Co-op Invitational Day 4 Takeaways: Jacobs throttles Eriksson in first battle since Olympics

Friday’s matchup between Brad Jacobs and Oskar Eriksson may need been essentially the most anticipated curling recreation in historical past. 

It was the primary time the Canadian and Swedish groups squared off since Eriksson accused Jacobs’ third, Marc Kennedy, of double-touching the rock on the 2026 Olympics. It was adopted up by Kennedy, who didn’t take all too kindly to the accusation, going at Eriksson and getting right into a swearing match on the ice. 

Jacobs would win the sport, however the story didn’t die there. It dominated the Olympic headlines and even brought on guidelines to be modified, solely to be modified again halfway by way of the precise Olympic match. Yet Jacobs’ workforce by no means let it develop into a distraction and as a substitute went on to win the Olympic gold medal for Canada. 

Seven months faraway from the controversy, Jacobs views their earlier relationship as ruined.

“I have nothing really nice to say about those guys at the moment,” Jacobs mentioned in a taped interview for the Grand Slam of Curling. “I believe it’s tarnished a relationship that we’ve had with them, you know, for a long time, and it’s tarnished it in my opinion forever.”

Nevertheless, the 2 groups shared the identical sheet of ice as soon as once more on the Co-op Invitational taking place in Victoria, B.C. This time, although, there was no yelling, swearing or accusing somebody of breaking the principles. 

Instead, it was only a beatdown. 

Especially on the skip place. Jacobs’ ace share was 75 whereas Eriksson’s was 33. The actual telltale signal is the sting stat, the place Jacobs was plus-4 and Eriksson was a staggering minus-37. 

The ace share is how properly a roller is performing through the match — every shot is graded out of 5 and solely fours and fives are thought-about made. While the sting stat reveals how significantly better or worse a roller is performing towards the sphere.

Jacobs’ workforce as soon as once more took care of enterprise on the ice by merely outplaying Eriksson’s workforce to earn the 8-3 win in simply six ends. 

Throughout the entire recreation, Jacobs, Kennedy, Brett Gallant and Ben Hebert didn’t let something distract them from their purpose of profitable. But after shaking fingers in victory, the 4 defending purpose medallists checked out one another and let loose large smiles. 

Waddell 6, Mouat 5
Paetz 7, Kang 2
Miura 7, Nihira 3
Yamaguchi 7, Maeda 6

Ramsfjell 5, Hoesli 4
Zardini Lacedelli 10, Fujisawa 1
Hardie 8, Y. Schwaller 2
Epping 5, Koe 2

MacMillan 7, Ueno 5
Wrana 8, Homan 6
Einarson 8, Gim 4
Carson 8, Casper 3

Dupont 7, Hasselborg 4
Dunstone 6, Bottcher 5 (SO)
Jacobs 8, Eriksson 3
Schwaller 6, Reese-Hansen 5

Tiebreakers wanted to set playoff discipline 

The playoff bracket on the lads’s facet of the Co-op Invitational is about. Jacobs (1) will face Brendan Bottcher (8), Magnus Ramsjfell (2) will tackle John Epping (7), Marco Hoesli (3) will play Grant Hardie (6) for the second time this week and Matt Dunstone (4) will go up towards Yannick Schwaller. 

To resolve the ladies’s bracket, first Miyu Ueno has to face Yuina Miura, whereas Giulia Zardini Lacedelli will tackle Alina Paetz in tiebreakers. Depending on the winners, they’ll both need to play Xenia Schwaller (1) or Kerri Einarson (2). 

There are two ladies’s quarterfinals confirmed, although. Eun-ji Gim (3) goes up towards Anna Hasselborg (6) and Isabella Wrana (4) will face Team Kang (5), which is skipped by Kyeong-ae Kim.

Playoffs could have totally different names than regular

The GSOC playoffs will likely be lacking two mainstay names within the curling world this week. 

For the primary time because the opening Slam of the 2023-24 season, each Scotland’s Team Bruce Mouat and Canada’s workforce Rachel Homan gained’t be competing previous the spherical robin. 

For Homan, it marks the top of 14 straight journeys to the playoffs, whereas for Mouat, it’s the second straight Slam he is missed — and the primary with Mouat’s new third Robin Brydone. During these 14 Slams, Homan and Mouat mixed for 14 titles, seven every.

While it might be bizarre, it’s not a shock both workforce missed. 

For Mouat, this was his second occasion of the season, and first because the Euro Super Series in August. For Homan, it was her workforce’s first ladies’s fours match of the 12 months.

To put it merely, each groups weren’t sharp. They regarded like two groups enjoying pre-season video games, making an attempt to knock off the rust towards groups that look to be in mid-season type. 

The outcomes may not have been there for both workforce this week, however there’s completely no motive to be panicking about what this implies for each Homan and Mouat shifting ahead.

They simply want extra time on the ice over the following couple of weeks, and each ought to be again within the Slam playoffs on the very minimal. If nothing has improved by the top of the following GSOC occasion, then we’ll discuss.

Battle between No. 1 and No. 2 within the World 

We would possibly solely be a few occasions into the brand new quadrennial, but when we’ve realized something, it’s that Switzerland’s Team Yannick Schwaller and Scotland’s Grant Hardie are going to be an issue for the lads’s division.

The two confronted off for less than the second time this season on Friday, the primary being within the championship of the Euro Super Series in August. Schwaller gained the sport 8-2 to assert the title. However, this time it had a little bit extra aptitude, contemplating Schwaller’s squad is now ranked No. 1 on the planet whereas Hardie’s is No. 2. 

The match was as you’d count on, two-plus hours of elite shot-making. 

In the fifth finish, it bought to the purpose the place Benoit Schwarz Van-Berkel and Ross Whyte had been simply going shot-for-shot. First, Van-Berkel made a tough triple takeout look too straightforward. Then Whyte responded with an extended double takeout whereas rolling out to get the clean.

In the top, Hardie’s workforce made a pair extra pictures, profitable 6-2. 

Sure, one takeaway from this recreation, and this week in actual fact, is considering how scary good Hardie’s workforce will likely be after they’ve performed with one another for a 12 months or two. 

But actually, the larger takeaway is the truth that we have to settle for Van-Berkel and Whyte as being two of one of the best fourth-stone throwers on the planet. 

When watching them play, it appears like their groups may both miss or half-make the primary six pictures of every finish and they might nonetheless be capable to bail them out. 

The Co-op Invitational will likely be accessible Saturday on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ beginning at 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT with the ladies’s quarterfinals. The males’s quarterfinals and semifinals attracts will likely be on Sportsnet+.