KINGSTON, Ont. – It should be a very interesting two days of curling at Leon’s Centre.
For the first time in the short history of the championship round, the top eight-ranked rinks in the Canadian Team Ranking System (CTRS) will battle it out to make the playoffs at the Tim Hortons Brier.
The week has been compelling to say the very least. Multiple highlight-reel game winners, astronomical shooting percentages and a few surprising results created an exciting five days of curling – and the fun is just getting started.
In the championship round, records carry over and each team will play the four teams that qualified from the opposing pool. The top four overall make the page playoff.
Let’s look at how it all breaks down.
Sitting pretty
Alberta (Brendan Bottcher)
Record: 7-0
Schedule: SK, CA, ON, WC
Alberta is the only undefeated rink heading into the championship round at the Brier.
They’ve downed heavyweights like Brad Gushue and Brad Jacobs with their skipper shooting 100 per cent twice already. Alberta is the hottest team coming in and appears driven to avenge their back-to-back Brier finals losses.
Going 2-2 should be more than enough to lock in a spot for this weekend’s final four.
The six-win group
Wild Card (Mike McEwen)
Record: 6-1
Schedule: NO, MB, NL, AB
Mike McEwen and his rink from Winnipeg seem like a completely different squad from a year ago when they represented Manitoba as the hometown team in Brandon, Man.
They’ve fully embraced their identity as Team Wild Card after beating Glenn Howard last Friday and are far more comfortable in their second campaign as a foursome.
Still, Team McEwen will need to beat some good teams over the next couple days to advance.
Newfoundland and Labrador (Brad Gushue)
Record: 6-1
Schedule: CA, ON, WC, SK
It’s no surprise Gushue is back in the Brier playoffs.
Last year, the 39-year-old lost to Bottcher in the page 3 vs. 4 after allowing a four-spot late in the game.
Gushue says he’s amazed at some of the high-pressure shots that have been made this week.
“There’s a lot of guys that are making it when they need to be made and it’s fun to watch,” Gushue said earlier this week. “I can only imagine at home watching all these shots being made. You’ve probably come off your coach a number of times this week.”
Saskatchewan (Matt Dunstone)
Record: 6-1
Schedule: AB, NO, MB, NL
Saskatchewan might be the most interesting team coming into the championship round.
Must See: Dunstone nails runback triple to score four and steal match from B.C.
Watch as Saskatchewan skip Matt Dunstone makes no mistake on a brilliant runback triple in the 10th end to score four and rob British Columbia of a win in Draw 6.
After dropping their opener to Wild Card and a very slow start against New Brunswick, the Regina rink have turned things around on a dime. They have a real shot at getting Saskatchewan to the Brier playoffs for the first time since 2015 and just the fourth time since 2000.
The province hasn’t won the Brier Tankard since 1980.
“The reason we put this team together is to win a Brier for Saskatchewan,” third Braeden Moskowy told TSN.ca earlier this week. “We want to be those guys that end this 40-year drought. It’s way too long for all the great players that have played for Saskatchewan and out of Saskatchewan. That’s ultimately the goal, but we’re nowhere close to that right now. We just got to keep on doing what we’re doing, chipping away, and hopefully keep making some shots as we can here.”
Dunstone’s championship schedule is daunting and will probably need to find at least two wins to make the playoffs or a tiebreaker.
In the hunt
Manitoba (Jason Gunnlaugson)
Record: 5-2
Schedule: ON, WC, SK, CA
Jason Gunnlaugson has become a star in his first Brier.
Must See: A Manitoba Miracle!
Jason Gunnlaugson scores three in a dramatic 10th end to win the game for Manitoba.
The 35-year-old Winnipeg native is no stranger to other pro curlers, but the casual fan is experiencing the skip known as “Gunner” for the first time and they like what they’re seeing.
They beat Northern Ontario on a 10th end measure and battled close with Alberta, but also had to fight tooth and nail to down lower-ranked squads in Quebec and Prince Edward Island, thanks to a shot now known as the Manitoba Miracle.
Team Gunnlaugson will be put to the test over the next four games and we’ll see if they have what it takes to stay in contention.
Canada (Kevin Koe)
Record: 5-2
Schedule: NL, AB, NO, MB
Kevin Koe went undefeated last year en route to his fourth Canadian championship.
Must See: Koe hits brilliant triple to steal win for Canada
Watch as Kevin Koe attempts a daring triple takeout with his final shot and nails it, handing the Wild Card team their first loss and stealing the win for Canada.
He’ll need to find that form once again to set a record as the first skip to capture five Tankards.
Third B.J. Neufeld knows the competition is about to get much harder.
“It’s going to be a battle,” said Neufeld. “As a curling fan, I think they’re going to be treated to something pretty special over the next couple days. There are teams battling for their lives. It should be amazing curling.”
Team Koe haven’t hit their stride yet in Kingston, which could be a scary fact for the rest of the field heading into the championship round.
The 45-year-old veteran has missed the playoffs just once in eight appearances at the Brier.
Able to run the table?
Ontario (John Epping)
Record: 4-3
Schedule: MB, NL, AB, NO
The home province team rattled off three consecutive wins to start the 2020 Brier, including an opening victory over the defending champs on Saturday. Then things went south.
Team John Epping dropped three in a row and then needed to battle back from a 5-1 deficit against Northwest Territories in the round-robin finale just to get to four wins and salvage a spot in the championship round.
“It was a slippery slope for those three games and then to rebound,” said Epping Wednesday night. “Especially down 5-1, that shows the character of this team and we could have easily folded and just kind of hung our heads down. We really want to be here for the next couple days, especially for the crowd.”
They’ll need the Kingston crowd to get behind them as the winning four in a row seems like the only route to the playoffs.
Northern Ontario (Brad Jacobs)
Record: 4-3
Schedule: WC, SK, CA. ON
The No. 1 ranked team in curling probably needs to run the table to make the playoffs.
Teams Jacobs was just on the wrong side of the inch to start the national championship, dropping three of their first four games.
The slow start might just be a reversal of fortune the boys from Sault Ste. Marie need. Since winning the Brier in 2013, Team Jacobs has a round-robin record of 46-9, but a 1-7 showing in the playoffs.
“There has been lots of time where it’s been the other way. We built the momentum in the beginning and started to lose some steam as the week went on,” second E.J. Harnden said. “We’re taking a positive approach. Everyone is playing very well.”
Team Jacobs have already won three straight Grand Slams this season. What’s winning four consecutive games at the Brier? Jacobs and company are far from done.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
Inter Milan winger Tajon Buchanan, recovered from a broken leg suffered in training at this summer’s Copa America, is back in Jesse Marsch’s Canada squad for the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal against Suriname.
The 25-year-old from Brampton, Ont., underwent surgery July 3 to repair a fractured tibia in Texas.
Canada, ranked 35th in the world, plays No. 136 Suriname on Nov. 15 in Paramaribo. The second leg of the aggregate series is four days later at Toronto’s BMO Field.
There is also a return for veteran winger Junior Hoilett, who last played for Canada in June in a 4-0 loss to the Netherlands in Marsch’s debut at the Canadian helm. The 34-year-old from Brampton, now with Scotland’s Hibernian, has 15 goals in 63 senior appearances for Canada.
Midfielder Ismael Kone, recovered from an ankle injury sustained on club duty with France’s Marseille, also returns. He missed Canada’s last three matches since the fourth-place Copa America loss to Uruguay in July.
But Canada will be without centre back Derek Cornelius, who exited Marseille’s win Sunday over Nantes on a stretcher after suffering an apparent rib injury.
The Canadian men will prepare for Suriname next week at a camp in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
“We are looking forward to getting the group together again with the mindset that there is a trophy on the line,” Marsch said in a statement. “We want to end 2024 the right way with two excellent performances against a competitive Suriname squad and continue building on our tremendous growth this past summer.”
The quarterfinal winners advance to the Nations League Finals at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., with the two semifinals scheduled for March 20 and the final and third-place playoff March 23, and qualify for the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Thirteen of the 23 players on the Canadian roster are 25 or younger, with 19-year-old defender Jamie Knight-Lebel, currently playing for England’s Crewe Alexandra on loan from Bristol City, the youngest.
Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies captains the side with Stephen Eustaquio, Jonathan Osorio, Richie Laryea, Alistair Johnston and Kamal Miller adding veteran support.
Jonathan David, Cyle Larin and Theo Bair are joined in attack by Minnesota United’s Tani Oluwaseyi.
Niko Sigur, a 21-year-old midfielder with Croatia’s Hadjuk Split, continues in the squad after making his debut in the September friendly against Mexico.
Suriname made it to the Nations League quarterfinals by finishing second to Costa Rica in Group A of the Nations League, ahead of No. 104 Guatemala, No. 161 Guyana and unranked Martinique and Guadeloupe.
“A good team,” Osorio said of Suriname. “These games are always tricky and they’re not easy at all … Suriname is a (former) Dutch colony and they’ll have Dutch players playing at high levels.”
“They won’t be someone we overlook at all,” added the Toronto FC captain, who has 81 Canada caps to his credit.
Located on the northeast coast of South America between Guyana and French Guiana, Suriname was granted independence in 1975 by the Netherlands.
Canada has faced Suriname twice before, both in World Cup qualifying play, winning 4-0 in suburban Chicago in June 2021 and 2-1 in Mexico City in October 1977.
The Canadian men, along with Mexico, the United States and Panama, received a bye into the final eight of the CONCACAF Nations League.
Canada, No. 2 in the CONCACAF rankings, drew Suriname as the best-placed runner-up from League A play.
Canada lost to Jamaica in last year’s Nations League quarterfinal, ousted on the away-goals rule after the series ended in a 4-4 draw. The Canadians lost 2-0 to the U.S. in the final of the 2022-23 tournament and finished fifth in 2019-20.
Canada defeated Panama 2-1 last time out, in an Oct. 15 friendly in Toronto.
Goalkeepers Maxime Crepeau and Jonathan Sirois, defenders Joel Waterman, Laryea and Miller and Osorio took part in a pre-camp this week in Toronto for North America-based players.
Canada Roster
Goalkeepers: Maxime Crepeau, Portland Timbers (MLS); Jonathan Sirois, CF Montreal (MLS); Dayne St. Clair, Minnesota United FC (MLS).
Defenders: Moise Bombito, OGC Nice (France); Alphonso Davies, Bayern Munich (Germany); Richie Laryea, Toronto FC (MLS); Alistair Johnston, Celtic (Scotland); Jamie Knight-Lebel. Crewe Alexandra, on loan from Bristol City (England); Kamal Miller, Portland Timbers (MLS); Joel Waterman, CF Montreal (MLS).
Midfielders: Ali Ahmed. Vancouver Whitecaps (MLS); Tajon Buchanan, Inter Milan (Italy); Mathieu Choiniere, Grasshopper Zurich (Switzerland); Stephen Eustaquio, FC Porto (Portugal); Junior Hoilett, Hibernian FC (Scotland); Ismael Kone, Olympique Marseille (France); Jonathan Osorio, Toronto FC (MLS); Jacob Shaffelburg, Nashville SC (MLS); Niko Sigur, Hadjuk Split (Croatia).
Forwards: Theo Bair, AJ Auxerre (France); Jonathan David, LOSC Lille (France); Cyle Larin, RCD Mallorca (Spain); Tani Oluwaseyi, Minnesota United (MLS).
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
