Dunstone and Gushue win qualifying games to reach Page playoff 1-2 game at Brier

By Canadian Press on March 7, 2025.

KELOWNA, B.C. — The path to a Montana’s Brier title got a lot longer for Saskatchewan’s Mike McEwen and Alberta’s Brad Jacobs on Friday after qualifying game losses at Prospera Place.

Manitoba’s Matt Dunstone beat McEwen 6-5 and Canada’s Brad Gushue topped Jacobs 7-4 to earn berths in the Page playoff 1-2 game. McEwen fell into an evening qualifier against Manitoba’s Reid Carruthers and Jacobs was to face Nova Scotia’s Owen Purcell in the other.

“A big mountain to climb now,” Jacobs said.

By losing the early qualifiers, McEwen and Jacobs would need to win four straight must-win games to raise the tankard. Gushue and Dunstone, meanwhile, will play Saturday night with the winner advancing directly to Sunday’s final.

The latest chapter in the decade-plus Battle of the Brads rivalry was a back-and-forth matchup with singles exchanged over the first six ends. Jacobs blinked in the seventh when his in-off attempt caught the stone a tad thick leading to a Gushue steal.

Gushue forced Jacobs to one in the eighth and the defending champion used hammer in the ninth to score three.

“I think Brad Gushue just proved why he’s Brad Gushue,” Jacobs said. “I think he probably curled 100 per cent. I don’t think he missed a shot. Their whole team played really well. We got outplayed.”

All four members of the Gushue rink threw at least 91 per cent with the skip leading the way at 98 per cent.

On the next sheet over, the top-ranked Dunstone was at his fist-pumping best as he used two mid-game pairs to take a 5-3 lead into the seventh end.

After a blank, McEwen was forced to attempt a runback triple but a Dunstone rock jammed for a steal. Trailing by two in the 10th, McEwen sat three to force Dunstone to make a double-takeout for the win.

“We have a very strong belief within this group that when we bring our best stuff, we are really hard to beat,” Dunstone said.

The winners of the Friday evening qualifiers will advance to the Page playoff 3-4 game on Saturday afternoon. The 3-4 loser will be eliminated while the winner advances to the semifinal on Sunday morning against the 1-2 loser.

Gushue is looking to win the Brier for a record fourth straight time and seventh overall.

Vice Mark Nichols and lead Geoff Walker also have six career national men’s curling titles. Brendan Bottcher, who joined the team last fall, is aiming to win the Brier for the second time.

The Brier champions will represent Canada at the March 29-April 6 BKT world men’s curling championship in Moose Jaw, Sask.

Ottawa’s Rachel Homan won the Scotties Tournament of Hearts last month in Thunder Bay, Ont. She’ll wear the Maple Leaf at the March 15-23 LGT world women’s curling championship in Uijeongbu, South Korea.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 7, 2025.

Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press