Shots Competition

And so it begins......
Remember that this competition is based on Shots Up only......  But....
The wins/losses/ends also count towards the resumption of the Peter Allan Shield hostilities.
We got off to a narrow win for John Good over Team Nicoll Snr last night.

Points Competition 2018/19

A small, but quality, turn out along with a non-playing referee, enabled us to complete 10 exercises this year.  The tenth is normally reserved for tiebreaks but due to having plenty of time we elected to play it.  This was possibly a mistake because it allowed our leader to 'clear off' while creating a three way tie for second place!  The subsequent Draw the Shot for second place was inconclusive with no players putting their stone in the house ! - At this point we decided to retire to the bar.
Sandy once again supplanted his father (who did not defend his title due to a 'long run' in the Yara!) as our points champion, while Karen took the ladies crown for the fourth consecutive year.  Karen was also the only player to secure an 8 in any exercise, thus proving that Karen is indeed 'striking'.
The extra end did enable a couple of players to rise up the 'all time' tables with Dave Wyllie beating his previous best by a whopping 72% and puts him in 5th in our 'since records began' table

Thirds - Winners

Congratulations to John Niven and his team of Pauline Alexander, John McOmish and Mike Wood. With a target of winning at least three ends to take the title, they held fast and had achieved their goal in the fifth end against Team Dale.  This gave them a 4 - 2 lead but they celebrated in style by taking a 3 in the next end, giving them the final score of 7 - 5.  It looks like nerves played a part in the final round with Team Howard having blinked slightly more than our deserved winners.
Congratulations are especially due to two new members having joined during the season.  John McOmish who played in stead of Tegan Williams (another new member, who is still injured) and Julia Mackey who took over skipping when Stuart had to withdraw (with another injury).  It is always difficult to skip with and against teams that you do not know the strengths and weaknesses of.  Julia however was a quick learner and won her last couple of games with relative ease giving her a third place finish in the league.

Thirds Competition - update

With the final round to play, the league is finely balanced.  The top two teams, Stan Howard and John Niven, who peeled their head-to-head, lead and cannot be caught.  They are on the same points and currently have won the same number of ends. Despite Team Howard having scored one more shot they are second at the moment with a total of +3 shots up compared to Team Niven on a score of +7.
Clearly ends and shots may be important in the final games.
Meanwhile, the remaining three teams are all on two points and the final podium step is still available.  Teams MacKay and Callander will be trying to make lives difficult for our leaders, being involved in their own personal battle.

New Members Update

We are delighted to welcome John McOmish as a new reserve member of our club.  He was a former junior player with Gogar Park but is making his comeback and has come through a Beginers Course and is a member of New Stones (and several other clubs).
I have played against John and witnessed him making a very good double tap up and a double take out in successive shots !
His details are:-

Name - John McOmish

email – john.mcomish AT hotmail.co.uk

Mobile number – 07521 365 302

To consolidate things I would also remind you of our other new member Julia Mackey. I have included her details here as well

Name – Julia Mackey

email -   Julia.mackey  AT hotmail.ca

Mobile number -07483 416 565   (This is the updated UK mobile number)

Finally here are Tegan Williams details - please note that she is currently injured and not playing

Name – Tegan Williams

email – teganjanewilliams AT gmail.com

Mobile number – 07835 139 855

Christmas comes but once a year !

With the theme of a 'Good Night' the motley crew appeared.  Murrayfield is used to 'fancy' dress from clubs at this time of year (and from Graeme all year) but even they were shocked by the formal and night attire.  (Not to forget Justyna's Japanese take on Little Red Riding Hood).
We attracted a large crowd of onlookers for much of the game which was run to Graeme's oft confusing rules.  These included the use of delivery sticks and juggling clubs!!
The atmosphere was as usual fantastic and the games extremely competitive.  We even managed to add an extra eighth end.
Congratulations to or winners, John 'moon and stars' Good, David Wyllie and Adam Hicks.
Special prizes also went to Sheena (Costume) David Wyllie (drawing skills) and Justyna (10 pin bowling skills).
The after dinner Christmas supper was enjoyed by all, which is more than can be said for the Cracker jokes....  sorry joke!

Trophy - Final Results

Sandy playing it cool

Well, it is a BIG congratulations to Team Nicoll (jnr) who emerge triumphant.
Sandy, David Wyllie, Cathy Maclean and the dream team combo of Liz Nicoll/Alasdair Robertson emerge with only 1 loss (Team Wood) and 1 peel (Team Nicoll snr).   This may also be the first time that a Son and Mother combination have taken the trophy (but I don't have the time or data to check, so lets just agree that it is!).
This result also puts Sandy in a geed position to take the Peter Allan Shield which is based on the Trophy and the Shots competition as he has a 3 point lead over Mike Wood's squad, who started and finished the competition strongly but were a bit disappointing in the middle.
The other three teams are only separated by one point, so the relegation battle looks as though it will go to the wire !
We now move on to the Thirds competition, with the first game next week and then on to the Christmas Bonspiel.  This year's fancy dress theme is 'Good Night' and the rinks will be announced shortly.  (If you have not already told Graeme that you will/will not be coming, please do so asap.)  The 'game' will be followed by a Christmas supper at the ice rink and partners/non players are welcome. (again some numbers would be grateful)