Frustrating time for Dumfries and Galloway curlers at World Junior Championships

The region’s curlers had a frustrating time in the World Junior Curling Championships.

Dalbeattie’s Orrin Carson skipped the Scottish rink, featuring brother Logan and Dumfries duo Archie Hyslop and Charlie Gibb, in the tournament in Finland.

They had been hoping to at least match the bronze medal they won in last year’s competition.

However, a return of five wins and four losses meant they were unable to progress from the round-robin stage – although they did maintain Scotland’s A status.

The rink, which is coached by Orrin and Logan’s dad Ryan, began their bid for glory with a fine 9-4 win over Canada but the following day suffered 10-6 losses to both Italy and America.

And a 7-5 loss to Germany then put them in real trouble. But they bounced back with two big wins - beating New Zealand 9-2 and Switzerland 11-2 - to resurrect their hopes.

They then recorded a 6-4 win over China but were beaten 9-7 by Denmark on the final day of round-robin action, their final game seeing a 7-5 win over Norway.