The Brandon Sun: Online Edition – Wilson regains mastery of Brandon ice
Thursday, January 12th, 2006
By: Rob Henderson
Just when it looked like Ralph Wilson’s luck in Brandon had run out, the Dauphin skip found a little bit more magic this week.
Wilson knocked off Norm Hemstad 7-1 Wednesday at the Brandon Curling Club to win the Brandon Masters Bonspiel berth playoff. His team of third Ken Davis, second Mike Bicklmeier and lead Gordon Walker gets a spot in the provincial masters (ages 60 and older) championship, March 9-13 in Killarney.
Wilson has had astonishing success in Brandon, both at the masters bonspiel and in the Safeway Westman Masters Super League of Curling, winning five out of the last six bonspiel playoffs and going unbeaten through the super league last season.
However, after reeling off nine straight super league wins to start this season, Wilson lost three of his next for games and narrowly missed the playoffs.
“I keep saying the air went out of the balloon pretty fast,” Wilson said. “We were riding along there 9-0 and then, all of a sudden, the last four games we lost three out of the last four. We don’t know what happened … The breaks went for the other guy and we weren’t curling quite as good and that’s the way curling is.”
He rediscovered his touch this week, leading the competitive division of the bonspiel with 78 points and slipping by Ray Laloyaux’s Riverview team 5-4 in the semifinal in an extra end.
His opponent Hemstad, the Brandon skip who won the super league this year, beat Valour Road’s Bob Picken 5-4 in the other semifinal.
In the final, Wilson stole three points in the second end for a quick 4-0 lead. Hemstad, who curls with Neil Reeves, Gene Cory and Mel Beatty, got one back in the third end but Wilson stole singles in the fifth and sixth ends to finish the match early.
“(Hemstad’s team is) a real good rink and they’d been going along real good here too,” Wilson said. “It just seemed like the ice just changed on them a little bit out there and we clicked on it just a little bit faster than they did.”
Wilson won the provincial mixed championship in 1978 and lost the final of the provincial men’s championship in 1968 in Brandon to fellow Dauphin skip Burke Parker. He’s also represented the Manitoba/Northwestern Ontario region at the Canadian Legion championships.
However, he’s still waiting for his big breakthrough in the masters division.
“We’ve been in (the provincials) five out of the last six years and we always look forward to it,” Wilson said. “Last year we went right down to the last four, we were second in our group. Every year when you get in there you know you’ve got a chance to win the province and that’s every curler’s dream is to win the province and represent Manitoba in the (national) playdowns and we’re looking forward to it.”
Reigning Canadian masters champion Doug Armour of Souris and Barry Sadler of Portage la Prairie both earned enough points during the bonspiel to make it into the berth playoff, but both already had their provincial championship spots locked up through zone play last week.
Bill Piett, playing in the recreational portion of the bonspiel, was the Crocus Credit Union Aggregate Champion.
• • •
The field for the Safeway Select provincial men’s championship will really start to take shape this week with zone playoffs. Curlers will compete at the Brandon Curling Club and in Shoal Lake, Carberry, Baldur, Treherne, Souris and Dauphin for spots in the Select, Feb. 8-12 in Steinbach.
Meanwhile, the Manitoba Curling Association Women’s Bonspiel begins Friday in Winnipeg.
Competitors include Brandon teams skipped by Kim Thomas-Ritchot, Kristen Williamson, Tina Kozak and Liza Park as well as Joyce McDougall’s Souris squad.
The bonspiel offers one spot in the provincial women’s championship, Jan. 25-29 in Thompson.
THE LAST STRAW — Friday is the deadline to enter the Brandon Ladies’ Bonspiel, which takes place Jan. 20-22. The cost is $120 and you can phone Heather Ewasiuk at 726-0873 for more information … The Rivers Men’s Bonspiel is coming up Jan. 19-22. Call Way Mor Agencies at 328-5264 or Al MacDonald at 328-7903 to enter … The Rivers Ladies’ Bonspiel is slated for Jan. 27-29. Call Donna Falkevitch to enter.
Rob Henderson is a Sun sports writer. He can be reached by phone at 571-7435 or by e-mail at: rhenders@brandonsun.com
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