Issue 4 – Tuesday, March 8, 2011 • An Offi cial Publication of the Canadian Curling Association. Streak Stopper ■ Brad Gushue ends Kevin Martin’s unbeaten run at 30 Page 2 ■ Saskatchewan’s travellin’ man Brier Bob Page 10 Sponsors of the day With single draw tickets now on sale, it’s all about matching up the games you most want to see with the times that are best for you to go. For tickets call or order online 1.800.970.7328 FROM $ 12 AND UP! Brandt Centre – Evraz Place • April 2 – 10 BUILD YOUR OWN CHAMPIONSHIP Page 2 Tankard Times 2011 TIM HORTONS BRIER • Day 3 Every streak must come to an end Larry Wood and they want to win. And they are playing Tankard Times Editor great and they show that they want to win.” Elsewhere in the afternoon, Martin ran treaks always end. Even Kevin Mar- his streak to 30 with an impressive 9-2 tin winning streaks, although there conquest of winless Eddie MacKenzie of was abundant room to wonder for a P.E.I., Nova Scotia’s Adams got off the S winless schooner with a tidy 9-2 win over long period of time. But the 30-year-old 2006 goldminer beat Jamie Koe’s Territories’ squad and Que- the 44-year-old 2010 goldminer in Monday bec’s Gagne failed in a 10th-end bid to hit night’s feature hookup at the Tim Hortons and stick for two against New Brunswick’s Brier in London’s John Labatt Centre, James Grattan, giving up a steal, and a 7-5 thereby ending Martin’s Brier win skein at decision. 30 and reducing Alberta’s current record to Howard and Gushue recorded huge morn- 4-1. ing wins. The 9-4 Newfoundland decision left The Ontario team won its third in a row, Manitoba’s undefeated Jeff Stoughton with a 7-5 conquest of British Columbia while a one-game lead on the field heading into Gushue and his crew nudged Saskatchewan today’s three-draw schedule. That will be 7-6 in a tight game that swung as early highlighted by two feature tilts involving as the third end when a hogline violation Ontario’s Glenn Howard who will face Brad charged to Simmons resulted in a big swing Gushue and his team of Mark Nichols, Ryan — from the threat of a multiple count for Fry and Jamie Danbrook this afternoon and the Greens to a Gushue draw for three. the Manitoba leaders tonight. Ontario hit for a second-end three and So Manitoba was 5-0, Newfoundland, retained control throughout although Cotter Alberta and Ontario 4-1, and the remainder squared the account with a deuce in the of the field was left jockeying for secondary sixth end. Then Ontario scored singles in positions. the seventh and eighth frames and eased “What are we going to talk about now?” home. Martin wanted to know following the loss. Saskatchewan was leading 2-1 in the third “When somebody curls better than us, when the Simmons miscue flipped control and they did, I’m OK to lose. I’ve always of the tilt and Newfoundland took advan- said that. You have to deal with the hand tage and ran with it. dealt you out there, you do the best you can “I owe Pat a beer,” said Gushue. “If and hopefully tomorrow morning (vs. Nova he makes that shot we’re in a world of Scotia) we’ll get back to winning and carry hurt.“We might not be able to score if he on.” Kevin Martin s loss to Brad Gushue ended a 30-game winning streak. makes that absolutely perfect. Worst case, Gushue’s Newfs got out to a 3-0 lead in are.” do anything stupid. I’m going to be making a quiet come- the first two ends, stealing a deuce in the Martin attempted a triple in the third But nobody’s pushing. We’re getting up around tapback against five. That was a big second when Martin missed a last-rock end and gave up another steal to go down early so why get into it? Why get into some- break for us. In the eight Briers I’ve been draw. 4-0 before finding some offensive moves. thing when you don’t have to?” to that’s the first time someone’s done that “The draw in the second cost us, to be Alberta hit the board first in the fifth with Six teams finished Monday with 2-3 against us so it was a pretty opportune time honest,” said Martin, now 30-1 in his last a deuce but Gushue executed a clutch last records. In other nightshift tilts, Northern for us.” three Briers. “I took about an inch-and-half brick to restore the lead in the sixth. Martin Ontario’s Brad Jacobs rallied for a 7-5 win Said Simmons, the 36-year-old Moose too much ice. That was expensive. Three again scored two in the seventh but Gushue over Jim Cotter of British Columbia while Jaw chiropractor: points was too much to give Brad. Against executed a precise tapback in the eighth to Shawn Adams of Halifax stole the winner “There’s some on which you don’t want him, you’re not going to come back from score three and close out the issue. on a measure in the 10th end to nip Sas- to be that close but that wasn’t one of them. that. Gushue said his team was able to beat katchewan 7-6 when hammer-thrower Pat Over thousands of rocks I’ve thrown I think “It was a good run. It had to end. It has to Martin four times last year, one in which Simmons was a hair short on a last-rock that was the second time in my life. end. And Brad was good guy to have it hap- Martin played in the Olympics but not the draw to the four-foot. “It was an easy double, a half-rock and pen. There’s nothing you can do about these Brier. Stoughton’s Manitoba crew enjoyed a give or take an inch. Basically, I’d just things, you know? “To be quite honest, I struggled in the one-game day and scored a routine 8-4 win played that same shot. That makes it even “The number’s 9-2 (for the Page One- first four games but that’s he best I’ve felt over Northern Ontario’s Jacobs who said: more frustrating. Two playoff), we have one cushion yet, all week,” said Gushue. “We got outplayed once again. We need to “I was shocked. I didn’t really expect hopefully we won’t have to use it.” “I didn’t have that much confidence but make more shots, simple as that. We’re not that. I feel bad about it. From showing him Gushue admitted the win constituted a big tonight with the exception of one rock I felt really the same team right now . and it’s a half-rock on the button and lying four or boost to his team’s confidence. I was throwing it good and I knew where extremely frustrating.” five to a free draw for three? He’d have had “I think we went out there and we played the rock was going. For Stoughton, it was another business- a tough shot for the one. well and we beat a guy that had a 30-game “It’s a big lift, not so much from the win like victory, albeit a sloppy one. “There are going to be breaks that go winning streak,” he said. “He’s been pretty but from the way I felt. If I can feel this “It wasn’t a great game for either team your way and break that don’t and the teams good at the Brier the last few years and good the rest of the week and the guys are really, but we made the right shots when that can fight through those are the ones that to go out and beat him by a good margin, shooting we’re going to be right there. it counted so we’ll take the win, that’s for will survive. that’s a boost. “You know me, I’m pretty competitive. sure,” said Stoughton. “It was one I wasn’t worried about. When “They’ve been winning everything and You get out there and the juices get flow- “We shook off some bad shots early… I throw I look down at the rock and I know sometimes you’re left to feel like you’re ing. We wanted to get there tonight and give put up that three-ender in seven and that exactly where my release point is and it fighting for second place. But we’re here to ourselves the best chance.” was really the key.” wasn’t one of those I was too concerned win this week and hopefully we can step it Howard, meanwhile, ran his winning Said the Sault Ste. Marie skip of his after- about. up another notch now. streak to four off a first-round loss., ham- noon Manitoba foe: “I don’t know what to tell you. There’s “A lot of teams have beaten Kevin in the mering Quebec’s Francois Gagne 12-4. “Those guys have been hot all year. nothing I can do and I can’t argue about past, they know he’s beatable, but you also “There probably are fewer rocks in play They’re throwing the rocks really well.