TEAM HENDERSON ARE THE SCOTTISH CURLING JUNIOR WOMEN’S CHAMPIONS 2022
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Congratulations to Team Henderson (Fay Henderson, Robyn Munro, Holly Wilkie-Milne, Laura Watt) (Dumfries) who are the Scottish Curling Junior Women’s champions 2022-23. They got the better of Team Mitchell (Amy Mitchell, Robyn Mitchell, Hannah Farries, Kirsty Gallacher) (Greenacres) in an incredibly tense final.
Team Henderson and Team Mitchell went into the tournament as title favourites and did the high expectations justice. The two sides were the runaway table toppers after the round robin, Team Mitchell unbeaten, Team Henderson with only a single defeat, that coming from their Greenacres title rivals. The sides met again in the page play-off and this time, Team Henderson got the better of their opposition and progressed straight to the final. Team Mitchell, however, remained composed and triumphed in the semi-final to book their ticket to the title match.
Heading into the final, Team Henderson took an early advantages and the score were five points to two in their favour at halftime. However, a spirited second half comeback from Team Mitchell levelled the scores with only two ends remaining and it was all to play for again. With a blank ninth, Team Henderson kept hammer into a crucial End 10 and bagged a single point to win the game.
The Scottish Junior title awards Team Henderson the right to represent Scotland at the upcoming World Junior-B Championships, taking place in Lohja, Finland from 8 to 19 December 2022. There, they will fight to qualify Scotland for the World Junior Championships in February next year.
(Above images: Scottish Curling/Shannon Whatley)
FINAL: HENDERSON V MITCHELL
Everything was set for an exciting final between the two title favourites. Team Henderson took hold of the game early, opening the scoring with two from End 1 and following it up with two consecutive single steals. Team Mitchell responded with a deuce themselves to cut their deficit, but their Dumfries rivals immediately got on the board again with a single in End 5, making it 5-2 at halftime.
Team Mitchell fought back at the restart, first scoring, then stealing a single to reduce the gap to just one point. One end and another single steal later, it was all square again. Team Henderson blanked End 9 to keep hammer going into a crucial final end. The tactic worked as the Dumfries side scored a decisive point and clinched the win by six points to five.
SEMI-FINAL: MITCHELL V LEIGH
Team Mitchell bounced back and secured a place in the final at the second time of trying with a comprehensive 11-3 win over Team Leigh. The Greenacres side gradually built up their advantage and put the game out of reach for their opponents.
Although Team Mitchell opened the scoring with a single, Team Leigh briefly took the advantage when they responded with a deuce. The Greenacres quartet swiftly equalised and went on to claim the lead with a steal of two. Another two-point steal went their way right before the break, making it 6-2 at halftime. Team Leigh felt the game slipping away from them and a single in End 6 did little to cut the deficit. Meanwhile, Team Mitchell were now in full swing and got a three on the board to extend the gap. They dealt the final blow in End 8 with a two-points steal that decided the game for good.
(Above images: Scottish Curling/Shannon Whatley)
PAGE PLAY-OFF: MITCHELL V HENDERSON
Team Henderson are the first confirmed finalists following an 8-4 win over Team Michell in the page play-offs. Two multi-scores made the difference in what otherwise was a well balanced game. Team Mitchell have another chance to reach the final when they face Team Leigh in tomorrow morning’s semi-final.
A quiet start to the encounter saw the sides trade singles in the opening three ends. However, the pendulum swung in Team Henderson’s corner when they got a three on the board and Team Mitchell could only respond with one. With the standings 3-4 at halftime, it was still all to play for going into the second half. Team Henderson used hammer to score one and once more gained some momentum to steal a single in End 7. Team Mitchell managed to claw one back, but a deuce from their rivals in End 9 left them with a mountain to climb. The final stones did not need to be played for Team Henderson to bag a 4-8 win and book a ticket straight to the final.
ROUND ROBIN DAY 5
After nine draws of round robin action, Team Mitchell kept their perfect record. A 9-3 triumph over Team Leigh this morning sees them top the table undefeated and set for the page play-off against Team Henderson. The Dumfries side too finished the round robin on a win following a hard fought 6-5 encounter with Team Jahn. Despite today’s defeat, Team Leigh bagged the remaining play-off spot in a fierce mid-table battle.
Elsewhere, Teams McNaughton and Huntly ended their tournaments on a high with wins over Teams Archibald and McCartney respectively.
ROUND ROBIN DAY 4
Two rinks secured themselves a place in the page play-offs on the penultimate day of round robin action. Team Mitchell stormed to another dominant 11-2 win over Team McCartney in the morning and although Team McNaughton pushed them hard over all 10 ends in the afternoon, the Greenacres side came out on the better side of an 8-6 result. Still undefeated, Team Mitchell are guaranteed to top the table at the end of the round robin and go into the page play-offs on Saturday where they will meet Team Henderson. Only one outing was enough for the Dumfries side to book their place. A patient 10-8 triumph over Team Huntly in the morning meant Fay Henderson’s quartet could use their bye in the evening to relax.
Meanwhile, the fight for third in the table and with that the final play-off spot is heating up with one session remaining. Two wins today over Teams McNaughton and Leigh, both of them tight and hard fought, have Team Smith currently occupying P3 on a four in four record. However, a bye in tomorrow’s session means the home side’s round robin is over and they will need results elsewhere to go in their favour. The contest could not be tighter with Teams Jahn and Leigh chasing on four in three each. A win tomorrow will send Team Leigh into the play-offs regardless, while Team Jahn will need to win themselves and additionally need Team Leigh to lose to secure a place. However, if both were to lose, the three teams would all sit on the same record and, having beat one other each, the table standings would go to LSDs.
That is not even the end of it though. Team McCartney could still throw a spanner in the works and grab the play-off spot themselves. Currently sitting sixth on three in four, courtesy of an emphatic 8-0 win over Team Jahn this afternoon, a win tomorrow would take them too to four in four. With the prospect of four teams on the same record and results between them inconclusive, performances in the final round robin session will be crucial.
Similarly, the order for places seven to nine is still wide open. Team McNaughton had a fantastic Day 4 in everything but final results. A tight 6-8 defeat to Team Smith was followed by an equally tight 6-8 loss to Team Mitchell has the Perth rink sitting on one in six. The record is shared by Team Archibald who are struggling to find their form in Aberdeen. With the two sides up against one another tomorrow, one of them is guaranteed to end the tournament on a high. The winner will challenge Team Huntly for P7. The Dumfriesians currently sit on two in five after a win this afternoon, coincidentally against Team Archibald. Victory would see them to safety, but if they were to lose their own game, they need Team McNaughton to also lose theirs to hold the position.
ROUND ROBIN DAY 3
The headline game of the round robin went down in the morning of Day 3 as championship favourites Teams Henderson and Mitchell met on Sheet B. The sides traded singles in the first two ends, but Team Mitchell dealt the first punch in End 3 with a massive four-points steal. They followed up with a stolen deuce and when Team Henderson could only respond with a single, the halftime gap was already significant on 7-2. Two consecutive singles for Team Mitchell after the break put even more space between the sides and had Team Henderson in serious trouble. The Dumfries outfit only got one point on the board in the eight end and conceded with two to spare – their first domestic juniors defeat of the season.
Team Mitchell continued their run with a comfortable 9-2 win after seven ends over Team Jahn. The Greenacres side are now the only undefeated rink in the competition on five in 0. However, Team Henderson continue to head the table. The quartet bounced back with a hard-fought 6-14 win over Team Archibald and hold top spot courtesy of having played one game more than Team Mitchell.
A win over Team Smith in the morning brought Team Jahn a step closer to securing a desired play-off spot. They sit third on four in two with Team Leigh their closest challengers on a three in two record but one game less played. Elsewhere, Team Huntly finally got their first win on the board with an emphatic 10-5 triumph over Team Leigh. They on one in four at a busy table bottom with two sides on the same record in Teams McNaughton and Archibald.
ROUND ROBIN DAY 2
With Team Mitchell on a bye in the morning, Team Henderson pounced on the opportunity to take the sole table lead. The Dumfries side stormed to another two dominant wins, seeing off Teams McNaughton and Leigh with ends to spare. Back in action in the afternoon, Team Mitchell once more showed a flawless performance with an 11-4 win over Team Archibald after six ends. Teams Henderson and Mitchell are the only yet undefeated sides in the competition and will face each other tomorrow morning in a crucial encounter.
Team Jahn made their way up the table with two wins on Day 2. En emphatic 4-12 success over Team Huntly in the morning was followed by a 14-4 over Team McNaughton and put the Dumfries outfit firmly in the swing of things. Elsewhere, Teams Archibald and Smith started the day looking for their first win respectively and facing each other in the morning draw, one of them was set to get it. The encounter ended decisively in Team Archibald’s favour who secured a 10-2 triumph. However, Team Smith didn’t have to wait long to tick off their first victory. Up against Team McCartney, the home side bagged a 10-4 result to break their winless run.
Meanwhile, Team Leigh will be content with their day, having secured a win over Team McCartney in the morning before falling to defeat to Team Henderson. In contrast, Teams McNaughton and McCartney had a difficult time on the ice with two losses each going on their record. The two sides will face each other tomorrow morning and both will be determined to bounce back from today’s results. Following a bye in the afternoon, Team Huntly remain the only rink yet chasing a first win.
ROUND ROBIN DAY 1
Tournament favourites Team Henderson started their campaign with a bang on the opening day. After securing a 17-0 win over Team Smith in the morning, the quartet went one better in the afternoon and added an 18-0 win over Team McCartney to their tally. However, Team Mitchell cemented their place as the Dumfries rink’s biggest challengers. The quartet displayed an equally confident performance and saw off Teams Huntly and Smith 12-3 and 12-2 respectively. Both sitting on two in one, the sides share top spot on the table after the opening day.
Meanwhile, Team Archibald had a difficult start to the championship. Losing 6-8 to Team McCartney in the morning, the Dumfries side needed to bounce back in the evening, but struggled to get a break on Team Jahn. 10 ends could not separate the sides on 7-7 and they went into a tense extra end. Three points in overtime eventually decided the game in Team Jahn’s favour.
The first side to get a bye, Team McNaughton kicked their tournament off in the afternoon session with a 10-8 win over Team Huntly. On a one in 0 record, they share fifth in the table with Team Leigh who opened the day with a win over Team Jahn and had a bye in the evening. Still looking for their first wins are Teams Smith, Huntly, and Archibald.
SCOTTISH CURLING JUNIOR WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP 2022
Having won both Asham Under 21 Slams so far this season, title defenders Team Henderson (Dumfries) are going into the competition as favourites. Two players from the team that claimed the title last year are once more part of the line-up in skip Fay Henderson and second Holly Wilkie-Milne. They are joined in 2022-23 by Laura Watt as lead and Robyn Munro, who only recently took silver at the world mixed championship, as third. The newly formed Team Henderson have additionally been competing in the European Junior Curling Tour and won the event in Prague.
Their toughest challenge will likely come from Greenacres’ Team Mitchell who fought out both Asham Under 21 Slam finals with Team Henderson. The foursome of Amy Mitchell, Robyn Mitchell, Hannah Farries, and Kirsty Gallacher have not yet lost an U21 game bar the two finals and will be looking to strike when it matters most at the championship.
Team Archibald (Dumfries) have been knocking on the door of success at the slams this season but failed twice to reach the final, losing out to Team Henderson and Team Mitchell respectively. Erin Stewart, Katie Archibald, Tia Laurie, Katie Donald, and Jessica Trotter bounced back in the third-place play-offs on both occasions to secure podium results and they recently came out victorious at the opening Asham Under 17 Slam.
Ishbel McCartney’s Stirling rink showed the biggest improvement from one slam to the next this season. After having struggled at the season opener at Greenacres, the line-up came to form in Edinburgh and reached the semi-finals. Team McCartney are back on the ice for the championship with Alex McMillan and Cara Davidson confirmed alongside Ishbel.
Team Leigh (Dumfries) are going into the championship with a slightly different line-up than what they sported at the Asham Under 17 Slam. Jodi Leigh Bass and Elin Soutar remain at skip and third respectively, and they are joined by Holly Burke at second and Callie Soutar at lead. Elin and Holly will be flying the flag for the 2022-23 batch of the Scottish Curling Future Leaders in Aberdeen.
Another Future Leader is entering the competition in Chloe McNaughton, playing at third and skipping her Perth rink. With Holly Clemie at fourth, Islay McKenzie at second, and Sophie Hamilton at lead, the team broke onto the Asham Under 21 Slam circuit together this season.
With only one slam outing this winter, Team Jahn (Dumfries) are a bit of an unknown quantity. Jennifer Jahn, Eve Marchbank, Hannah Green, Rebecca Dalgleish, and Jodi Bass will be looking to properly start their domestic season off with a bang in Aberdeen.
In contrast, Layla Huntly’s Dumfries rink, also featuring Erin McCluskey, Megan Hutchison, and Callie McMinn, have competed at Asham Under 21 and 17 Slams this season. The championship is the next step in their busy programme.
Rounding out the field is Aberdeen’s Team Smith of Tamzin Smith, Ailsa Hood, Isla Riddoch, Maisie Dey, and Sara Strain. The quintet competed at both Asham Under 21 Slams and only narrowly missed out on reaching the play-offs in Edinburgh.
All photographs from the event are available here.
