England curlers fail to make Euro play-offs

Andrew Reed, fourth from the left, with his England team-mates at the European Championships.

Northumberland curler Andrew Reed and his England team-mates concluded their European Championships in winning form last week, but failed to qualify for the play-offs in the B Division.

The team ended their round-robin group games in Sweden with a 10-5 win over Ukraine, making it four victories and three defeats from their seven outings on the ice.

However, Ireland won their final match to pip them to third position, and with England finishing in fourth place it means they remain in the B Division for another year.

Reed, who comes from Ancroft near Berwick, and who is a mamber of the Glendale Curling Club who play out of the Borders Ice Rink at Kelso, said afterwards, “It was an enjoyable competition and as always it was a pleasure and an honour to represent England at a major championships.

“But there were no easy games and unfortunately we just missed out on a place in the play-offs.”