| Round 1 | Round 2 | Final | |||||||||
| Date | Game | Winner | Date | Game | Winner | Date | Game | Winner | |||
| Last updated - 30/11/01 | |||||||||||
| 21/11/01- 9:15 | P | Q | Q 4 - 5 | ||||||||
| 21/11/01- 9:15 | R | S | S 8 - 8 | 27/11/01- 7:15 | Q | S | Q 7 - 6 | ||||
| 30/11/01- 9:15 | Q | V | Q 10 - 8 | ||||||||
| 23/11/01- 7:15 | T | U | T 8 - 3 | 27/11/01- 7:15 | T | V | V 11 - 2 | ||||
| 23/11/01- 9:15 | V | W | V 10 - 5 | ||||||||
| P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | |
| Skip | George Whiteford | Edith White | Colin Martin | Liz Martin | Colin Jeffries | John Isaac | Paul Jess | Helen Forbes |
| Third | Brian Taylor | John Walker | Margaret Isaac | Robert Lamont | Jack Bell | Rob Massie | Jim Watson | Billy Feeney |
| Second | Philip Jones | Chris Lucas | Ken Taylor | Alistair Hodge | Isobel Martin | Alan Lugget | Anna May Watson | Brian Sweenie |
| Lead | Glenn Bard | Jill Roberts | Anne Murray | Gordon White | Dorothy Patterson | Jean Bryans | John Hodge | Morven Stone |
George v Edith Edith won 5 - 4 and goes through to the next round. Edith's team of Jill, Chris, John Walker took on George's team of Glenn, Philip and Brian Taylor in a very enjoyable, good quality and highly competitive game. The trend involved frequent good play with Edith in control, and George regularly having to play out of his skin, including a triple take-out, to stay in contention. All the players contributed to the game - with Brian both playing and dishing out continuous cheek to his smooth, calm and much better looking immediate opponent - with the result always in doubt.
In the first end Jill looked at her new floppy headed brush bought from George's shop and asked how she would use it - with immediate (always a first time) and stunning (who says lightning doesn't strike twice?) repartee Brian advised cleaning windows!! The game was played in this spirit. Jill played a good first lead stone but fell quite badly - she had fallen badly the previous week and was still strapped up. Edith's team eased ahead with John tapping in well requiring George to play the first of a series of fabulous strikes to hold Edith to 1.
Jill very bravely kept playing and set off with good stones and Edith controlled the end well, forging ahead with George facing 4 shots against him on his final stone. George played a superb triple takeout to cut Edith back to one. Edith now 2 - 0. The third end went similarly to the first with Edith controlling good play by her rink with 3 stones counting and protected by a line of guards. George played a dramatic shot, winging in from an outside stone and lying on the centre. All against Edith now and George played another stunning shot - he had to, Edith was playing so well, and he earned a tremendous 2 against the odds.
The fourth end was a tight cat and mouse end with good guards and tight take outs and Edith played well to get a single. The fifth end saw a reversal where George's team had put him in front. Edith, not to be outdone in the striking game disregarded her third's wimpish advice to play safe and let George have a 1. She bravely and expertly threaded her stone through the tightest of gaps to take out and lie. Unfortunately the stone was not quite well enough hidden and George popped it out and took a 1. Great play never-the-less. 3-3
Edith controlled the sixth end well, manufacturing a single stone advantage and then adding a second with a beautifully drawn final stone. 5-3 to Edith. Glen put a stone on the pot lid for the seventh and final end (time for Jill's fall and endless hours, sorry minutes, when George and Brian regularly figured out intricate Newtonian mechanics to dig themselves out of the holes Edith had put them in), Jill and Chris had the next counting stones on either side. The blocking stones set by Edith made it impossible for George to get in for a second to peel or 2 more to win. Final score 5-4 to Edith.
Liz v Colin Martin - Liz won 8-8 . Teams - Liz, Robert, Alistair Hodge and Gordon White - Colin, Margaret, Ken and Anne Murray.
This was a cracking game. Although Gordon got off to a shaky start (this was only his second time on the ice) he was soon getting stones into play and everyone else was playing pretty consistently. 1st end Liz scored 1 only to lose 4 at the second thanks to a tricky bit of fall back ice near the barrier that carried her strike wide.
The third end saw Liz take 2 but Colin managed a 2 at the next end. Scoreline 6-3. This was where Liz began her fight back with 2 stones hidden behind a lump of guards. Colin tried twice to out draw them but both times wrecked on the rocks at the entrance to the house. Liz managed to steal 3 at the next thanks to Colin again taking too little ice for a crucial draw. The reason we are told, is that he normally plays too heavy and so does not expect to get that much draw!! Scores now 8-6 to Liz.
Colin's turn for a valiant fight back, lying 3 which Liz cuts back to 1 with a gentle tap back to lie second shot behind a guard. Colin's final stone is swept most of the way but finishes just short of the 4 foot - not quite good enough {I thought he usually played heavy hence the reason he doesn't expect to get that much draw ? - Ed }.
Last end - Colin in the driving seat thanks to some great play from his rink. Needs 2 to win - lying 3 and guarded. Liz's first stone lifts one guard and moves another. Colin puts one back but leaves the second shot exposed to a perfect strike from Liz. The game is now peels but the bell has gone so time for the penalty shoot out (drawing shots) - bear in mind that Colin has been playing guards and gentle draws for the last few ends and Liz has been striking. My money was on Colin. Colin up first plays a perfect draw if perhaps a little light - sweepers on - sweep their hearts out and the stone makes it to within 2 inches of the front ring! Liz off next - looks good - sweepers on and very quickly off again - the stone reaches the tee..... and keeps going. Colin wishes that the rules allowed him to sweep behind the tee but it looks as if he is not needed. Wrong! It stops with only 2 inches biting but it's enough to put Liz's rink into the semi against Edith.
Colin had Dorothy Patterson playing at lead. The ice was very dour at the first end in which Colin stole a 1. The following end John's rink had a few wayward takeouts to lose a 2. However this was followed by a nip and tuck end where John preserved a 1 to break his duck.
Colin protected an early stone and got a bonus when Jack's guard drew in for 2 and his own final draw raised it to 3. Score 6-1.
The following end was a series of good shots. An early stone from Colin's rink was in and guarded but an off-line shot from Rob cannoned off a wide winger to creep in for 2nd. A middle guard from Colin left a narrow opening for John which he almost sneaked through but caught the guard. Colin replaced it with a better guard but Rob persuaded John to try for the heavy draw through the port and he played it to perfection (ps John gave me a fiver to describe it thus) and took a 2. {he ought to remember me next time or I'll change it - Ed} 6-3.
The next end was well played by Colin's rink and coming to the last stone, Colin had shot, John 2nd but Colin lying 3,4 and 5. Colin thought he could squeeze out John's stone for a big end however, once on the hack, he felt less sure of the shot and played up short to settle for the 1. At the final end, Colin had a shot in and guarded and a series of takeouts and counter-takeouts between John and Colin left Colin with 1. Final score 8-3.
Paul's rink was very ably assisted by John Hodge who kindly agreed to sub in place of Irene McIntosh who has been unable to join the club following an injury. The rest of the rinks played as the card.
Under the watchful gaze of a small audience in the bar the game got off to a very even start. Paul lost the toss but managed to sneak a 2 in the first end against the hammer, only to give it up again in the second end. I am afraid I don't have the power of recollection that some of my fellow skips possess but Paul won the next five ends to go 10-2 going into the last.
The last end started with one of Helen's early stones going straight through the house, effectively deciding the tie but her team did not give up and played some good shots to earn a 3. Final Score 10 - 5.
Yet another enjoyable, tight competitive John Martin tie for Edith's team winning by 1 stone. Jill, Chris, John Walker and Edith competing with Gordon, Alistair, Robert and Liz.
A good stone by Chris dominated a rather scrappy first end - 1 to Edith. In the second, Gordon had 2 excellent lead stones which controlled the end. Liz had an excellent take out with her first stone and tapped in beautifully for a second. Edith 1 - Liz 2.
In the third end Gordon kept up telling stones and the rest of the team piled on the pressure. With a big end looming large, Edith played a superb skip stone to keep her rink in contention by cutting Liz to 1- the turning point in the game. Edith 1 - Liz 3.
Jill took the honours at lead in the fourth end with the rest of her rink following through despite stubborn stones from Liz' rink. Lying 1 with last stone, Edith drew accurately to take a 2. Edith 3 - Liz 3.
The fifth end was controlled by 3 nicely scattered counting stones from Jill and Chris (including a tremendous angled tap in from Chris) which always had Liz chasing but never catching - 2 to Edith. Edith 5 - Liz 3.
Superlative stones from Jill and particularly Chris were skillfully positioned by Edith leaving Edith in a very strong position behind lots of guards from both colours. Enter the leveller - John played a takeout on a potentially dangerous opposition stone, struck it 2 inches on the wrong side of the nose and sent the opposition stone into the pot lid, scattering Edith's carefully planted stones and left Liz shot with 2 which Edith couldn't get at. Edith 5 - Liz 5.
In a high quality last end with no sign of nerves, everyone in Edith's team played their best stones with Chris in particular causing immense damage. Liz' team stuck in well with excellent takeouts from both Alistair and Robert leaving Liz lying shot before John removed Robert's stone then scuttled for cover behind guards which never gave Liz the slightest chance of getting to it. Edith kept the end bottled to win the end and the semi final by 1 stone.
Watch out Paul, you're going to be chased by three wild women - start trembling now!
Yet another enjoyable game at least from Paul's perspective but maybe not quite so good from Colin's. Again my memory lets me down when I try to remember any real details of the game - for all I can remember I may even have got the number of ends wrong, but this is my recollection and no doubt if I've got it all mixed up one of my team or opponents can put me right and I'll print a correction.
The game started off with Paul taking a 2 against the hammer and then a 1 in the second. 3-0 to Paul as these ends took place longer ago than the remainder I remember them less. As the screaming Homer Simpson on my mouse mat says "Every time I learn something new it pushes some old stuff out of my brain"
In fairness it was probably closer than the score reflects at this stage but Colin said at the end he never felt as though he was playing as well as normal and thought he was always chasing it. This may have been a frame of mind because I certainly didn't feel this way until very near the end of the match. It looked as though the game might turn at around this point when after Colin had got back a 1 in the third and Paul went on with last stone to miss a "very easy" {obviously not as easy as I thought} hit and lie for a three, leaving him just a one. 4 - 1 Paul.
In the 5th there were a lot of stones in but by the time the two skips came to play their last shots Paul was lying 2. The shots were on either side of the centre line with one of Colins stones lying just at the front of the house on the left a fraction short of counting for shot. The gap left in the centre was wide enough for a draw, with enough clutter at the back to allow whoever played the luxury of being a tad heavy if needed. Colin's aforementioned stone also looked like a possible tap in, although by no means easy because of the stones out front. Paul after some deep thought nominated to play a shot which he hoped would come to lie inside Colin's stone and counting in front of it. The thought being that this would give him 3 counting stones and narrow the door for any draw also making the tap back more difficult, if not impossible, and at least more risky. It is actually quite difficult to describe how many things Paul hoped this one stone would achieve as he did not want it to stray so far in that Colin could either lie on it or tap it back and lie to count. Modesty almost {only almost} prevents me from saying how sweetly the shot was played and swept and how perfectly it lay so that only a measure could have told whether it or Paul's other stone on that side was first shot - I could not have walked down the ice and placed it any closer to where I wanted it. {So much for modesty}
Colin was now left with two choices. Either to try and tap back his own stone risking hitting a guard or Paul's stone - or trying to get a slight roll off Paul's third stone on the other side and take shot that way. Unfortunately for Colin he played with a bit too little weight and it was not to be. 7 - 1 Paul. Paul at this point was feeling quite relieved that his miss in the earlier end had now been recovered but still feared that it may- as these things sometimes do- come back to haunt him.
Well in the next end all his fears looked as though they were going to be realised. Colin's rink were putting shots in all over and it was building up to be a possible big revival of perhaps 4 or 5 and things were starting to look a bit hairy. The only blessing for Paul was that there was still a door into the house. With his last stone, Paul had to nominate to freeze to one of Colin's counters with an option if he missed one to lie on another. Either way he would be conceding a one but making a big end more difficult. As with most shots played with two slightly different options in mind neither came off. The weight was not bad but the line was between the two shots played for. The stone caught the front stone of the two slightly off centre but didn't roll too far. This succeeded in cutting Colin to a one but the played stone was not as safe as Paul intended and may have been removed if Colin had hit it just right. Unfortunately for Colin he was not playing to his usual very high standards and didn't manage to hit the stone as intended and to Paul's enormous relief the end finished with a 1 to Colin. This took the score to 7-2 to Paul. This was probably the first time all night that Paul actually felt reasonably relaxed. Had Colin got the 4 or 5 then the pressure would have been well and truly on.
The last end saw Paul with last stone. I don't remember how it came about but my team left me nothing difficult to do in this end and by the time I came to play my last stones we were lying three and I managed to add another one with my second last stone, and somehow managed to sail my last stone through the back. 11 - 2 was the final result.
It has been commented to me by a non Duns member that all our games sound in the reports as though they are very close no matter how large the gulf in the score. The reason for this is quite possibly that curling can be like that. For all the final score in the above game looks as though there was a large margin -I can say with honesty that the game did not feel that way. Had the second last end turned out as it could have I am very sure that the last end would have been a different kettle of fish.
However Paul is now looking forward to John's promise of three wild women in the Final.
The full match report on this game will have to come from Edith's rink because Paul is crying in his beer. An excellent match which Edith came from behind to win with a 5 in the last end. Paul can still see his final stone sailing through the house even without any assistance from the sweepers. Oh wo is me, but heartfelt congratulations to Edith who never gave up and got better and better throughout the game.
Paul's rink started with a 3 in the first but with some gritty play over the next three ends Edith clawed it back to 3 - 3.
Paul then took another 3 followed by a 2 and it looked as though we were going into what everyone thought was the last end at 8 - 3. Edith played a nice draw to lie one in the second last end and Paul, whose generosity can never be faulted proceeded to perfectly knock in a second for Edith, beating his own previously second shot stone by a measure. The bell failed to ring and it was 8 -5 with one end to play.
As with all these things I have no idea how we came to be facing the predicament we did. I do remember Edith played at least one superb shot through a tight gap to knock out one of my counting shots. I then chickened out of trying for the same hole for fear of clearing off one of Edith's stones protecting my only other shot in the house - which was actually counting shot. Instead I elected to play a drawish sort of shot which would have been fine in the house counting or a bit short guarding. Instead I played neither and manged to knock the guard in for a fourth shot for Edith and leave my own shot totally exposed.
Edith wasted not ime removing my shot and got a nice roll to the outer fringes to lie 5. All was not over as "all" I had to do was draw through a fairly big door somewhere into about 6 feet from the centre for shot and the match. Having played short all night I determined to get the stone to the house and with the touch of an elephant sent it straight through.
Game set and match, well done Edith et al. { and apologies to my own rink . Now back to that beer and perhaps someone can provide a less negative report for this game,... weep ... weep...
Now John's version
Edith v Paul
Close your eyes and guess the 8 end sequence and the result, then read on.
1st - 3 to Paul, not the way to start -should have taken up macrame
2nd - 1 to Edith, no grannie, what a relief!
3rd - 1 to Edith, at least a little competitive…
4th - 1 to Edith, at least they are unlikely to go off the board….
5th - 3 to Paul again, oh dearie me, they are playing with us
6th - 2 more to Paul and since we had team photos beforehand and we were a little late on the ice, everyone thought that's it, not much chance of a 6 at the 7th and anticipated last end.
7th - Edith keeps battling, Paul keeps using up shots on a takeout of Edith's lead which was not too dangerous, but everyone started to miss it, left and right … Paul taps in Edith and a 2 to Edith …and …Jim hasn't rung the bell although about 7 past 11 - must have decided to give us the few minutes delayed start for a late finishing team at 9.15 ..what a sweetie - Paul 3 up, last end.
8th - lots of Edith scattered around the edges but Paul lying shot on the pot lid. Last stone for Edith, tremulous but brave - brings off the takeout and scuttles away to the side, now lying 5 but nothing in the centre, red or white, the house is wide open - but nothing for Paul to come to - ALL Paul has to do is put a stone in the big white ring and the John Martin is his. The stone hits the fast track up the centre and drifts agonisingly out the back - 5 and the John Martin to Edith - everyone is absolutely astonished, Joy for Edith, disappointment and good grace from Paul and his team