Jackson Trophy Bonspiel 20th January 2024

Spot the Holyrood curler (hint – there are four of them)

Holyrood Curling Club took part in the Jackson Trophy celebratory bonspiel held at Curl Edinburgh on Saturday 20th January 2024.

This is an annual Champion of Champions event, with a magnificent trophy donated in honour of one of Scotland’s greatest ever curlers, W K Jackson. All of the previous season’s Edinburgh Curling Club competition winners are invited to take part. But for the 2024 edition Curl Edinburgh were hosting a large bonspiel to celebrate 100 years since Jackson skipped his team to the first Winter Olympic gold medal in 1924.

William Kilgour Jackson (14 March 1871 – 26 January 1955) was the skip of the Royal Caledonian Curling Club team which won the first Olympic Gold medal in curling at the inaugural Winter Olympics in Chamonix, France, in 1924.

Holyrood Curling Club was invited to enter a team because of the club’s special connections to W K Jackson’s Olympic winning team.  One of that team was Robin Welsh who was a member of Holyrood CC at the time.  Indeed, the Welsh family were stalwarts of Holyrood CC for many years – an examination of Holyrood records shows the name appearing repeatedly.  The record also shows that W K Jackson himself must have been a member of the Club as payments of annual subscriptions of seven shillings and six pence are recorded against his name around that period.

With fourteen teams entering the competition, this year’s event consisted of three rounds of six-end games, with lunch between games two and three, and a presentation after the third game. Curling started at 10am and the formal event was completed by 5pm.

It was not without some trepidation that we entered the competition.  Whilst being honoured to be invited because of the Club’s historic connections, we knew we would be up against some of the strongest club curlers in Scotland. 

Holyrood’s stalwart team comprised Ken at lead, Dougie second, David playing third, and John skipping.  Fuelled with the free coffee (our pre-match nerves prevented us from tackling the bacon rolls) and the group photograph taken, play commenced pretty much on time.

Our worst fears were never realised. We had a very enjoyable day and played well.  We were pleased to win won one of our three games and while we lost the other two, the defeats were honourable and we kept our opponents honest.

A model of curling concentration

Results:

  • We lost the first game against Team Neilson (Aileen Neilson, Michael McCreadie, Hugh Neilson, Andrew Neilson).  Two of this team were wheelchair curlers – Aileen Nielson and Michael McCreadie are both Olympic medal-winning Paralympians.  It took a while settle our nerves and our opponents took the first few ends.  However, as we settled in to the game, we came back in the second half to finish 6-3 down.  
  • The second game resulted in a fine win against Team Biggar (Andrew Clark, Tom Shearer, Billy Buchanan, Graeme Barrie). This was close fought game against a very experienced team but we held our nerves.
  • The final game was a loss to Team Oxenford 2 (Callum Harvey, Bill Gray, Jimmy Muir, Robert Waddell).  This was a very strong team and the result was less close than we would have liked – perhaps we were tiring by then.  Playing in three six-end matches throughout the day certainly took its toll. The sweeping members of the team thoroughly deserved their lazy Sunday after Saturday’s exertions.

Almost as stylish as Raeburn’s Skating Minister

THIRDS Team A (Rob) vs Team D (Dougie) 22nd January 2024

Team D (Blue): Dougie Auld / Steve Laux / Donny Hay (sub) / John Waterlow

Team A (Yellow): Rob Garner / Richard Willson / Fiona Auld (sub) / David Morrison

This was the penultimate round of the Thirds competition with Team Garner in a very strong position having won all their matches up until now.  The match could decide the result of the competition.

Regular players Kay and Gill had called off at the eleventh hour so after some scrambling around, Fiona stood up to the plate while Steve rounded up a potential new member in Donny Hay.  Now Donny was an unknown but had played before.  In order to maintain marital harmony in the Auld household, Fiona was nominated to play for Rob and thus Donny joined Team Dougie.

Dougie, John and David had played the previous weekend in the Jackson Centenary against what turned out to be some former Olympic medallists. Would some of their skills have rubbed off today?

End 1. The ice was stiff and the players had difficulty judging weight. Lots of stones were short or long. Even Deemo had trouble. The end went to Team Garner but only by one stone.

End 2: Still not finding the ice weight and there were more lost stones but somehow Team Auld managed to pull one back and level the match.

End 3: Pressure was building and Donny was proving to be a dark horse – he had clearly played before and was starting to find his game. He may even be a contender for the Super Broom title knocking ‘Billy the Brush’ off his throne as the club’s top sweeper. Great take out play from Fiona set Rob up for a big finish which Dougie could not reduce taking them into the lead by 3 shots.

Team Garner were definitely showing their form.

End: 4: Team Auld gets a stone back – Richard losing his earlier form giving an opportunity for Dougie.

The ice condition was becoming keener with a big swing giving more opportunities for the proponents of the draw shot. All players adjusting to the degree of draw available.

End 5: Despite the building of opposition stones in the house, Rob draws into the inner rings and counts. But there remained a slim opportunity for Skip Auld – there was still a narrow path through and with sniper precision Skip Auld managed to take out Team Garner and count four! Miraculous; some would say unbelievable. The score board swung to record Team Auld now leading by two.

End 6: Team Garner under increasing pressure.  Everyone on high focus – sensing a win, Team Auld raised their game to build a score close to the button and guarded well. But Team Garner were playing even better, managing to secure positions closer still. A strike with clinical accuracy from Skip Auld found a stone charging through a narrow path, clearing out opposition stones and finishing counting. Skip Garner’s last stone was a more subtle draw swinging around the front right long guard and wicking in off a blue counter to count. A fabulous shot.  Team Garner were now trailing by just one shot.

And so to the last end with everything to play for.

End 7: The build-up is vague. Team Garner had secured a clutch of three stones just behind dead centre and the guard was strong leaving only a tricky draw to the left, a more open draw to the right or, as the end developed, another narrow lane down the middle. Team Auld were holding the Hammer. Both skips drawing down the right side with more success going to Rob.

Last stone.

Steve, playing third, studying the stones at his feet seemed overwhelmed with the amount of granite in the house. He is after all a geologist. The route in from the right was now closed after Rob’s last stone. There was an opportunity down the left. It would be a delicate draw, having to sneak past a long guarding blue to sit in the nest of yellows. Maybe the centre strike was also possible but it looked tight.

Lots of discussion and head scratching. Steve, thinking the draw was the best option chose the line and Dougie headed back to the hack.

Change of plan. From the hack the centre route looked better and given that Dougie had more success in the previous end with strike shots, he decided that to be the better option. But it would have to be heavy. And it would have to be true.

Line adjusted. Shot delivered. Sweepers struggling to keep up with the projectile.

Wallop! The stone rattled around and somehow found its way to the centre, moving everything.

When the dust settled, it became clear that three the yellows had been reduced to one.

Match Peeled …… Lucky or skilled or both?…. We will never know but what a match!

Many thanks to Fiona and Donny for standing in and I hope Donny returns for more fun.

Well done all.

And well done to Team Garner for winning league

Dougie.