The Bermuda men’s golf team continued to impress at the Island Games, sitting in second place just one point behind leaders Guernsey.

Bermuda’s foursome of Jarryd Dillas, Will Haddrell, Damian Palanyandi and Mark Phillips shot a combined total of 215 in the second round — the best score of the day.

Haddrell, the Bermuda captain, said: “We felt strong. You always feel you could have done a bit better, but I’ll take it.”

Haddrell is in a three-way tie for first place in the individual event after shooting a par 71. “I’m happy overall. You always feel you could have done a bit better but I’ll take it,” he added.

Palanyandi is fifth after shooting 68, Phillips is tied for twelfth with 150, while Dillas is 33rd with 165 over the two rounds.

Haddrell said he was confident Bermuda could overtake Guernsey and claim top spot.

“We’re in a good position and we think we’re stronger than Guernsey. We’re looking forward to getting in the lead and increasing it to establish our position as the best team.”

The Bermuda’s women’s team dropped to fifth position with two rounds remaining.

Ebonie Burgess is eighth after shooting a seven-over-par 80, while Katrin Burnie is in eighteenth, Elizabeth Parsons twentieth, and Linda Down 25th.

In the men’s mountain bike criterium, Bermuda’s Deshi Smith finished in 25th in a time of 51:16.707. In the women’s race, Sarah Bonnett did not finish. Bonnett was fourth for most of the race but suffered terrible luck, sliding off her bike after a corner and later suffering a flat tyre.

Charles Dunstan, the assistant manager, said:

“Sarah was primed for a medal attempt, but the man-made obstacle course was something we’ve never really had any experience with. It made it a larger challenge than we could meet.

“Sarah was riding a solid fourth position for much of the race, with two girls from Jersey breathing down her neck the whole way. At some point, the strongest of these passed her. They continued to battle for another ten mins or so, until Sarah slid out on a fairly innocuous grass corner immediately after the large ramp and drop off. She bounced back up but her handlebars were bent. She rode on, which was brave enough considering all the obstacles before her, but then had the misfortune of a flat tyre.”

Dunstan added: “Deshi Smith had a good start in his race, only for a false start to be caked against others. Thinking this was a good chance, he took the line again, but was caught out the second time around. The men’s race featured 45 riders of top level competition. He’s a mature young man for only 19-years-old, and will continue to improve if he can balance the demands of high-level training with his full-time job as a chef.”