Carruthers wins, Robertson & Chudley compete at Safeway Curling Championship
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- Published on Monday, February 9, 2015
Submitted photo: Reid Carruthers, Braeden Moskowy, Derek Samagalski & Colin Hodgson win the 2015 Safeway Curling Championship in Brandon.
By Eoin Devereux
The Neepawa Banner
Two teams from Neepawa were among the top 32 curling clubs in Manitoba, as Kelly Robertson and Jerry Chudley competed in the 2015 Safeway Championship, held in Brandon from Feb. 4-8.
Robertson’s team, which consists of third Doug Armour, second Peter Prokopowich, lead Bob Scales and fifth Mark Robertson, would begin the competition clashing with Kyle Foster of the Fort Rouge Curling Club.
After falling behind 1-0 after two ends, Robertson’s team took over, scoring points in the next four ends and securing a 6-1 lead. Foster would grab two points in the seventh, but Robertson quickly replied with a pair of his own in the eight to cement the 8-3 opening game victory.
For their next game, the Robertson rink would face a difficult challenge, as they found themselves matched up against the top seeded team in the tournament, lead by Mike McEwen of the Fort Rouge Curling Club.
The game remained close through seven ends, with McEwen holding on to the a 5-3 lead. A single point in the eight and a steal of one in the ninth secured the 7-3 victory for McEwen and sent Robertson over to the B side.
Now a single loss away from elimination, Robertson and his team curled a dominant game against David Bohn from Assiniboine Memorial, on the way to a 10-2 win in only six ends. Robertson secured the quick win by scoring four points in the third and stealing three in the sixth.
In the next round, Robertson would once again face Kyle Foster from Fort Rouge. The game would take a major turn in the third end, when with the score tied at 1-1, Foster was able to score five points and secure a 6-1 lead. With the score 8-2 after five, Robertson slowly began climbing back into contention, first by scoring two in the sixth, then stealing singles in the seventh and eight end to make it 8-6. A dramatic come from behind victory was not to be however, as Foster scored two points in the ninth end to make the final 10-6.
Though his team’s run at the event ended earlier than they had hoped, Kelly Robertson was still singled out by his peers, winning the Pat Spiring Memorial Award. The award is presented annually to the competitor who exemplifies excellence combined with competitive spirit, love of the game and respect for the spirit and traditions of curling. Robertson was also a co-recipient of the award in 2014, with Brandon’s Allan Lyburn.
The other Neepawa representation at the provincials featured Brandon Bonspiel Berth winner Jerry Chudley and his team of third Kevin Cooley, second Brent McKee, lead Paul Robertson and fifth Jason Vinnell. The team got off to a strong start in their opening game against Richard Muntain of Pinawa, by scoring three points in the second end and one in the third to take an early 4-0 lead.
After five ends, Chudley appeared to have control of the game with a 6-2 lead. Muntain rebounded however by scoring a point in the sixth, stealing one in the seventh and scoring two more in the eighth to tie the game at 6-6.
Chudley scored two in the ninth but Muntain would reply with a pair of his own in the tenth to send the game into extra ends. In the eleventh, Chudley had to make a hail-mary double kill with his last rock but ran out of time before he could throw, allowing Richard Muntain's Pinawa team to post an extra end score of 3 and win 11-8. The defeat sent Chudley to the B-side and one loss away from elimination.
On Thursday, Feb. 5, Chudley would face the team skipped by Grant Brown and based out of the Burntwood Curling Club in Thompson. Chudley would lose 6-4 to Brown, ending his hopes for shot at the provincial title.
As for the championship game on Sunday, Feb. 8, it was another heartbreaking loss for Mike McEwen and his team, as they were defeated by Reid Carruthers 5-3. This was McEwen’s fifth loss in a Safeway Championship Final. Carruthers and his team, which includes lead Colin Hodgson, second Derek Samagalski, and third Braeden Moskowy, they will now represent Manitoba at the Brier, which begins Feb. 28 at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary.
