A 7-2 victory in just seven ends over tournament newcomers Poland saw Scotland's Team Whyte move into a share of third place in the overnight standings after day three of the LGT World Men’s Curling Championships in Utah.
For Ross Whyte, Robin Brydone, Craig Waddell, Euan Kyle and fifth player Duncan McFadzean, a single game day offered welcome respite after a formidable schedule on the opening two days had seen them face four of the most experienced teams in the competition in quick succession.
Against the Poles they were in control from the off, an excellent pre-match draw shot challenge giving them last stone advantage which they capitalised on to take a two shot lead and when they then manufactured a steal of two at the second, it was always going to be difficult for their opponents and a 7-2 win was ultimately secured in just seven of the scheduled 10 ends.
"The first two days were big days especially for the boys sweeping so it was a bit of a shift to get through them, but it was nice to come out here after a bit of a lie in and put in a good performance against Poland," said skip Whyte. 
"We started off really well and we got the hammer which seems to be really important this week so far.
"That is the goal each game to get a bit of a jump on the other team, so we started off really well in the first two ends and got that miss we were hoping for so it felt like a great game and a nice one to kind of to ease us into the next day.
“As soon as we got that lead we just made sure we played it pretty simple and didn’t leave too many stones around and didn’t want to make them start to feel confidence by scoring multiple points, so we just made sure it was as tricky as possible for them which we did a great job with and everyone was hitting really well and Euan was setting them up great in the top four."
Their command was such that the match provided the perfect opportunity to facilitate the long-awaited return to competitive action of Duncan McFadzean, their regular second who has been out all season after having to undergo knee surgery last summer, also allowing powerhouse sweeper Kyle with a bit of extra rest in a demanding week.
"It was a nice controlled performance and it felt like that allowed us to then get Duncan on the ice and it was an amazing feeling to get him on the ice as he has obviously had a very tough year," said Whyte.
"He was really trying hard to get back as soon as he could since surgery but a couple of things didn’t quite go his way so the first goal was to get him out here as he is very much part of this team and the second goal was to get him out on the ice.
"It is great that we have done it once and we would obviously love to do this a couple more times, but just to get him on the ice is brilliant and he played really well as well which was a bonus because if anyone is injured or ill this week we know he can step in and do a great job, so it is nice to have that feeling and reassurance in the back of our minds."
The Scots face just a single game on the fourth day, their last one game day of the round-robin competition, but they know it is likely to be a match of a different order against a team containing former Olympic mixed doubles champion Amos Mosaner and led by an impressive youngster in 20-year-old former World Junior Champion Stefano Spiller, who is deputising for the absent Joel Retornaz and is coming off impressive back-to-back wins against 2024 European Champions Germany and previously unbeaten Switzerland.
"We know they are a great team and they've proved that here," said Whyte.
"Amos obviously has two Olympic mixed doubles medals and the young Italian skip is proving himself to be a very good player on the world stage at Juniors.
"We played against him at the Perth Masters, so we understand that it is going to be a really tough game, but we know we are going to have to bring the same focus that we bring to every single game and can't really lose focus in any of them.
"So we are looking forward to it but it is going to be a tricky grind and hopefully we come out on the right side."
The championship takes place from March 27 to April 4 with all 13 competing nations meeting one another in round-robin competition before the top six go on to battle for the medals.
Scotland’s 12 rival nations are - Canada, China, Czechia, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland and the USA
Please click here for more information about the LGT World Men’s Curling Championships in Ogden, USA (27 March – 4 April).
Watch all games on the Curling Channel.
Day One – 27 March
Scotland – Sweden 5 - 6
Scotland – Japan 5 - 7
Day Two – 28 March
Scotland – Canada 8-3
Scotland – USA 6-4
Day Three – 29 March
Scotland – Poland 7-2
Day Four – 30 March
Scotland – Italy 9.00pm (GMT)
Images: World Curling
