Winter Olympics live: Team GB curlers play Canada in must-win game amid backdrop of cheating allegations
Team GB have two games left to stake their claim for a semi-final spot and face heavyweights Canada in a difficult encounter
The Olympic curling tournament is reaching its business end as world champions Great Britain play Canada, a renowned curling heavyweight, in a crunch match on Tuesday.
Bruce Mouat’s rink have underperformed so far and a shock defeat to Norway on Monday left them in a difficult position, with just two round robin games to play and several teams in contention for a top-four spot.
GB sit fourth having played a game more than the current top three of Switzerland, Canada and Norway.
A win tonight would keep their hopes of making the semi-finals alive, but defeat would put the 2022 silver medallists dangerously close to elimination.
All eyes will be on Tuesday’s encounter and not just for the result - Canada were memorably accused of cheating by Sweden, with Marc Kennedy defending himself in an expletive-laden rant, while GB were caught out by the same double-touch rules later.
Follow all the action with The Independent’s live blog below:
Great Britain 1-3 Canada
A slight error from Brad Jacobs gives Bruce Mouat the chance to push the sitting red out on sit two with one stone each left to curl.
This could mean GB score two, maybe more, in this end if he pulls it off.
It’s tough though and the margins are fine. He can’t afford to clip his own yellow just above it...
... Great shot! He makes it look easy and the red is nudged into the blue circle leaving GB sitting two up.
Great Britain 1-3 Canada
A lovely shot from Grant Hardie sees him draw in from the right and nudge the sitting red out of the house.
Kennedy has to emulate that shot to take out the yellow of Great Britain. He’s slightly wide but manages to displace the yellow but the red glides further away than he’d like.
Great Britain 1-3 Canada
Canada are bossing end four as GB set up a few guards for late assaults.
Three reds stones in the house with Bobby Lammie forced to take a few of them out.
He uses the centre guard and fires two reds from the house but there are still two left as the guards spins off to the left.
Great Britain 1-3 Canada
The final stone for Bruce Mouat is a tricky double to limit Canada to one point in this end.
He needs to come off the centre red and spin into the red over to the right.
Oh perfect!
That leaves Canada to settle for one point which they do.
Great Britain 1-2 Canada
Place guard, knock guard. That’s the rhythm of this end at the minute.
Grant Hardie’s final stone sees GB come into the house, knock into his own yellows which spin into a red and firing it away.
Canada sit one up but GB have three in the house.
Mark Kennedy, the man accused of cheating by the Swiss last week, plays a nice thin double and takes out two of those yellows.
Over to Bruce Mouat.
Great Britain 1-2 Canada
The house is being clustered as Great Britain try to limit Canada to just one point in this end.
Canada take out the guard to give themselves a free run at the four stones in the house if they want to take them out.
GB respond by replacing the guard and protecting their own yellows.
Canada displace the guard once more.
Great Britain 1-2 Canada
End three now. Something to note is that the United States trail Italy 2-1 in their match which is also taking place right now. That result will also have ramifications for Team GB’s semi-final hopes.
Britain have the opening stone and set up a guard in end three before Canada draw into the house from the right.
McMillan tries to emulate them with his second stone but leaves it a little high.
Great Britain 1-2 Canada
Grant Hardie plays two superb stones on his turn and gets GB to lie one with the possibility to displace more of the reds.
He’s left Bruce Mouat with some good options but they’ll be reactionary to what Canada can produce.
GB still sit one after an attempted double takeout. Mouat could curl into the house and leave Canada with the decision on what to do.
They do and Mouat fades in to leave the yellow just atop his own in the house. GB lie two, Canada have won shot let and Brad Jacobs will try to knock them both out...
... Oh he does! That’s a great shot, both yellows fly away and Canada are lying three up now. What can Mouat produce?
He needs to hit the most recent stone clear and leave one in the green which he does simply enough. GB take the one point.
Great Britain 0-2 Canada
End two is shaping up to be an entirely different challenge.
GB have the hammer and will want to match Canada’s two points at the very least.
With a couple of guards set, GB look to freeze a couple of stones in the house near their opponents but have limited success.
Bobby Lammie has the take out the red guard which smashes into the stones clustered in the house.
The result is Canada sitting three up with four stones left to play in the end. No yellows in the house and some thinking to do for Bruce Mouat.
Great Britain 0-2 Canada
A slight error from Bruce Mouat means Canada have an advantage in the end now.
He clips the only red remaining in the house but can’t knock it out. On top of that his own yellow sails away meaning that Canada have the chance to score at least two.
Mouat’s next stone is sent to the red on the right side of the house. He knocks that one free and spins into the centre of the house leaving a testing final stone to move the yellow out of the way.
If Canada push Mouat’s stone from the house they’ll score two...
... which they do! Canada take the lead.
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