(by Charles Reid)
It’s Scotties Tournament of Hearts time again and the defending champs skipped by Suzanne Birt are looking for a second straight title and third since 2011.
Today, Birt opens the Scotties versus the Kathy O’Rourke rink at 2 p.m., and Birt said her new-look squad is ready.
Guardian photo: Suzanne Birt
“We have to stay within ourselves, play our game,” said the long-time skip after practice on Wednesday. “We’ve played in a lot of bonspiels and had a lot of success. We’re looking forward to the weekend.”
Five rinks, including Birt’s, are vying for the Scotties title. Other teams include the Kim Dolan rink and Lisa Jackson rinks, who like Birt and O’Rourke are from the Charlottetown Curling Complex, and the Shirley Berry rink from the Cornwall and Silver Fox curling clubs.
It may be a small field, said Birt, but it’s a talented one. The winner goes to the national bonspiel in Montreal in February.
“We don’t have very many teams on P.E.I., but the teams are very strong. We usually have decent teams going into the (national) Scotties.”