BRANDON, Man. – Scott McDonald and his Kingston, Ont., crew decided to go all in this season and it’s gotten them to the biggest stage in Canadian curling – the Tim Hortons Brier.

“If your dream is playing at the biggest events and being a world-class team, you really need four guys that are all in and I think that’s what we have with this group,” third Jonathan Beuk told TSN.ca after defeating Nunavut on Monday morning.

Their victory over the lowest-ranked team in the field was the first of the week and the first of their careers, with all four members of the Ontario foursome making their Brier debuts in Brandon. By Monday night they were at the .500 mark after beating the Northwest Territories.

Team McDonald is in their first season together and has quickly become one of the more interesting teams at this year’s Canadian championship. Their perfect 11-0 run at the Ontario Tankard last month was capped off by beating defending champion John Epping three straight times.

The skip and second Wesley Forget most recently played with Cody Maus in London, Ont., while Beuk and lead Scott Chadwick spent the previous five seasons with Greg Balsdon of Kingston, Ont.

The two pairs decided to join forces in 2018-19 with the same goal in mind. Now, they’re ready for more.

“At the beginning of the year we set the goal of getting to the Brier, so now that we’ve got to the Brier we have to set those new expectations,” said McDonald. “Getting here isn’t good enough anymore. We want to get here and compete.”

The rink out of the Cataraqui Golf and Country Club has played more than 80 games on the World Curling Tour, including three Grand Slam events.

“We’ve played a lot this year. We’ve put ourselves in a lot of pressure situations and we have a lot of fun out there,” explained the skip. “It’s a lot of hard work, but for the number of games we’ve played this year, if you’re not enjoying what you’re doing it’s going to be a long, long season.”

It took a major commitment from all four members to get them to Westoba Place in Brandon. Each had to take considerable time away from their full-time jobs in order to play as much as they did on tour.

Beuk, who works as a psychometrist in Kingston, has curled for 25 years and has never been a part of a team like this.

“This is the most dedication I’ve had from all four team members. I think all four of us have bought into this team,” said the 35-year-old. “Sometimes you have teammates that have different priorities or different things that are distractions. I think the four of us have come together really well and we’re all on the same page, which really has made a big difference.”

Ontario dropped their first two games over the weekend against heavyweights in Alberta’s Kevin Koe and the defending champions led by Brad Gushue. Still, Team McDonald has a very good chance at the championship pool with games against Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and British Columbia still left in round-robin play.

McDonald, 32, says his rink concentrated on taking away the positives from their opening two games instead of focusing on the end results.

“I think you focus on things you did well,” said the skip. “We were able to make a lot of shots and be competitive in the first two games. It was important for us not to focus on the results of the game, but what we were doing during the game to make shots.”

Beuk adds a key to their success all season has been simply sticking to a plan.

“I think we’re four really intelligent guys that have curled competitively for a while now,” he said. “I think we came up with a good team plan and good process early in the year and I think we’ve been able to stick to it. It’s been leading to good results for the most part.”

Ontario hasn’t won the Brier since Glenn Howard stood atop the podium in 2012 for his fourth Tankard title.

Playing for Mom

McDonald’s mother, Laura, passed away from cancer in November 2016 and the skip says it would have meant the world to her to see her son playing at the Canadian championship.

“She just wanted to see my chase my dreams and have an opportunity to succeed. She knew from a young age that my goal was to get to the Brier,” McDonald told TSN.ca. “I think she would be smiling down right now, seeing the opportunity that we have and how much fun we’ve had and how cool it is to finally be on this stage.”

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Laura McDonald at 2011 Brier

McDonald says his mom fell in love with the sport after watching her kids play competitively. Laura started throwing rocks in the early 2000s, playing with her husband in mixed events as well as a women’s league.

“She would see what my brother and I would do, competing in the juniors, and she wanted to emulate that herself,” said McDonald. “She quickly became the world’s most competitive lead.”

The mother and son even teamed up for a few events a couple years before her death.

“It was a different dynamic because we went from that mother-son relationship to teammates, which is sometimes funny on the ice. I couldn’t be happier I had that opportunity to play with her,” he said.

McDonald says the part of game his mother appreciated the most was the community and relationships you gain through the sport. The Brier is a perfect example of this in McDonald’s eyes.

“The Brier is a celebration of curling, and we’re here to win, but the Brier is so much more just winning,” said McDonald. “It’s meant to inspire everyone – whether you’re a child trying to get into the game or adult who still wants to get to this point at some time.”

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