European Champions through to the final

Ulsrud on route to the Mercure Perth Masters final

Last month Ulsrud lifted the European Championship title and he may be on the verge of claiming the Mercure Perth Masters too - but not if the Canadians have anything to do with it.

The Norwegian side has played at a consistently high standard this weekend managing to only lose one match in the three-tier competition.

Along the way they have pushed teams to their limits with young Scottish sides Gray and K. Smith gaining valuable experience through their encounters.

Ulsrud was also faced with a rematch against Euro Championship finalists Edin prior to quarter-final qualification and were able to assert their credentials by defeating the Swedes again.

The Norwegians took early control of the match against Laycock by scoring one in the first end and stealing two in the second.

The Canadian responded by claiming one in the third end before Ulsrud scored an unprecidented six in the fourth leaving Laycock eight shots astray, so he decided to shake hands and end the game at 9-1.

The standard of the Canadians' curling throughout the Mercure Perth Masters has been extremely high and all four teams posed as formidable opponents.

In addition to Laycock two other Canadian rinks made it through to the semi-finals, 2006 Olympic gold medalists Brad Gushue and Perth Masters defending champions Mike McEwen [still playing at the time of writing].

The international teams have not only tested the Scottish teams, and prevented them from passing beyond the quarter-finals where Waraick Smith and Graeme Shaw both had their title dreams brought to an end, but has also delighted spectators in the gallery.

Bring on the final.