Olympic curling qualifier: Scotland back to winning ways after defeating Japan
- Published
Eve Muirhead complained of the ice conditions in the Netherlands in their second tie
Eve Muirhead said there "is a lot of relief" after Scotland claimed an 8-5 win over Japan in their women's Olympic qualifying event in the Netherlands.
Japan were the only team who were unbeaten before the Scots got back to winning ways following successive losses to Turkey and South Korea.
There are nine nations competing for the last three places at Beijing 2022.
"We showed how well we can play, because we did play very well out there," said Muirhead.
Scotland, who face Germany on day four of the event, would have been under considerable pressure if they had lost a third successive match on the Leeuwarden ice, but they took charge of their meeting with the Japanese team from the off.
For the fourth time in four matches they claimed the hammer by winning the pre-match last stone draw, but they made the advantage count for the first time in text book fashion as they blanked the opening end, then scored two at the second to take both the lead and control of the even ends.
A steal at the third then provided breathing space and although opposing skip Fujisawa Satsuki produced a brilliant angled raise to register a two at the fourth, they responded in kind at the next to head into the midway break 5-2 up.
After a force at the next Muirhead was then left with a straightforward take out with her final stone to move 8-3 up at the seventh end and, although their opponents played on for a further two ends, the match was all but over.
"It felt like we were in control and it showed what we're capable of after struggling through the first few games," said Muirhead.
"We just haven't managed to string a lot of shots together. We've struggled a little with the conditions, but tonight was a lot better."
She added: "Being on only two wins having had an early bye makes it looks a bit worse than it is. We're only on two losses, though with four games left and I know we're capable of winning those last four, which would hopefully put us in a good position.
"We've got four very important games left, but we've got it in our own hands, so we just have to keep the ball rolling and keep playing like we can play."
What is the format?
The nine teams will all play one another in a round-robin competition, with the country top of the standings at the end going straight through to the Olympics.
Those who finish second and third will play each other again, with the winner taking the second qualifying berth.
The loser will then meet the rink who finished fourth in the round-robin standings, with the triumphant nation sealing the final place. Ultimately, a top-four finish is a must.
The women's teams competing are: Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Scotland (will play as Great Britain at the Olympics) and Turkey.
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