By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

GOLD Coast, Australia: The Bahamas team of Ojay Ferguson, Alonzo Russell, Michael Mathieu and Ramon Miller booked their spot in the men's 4 x 400 metre relay that will close out the athletic competition on Saturday night at the Carrara Stadium for the XXI Commonwealth Games.

On Friday, the team clocked three minutes and 04.62 seconds to finish behind Jamaica (3:03.97), India (3:04.05) and Australia (3:04.22 SB) in the last of two heats.

However, Australia was disqualified, moving the Bahamas into third for the final automatic spot. Trinidad & Tobago followed the Bahamas in 3:05.84 for fourth place and the Turks and Caicos Islands got fifth to also qualify with the two fastest losing times.

The first heat also had some drama as only the three automatic teams advanced. They were Botswana, Kenya and Fiji. England didn't finish as their lead off runner Matthew Hudson-Smith pulled up at the start of the first leg and Nigeria were disqualified.

Ferguson opened with a split of 46.2, Russell 45.4, Mathieu was clocked at 46.63 and Miller ended up in 46.34.

The start list for the 5:05 pm (Australian time) race has the Bahamas in lane eight again. Fiji is in seven, Jamaica in six, India five, Kenya four, Botswana three, Turks and Caicos two and Trinidad & Tobago in one.

At the last Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, the team of LaToy Williams, Mathieu, Russell, Chris 'Fireman' Brown and Andretti Brown clinched a silver behind England and ahead of Trinidad & Tobago.

As for the women's 4 x 100m relay, it went to a straight final for Saturday at 2:57 pm (Australian time) with the Bahamas in lane seven. Trinidad and Tobago is in eight, Nigeria in six, England in five, Cameroon four, Ghana thee, Austraia two and Jamaica in one.

The Bahamas got sixth place in Glasgow with the team of Katrina Seymour, Sheniqua 'Q' Ferguson, Cache Armbrister and Nivea Smith. Seymour is in the pool with Shaunae Miller-Uibo, Anthonique Strachan, V'Alonee Robinson, Tamara Myers and Bianca Stuart.

The Bahamas will be looking to add to Miller-Uibo's gold in the women's 200m, Jeffery Gibson's silver in the men's 400m hurdles and Jamal Wilson's silver in the men's high jump.

• This story originally said Shaunae Miller-Uibo won gold in the women's 400m - this has been corrected to 200m.