The Jacobs rink, which includes third Ryan Fry, second EJ Harnden and lead Ryan Harnden, fell behind 3-0 in the opening end, but roared back to beat Team Canada, skipped by Pat Simmons 10-6 in draw seven at the annual event Monday to improve to 4-0 through three days of action.
The game was a rematch of the tournament final one year ago, a game in which Simmons beat Jacobs to earn the Canadian title.
After Simmons took the early lead, Jacobs would take out three Team Canada rocks in the second end to score four and take a 4-3 lead.
Jacobs would say the shot in the second end was a “huge turnaround.”
“We could easily miss that shot, give up another steal and it’s 4-0,” Jacobs would tell reporters at the event. “The point swing is probably a steal (for them) to four for us, five-point swing. It was a big moment in a big game. Coming back and making that shot, it was huge for us. If we don’t make that shot we’re probably really down in the dumps and emotionally not feeling well about our chances to win. It completely turned everything around.”
Jacobs would extend the lead in the third end after a run-back by Simmons would over curl and lead to a steal of one for Jacobs and a 5-3 lead for the Northern Ontario rink.
Simmons would pull even in the sixth end after a draw for a pair to tie the score at six, but Jacobs would score three in the seventh end to re-take the lead and seal the win.
Of note, the three-ender Simmons scored in the first end was just the second three-ender surrendered by the Jacobs team in 25 games at the Brier. Ironically enough, the only other time it happened was also against Simmons in the final of the 2015 tournament.
Jacobs told reporters at the event that even if percentages aren’t perfect at times, teams in the tournament have made the most of chances.
“One of the big reasons we’re 4-0 is we’ve taken advantage of all of our opportunities,” Jacobs said.
Team Jacobs is in action this morning against Prince Edward Island’s Adam Casey in draw eight. The game started at 9:30 a.m.
The team then wraps up the day in draw 10 against Alberta’s Kevin Koe at 7:30 p.m.
The Standings
- Northern Ontario (Brad Jacobs): 4-0
- Alberta (Kevin Koe): 4-1
- Newfoundland and Labrador (Brad Gushue): 3-1
- Team Canada (Pat Simmons): 3-2
- Ontario (Glenn Howard): 3-2
- British Columbia (Jim Cotter): 2-2
- Manitoba (Mike McEwen): 2-2
- Saskatchewan (Steve Laycock): 2-3
- Quebec (Jean-Michel Menard): 1-3
- New Brunswick (Mike Kennedy): 1-3
- Prince Edward Island (Adam Casey): 1-3
- Northwest Territories (Jamie Koe): 0-4
