In 2004, Mark Dacey won The Brier while Colleen Jones won the Scott Tournament of Hearts. Those were great times for members of the Mayflower curling club, since both national champions curled out of that club in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Twelve years later the Glencoe Club in Calgary is hoping to celebrate the same feat.
On Sunday, Chelsea Carey’s rink from the Glencoe Club won a thrilling final over Northern Ontario to win the Scotties in Grande Prairie, Alta. This weekend, Kevin Koe’s rink (also from the Glencoe Club) start their quest in Ottawa to win a national title at this year’s Brier.
Carey joked it’s up to Koe now to rock The Glencoe Club into history.
“No pressure on these guys but they better win because we started it.”
Koe’s Glencoe team, which includes Ben Hebert, Brent Laing and Marc Kennedy, had high expectations at home in Calgary at last year’s Brier but the team didn’t medal. This year they’re playing some of the best curling on the planet and Koe said their play on the ice just might match their expectations.
“It was a local Brier so there was more hype. This year we’ve had a way better year, better team and that gives us confidence for the event.”
Eighty-three-year-old Bill Clark has been a member at The Glencoe Club for almost 50 years, and has won numerous senior curling titles. He said he and the other Glencoe members love rubbing shoulders with some of the world’s best each day on the ice at the club, even socializing afterwards, but he joked about one complaint.
“We’re hoping they’re gonna pick up the tab but they never do.”
The question is: who’s going to pick up the tab if The Glencoe Club are celebrating two national champions in just over a week’s time?