Scotland’s Team Mouat will aim to make it five from five in the Le Gruyere AOP European Championships after edging out Switzerland at the extra end of a nerve-jangling semi-final encounter in Finland.
It was the second time in a matter of days the top two teams in the sport on this season’s rankings had met and the second time that they were tied after the scheduled 10 ends, but only after it looked as if both teams looked to have the match won.
Having controlled the scoreboard throughout after making the last stone advantage they had earned by finishing top of the round-robin standings count, Bruce Mouat, Grant Hardie, Bobby Lammie and Hammy McMillan looked to have done what was required when they forced their opponents to take a single at the eighth end then scored a two at the ninth to move 8-5 ahead. 
However, after choosing to throw one stone from each of their first two players through the rings to reduce the number of shots in play and create less clutter on the ice, they found themselves in deep trouble when skip Mouat’s first stone glanced off a guard and allowed his opposite number Benoit Schwatz-van Berkel to put a third stone on top of the solitary Scottish stone that was sitting on the button.
Mouat was consequently left with no margin for error with his last stone, which he managed to play perfectly in order to prevent the Swiss from scoring four, but they duly made a straightforward takeout to take the match into extra time.
The Scots still held the upper hand, with last stone advantage, but had beaten the same opponents when the situation was the other way around earlier in the week, so knew they could make no major mistakes.
The Swiss produced a near perfect final end to put Mouat under pressure as he played the first of his skip stones and he narrowly missed with an attempted double takeout.
That meant he was faced with a treacherous double takeout with the last stone of the match, but he held his nerve to deliver it perfectly scoring a two that clinched a 10-8 win.
“At the tenth end we were obviously three up and we tried to keep it as clear as possible. We’ve been in a bit of trouble before when we have gone top four and top four again and staggered the guards and created a bit of a tough situation for ourselves, but the tenth is somewhat different and it didn’t really work out,” Mouat explained.
“We made some tactical errors with Hammy’s set up, just chucked his second one through the back when we could have controlled the four foot and just trust him to make that shot perfectly rather than create a stagger or whatever.
“Bobby was an inch away from making his shot perfectly and I was a centimetre away from making my first shot perfectly, but there were a few errors in there ahead of a really good, clinical last shot to really force them into making a nose hit for their three.
“I was happy to have a shot to just give them a three because it was looking like they could have got a four if I didn’t make that shot with my last one.
“Then in the 11th end we have been in that situation numerous times, so we knew we were still in control and just had to forget about the 10th end and make sure we were still making every shot.”
It was a victory that took them into their fifth gold medal match in their fifth appearance at the Euros, having won all four previously, on their debut in 2018 and then, after a two year absence that was partly down to the cancellation of the 2020 event due to Covid, in each of the last three years.
Their pre-final routine is consequently well drilled, but the skip, who was yet to make his breakthrough at senior level when lead Hammy McMillan was playing lead for the Scotland team at the 2016 European Championships, retains a real sense of excitement about every aspect of what his team is achieving.
“It’s actually a bit surreal, thinking back to when I was a young kid watching the Europeans and now we’re in our fifth time at this event and our fifth final, which is pretty crazy,” Mouat admitted.
“We’ll try and get some good food in us tonight and chill out before the final at lunchtime tomorrow.
“We’re really looking forward to getting on the ice again and giving it all we’ve got.”
They now meet the German quartet of Marc Muskatewitz, Benny Kapp, Felix Messenzehl and Johannes Scheuerl who have made great strides this season, rising nine places to 16 in the world rankings this season.
“The Germans are having a really good season, so we’re expecting a strong performance from them in the final,” said Mouat.
“It was a decent game in the round-robin and we know that they’re making a lot of shots, so we know we’re going to have to play well, but we’re looking forward to the game.”
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Scotland’s GOLD medal game will be broadcast on BBC Scotland and will also be live streamed on the BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport Scotland website.
Watch on BBC iPlayer
Watch on BBC Sport Scotland website.
Sat, 16 Nov
17:30 (UK)
Sco v Den (Women)
Sun, 17 Nov
12:00 (UK)
Sco v Sui (Women)
Mon 18 Nov
10:00 (UK)
Sco v Sui (Men)
Tues, 19 Nov
12:00 (UK)
Sco v Ita (men)
Tues, 19 Nov
17:00 (UK)
Ltu v Sco (Women)
Wed 20 Nov
12:00
Sco v Ita (women)
Thurs, 21 Nov
12:00
Swe v Sco (men)
Scotland Schedule:
Saturday 16 November
Session 1 – women
Scotland – Sweden 5-8
Session 1 – men
Scotland – Netherlands 8-6
Session 2 – women
Scotland – Denmark 11-9 (EE)
Sunday 17 November
Session 2 – men
Scotland – Norway 6-5
Session 3 – women
Scotland – Switzerland 1-8
Session 3 – men
Scotland – England 8-1
Monday 18 November
Session 4 – women
Scotland – Turkiye 4-5
Session 4 – men
Scotland – Switzerland 7-6 (EE)
Session 5 – women
Scotland – Hungary 9-3
Session 5 – men
Scotland – Austria 10-2
Tuesday 19 November
Session 6 – women
Scotland – Estonia 8-1
Session 6 – men
Scotland – Italy 7-10 (EE)
Session 7 – women
Scotland – Lithuania 9-2
Wednesday 20 November
Session 7 – men
Scotland – Germany 12-5
Session 8 – women
Scotland – Italy 9-5
Session 8 – men
Scotland – Czechia 10-2
Thursday 21 November
Session 9 – women
Scotland – Norway 5-4
Session 9 – men
Scotland – Sweden 11-7
Semi Finals – women
Scotland – Sweden 4-6
Switzerland - Italy 7-3
Friday 22 November
Semi Finals – men
Scotland – Switzerland 10-8 (EE)
Germany – Norway 8-2
Bronze medal game – women
Scotland - Italy
Bronze medal game – men – 17.00
Switzerland - Norway
Saturday 23 November
Gold medal game – women – 08.00
Switzerland - Sweden
GOLD medal game – men – 13.00
Scotland – Germany
Image: World Curling
