Europe won the fourth edition of the Continental Cup of Curling, ' at Prospera Centre, by a final score of 229-171 over North America. But it wasn't the cakewalk it appeared to be as the women's and men's 60-point skins games began to unfold.

Europe needed just 21 points to clinch the Cup going into today, after a huge Saturday in which it had generated 120 points to open a 180-100 lead.

However, it wasn't until the seventh end of the women's game that the magic number of 201 was surpassed, when Sweden's Anette Norberg scored an 11-point skin against Canada's Shannon Kleibrink to officially win it.

Norberg had opened her match by taking the first two skins, worth a total of eight points, pushing the Euro total to 188. Scotland's David Murdoch added to that with an eight-point skin in the second end of the men's game against Canada's Brad Gushue, which was going on at the same time, as Europe moved to 196.

But the Euros stalled there.  Norberg had two chances to clinch the Cup in the fifth (seven points) and sixth (nine points) ends, but she wrecked with her last rock in both, thus giving the skins to Kleibrink via steals.

At that point the score read Europe 196, North America 128.  Then, after a third and fourth end carryover in the men's game, Gushue took a 19-point skin in the fifth end, cutting the margin to 196-147.

But in the seventh end of the women's game, Kleibrink tried to hit and roll with her last rock, attempting to move a Norberg counter sitting on the button.  Instead, it turned it into a nose hit, handing the skin to Sweden's gold medallist and consecutive two-time world champion.

Norberg went on to win the eighth end skin as well, worth 13 points, to take the game, 32-28, while Gushue wound up defeating Murdoch, 43-17. 

"We knew that we couldn't just relax going into this game," said Norberg.

"We knew we had to take some points.  But when you get a few carryovers in the beginning and the points start building, you can get into pressure.   So it was very good for us to get those points early." On missing two chances to clinch the Cup in the fifth and sixth ends, Norberg said, "You just go to the next end, that's all we could do."

The result meant that the Continental Cup now stands dead even, at two wins apiece.  North America furnished victories in 2002 in Regina and 2004 in Medicine Hat while Europe had won the 2003 renewal in Thunder Bay.  Team Europe earned $75,000 (Cdn) for the win today, while North America received $45,000.

"I knew there were great curlers coming into this event," said Europe captain and four-time world champion Elisabet Gustafson of Sweden.  "But I knew North America had a really strong team.  You never know, everything can change so quickly and turn around. We were a little bit lucky in some games, I know, and that was a big break.

"The big thing was Andrea Schöpp's game (when she defeated Debbie McCormick of the United States, 30-0 in the first women's skins game on Saturday morning),   I knew that time was also working for Team Europe.  The first

day, the teams had just flown in here. So we felt as long as we could keep it tight, we might be okay and keep the spirit.  I think it's (Continental Cup concept) great.

"Today, it was getting more and more tough for the team," continued Gustafson.  "There was lots of pressure, not for themselves, but for theteam.  I'm so proud of them.  I've been out there myself.   I know how it can feel.  I know how you can feel inside when you miss some shots."

Said North America captain Lindsay Sparkes, "We (the players) played with so much heart.  And they came together in the larger team concept.  They bonded so well, and were so supportive of each other. I don't think one individual could have given any more effort that they did.

"I really felt we had a great shot (coming into it).  What happened here is that one team got very hot.  They (Europe) picked up their level of play and that sort of fuelled them for the rest of the event.  But they made great shots and were putting pressure on us all the time."