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Belmdauthy curlers receive Inverness Curling Super League trophy – but fall in the play-offs


By Robin Wilson

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Belmaduthy’s Iain Fraser and his club curlers, Peter Macintyre, Jamie and Scott Fraser received their Inverness Curling Super League winning trophy following the end-of-season play-off semi finals last week.

The play-offs are separate from the league, with rinks competing for a different trophy, and involve the top four finishing teams in the league table.

Fraser played the fourth qualifying rink of ex-Scottish and World champion Ewan MacDonald who returned to local Super League curling two seasons go with the aim of introducing his teenage son, Max and nephew Sorely MacDonald to the sport competitively.

Ross-shire, Super League Division 1 League winners, left to right Scott Fraser, Jamie Fraser, Peter Macintyre and Iain Fraser.
Ross-shire, Super League Division 1 League winners, left to right Scott Fraser, Jamie Fraser, Peter Macintyre and Iain Fraser.

They played in and won Division Two last season and this season finished fourth in Division One.

It was known that MacDonald himself would be out of the country for the semi finals, but there was a surprise for the Belmaduthy curlers when turning up as MacDonald’s replacement was Duncan Fernie.

Fernie is a two-time Scottish champion with titles in 2014 and 2015, and is a close friend of MacDonald’s. He has recently moved north to work as a gamekeeper on the Strath Connon estate.

His influence on the game against the Ross-shire curlers was a telling factor.

In the first end Fernie counted three shots and increased his opening lead to five in the following end.

The Fraser league-winning rink was not completely out-played though, winning four double-counting ends.

But after nine ends against superior odds, the handshake was given against the 14–8 scoreline held by the MacDonald rink as they proceeded to the final.

With the closure of Inverness Ice Centre the final is still to take place, but when it does go ahead they will face Ally Fraser’s rink.

Fraser managed to overcome the league’s runner up Rhuaridh Greenwood 5–4 in the other semi final.

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