Brewster claims 2010 title

By Clare E. Carswell

 

Aberdeen's Brewster team are the 2010 champions after beating the the current European Champions, the Swedish Olympic team in a close fought final of the Ramada Perth Masters.

The Scots team comprising of: skip Tom Brewster, Duncan Fernie, Ron Brewster and David Edwards sailed through the qualification stages unbeaten, “We were in control of most of the games we played.  I think we played fairly consistently the whole week and got better as the week went on.” Fernie said.

In the quarter-finals they drew the Chinese team as opponents but even the future Olympians could not halt Brewster’s winning streak.  “That’s our first time playing them, they throw the stone really well but we seemed to get hold of the ice before they did.” said Brewster.

In the semi-finals Brewster met Perth's Dunn team.  Despite never playing together before this weekend and entering the competition last minute to fill the place of a Norwegian team’s cancellation, team Dunn performed extremely well throughout the competition to gain a place in the top four.

In the final, Brewster gained the upper hand early in the match by scoring two shots that proved central to winning the match.  Scoring proceeded to alternate between teams and increased by just one shot each end to produce a final score of 5-3.

“As a whole we’ve played very solid and we were quietly confident going into the final.  Not over-confident but we definitely knew we had a chance to take them.” said Ron Brewster.

When asked if he was disappointed to loose, the Swedish skip, Edin replied, “No, they played better than us this time so they deserved to win”.

The Swedes, who were using the Perth tournament to hone their technique before the Vancouver Olympics said that reaching the final was a huge achievement for them.

Olympic curlers coming to Perth

Jan 1 2010 by Gordon Bannerman,

Perthshire Advertiser Friday 

THE Ramada Perth Masters Bonspiel 2010 has lured some of the world’s top curlers, including Olympic medal contenders, to the Fair City.

The action hots-up from January 7-10 at Dewars Rinks and six of the 10 Winter Olympic hopefuls are seeking a morale-boosting win in advance of their medal bids in Vancouver in February.

It’s the 34th Perth Masters Bonspiel and the standard of competitor is higher than ever.

The three medallists from the recent European Curling Championships in Aberdeen will be in action, along with the Danish, Japanese and Chinese Olympic squads.

One to look out for is the European champion, Niklas Edin and his Swedish rink. They are a young but talented combination from Karlstaad. But once again he will have to overcome Ralph Stocklii from Switzerland, the runner-up in the Europeans, if he is to triumph in Perth.

The bronze medallist and leading money winner on the lucrative Champions Tour this autumn, Thomas Ulsrud from Norway, will be the big danger in the absence of David Murdoch's GB Olympic team, who have prior commitments in Ontario at a WCT Tour event in Guelph, along with the McCains Annual Skins event in Casa Rama Casino.

But Scottish teams will be out in force looking to take the scalps of these top notch rinks.

Local favourites, Warwick Smith and Pete Loudon are playing with confidence at the moment, and will prove a match for anyone on home ice.

Tom Brewster has a very good track record in the high-profile event, and with Glenn Muirhead's young local hopefuls and some of the more experienced competitors, such as Hammy MacMillan, still able to produce a shock or two, the foreign visitors will not have it all their own way.

Championship spokesman Bill Duncan: “We are pleased that outwith the Olympic squads, the competition has also attracted high quality teams from Sweden, Switzerland, Hungary, Germany, Czech Republic and Norway.

“The Chinese Olympic squad will be unknown to many, but are very much an outside bet for a medal in Vancouver.

“They are going to base themselves in the Fair City for a few days before and after the Perth Masters, to complete their base training before travelling to Canada for their final preparations.

“Anyone wanting to see the Chinese training outwith the competition will appreciate that they’re spending a fair amount of time on the ice at Dewars during the week after the Perth Masters competition ends.”

The Ramada-sponsored competition starts next Thursday, with the first round of games at 4.45pm.

This is followed by the popular Calcutta, where the teams are auctioned off to the highest bidder, and Perth's own plumber Alec “Shiner” Macdonald will be on hand to carry out the auction.

Next Friday sees the teams attend a gala dinner for around 180 at the sponsors Ramada City Mills Hotel.

The final takes place at Dewars on Sunday, January 10 with a 3pm start. The semis and quarter finals will have taken place earlier in the day at noon and 9am respectively.

Entry to this top-class event is free, so spectators can pop in and out at their convenience.

Programmes are also free and available at both Dewars and Ramada City Mills Hotel.