As of last Thursday, Stranraer young curlers thought they would be playing off in Division 2 of the Junior Club Challenge, and attempting to gain promotion. However, the Galleon side withdrew from Division 1, and Stranraer were promoted to take their place before the competition got underway at the Murrayfield rink. And they came out on top! That's the two winning Stranraer teams above. Ian Kirkpatrick skipped one team with Bobby Lammie, Jodie Milroy and Euan Kyle, and Vicky Wright skipped the other with Gregor Cannon, Callum Lammie and Alison Fyfe.It was all very exciting and it could not have been closer. Going into the final round today, three clubs were still in contention, Hamilton 1, Stranraer and Gogar 1. These last two were against each other. Had Gogar won both games, they might well have been champions. If Stranraer won both, they were certainly the champs. But the result was split. Stranraer won one game, Gogar the other. That took the Stranraer side to twelve points.
While this was going on, the two Hamilton teams were both winning against Stirling, and the Hamilton club also finished on the same points as Stranraer. It went to ends to decide, and Stranraer were the champions by just two ends.
I think it all goes to show the high standard of the juniors. Forfar, winners last year, pulled themselves out of the relegation zone and finished on ten points, the same as Gogar 1. Greenacres topped Division 2.
The results are all here.
I have some photos from today's play and I'll try have these on the blog before noon tomorrow, once I've had time to look through them!
Top photo, Back, L-R: Jodie Milroy, Gregor Cannon, Vicky Wright, Ian Kirkpatrick, Alison Fyfe. Front: Bobbie Lammie, Calum Lammie, Euan Kyle. Photo © Skip Cottage.