This one was for next time.
The sa国际传媒 champion Victoria Curling Club rink reflected on its Brier experience as the first Island rink to play in the men’s Canadian championship since 2007. Its bid to become only the fifth Brier-winning rink from sa国际传媒 fell short by going 3-5 in the round robin and failing to play the playoff rounds. The 2023 Brier concludes today in London, Ont., with the semifinal at 9 a.m. PT and championship game at 4 p.m. PT.
With Wildcard 1 Brendan Bottcher, Manitoba champion Matt Dunstone and defending champion Brad Gushue the last three rinks standing heading into the final draw of the Page playoff system Saturday evening, all that was left for the sa国际传媒 champions was to think about what could have been.
“The biggest thing we learned is just how mentally taxing a Brier is and how prepared you have to be for those mental obligations with the media and fans and such,” said Alex Horvath, the lead of the Jacques Gauthier-skipped VCC rink.
“It’s more than just curling. It’s not like anything else you face in any bonspiel other than maybe a Grand Slam event. We will be better prepared in the future.”
The Victoria rink consisted of skip Gauthier, third Sterling Middleton, second Jason Ginter and lead Horvath. Gauthier, Middleton and Horvath are all 24 and Ginter is 30. The rink is coached by Bryan Miki and is an amalgam, which is the trend now in curling. Manitoba-skip Dunstone, for instance, is a native of Winnipeg who now resides in Kamloops. Horvath and Middleton are from Victoria, Gauthier is from Winnipeg and Ginter was raised in Dawson Creek and now resides in Edmonton. Old curling connections brought them together this year under the VCC banner.
“Even being across the country, we could feel the tremendous support we had from our club, Island and sa国际传媒 curling communities,” said Horvath.
“We were proud to represent the club and province.”
Gauthier added: “Being out of the Victoria Club this year has been great. It’s a one-of-a-kind club. There’s a lot of energy in that place.”
They call football a game of inches but the saying could apply even more to curling. “Our record doesn’t show how well we played,” said Horvath.
“It came down to an inch here and an inch there. It was close but we weren’t on the winning side of the inch on enough occasions. The top guys like [four-time champion and two-time Olympic medallist] Brad Gushue know how to grind out wins in games like that. We can learn from that.”
Gauthier’s was the first Victoria Curling Club rink to play in the Brier since Dean Joanisse was backed by Mike Wood, Dave Nantes and Chris Atchison in 2007 and the fifth from the venerable club on Quadra Street following also Tony Gutoski in 1958, Tim Horrigan in 1980 and Joanisse in 2001, the latter backed by Jay Tuson, Glen Jackson and Randy Tervo.
Gauthier became the seventh rink from the Island to play in the Brier, including Glen Harper of Duncan in 1960 and 1963. It was looking to become the first rink from sa国际传媒 to win the Brier since Greg McAulay of New Westminster Royal City in 2000 — Miki was the second on that rink — and only the fifth Brier-winning rink from sa国际传媒 including Rick Folk’s of Kelowna in 1994, Lyall Dagg’s of Vancouver in 1964 and Frenchy D’Amour’s of Trail in 1948.
“It’s not easy to do,” said Horvath.
The Gauthier rink has one event remaining and will conclude the season at the Best of the West bonspiel in Saskatoon.
“We will discuss our future after that,” said Horvath.
