1999 Brier
SLAM! Sports
SLAM! Curling
1999 BRIER
ON THE ROCKS
INTERACTIVE
ALSO ON SLAM!
The pressure's on
Jeff Stoughton is pre-event favourite, but it's hard meeting expectations
"There's no doubt, it's a great field,'' said Stoughton. "It's unique in that we know almost all the teams coast to coast. We've played them on the World Curling Tour and other championships. It's going to be a long week. Hopefully, we can get some momentum and get it going.''
Stoughton lost his first game at the 1996 Kamloops Brier before going on to beat Kevin Martin in an extra end, his third win of the week over Alberta's curler of the '90s.
PROPHETIC WORDS
"I don't think anybody's going to go through undefeated,'' said Stoughton, following his Draw 1 win over Northern Ontario's Scott Patterson. "You're going to lose. Getting one win under your belt early on is a great feeling.''
Stoughton's words proved prophetic. He had to settle for a 1-1 day after hometown hero Ken Hunka got the crowd energized by pulling off a 6-4 win.
"If you're not matching shots with him, you're going to get throttled,'' said Hunka, the top-rated skip after Day 1 at 88%.
It was the personable Hunka's second win of the day.
Joining Hunka at 2-0 is Nova Scotia's Peter Flemming, who spoiled Russ Howard's 100th Brier game with a 9-6 win over the New Brunswick skip, then laying a 10-4 spanking on Orest Peech of the Territories.
'WE'RE VERY PLEASED'
"I wouldn't say I'd be surprised,'' said Flemming. "I know we can play in the same level as these guys can. If we can curl to our capability, I wouldn't have been surprised if somebody told us we'd be 2-0 after the first day. It was a big win this morning and a big win tonight. Even though it's still a long haul after this, it's still nice to be 2-0 after Day 1. We're very pleased.''
Could it be shades of Mayflower Club rinkmate Colleen Jones, who started her Scotts at 8-0?
"We're all good friends and sometimes it gets a little intense, but then, who doesn't,'' said Flemming.
"We would love do what she did. She's done a lot for our home club, a lot for our province. We'd love to keep riding on that train. It's just been a great year.''
Also undefeated, with a 1-0 record after first-day play are Quebec's Guy Hemmings, Ontario's Rich Moffat and P.E.I.'s Robert Campbell.
Hemmings, the flamboyant greenhouse owner from St.-Amie, Que., used a three-ender in nine to upend B.C. Bert Gretzinger 8-6.
Hemmings lost the 1998 final to Wayne Middaugh of Ontario and he also knows there's a long week ahead.
"We've got a full week of jobs to do,'' said Hemmings, who battled ice conditions in a see-saw battle. "At the end of the week, we should be all right.
"I'm enjoying being part of a crowd like this. If people enjoy me, that's a bonus.''
Coming from a powerhouse curling province like Ontario, Moffat knows there are a lot of expectations placed on him.
"It's great to win a game in the Brier,'' said Moffatt, who needed an extra end to take out Saskatchewan's Gerald Shymko 10-8 after giving up a steal of two in the 10th. "It looked a bit doubtful for a while."