Scotland men and women win European openers

Scotland men emulated their female counterparts by opening the European Curling Championships with victory.Grant Hardie's rink triumphed 8-4 in Ostrava in the Czech Republic and face Belgium later on Wednesday.The men picked up two at the opening end and three at the third to lead 5-1. The Dutch were 6-4 down after six ends but Scotland picked up two more at the seventh to see out the win.Fay Henderson's Scotland women began their campaign with a comprehensive 12-3 victory over Denmark.They edged the opening two ends by single points before the Danes halved the deficit.However, the Scots took control of their opening, surging into a five-point lead by the close of the fourth end.Although Denmark scored two points in the fifth, Scotland ended the contest emphatically with a six-point haul in the sixth and final end.Turkey are up next for Henderson's rink.