Ford World's, Draw 11- Canada vs Norway

Norway's skip Thomas Ulsrud is surely the hunk of the show.

Norway, we hear, like open ends. So we might something interesting.

End #1: Norway have the hammer by a coin toss. Canada center guard in place. Norway come around into the house, well covered. Canada put a rock in the front 12-foot. Norway wreck on the front guard. Kennedy kills the Norway rock in the house but leaves his rock a bit open. Norway return the favor and roll behind some cover. Kennedy runs the Canada guard back and removes the Norway rock. Norway tap the guard - did they mean that? Canada buries a rock behind cover at about 3 o'clock. Norway's freeze attempt bounces into the open. Morris hits but does not roll. Norway hit and do not roll. Martin, with the option of hitting that last rock, is coming around - slightly hits the center guard, with a ton of brushing, but is just barely edging out of the four-foot. "Curled like crazy, uh?" Ulsrud wrecks on a Canada rock in the front of the house. Martin is talking, precision-wise, about "over-curling by an inch or two". Wow. Crazy brushing and they have a rock just in front of the house on the center. We'll see is Ulsrud can find his way in, facing three. He goes through the house and Canada steal three! Oh dear. Not quite the match I had hoped to see.

End #2: I am getting really peeved not seeing any shots in an end until the last lead shot. Thanks, TSN, for this useless coverage. OK - however we got here, a whole bunch of Canada rocks along the center and some Norway rocks vaguely scattered elsewhere. Martin is being brutally aggressive and adding to complexity - he now has the perfect configuration - one center line rock in front of the house and behind that one in each of the eight and front four foot. Norway do a nice run-back and clear some of this out. Open path not to a Canada rock in the center, front of the four-foot. Canada put a guard right in front of the house. Norway hit, staying shot and wide open, and leaving the Canada rock in the back of the eight-foot at 7 o'clock. Morris hits the Norway rock and rolls behind cover, though behind the T-line. Norway come to the top of the four-foot, not shot, and not frozen, as surely intended. Martin, with a TON of brushing, knocks out the Norway rock and slide behind less cover than hoped (but good cover). Ulsrud puts a rock in the front eight-foot but is third shot. Martin draws, getting to the top of the eight-foot, short of the plan. Norway has some options - risky raises. They are trying one - there is a double for two through a not totally tiny port. He wrecks, but gets one, via, as rightly put 'Plan F' (from Vic). It was like one of those mis-hits or net shots in tennis where you apologize to the other guys.

End #3: This really pisses me off. Several rocks are in play and I have no idea how they got there. Center-line Norway guard out front and two Canada rocks and one Norway rock in the front of the house on the center. Norway add another. I am sparing myself describing this as someone will surely simplify it soon. Getting tricky - Canada misses and wreck on a Norway rock in the front 12-foot. OK two Norway rocks in the front 12-foot, two Canada rocks in teh 8-foot, and a Norway rock in the 4-foot, all hanging around the center. Canada try the nuclear option - the 12-foot reds remain but behind them it is a Canada rock now. Norway try something similar and screw up, leaving Martin the ability to have Morris do this. Oops a screw-up. Anyway a Norway rock at 3 pm behind cover now and an open Canada rocks at thye top of the house. Norway put one beside that, not sure why (they speak Norwegian as they plan shots). Morris definitely does not do as planned. Norway now sit two with shots in the front of the house - nobody has made a shot as planned in a while. Martin plans a crazy double, and makes it. Not quite as wanted as the remaining Canada rock in the house is open and behind the T-line. Ulsrud wants a double and is not even close. Martin has a straight and simple open hit for two. "Sort of a strange end", says Linda. Well, I hope my commentary reflects that! Canada get 2. 5-1 Canada. Does anyone think this is NOT over?

The 'Dancing with the Stars' eliminations for the week are coming up soon, so I hope my assumption that there is a level of irrelevancy here is right!

End #4: TSN decide to babble with Pia Lindholm, skip of a team that did not make this championship. Thanks, idiots. Nice to know his wife is birthing, Sheesh, I hardly now want to report this end. What excuse is this for sports coverage? Is this the worst of the NBC Olympic Coverage again? OK we are already on third rocks, have a Norway corner guard, but a Canada rock in the house behind it. Heavy miss by Norway, behind the T-line,giving Morris a freeze chance. Not great - a bounce and the wrong way. Norway wreck on a guard and the house is now a mess, all over on the right side behind a corner guard. After much discussion Canada decide to come and park a rock on their shot rock, on the outer edge of the eight-foot. Hard to do better than they did! Norway wreck horribly. After long deliberation on how to make Ulsrud's life maximally miserable, Martin and Morris agree to put a rock up in top of the four-foot, forcing him to do something against three counting Canada rocks. Beautiful draw to the button! But really, that is what Canada wanted at the start of the end (maybe not at teh end).

I am sure we are all already missing the first couple of shots of the next end. Is there anyone out there willing to admit he/she would get a Capital One card because of Jennifer Jones shouting hard and easy? In fact, my own reaction is that I will studiously avoid getting such a card. Sorry, TSN, they seem to be your sole advertiser, an ominous thought.

End #5: This is ridiculous - we are almost halfway into the end? What isin their brains? Do they actually get a large audience who find the early shots irrelevant? I guess they think so.

Here is my plan going forward. I will describe ONLY the lead and second shots I get to see. I will no longer describe third or skip shots. I will report the score at the end of the end. I will have for this end only the score at the end. If Doc is around he can complement my effort but this is driving me bats. Maybe TSN could just put a bunch of rocks out and let the thirds and skips play out the ends. Like limited-overs cricket it could speed the sport up.

My new principle means I am NOT reporting two stunning skip shots leading to a blanked end. Thanks, TSN, for pissing me off.

End #6: After the mid-match break there is no excuse. Some rocks already played nonetheless. Norway rock is a center guard in front of another one they have. Canada rock joining another in the house - Canada rocks creating a nice pocket for Norway. Norway park on the button in front of the pocket. Canada clear a front guard. Norway put it back. Canada misses the guard and chip out the Norway rock on the button. That's it for this end for me. Canada steal four! Sorry TSN decided not to let me tell you how.

Handshakes.

TSN - shape up!