Kirk Muyres (Middle) and Team Saskatchewan after the semi-final against Team Alberta.(Twitter/@CurlingCanada)

By Mat Barrett

2021 Brier

‘It was a really fun experience’: Muyres talks bronze medal at 2021 Brier

Mar 15, 2021 | 4:00 PM

The 2021 Tim Hortons Brier has officially wrapped up in the curling bubble in Calgary and the Second for Team Saskatchewan is looking back with positive eyes.

For St. Gregor, Sask. native Kirk Muyres, it was his sixth Brier and his second bronze medal.

“We played really well,” Muyres told northeastNOW. “We came together as a unit, we made big shots in big moments and we showed we can play with, and beat some of the best teams in the world.”

Muyres said they all shed some tears after the loss, but they won’t lose much sleep knowing they played so well.

Muyres and his Team Saskatchewan rink, skipped by Matt Dunstone went 6-3 in Pool play at the tournament before adding another three wins to their total in the championship pool, giving them a 9-4 record, good for a spot in the semi-final on Sunday morning.

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In the semi-final, Muyres and Team Saskatchewan were up against Brendan Bottcher and Team Alberta who had made the last three Brier finals, losing all three. Bottcher needed to make a fantastic shot on the last stone of the game to win it for Team Alberta.

“A guy like Brendan is going to make a shot like that once in a while, and he made it against us” Muyres said. “And low and behold, he won the Brier.”

Muyres curled 85 per-cent through the week and said he and the team tried to have fun and enjoy the moment together. It was the first major tournament for Team Dunstone since adding Muyres in April of 2020.

“‘We’re going to go out there, we’re going to enjoy the experience, we haven’t curled in a year, how lucky are we? Let’s go and enjoy the experience, enjoy the curling, and then the chips will fall where they may,'” he said. “And we really committed to that, and it was really a fun experience, I’ll tell you that.”

There were no fans at the event in the bubble, and Muyres said there was a bit of an adjustment to get used to it being so quiet in the rink.

He added that while the goal is to win the Brier, bringing a bronze back to Saskatchewan and getting to wear the green and white is still special.

“The biggest thing I’m proud of is kind of the way our team handled ourselves, and the way the boys rallied around” Muyres said. “And just put on a good show for everyone that’s been kind of sitting at home during the pandemic, and we kind of got to go and have some fun and hold ourselves with some of the best teams in the world, so it was neat.”

The bronze medal is the second in a row for Team Dunstone who lost in the semi-finals in 2020 as well. Muyres said he and the team hopes to continue the success and keep representing Saskatchewan, but the province has a very good crop of curlers who are going to create competition.

“We’re going to continue to push each other,” he said. “And hopefully make each other better and break that [Brier] drought one of these years.”

Saskatchewan last won a Brier in 1980.

Muyres will now remain in the bubble as the Canadian Mixed Doubles Championship kicks off on Thursday, March 18. However, Muyres said the next few days will consist of resting the body and catching up on some work before he and Laura Walker compete in mixed doubles, something the two of them know well after winning the 2018 tournament, and winning bronze at worlds that year.

“Super excited to get back together, go play, have some fun again,” Muyres said. “We’ve won it before, so we know we can do it and it will be a neat experience.”

Muyres said he’s also excited to get to meet Liam, who is the child of Laura and husband Geoff, and is only a few months old.

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mat.barrett@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @matbarrett6