Youth Triumphs at Stirling

Congratulations to (L-R) Jay McWilliam, Colin Dick, Grant Hardie and Billy Morton who won the inaugural Stirling Invitational at The Peak today. Hard to believe that's five events of the Goldline Scottish Curling Tour now completed!

In a game that went to the last stone, Jay's team pipped Ewan MacDonald, Graeme Connal, Pete Loudon and Euan Byers in the final. You can download all today's results from the link at the bottom left of this page.

Here are Graeme and Pete working hard on Euan's stone!

Ewan MacDonald

Billy and Grant doing what a front end does on their skip's stone.

Jay's team had beaten Oskar Eriksson's Swedish team in the semis in a one-sided game, after they got away to a five shot lead in the first two ends. They had earlier defeated Logan Gray in the quarterfinals.

Kristian Lindstrom played fourth stones for the Swedish side.

Ewan's team met Kyle Smith, Thomas Muirhead, Kyle Waddell and Kerr Drummond in the semifinal. This game went to the final stone. With two MacDonald stones side by side on the tee, in front of a couple of Smith counters, Kyle played an up-weight takeout, removed the opposition stones perfectly, the backing stones going as well. The Smith team - and all the supporters - watched in dismay as the shooter bounced backwards and trickled out the front of the house, leaving a MacDonald winger as shot!

Kerr Drummond delivers, with Kyle Waddell and Thomas Muirhead. A great performance by this young team who had beaten Tom Brewster's side in the quarterfinals.

The Stirling Curlers Group have donated this splendid old trophy for the new competition. The Alexander trophy was first played for in the 1930s at the Falkirk rink. Here's hoping it will have a new long life with the Stirling Invitational.

I did not have the names of the Marco Pascale team when I photographed them yesterday, but here are the Italians today. L-R: Lorenzo Piatti, Marco Pascale, Stefano Castelli and Elvis Molinero. Welcome visitors to Scotland and the first to say they want to come back and play again next year. And of course as they left The Peak this evening, I was able to say, in all honesty, "Elvis has left the building!"

Photos © Skip Cottage

Stirling Invitational

Across the heads at the Stirling Invitational at The Peak yesterday. Can you identify everyone? From top: Tom Brewster, Mark Neeleman, Eve Muirhead and Kristian Lindstrom.

Kyle Smith has delivered, Kyle Waddell and Kerr Drummond in attendance. Thomas Muirhead is in the house. Qualified top in Section C.

Sweden's Oskar Eriksson.

Oskar's team. Kristian Lindstrom, on the left, plays last stones for the team, here with Henrik Leek and Christoffer Sundgren, if I have the names correct. Qualifiers from Section A.

Marco Pascale had brought his team from Italy.

Spot the 'odd one out' as Team McCleary discuss strategy.

Robin Niven is right there as skip David Hay delivers.

David Murdoch and Sandy Reid.

Moray Combe plays the last stones for the Reid team who came out on top against Team Murdoch yesterday morning. Team Reid topped Section D.

Team Carlsson from Sweden.

"The sun rises over The Peak as Logan Gray meditates on whether red or yellow handled stones are the happier."

Team Logan Gray in action. Qualified second in Section C.

Kerry Barr is still replacing Sarah Reid in Team Reid. Get well soon, Sarah.

Tom Brewster. Qualified second from Section B.

Colin Dick, Grant Hardie, Jay McWilliam on Billy Morton's stone. Top team in Section B!

Now, how many years ago were Hugh Aitken and Norman Brown winning Gold at the World Junior Championship? Yes, you're right, it was thirty-one years ago, back in 1980 with Andrew McQuistin and Dick Adams! (Actually, Norman has just become eligible for the Scottish Seniors next season. Hugh says he still has lots of years to go!). They were both playing for the Frazer Hare team yesterday.

Ewan and Euan. Mouthwateringly good to see them playing together again, as Euan agrees!

Team Muirhead in action. Claire Hamilton and Anna Sloan sweep Vicki Adams' stone.

And again. Claire and Vicki at the ready for their skip. Team Muirhead finished second equal in Section B, with three wins and two losses, the same as Tom Brewster's side. But they had beaten Tom on Friday. However, in this event the rules clearly stated, "The top two teams in each section will qualify for the quarterfinals – teams are ranked by points followed by team draw shot distance. Head to head results will not be used. There will be no tie break games." Eve's team had a poorer team draw shot distance that Tom, and so lost out on a place in the quarters.

"OK you guys. How much do I have to pay you to wear the pink shirts?"

If all goes well, I'll have more from the knockout stages later today.

Photos © Skip Cottage

Looking for results?

You can find all the results from the Highland Junior International on this well set out website here.

The results from the Stirling Invitational are available in the form of downloads from the bottom left of this page. Eve Muirhead and her girls beat Tom Brewster's side in the second round 'battle of the sexes'!

The results of the eighth Gormac International at Greenacres can be found here. My good friend and blogally Hugh Stewart sends these two photos of the teams to watch this weekend!

Team Graeme Adam. L-R Jean Lesperance, Stuart Naismith, Bob Kelly and Graeme Adam (skip).

Here is Team Latvia. L-R: Ineta Maca (skip), Elena Kapostina, Rasa Lubarte and Ieva Rudzite.

I've suggested to Richard Harding that perhaps the Greenacres rink could be 'twinned' with Riga's kerlingahalle! (Is this an original idea? Do curling clubs in other parts of the world have twinning arrangements, in the same way that so many towns in the UK seem to be partnered with European counterparts?)

Photos © Hugh Stewart

Bringing the Best to Stirling

The Peak at Stirling opened in 2009, and this weekend the inaugural invitation curling competition brings some of Europe’s best to Stirling. This Scottish Curling Tour event has a £2600 first prize.

Competitors include reigning Scottish men’s champion Tom Brewster and women’s World silver medallist and four-time World Junior Champion, Eve Muirhead. Unusually, both teams will face each other in the group stages as it is an Open competition. Eve's team competes as one of only two women’s teams taking on twenty male sides in the competition.

David Murdoch, who recently qualified with his team to represent Scotland in the European Championships in Moscow in December, and Sweden's Oskar Eriksson, whose team won the gold medals at the World Junior Curling Championships in Perth earlier this year, are both in the mix. Play is in four sections, with the top two in each progressing to Sunday's quarterfinals.

The official press release has a quote from Andrew Bain, Chief Executive of Active Stirling, who said, “We are delighted to welcome such an excellent standard of competitors to The Peak, not to mention our pride in holding the first elite curling event to touch the ice in Stirling. This is definitely the standard of competition we hope to continue to attract to Stirling Sports Village.”

Indeed, I note that The Peak's multi-use sporting facility has already attracted major international teams preparing for both the London Olympics and Glasgow Commonwealth Games in a variety of sports.

The curling starts at 09.00 on Friday, and everyone is invited to enjoy some of the action all day then and on Saturday, with quarterfinals beginning at 08.30 on Sunday.