A Dunedin bowls quartet suffered a late heartbreak at the Commonwealth Games but are determined to regroup and return.

The visually impaired Para B2/B3 mixed pair of Sonya Woodrow and Kerrin Wheeler, guided by directors Kimberly Carraher and Colin Wheeler, narrowly missed a bronze medal after a dramatic loss to Wales in Glasgow last week on Tuesday, July 28.

The southern competitors had claimed the opening set of the playoff 7-4, putting themselves in a formidable position to secure a podium finish.

However, the Welsh combination rallied fiercely to dominate the second set 6-2, ultimately forcing a decisive one-end tiebreaker.

Victory appeared secure for the all-Dunedin team when Kerrin Wheeler executed a superb draw to seemingly clinch the match.

Welsh skip Steffan James then stepped onto the mat and drove magnificently, knocking the New Zealand bowl away and snatching the medal.

In a statement, Kerrin Wheeler admitted he thought his final bowl was the winner, going from extreme joy to sudden despair in mere seconds.

But he paid special tribute to his director and father, Colin Wheeler.

Woodrow said the 1-0 tiebreaker defeat was “gutting”.

“’But I’m proud to place fourth and hopefully we’ll be back in four years’ time,” Woodrow said.

She praised her director Carraher, saying the athletes would be unable to compete without their guides.

“They’re like a rock, always there for us.”