This time last year they were delighted to be collecting silver but picking up a similar coloured medal yesterday offered little consolation to Dave Murdoch's Olympic rink as they were beaten by the holders in the Scottish Curling Championships in Perth yesterday.

For Ewan MacDonald's defending champions it was a doubly satisfying victory because they had taken the title last year in the absence of the Olympic finalists following the controversial decision to stage the national championships while the global event was taking place in Sochi and the 39-year-old said as much afterwards.

"I think maybe some people last year thought Tom Brewster wasn't here, David Murdoch wasn't here, there's two or three teams that might have made a difference, so it's nice to come back and prove it wasn't luck," he observed.

If there was any of that involved yesterday it was only of the sort that emerges naturally in the course of any sporting contest and MacDonald's rink comprising Euan Byers, Ruaridh Greenwood and Duncan Fernie, were of a mind to seize upon whatever came their way from the off.

It looked like that might not be the case when their determination to get as many shots in play as possible resulted in Murdoch's team, who had entered the knockout stages as top seeds following the round-robin stages, claimed a double at the opening end.

However the match turned at the fifth with a count of four for MacDonald, the curling equivalent of a football or rugby team scoring twice just before the half-time break as they turned a 3-2 deficit into a 6-3 lead.

Following the brief interlude the response was a double from their opponents but a high class shot from MacDonald to respond in kind, shaving a guard to register the second of those shots, meant they remained in control and they maintained it to the finish.

"It was a cracking final," said MacDonald.

"We knew we'd have to really take it to the guys because they're a great team, but we'd played aggressive right over the weekend. That's the way we call the game and that's the way we play it.

"You've got to make shots and the guys turned up today. We put a bit of pressure on Davie and the guys and got a few mistakes."

He was particularly pleased with how they performed, acknowledging the importance of those key ends in mid-match.

"It's a big momentum shift isn't it," he said of that four shot haul at the fifth.

"You could feel it change. We aimed to turn the toss. We wanted hammer (last stone) going into the second half so to turn the toss and be two up was a big bonus definitely.

"We didn't play a bad sixth end but they played a really good one to make their two and then we made a good two back."

The victory now let MacDonald return to the World Championships and he admitted that there was an element of seeking to make amends having failed to perform as they hoped to last year.

"We were really disappointed in Beijing," he said.

"It was tough logistically, it was a tough venue, the ice was tough as well and it was a struggle from the start. Halifax will be a lot better. There should be a much better feeling in the place. It will be a great arena, with great crowds."

That it was a friendly final was summed up by the fact that Murdoch, who skipped the Olympic rinks which contained MacDonald and Byers in both 2006 and 2010, will now travel to Nova Scotia as the alternate (travelling reserve).

David Reid, part of his team when they won the title last year but, due to injury, replaced this year by 22-year-old Greenwood, will meanwhile travel as coach, while his sister Sarah is the newcomer in Eve Muirhead's rink that will represent Scotland at their World Championships in Japan.

Having already comfortably beaten Hannah Fleming's rink three times in the course of the championships the team which also contains Anna Sloan and Vicki Adams, were heavy favourites to reclaim the national title, but did not break clear until they registered a three at the eighth end.

"I'm delighted with that performance. It was a great game and a game of patience as well," said the 24-year-old skip.

"We were scoring at the right ends and we were looking for that one good end and got that couple up, but getting a three at the eighth end was a bonus.

"It was definitely the toughest match against them. We knew it would be, but it was a little bit similar to the matches during the week where we waited for that opportunity and when we got it we pounced and took advantage of it."

Page Play Offs:

Men:

Ewan MacDonald 7 Dave Edwards 5; Dave Murdoch 7 Bruce Mouat 6

Women:

Eve Muirhead 10 Hannah Fleming 3

Semi-finals:

Men:

Ewan MacDonald 7 Bruce Mouat 6

Women:

Hannah Fleming 8 Gina Aitken 3

Finals:

Women: Muirhead 6 Fleming 5

Men:

MacDonald 9 Murdoch 6