This week Team A met Team C and with a bit of a scheduling mix up, Team A could only field three players.......but what a three that included Ronnie as sub! The C Team also had a sub with Richard stepping up for globe trotting Charlie.
Losing the toss, Team C elected to play yellow stones and off they went. Sticky slow ice to start with and everyone testing their weighted stones, there was a group of reds gathering front of house but Jim say the draw was on and with some good stones it was Team C who took the first end with a two.
A similar start to the second on but much less space to exploit when it came to the Skips. Once again Jim was lying two but Margaret has a hammer opportunity to nick in and steal the end. Looking on line and heading for the nick required, despite furious sweeping by Ronnie the stone to stay straight. The resulting wick pushed a red stone out of the way and Team C stole a three.
The third end started similarly to the first, reds on the outer ring of the house and draws possible down the right hand side. This time it was the A Team who took the two. Similarly in the fourth end the A Team took control early on and try as they might the yellow stones were not getting far enough into the house to cause problems. Another two to the reds and the deficit was down to one at the halfway mark.
Confession time from the author........before delivering his first stone of the fifth end, he forgot to clean it. The resulting score on the ice resembled the Mariana Trench, although somehow stone Five made it over the hog line and presented a useful long guard. The ice technicians would not be impressed. This helped Jim's team defend their stones and take another two.
Back up towards the car park end and again Team A were dominant. With the hammer Jim had the chance to steal a single, or if he could dislodge Margaret's scoring stones, even take a two. The line was good, the weight was good but the stone just fell away at the end, shifted one red and Margaret had a single.
There were several opportunities in the seventh end for either team to really take control as the first and second scoring stones, one a piece, were sitting in the twelve foot behind the T line. However with guards from both sides front of house, the draw in was tight and several stones fell short. Initially placing a guard down the left, Jim left Margaret a tricky shot down the right to sneak a single. Nearly but not quite. The reds were lying but there was still a gap for Jim to slip inside. He certainly made his sweepers work for it and with some vigorous brush work the last stone crept into the house and just far enough into the eight foot to make all the gasping for breath worth it!
Need three to peel in the last end the A Team started well, the split the house and were making things difficult. with a couple of yellows just off the brush and wicking red stones in a less than hoped for direction, it might just come off. With her first stone Margaret delivered an excellent stone to sit on top of a yellow and outscore them by two. With the dreaded call of "same again" Margaret sent her last stone down the ice. Good line, good weight, good grief........just inside where it was needed and shifted another red. A single was scored.
So a much needed 8-6 win for Team C and with everyone having two matches left it is still a close thing. Whose your money on????????
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