Muirhead downed again to leave Great Britain on the brink

From Sportsbeat staff, in Vancouver

 GREAT Britain's women's curlers are on the brink of elimination after costly mistakes handed Eve Muirhead her fourth straight defeat against Denmark in Vancouver.

ON THE BRINK: (l-r) Lorna Vevers, Kelly Wood, Eve Muirhead and Jackie Lockhart are drinking in the last chance saloon after defeat to Denmark (Getty Images) 

Muirhead and co must now overcome red-hot favourites Canada, who have won five on their six matches, in their final match and hope other results go their way if they are to squeeze into the last four.

It could have been much different for Muirhead, who was the skip in the ascendancy in the early stages against Madeleine Dupont, but inexperience crept in and Great Britain slumped to a 9-8 defeat once more.

Muirhead is just 19 and while she has three junior world titles to her name, her inexperience has proved costly after a promising start in Vancouver.

Against Denmark, Muirhead began strongly and cancelled out Dupont's opening single with a fine triple in the second end before the skips exchanged doubles to give Great Britain a 5-3 advantage.

That soon became 6-4 but Muirhead's first major mistake came in the seventh end and handed Denmark a triple.

The Scot levelled at 7-7 in the eighth but a wild final stone in the ninth handed Dupont a two-stone lead going into the final end - Muirhead smashed her broom on the rink - the ice queen erupted.

The pressure was clearly getting to Great Britain. Lorna Vevers and even 44-year-old former world champion Jackie Lockhart were misfiring and while Muirhead produced her best shot of the match at the death, coming within inches of a quadruple clear-out, Denmark had done enough to secure victory.

Great Britain will now face Canada, skipped by Cheryl Bernard on Tuesday, safe in the knowledge that nothing but a win will do. And even then Lady Luck will have to be smiling on the Scots.

Indeed, Muirhead and her rink have slipped to seventh in the round robin standings, courtesy of their three wins and five defeats with Switzerland's Mirjam Ott currently occupying fourth.

In the other matches of the session, Bernard downed Sweden's defending Olympic champion Anette Norberg 6-2, while Ott took her record to four wins and three losses with a thumping 10-4 win over Japan's Moe Meguro.

And Russia, skipped by Anna Sidorova, overcame China's world champion skip BIngyu Wang 7-4 to keep her slender hopes alive.

 

AS IT HAPPENS: Follow day 11 of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver