THE SCOTTISH CURLING CHAMPIONSHIPS, 2018 – MEN’S FINAL MATCH REPORT
The Scottish Curling Men’s Championship Final of 2018 saw two powerhouses of men’s curling who dominated the round robin deservedly meet in the final.
Team Mouat: Bruce Mouat, Grant Hardie, Bobby Lammie, Hammy McMillan and Coach Alan Hannah
Team Drummond: Ross Paterson, Greg Drummond, Gregor Cannon, Michael Goodfellow and Coach Tom Pendreigh
First + Second End:
The first end was open and blanked. The second end saw centre and corner guards thrown respectively and a series of freezes around the centre followed. Unfortunately, Team Drummond’s shot over curled and allowed Bobby Lammie (Team Mouat) to chip out a stone. When Greg Drummond came up a little shorter than required, Grant Hardie (Team Mouat) chipped out the other Team Drummond stone to lie 4. Team Drummond tried to clear the house with 2 raises from Greg and Ross but only managed to remove one stone, leaving Bruce Mouat a draw to lie 4. Ross (Team Drummond) hit and rolled in behind 2 yellows with his last stone but Bruce played a thin, across the face raise, to remove Ross’s singleton and take 3. (3-0)
Third End:
Team Mouat turned the screw further when a precisely judged, called and swept mid weight roll behind cover by Bruce forcing Ross to draw the house, aided by excellent judged sweeping from the front end.(3-1)
Fourth End:
Team Drummond set up two centre guards meaning Team Mouat was able to draw to the wings with their first two stones. Gregor (Team Drummond) freshed his hit and roll, allowing Bobby (Team Mouat) to clear the centres leaving only his shooter. Gregor played a perfect hit and roll second time around but Bobby topped that with an angled, mid weight promote to lie 2. Hits were swapped and Team Drummond tried a run to sit behind the centre guard but after Ross over-rolled with his last, Bruce hit and lay for a score of two and a 5-1 lead.
Fifth End:
Fifth was eventually blanked by Team Drummond after a good nose hit in 4 foot by Greg Drummond with Bruce clearing everything. Ross’s stone just overcurled allowing Bruce to see it and remove it, with Ross peeling to blank.
Sixth End:
In the sixth, Ross (Team Drummond) played a good nose hit saver with his last to take a 1. Mouat 3 up and in control (5-2).
Seventh End:
With Team Drummond’s final stone of the end, Ross played a draw on top of his previous stone which left a risky jam for Team Mouat. Bruce tried to draw the button for a single but came up short and Drummond stole one. (5-3).
Eighth End:
Team Drummond still fighting put up centre guards but 2 excellent tick shots by Hammy (Team Mouat) set up the end and Bruce Mouat closed it with a hit and lie for 2 when Ross couldn’t hide his final stone. (7-3).
Ninth End:
A good tactical end by Team Drummond paid off after Bruce (Team Mouat) rolled out on a centre hit, leaving a draw for 2 that Ross executed to perfection, and the Scottish Curling Championship title was still in sight for Team Drummond. (7-5)
Tenth End:
Team Drummond got a draw round staggered double centres and then another round the centre again to lie 2 guarded after Bobby (Team Mouat) failed to lift both guards. Grant (Team Mouat) lifted all three stones in play, to effectively seal the win. Team Mouat thereafter simply hit open shots to finish the game.
So, the dominant team are our new Scottish Curling Men’s Champions and one that has emerged as a serious world class outfit. They will now face our Olympians Team Smith in what is sure to be a fantastic spectacle in a ‘best of 3’ Scottish Curling World Championship Playoff.
Tickets for the World Playoff at Dewars Centre, Perth from 3rd to 4th March are available to buy here.
