Ross A&B Leagues Round. 7
IN what is gearing up to be a thrilling end to this season’s Ross Province A League championship, Dornoch’s Caberfeidh Curling Club members Ian Mackay, Alan Munro, John Gunn
They met in last week’s round seven encounter — but MacLennan escaped with full points to extend his winning run to seven games and maintain his four-point lead at the top of the championship table.
While MacLennan was holding on for a one-shot win over the Caberfeidh rink, Belmaduthy’s Peter Fraser – playing with Iain Chisholm, Brenda Macintyre and Mike Hogg, and with a five-shot win – was severing the last finger hold on the Allan Moore Trophy by the defending champion and clubmate, Iain Fraser.
Former multiple champion Fraser retained second position in the table by a slim margin of shots and ends record over Caberfeidh’s Charlie Munro after Munro took his points total to 10 with a hat trick of triple end counts over Invergordon’s second skip, Richard Mackenzie. The Tain-based skip had been mounting a challenge in fourth place but his defeat allowed Avoch’s Ronnie MacDonald to move above him in the table as Avoch enjoys one of their best seasons.
With his two daughters, Nicola and Claire, now firm fixtures in his rink and Evander MacDonald at lead, MacDonald is thriving in his role since taking over from Arthur MacArthur and weekly travelling from his Perth-based Hydro Electric job to lead Avoch. Last week he was rewarded with a seven-shot winning margin over Hugh Mackay (Caberfeidh) to move into fourth place.
With an ineligible substitute in Finlay MacKenzie’s Muir of Ord line-up, the Muir number three rink dropped to a relegation position by forfeiting the points and six shots to a grateful Stewart Torrie (Fairburn) who has now moved above the threat of relegation.
Invergordon’s MacLennan could win the league and Allan Moore Trophy for the first time on Monday, February 13 when he meets Peter Fraser in the penultimate round.
In the B League race for the Webster Trophy, Muir of Ord’s first rink skip, Ross Urquhart, sitting just one point behind league leader Dave MacLennan (Belmaduthy), slipped up after a five-shot peel with Neil Gillies (Killearnan).
It was a point neither skip could afford to lose. Two points would have held a middle of the table place for Gillies but he lost a triple to Urquhart’s final end push for a share of the spoils. Gillies dropped back a place to share the relegation fears with John Louden while Urquhart was left two points behind MacLennan with two games remaining.
Brenda Macintyre, playing as a substitute for Peter Fraser in the earlier A League session, stayed on for her second game of the night in her usual role with Dave MacLennan and helped the league leader end the challenge of Invergordon’s third skip, Douglas Gordon. Although still with a game in hand, Gordon fell seven points behind MacLennan who demolished him 12-8 after leaping into an eight-shot lead with four shots in the fourth end.
Coreen MacRae (Alness) caught up on her outstanding game and went above Gordon in the league table but she remained on seven points when Muir of Ord’s Richard MacWilliam ended her winning streak with a strong finish for a 10-8 win, the loss of four shots in end five irretrievable by the Alness skip.
With just two games left to play, Erica Mack, winner of last season’s C League, looks to be heading back down after losing again last week. Calum MacRae (Belmaduthy 2) gave the skip’s stones to Michael Paul against Mack and Paul rewarded him with six shots in end four to set up a 10-4 win which elevated his skip four places in the table.
Bill Shirran also moved up to safety when confining John Louden to second bottom place after Shirran won the contest between the two Caberfeidh skips six shots to four.
Muir of Ord skips Richard MacWilliam and Ross Urquhart hold the key to the Webster Trophy when on February 13 they meet Belmaduthy opposition. MacWilliam plays league leader Dave MacLennan whose faith is in clubmate Calum MacRae beating Ross Urquhart.
Results — Rounds 7
Province A League — A MacLennan (Invergordon) 5, I Mackay (Caber/Dor) 4; A Eddie (Muir of Ord) 0, S Torrie (Fairburn) 6; I Fraser (Belmaduthy) 3, P Fraser (Belmaduthy) 8; C Munro (Caberfeidh) 9, R MacKenzie (Invergordon) 6; R MacDonald (Avoch) 11, H Mackay (Caberfeidh) 4.
B League — J Louden (Caberfeidh) 4, B Shirran (Caberfeidh) 6; N Gillies (Killearnan) 5, R Urquhart (Muir of Ord) 5; E Mack (Caberfeidh) 4, Cal MacRae (Belmaduthy) 10; Cor MacRae (Alness) 8, R MacWilliam (Muir of Ord) 10; D MacLennan (Belmaduthy) 12 D Gordon (Invergordon) 8.
RONNIE MacDonald, accompanied by three Avoch club curlers, won the Richard Mackenzie Ltd Building Contractor, Tain, sponsored Ross Province Bonspiel in the Inverness Ice Rink on Saturday, February 4, with the Avoch skip recording his first Ross Province Bonspiel success since joining the Province.
MacDonald had his last bonspiel win in 2006 in the competition that marked the closure of the Brora Ice Rink. By that time MacDonald and his family had already moved away from Brora and joined the Avoch Club where in the current season he has taken over from Arthur MacArthur as the club’s first skip. Prominent in his rink are his curling daughters Nicola and Claire.
In his line-up last Saturday were the Ross Province secretary Joan Maxwell, Mike Burns and the skip’s wife Gillian, whom he managed to persuade out of retirement to play lead stones.
In their first game they racked up 20 shots against Mike Burns’ wife Marion who was skipping a Ross ladies rink. Then it was a tougher tie against Belmaduthy’s Dave MacLennan, current leader of the B League Championship. MacLennan was beaten 9-4 to give MacDonald an unassailable total of plus 24 shots from his two games.
Sutherland curler Nigel Murray, taking a Locheye rink of Alan Mackenzie, Christine Mackenzie and Ian Ross, came second for the second year running. They began confidently with a first game 7-3 win over last year’s winner Iain Fraser (Belmaduthy) and followed up with a second round 14-2 success over Caberfeidh’s Ian MacIntyre for a final total of plus 16 shots.
Four pupils from Fortrose and Rosemarkie Academy were a late entry into the competition to fill the withdrawal of the Ross Seniors rink. Skipped by John Fraser with Rory MacLennan and brother and sister Ian and Ellie Munro, they got excellent preparation for this week’s North Schools eliminator — which if they beat Inverness’s Millburn Academy will give them entry into the Scottish Schools Championship — when they came third in the bonspiel. The youngsters won both their games, beating Coreen MacRae (Alness) 5-4 and following up with an outstanding 8-4 win over Belmaduthy’s statesman skip, Peter Fraser.
Sutherland’s Murray, with four points from two wins over Ross-shire skips, helped Sutherland Province regain the Bison Trophy which was played in conjunction with the bonspiel. Sutherland’s other double winning skip to earn four points from two games was their match secretary, Richard Mackenzie (Locheye). Contributing two points each in the final 12-8 points result for Sutherland were Douglas Gordon (Locheye) and Coreen MacRae (Alness).
Ross-shire’s eight points when playing their Sutherland opposition came from wins by John Fraser (Fortrose Academy), Dave MacLennan and Iain Fraser (Belmaduthy), and Ian MacIntyre (Caberfeidh).
Province Bonspiel Results — Section A
Game 1 – B Shirran (Caber) 7, P Fraser (Belmaduthy) 8; J Fraser (F&R Academy) 5, C MacRae (Alness) 4; R MacDonald (Avoch) 20, M Burns (Ross Ladies) 1; D MacLennan (Belmaduthy) 7, D Gordon (Locheye) 5.
Game 2 — J Fraser 8, P Fraser 4; MacDonald 9, MacLennan 7; Shirran 6, MacRae 7; Gordon 7, Burns 6.
Section 2
Game 1 — F Mackenzie (Muir of Ord) 4, N Gillies (Killearnan) 6; I Fraser (Belmaduthy) 3, N Murray (Invergordon) 7; I MacIntyre (Caberfeidh) 9, I Mackay (Dornoch) 6; B Shanks (Strathpeffer) 5, R Mackenzie (Locheye) 6.
Game 2 — F Mackenzie 4, Shanks 5; I Fraser 12, I Mackay 7; R Mackenzie 9, Gillies 3; Murray 14, MacIntyre 2.
Bonspiel — Ronnie MacDonald +24 shots; 2 Nigel Murray +16shots; 3 John Fraser +5 shots.
Bison Trophy — Sutherland Province 12 points, Ross Province 8 points.
