BY SCOTT
HADDOW
When local curler Tim Phillips sees his friends slip into their
Team Northern Ontario jackets, he gets a warm feeling inside
and a wide smile erupts on his face.
Phillips can sense the excitement in their bodies, and can't
help but get fired up.
In the span of one year, skip Phillips, along with lead Andrea
Souliere, second Lloyd Bigras and third Vicky Barrett, have
slid up the ranks and are now qualified to represent the north
at the 2006 mixed national curling championships in Kitchener.
The crew left on Thursday, received a bye in the opening round
and will play their first game on Saturday against
Newfoundland.
People can follow the results at
www.curling.ca
.
For Phillips, this is his fifth trip to the national curling
stage. He's been to two Briers and two other mixed
championships since 2000.
For the rest of the team, it's their first crack at a Canadian
championship, and that's why Phillips is ready to rock.
"I have the same feelings I had as the first event...it's just
as good," said the long-time curler. "I know what to expect and
there's nothing better than representing Northern Ontario. I am
really looking forward to watching Andrea, Lloyd and Vicky
enjoy the event...it's their first time at this level and it's
going to be fun for all of us."
Souliere has been curling for seven years and the past year has
made her more confident.
"This is huge to go," said Souliere. "It's the result of a lot
of hard work and great team chemistry. It's been a really great
experience for me. I have learned more about curling in the
last six months than I have in all my previous years."
Bigras has waited a long time to make his presence felt on the
national stage.
He has been a competitive curler for 20 years.
"This is a big deal for me," said Bigras. "I've curled for a
long time and tried to get to one Brier...or a national
event.
I've never been successful before. This is the Holy Grail for me and maybe the only national event I will ever go to. I am going to relish every moment."
Barrett has also curled competitively for the last 20 years,
making provincial event finals, but the big win has always
eluded her until now.
"It's wonderful to finally make it," said Barrett. "I've made
many provincial events in ladies, mixed and seniors, but never
won. It's wonderful and something I've waited for a long time.
It's called perseverance or just being too stubborn to give
up."
The team is shooting for the playoff round.
"We want a 8-3 record in round-robin," said Phillips. "We have
to set our goals high. A lot of things have to go right though.
If we can keep the games close - and that's the key - we have a
chance. We will also need some luck."
Despite only being forged one year ago, the team has been
putting in overtime to raise their game.
"We've been on the ice six days a week since September," said
Bigras. "We have about 30 games under our belts. We've gelled
and we're ready. We hope to do Northern Ontario proud."
The team came together almost instantly as if it was meant to
be.
"What really stands out is we have a strong, basic
camaraderie," said Barrett. "It's been there right from our
very first game we played together. We picked up each other's
habits and created a comfort zone, which is important. Now, we
have to show up with our A game, every game."
Over the last year, Northern Ontario has been the target of
criticism from other provincial level curlers stating the
region basically isn't competitive enough on the national
stage. It doesn't bother the local four at all, and even gives
them a bit more motivation.
"Northern Ontario has one of the longest and richest traditions
in the sport," said Phillips. "We know Northern Ontario doesn't
have much of a winning record recently, but neither do a lot of
the other provinces. Our day will come...it adds fuel to the
fire."
