European qualifiers 2

Two games to watch tonight and they were both crackers! The men first. Tom Brewster took a pair at the second against Warwick Smith, Craig Wilson, David Smith and Ross Hepburn and it took three more ends for Smith to get back on level terms. After seven ends, it was 3-3. Brewster, Duncan Fernie, Ron Brewster and Colin Campbell blanked eight, and with a double on Tom's last stone of the ninth counted a three. They ran their opposition out of stones in the tenth, and had their first point on the board.

Kelly Wood, Jackie Lockhart, Lorna Vevers and Lindsay Wood matched up against Edith Loudon, Mairi Milne, Claire Milne and Katie Loudon in the first of their best of five matches. There was little between the teams. Wood had drawn better to get last stone advantage at the first, and was 5-4 up at the fifth end break. She stole a single, then promptly gave up a three.

When last season's Euro rep went to play her final stone in the eighth she was facing three more Loudon stones. Her raise was good, but just shy of shot position, and she gave up a single against the head. Two down, with two ends to play.

Edith who seemed to have the better command of draw weight than her opposite number, raised her own to lie shot partially hidden in the ninth. In going for the shot Kelly caught the guard and rolled another Loudon shot into the house. Down 10-6, the handshakes were offered.

Find all the linescores and standings here.

A Scot in California

Curling in the United States is growing as a consequence of the last two Olympic Games. The USA now has more registered curlers than has Scotland. The sport has spread far from the traditional Midwest hotbeds. You can now curl in a number of places in California for example (see here).

Edith Loudon has been one of Scotland's top woman curlers for many years. Indeed, her team is set to challenge Kelly Wood to decide who will be Scotland's representatives at the European Championships in Örnsköldsvik in December. That challenge goes ahead next month at the Dewars Rinks in Perth, October 24-26, and the draw is here.

Now, you are wondering I'm sure, what is the link between Edith Loudon and California? Check out this video here.

Thanks to the Curling News blog - always a wonderful source of the esoteric and interesting - for posting this earlier today!

Top: Edith (described as 'one of the elite') is interviewed at the Second Annual Bay Area Crush Bonspiel. Why is it called the Crush Bonspiel? Because it's organised by the Wine Country Curling Club of Northern California which promotes the sport of curling in Solano, Napa, Sacramento and neighboring counties. During the season, the club curls every Friday evening on five sheets of arena ice in Vacaville, which is between San Francisco and Sacramento. Taken from kfarr's fascinating video.

Who will be Scotland's representatives at the European Championships?

Four men's teams will contest the right to be Scotland's representative at the European Championship 2007 in Fussen, Germany, in early December. According to the rule book the top three teams in last year's Bruadar Scottish Championship should play a double round robin to find the winner. These were Warwick Smith (with Craig Wilson, David Smith and Ross Hepburn); Tom Brewster with Hammy McMillan, Ron Brewster and Colin Campbell; and Gordon Muirhead (with Duncan Fernie, who plays last stones, Graeme Prentice and Richard Woods). The rules allow a wild card entry, and it can be no surprise that those who make such decisions have included David Murdoch's side (Ewan MacDonald, Peter Smith and Euan Byers) in the lineup. The RCCC Rule Book says: The top three teams from the previous season’s Scottish Championships shall qualify to play in the European Playdowns excepting in a Winter Olympic Games season these play-offs may not take place. The National Coach, along with an R.C.C.C. Committee, may select a fourth team if they feel it would be beneficial to do so. The qualified teams must have at least three members from last season’s Scottish Championship team and have signed the Players International Participation Agreement to be eligible to play.

The women's event is a two horse race. Kelly Wood (with Jackie Lockhart, Lorna Vevers and Lindsay Wood), winners of the Scottish Championship and bronze medallists at WWCC07 in Aomori, will match up against Edith Loudon (with Mairi Milne, Judith Marshall and Katie Loudon) who were the beaten semifinalists in the Columba Cream Gold League finals. The two teams will play best of five to find the one to don Scottish jerseys in Fussen. What of the beaten finalists? With Rhona Martin and Debbie Knox now retired, Claire Milne and Lynn Cameron have teamed up with Jaqui Byers and Rachael Simms for the new season, but according to the rules (above) this team are not eligible to compete in the Euro playdown, having only two of last year's side.

The draw for the European Qualifying Competition at the Dewars Rinks, Perth, October 26-28, can be found here.

Photo of Edith Loudon is from last season's Gold League weekend at Aberdeen.