N.L. curlers vie for a spot in the Brier in another tankard without Gushue

A dozen men's curling teams the most in more than a decade are competingin St. John's in hopes of clinching a spot at the Brier,without having to face powerhouse Brad Gushue.

For the second year in a row, Team Gushue, having won the last Brier, is playing as Team Canada in the national tournament, leaving the Newfoundland and Labrador spot open for fresh faces from a provincial tankard with several new teams.

"I guess it got to the point where teams thought they had a chance without Gushue being in the mix," Mark Noseworthy, the vice-president of the Newfoundland & Labrador Curling Association, told CBC Radio's Weekend AM.

"Of the teams that are left, none of the teams are the same as last year. They've all got new combinations of players."

The triple-knockout tankard started Tuesday with 12 teams from St. John's, Gander, Channel-Port aux Basques and Happy Valley-Goose Bay.

A lot of these teams have taken it on themselvesto travel a lot more on tour, and do a number of tournaments, which you need to do to sharpen up your killer instinct.- Mark Noseworthy

That's the most teams to compete since 2008 and three more than 2018 the first year in recent history Gushue wasn't in contention.

Noseworthy said curlers are trying to use these years free from the toughest competition to carve out a spot for themselves. While they may not be curling full-time, the game is far more than a hobby for some provincial contenders.

"The last couple years, where teams knew that Gushue wasn't going to be in the mix, a lot of these teams have taken it on themselvesto travel a lot more on tour, and do a number of tournaments, which you need to do to sharpen up your killer instinct," Noseworthy said.

Four teams, all of which play at the ReMax Centre in St. John's, are still in competition as of Saturday afternoon: C. Thomas, Skanes, Roswelland Symonds.

Depending on the results of this afternoon's draws, a winner could be named tonight or Sunday.

Facing Grand Slammers

Whoever advances, Noseworthy said, should have a good showing at the Brier, but winning it all would mean besting Gushue and a handful of other Grand Slam teams that travel and compete full-time.

"I don't think it's realistic that they're going to be able to beat all the Grand Slam teams," Noseworthy said, "but that said, the gap is not that great. It's justthe Grand Slam teams are that one shot ahead all the time."

But, Noseworthy emphasized, the results might come down to the literal luck of the draw and a few good breaks.

"Will they beat all the top teams one after another? That's a pretty tall order," he said.

"Could they beat one or two in a row? Yeah, they could."

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