Marshall when he spoke to the media said he wanted to dedicate the win to my dad which was great and a nice thing for him to say.”

The bowls ace is already looking to the future and added: “I hope to get another gold and match him. I feel I have another Games in me and my wife and family want me to go for it.” 

He is taking a few well-earned weeks off and will later in the summer manage and play for the Scotland outdoor team in the Home Internationals in Leamington Spa in July.