TBT: Eve Muirhead makes it 2 in T.O.
It’s Throwback Thursday and we’re looking at the top moments of the Players’ Championship in Toronto. Today’s feature: Team Muirhead win two Players’ Championship titles in Toronto.
All Eve Muirhead does in Toronto is win trophies.
The Scottish skip earned her first career Grand Slam title at the Players’ Championship in April 2013 capping a sensational season that also saw her capture the gold medal at the women’s worlds.
After a shaky 2-2 start in the Players’ Championship round robin, Muirhead rolled off three consecutive wins in the playoffs en route to the title including an 8-5 victory over Margaretha Sigfridsson of Sweden in a rematch of that year’s women’s world final.
Team Muirhead became the first European rink to earn a Grand Slam of Curling title.
The Players’ Championship returned to Toronto in 2015. Team Muirhead won the previous Grand Slam tournament that season, the Canadian Open, but entered the Players’ Championship coming off a disappointing fourth-place finish at the worlds falling to Russia’s Anna Sidorova in the bronze medal match to miss the podium.
Muirhead qualified for the Players’ Championship playoffs with a 3-2 record and defeated Edmonton’s Heather Nedohin 7-4 in the quarterfinals and faced Ottawa’s Rachel Homan in the semifinals.
Muirhead opened the scoring stealing two in the second end and scored four in the sixth to lead 8-3 with two ends to play. Homan bounced back with a deuce in seven and stole two coming home but it wasn’t enough as Muirhead held on for the 8-7 victory.
That set up a rematch against Sidorova, who topped Edmonton’s Val Sweeting stealing two in the sixth and one in the seventh during a 5-3 win.
There were no four-enders — or even deuces — in the conservative final with just singles going steady across the board and the game was all square 2-2 after six ends. Sidorova looked to score three in the seventh, but her shot overcurled and she gave up a steal of one.
Sidorova had a shot to tie it coming home and force the extra end but couldn’t get her rock close enough as Muirhead swiped another point to hold on for the 4-2 victory and her second career Players’ Championship title.
“It feels just as good the second time around if not better,” Sloan said after the win. “I think the first year, we were playing well, we were playing consistently and everything was going our way. This season has been tough. The results haven’t been going our way. (But now) just loving it.”
Both Players’ Championship victories also clinched the Rogers Grand Slam Cup for Team Muirhead.
The Players’ Championship returns to Ryerson’s Mattamy Athletic Centre for the third time in four years running April 12-17. Tickets are available, visit thegrandslamofcurling.com/tickets for details.
