ALBERTON, P.E.I. —
Stick curling is going mainstream at this weekend’s P.E.I. provincial curling club championships.
A team from the Western Community Curling Club in Alberton is about to make provincial and possibly national curling history in being the first all-stick team to play in a provincial curling championship that leads to a Curling Canada championship event. The provincial event will take place at the Maple Leaf Curling Club in O’Leary.
Eddie Bernard left, and John Vincent prepare to sweep Walter Callaghan’s stone during a practice at the Western Community Curling Club. All members of a team skipped by Roger Gavin use a delivery stick to send their curling stones down the ice. – Eric McCarthy
The team
The team of John Vincent, who throws skip rocks; Roger Gavin who throws third and calls the game; second stone Walter Callaghan, and lead Eddie Bernard beat out two other teams in their double-knockout club championship to win the right to represent the Alberton club at the provincial championship at the neighbouring Maple Leaf Curling Club in O’Leary.
Callaghan, the senior member of the team who turns 80 this year, is perhaps the most excited about the history-making appearance.
“The first-time all-stick team,” he commented.
“That was your goal,” skip Gavin reminded him. It came in their fifth or sixth try at winning the right to be the club’s representative.
Three of the team members usually throw skip rocks on their four-person teams while Bernard normally sets up the end with his first-stone throws. They are expecting to have to do more sweeping than usual.
“We’re trying to figure a way around that,” Callaghan chuckled before admitting the team relies heavily on Vincent and Bernard’s sweeping abilities.
Vincent and Callaghan have won five provincial stick titles together.
Vincent admits they have to approach the provincial curling club championship a little bit differently than a stick event.
“You’ve got to be on your game,” he said, noting curlers get to throw six rocks an end in stick curling but they each have only two throws per end in regular curling.
The Western Community Curling Club team is casual about its hopes in O’Leary. “If we could win a game or two, it would be nice,” Callaghan remarks.