SHR – Ian Fleming’s First Eight Ender – Where Did That Come From?

Shareholders – Bob Parry, John Adkin, Ian Fleming, Eileen Fleming with Jack Blackwood looking a little bemused – Photo – LIR (Lockhart Steele)

Well it’s exciting to say that you were involved in an ‘Eight-Ender’ though unfortunately not on the right side of it. And so it was last Wednesday night when I was playing second to Jack Blackwood Skip; Richard Fergusson 3rd and Linda Blackwood Lead in the Shareholders – CROOKEDSTONE competition.

Like a lot of Eight-Enders I get the feeling you don’t see it coming. Jack & Richard were so engrossed on the options to steal an end with Jack’s last stone they had lost sight of the fact that if they chose the wrong option an Eight-Ender was on (though in saying this I don’t think Ian was also aware). So how did it come about?

The House Before Jack Played His Last Stone

Being four up, Jack & Richard elected to try and raise the front Red (Yellow on Red). Now initially looking at the house I don’t think anybody saw the Eight on the assumption that at the worse – Jack would have come up short of the house or indeed there was just enough weight to raise the red onto the eight foot or at best the four (with a ‘skiff’ off the left hand yellow?), but to out count the yellow that was biting the one foot, was a long shot.

Whilst Jack & Richard debated I was further down the rink and looked at the path into the yellows biting the one & two foot on the out-turn and thought was the better option (or angle raise the outside of the Red or ‘kiss’ the Red ?). Looking at the first option my shot would have been a back-ring running stone to nestle between the two of them (initially stones were running straight then there was a vicious draw after the hog-line hence the heavier weight to try keep the stone fairly straight). I mentioned this to Jack when he was heading back to the hack but as we were four up he wanted to try the raise. It’s a Skip’s call !

So Jack delivered his stone with a controlled weight (so we thought?). Brushing to try and stop it curling it ended on the lo side of the Yellow stone with enough weight to drive the Red stone through the house (with a indeed a little skiff off the Yellow) at about 10 o’clock. Now the Eight-Ender was on.

Ian had now to keep his calm and hit the remaining Red between 5 & 6 o’clock to put it through the gap. Weight and ice were critical. Off it went – and success – through the gap the Red went for the Eight. Superb!