 Poster: A snowHead
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Ok how bored am I?
My basic reason for watching to make sure I got a connection to watch tonight's Women's boardercross
It seems that this is a good chance for a British medal.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Curling seems to be on whenever I turn the TV (red button) on to try and see some Vancouver coverage. Whilst I appreciate the talent of the folks competing to me it's about as dull to watch as watching paint dry.
I'm sure I read somewhere recently that it was one of the most viewed winter sports at the olympics. If true it can only be a matter of time before Simon Cowell's onto "I'm a celebrity, watch my paint dry faster than someone else's" 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Apparently the tickets have sold out for most of the sessions, and a lot of locals were disappointed that the rink only holds 5,000 people as they could have sold 15,000 tickets for each session!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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hammerite, - apologies if my "paint drying " comment was offensive to your user name 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| Quote: |
| It seems that this is a good chance for a British medal. |
Ok I was a bit out on that.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| BOA NEWS ALERT wrote: |
Great Britain In Confidence Booster See Off China
Team GB’s men’s curlers (Dave Murdoch, Ewan MacDonald, Pete Smith and Euan Byres) faced China this morning in the first of two ‘must win’ games if they were to get their Olympic campaign back on track. They did not disappoint and looking a different team today, they patiently turned the screws on China to win 9-4 after nine ends.
Great Britain lay fifth in the standings going into the game, having won two from four against China’s one win from four. A technically sound team, China was all out to make like difficult for Great Britain.
However Great Britain made a more confident start, taking a one in the first end. The scores went with hammer and some good play by Great Britain secured a two in the fourth to go 3-1 up. China, with their skip Rui Liu playing a high percentage game, came straight back to score one and leave Great Britain 3-2 up at the fifth end break. Coach David Hay felt it was a good solid start.
Great Britain gathered momentum and applied pressure from the beginning of the sixth end, and aided by some errors from the Chinese skip, scored three to lead by 6-2. China on hammer in the seventh was set to draw for one, but the mistakes continued and a light weight shot allowed Britain to steal for two and surge ahead 8-2. China on last stone came back two in the eighth but with Great Britain on hammer they were in a strong position to close out the game, which they did 9-4 after nine ends forcing the Chinese to concede.
David Murdoch said, “It certainly had a far better feel about it today. We were getting the rocks in the right position which has been lacking in the last few games and we have been getting punished by it and putting ourselves under a lot of pressure.
“Today we were far more on top of the game and in control of what we wanted to do. In addition we made a lot of good shots and read the ice well.
“It is a good win for us going in to tonight against Canada.”
Asked if they were now on a roll David added, “I sure hope we are on a roll now. It’s got that look about it hopefully and I have always said this team gets better as the week goes on.
“Tonight is a big game for us and it is probably more import for us that we win than Canada who top the round-robin regardless of what happens tonight.”
Looking forward to the game against Canada later this evening Peter Smith said, “Every games is a big game and Canada is just another one we have planned for during the week.
“We have nine round-robin games and we need to get to six or seven wins to get through to the semi-finals.
“Undoubtedly for those who are watching it will be a big game and the atmosphere inside the arena will be absolutely fantastic, but for the four guys representing Great Britain on the ice it will be just another game of curling.”
A satisfied David Hay, Team Coach concluded, “That was an important game. It was vital to win that and we played really well, especially David and Ewan. So we’re in good shape for tonight’s game.
“We’ve had a few things to sort out, and hopefully we’re back on track again. Basically, we’ve agreed we’ve got to be sharper. We’ve been playing three or four ends really well and then having a poor one.
“There were a few mistakes in that game as well, so we’ll go back and work on that.”
Great Britain move up to equal third in the standings with Switzerland and Sweden.
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For those of you who don't know the first set of games are run like a league(all the teams play each another), with the top four going to semi finals etc to decide the medals.
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| BOA NEWS ALERT wrote: |
Men’s Curlers Edged Out By Canada in Classic Game
Team GB’s men’s curlers (Dave Murdoch, Ewan MacDonald, Pete Smith and Euan Byres) were up against hosts and tournament favourites Canada this evening in a game that lived up to its billing as the tie of the round. Sadly for Great Britain they came out on the wrong side of the result losing 6-7 in the final end.
Fresh from a win against China this morning, Great Britain were up for the challenge and made a positive start. A blank first end was followed by a two from Canada in the second. Murdoch’s men piled on the pressure with a three in the third thanks to two superb stones from Britain’s skip. Canada was being contained and at the fifth end break Great Britain was ahead 4-3.
It continued to be a close and exciting game with some great shot making from both teams and David Murdoch’s rink suggested they were on their way back to their World Championship best. Canada went ahead with a two in the sixth. Level after seven and with a steal for one in the eighth Great Britain led 6-5. A blank end at nine left Canada on last stone and they managed to take a two in the tenth and with it the game 6-7.
Pleased with their performance but disappointed with their third loss, David Murdoch commented,“It was a great game but not a good result. I think we were pretty dominant in both halves.
“We started well and took a three in the third. I made a mistake on seven when I had a chance for two, but made up for it on eight with a steal. We were making a lot of high pressure shots and forcing these guys to play a lot of shots.
“We had a great chance in the tenth if we could have got the centre guard on and they were struggling to get one but unfortunately we didn’t do it.
Contemplating the rest of the tournament he added, “Every game is a must win for us if we are to finish six and three and that’s our aim. The positives we will take from this game is that we are playing more like we should be playing.
“It is still in our hands which is not a bad situation we just have our backs to the wall a little bit.”
Team Coach, David Hay praised the performance saying, “We played really, really well, the best we have played here. We completely dominated the Canadians in the first half of the game and they must have been delighted to get to the turn at one down because it could have been a lot more than that.
“We are a big game team and we will come good in the second half of the competition, but we still need three more wins to get there.”
Great Britain men lie fourth equal in the standings and now face the USA tomorrow.
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| BOA NEWS ALERT wrote: |
British Men Back In Business
Great Britain men’s curlers (Dave Murdoch, Ewan MacDonald, Pete Smith and Euan Byres) were up against the USA today in an ‘absolutely must win’ game if they were to keep their semi final hopes alive. They didn’t disappoint and in a contained and business-like performance they beat the USA 4-2.
It was a steady start by both teams, and by the fifth end break Great Britain was in the lead 2-1. With defensive tactics the order of the day from the USA, Great Britain played their best technical percentage game of the week so far, to finish them off 4-2.
The highlights included a steal for one in the sixth end, whilst they forced the USA to take one in the eighth, to ensure they were on hammer for the last two ends of the game. In the tenth, skip David Murdoch made an excellent draw to the four-foot with his final stone, to out-count the US stone in the twelve-foot. This completed an end where the British team kept the house wide open with some great tick shots by British lead Euan Byers.
David Murdoch said of the game, “There are teams this week that want to play aggressively and others defensively like the USA today. You just have to be patient.
“We were playing well, in control of the game and finished it off which is great.
Reviewing their position and looking forward to the next game against Germany he said, “That’s one out of the three we need to win. It is a good win and another one on the board. We just need to carry that momentum forward into the game against Germany.
“Germany is always going to be a tough one. When Andy (Andy Kapp, German skip) plays well he can be extremely hot and we have had some tough games against them. But I think with the way the team is playing just now it should be good.
“We are playing well, confidence is high and we are just looking forward to the next game.”
Great Britain men now sit equal third in the standings and face Germany in their penultimate round-robin game tomorrow.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| BOA NEWS ALERT wrote: |
British Men's Revival Continues
In fourth place at the start of the night, and with a better than realistic chance of qualifying for at least the play-offs, the Great Britain men’s curlers gave themselves a further boost with a dominant performance against Germany to win 8-2 after eight ends.
It was a controlled performance from the outset by the British quartet of Dave Murdoch, Ewan MacDonald, Pete Smith and Euan Byres. They took a one in the first, then stole a one in the third. In the fourth end German skip Andy Kapp was short on a draw to the twelve foot, allowing Great Britain to steal two for a commanding 4-0 lead.
Confidence was high and a smiling and relaxed looking David Murdoch was finding some of his best form of the week so far, as were the rest of the rink. They came out on hammer in the sixth end and scored two. 6-2 up after seven, Great Britain’s alternate Graeme Connal was brought on at lead in the eighth, to make his Olympic debut and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It was made all the sweeter when a further two forced the Germans to concede after eight ends and enable the men to get an early night ahead of their final round-robin game against Norway.
Great Britain skip, David Murdoch said, “That was a really solid performance and we are hitting the type of form that we expect from ourselves. That has been three really solid games back to back and the team usually does that by the time that it gets to the end of the week in major championships, so it is great to see.
“These guys are good curlers, but we put a lot of pressure on and forced the mistakes and that’s how we intend to play the rest of the week.
“Our campaign is still alive, with at least a play-off spot, but we are not going to think about that. We are going to focus on getting that win against Norway because that would be our semi final berth secured.
When asked if there was still more to come David added, “I think there is still a bit more to go, we are not maxed out yet, but we are coming into the type of form we are looking for. The game against Canada gave us that intensity, the US game was very defensive and so we had to respond to that, and tonight we totally dominated.
“This is the business end of the week now and it is good to see that every one of us is playing some great shots.”
Commenting on his Olympic debut, fifth player Graeme Connal said, “It was great to get on the ice and make some shots. I am delighted to have had the opportunity.”
Reviewing the team’s position David Hay, Team Coach commented, “We are guaranteed a play-off place now. Tonight was an important game and the boys played well. It is nice to have had one cruise control game of the week.”
Great Britain men now sit equal third in the standings and face the on form Norway at 14:00 tomorrow (Tuesday 22:00 GMT) in their tenth and final round-robin game.
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| BOA NEWS ALERT wrote: |
Men's Curlers In Play-off, For Semi Final Spot
Great Britain men’s curlers will now have to beat Sweden in a play-off tomorrow at 14:00 (22:00 GMT) if they are to keep their Olympic medal hopes alive. They lost to Norway today 5-9 after eight ends, in a game that they had hoped would secure them a direct passage into the semi finals on Thursday.
Having increasingly raised their game over the last three ties, it just didn’t quite click today for the British quartet, and they found themselves up against a confident Norwegian side that have maintained their form all week.
Great Britain skip, David Murdoch said, “I am pretty disappointed with that to be honest. It was a great opportunity for us and we didn’t take it. We played some great ends, but we just had some slack shots.
“The turning point was probably not getting a two to go one up in the fourth, we just had a bit of a bad line call. We thought it was going to pull on us and ended up going straight and rolling out. We gave away a two in the fifth end and were 4-6 down and from that point on we were on the back foot.
“The score didn’t reflect the game. We just have to bin that and come out again tomorrow.
Looking forward to the play-off he added, “So tomorrow we play Sweden and we just have to see it as another game. At least we are not out of it that’s the main thing. Hopefully we will win that game.
“If we win we would play Canada in the semi finals. We like playing them, it always brings the best out in us. It is not something we are scared of and if we played Kevin it would be one almighty game.”
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| BOA NEWS ALERT wrote: |
Men’s Medal Hopes Dashed By Sweden
Great Britain men’s curlers fought for their Olympic lives this afternoon and sadly had their medal hopes, along with four year’s hard work, dashed by Sweden.
They were playing Sweden for the last semi final place of the 2010 Olympic Games. Sweden had beaten them in the opening round-robin game, but had faltered towards the end of the week, to leave them the last shot of their final round-robin game against Denmark to force a play-off against Great Britain.
It was a tense start by both teams, swopping twos in each of the first three ends. A steal for one by Sweden in the fourth was nullified by a one from Great Britain in the fifth, to go into the fifth end break 3-5 down.
Steals for one in the sixth and seventh, saw the British quartet claw their way back to 5-5. They showed their true character and mistakes crept in from the Swedes and Great Britain forced them to take a one in the eighth to get back on hammer 5-6 down. They went for the blank in the ninth to go into the 10th end on last stone. It was looking good for a two, but they over-swept Murdoch’s last shot and had to settle for the one to level the game at 6-6 but pass over the hammer to Sweden who won 6-7 in the extra end.
A gutted Great Britain skip, David Murdoch said, “It is heartbreaking. It is the worst thing possible as far as our team’s concerned.
“We put ourselves in a position where every game mattered so much, as we got to the end of the week. In our game against Switzerland, had one shot curled another inch then we would have been in the semi final.
“From that point on it was backs to the wall. We had some really great games, but we probably should have beaten a few more teams this week, including Canada. We just didn’t finish some of the games off like we usually do.
“We did everything we possibly could. This last two years we have trained six days a week, practiced as hard as we could and came into these Games as World Champions, which is a great position to be in. But sometimes it doesn't go right for you and this week it didn’t go well at all.
“Today we weren’t sharp in the first five ends, but the team showed a lot of character. In the last five we piled a lot of pressure on them and curled the way we should have been curling.
“In the tenth end we over swept my last shot and if it had curled another inch I would have been standing here with a smile on my face and in the semi final, but it’s not to be.
“When you sacrifice so much and you are away from home and you train as hard as we do and you don’t get the result it is hard to take and it will take a long time to get over."
When asked if it would continue to Sochi he added, “We have the Scottish Championships next week to qualify for the Worlds. Sochi is four years away and there is a lot of thinking time before then. However the thing missing for me and the others is an Olympic medal, we are more than capable of winning but we need to be sharper in Olympic week.”
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I watched the first few ends of this match and even to my untrained eye the GB team seemed to be struggling, some critical shots were off target.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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FAQ
