Adam Prudhomme
Beaver Staff
Scott Chadwick received a hero’s welcome as he walked through the door of his hometown Napanee District Curling Club (NDCC) on Monday night, the Ontario Tankard trophy in tow.
Chadwick captured the provincial trophy last week in Elmira while serving as lead for Scott McDonald with teammates Wes Forget and Jonathan Beuk. On Monday he was greeted with cheers, handshakes and camera flashes as he placed the historic trophy on a table in the middle of the club’s lounge.
“A lot of hard work was put into winning this,” Chadwick said to the club members in attendance. “A lot of hard work not just by myself and my team, but the whole community was behind us the whole way.”
Though his current team calls the Cataraqui Golf and Country Club home, Chadwick first learned the sport at the NDCC.
“When I first started playing, guys like Brian Hobin and Ian Munro were the ones that taught me how to play,” said Chadwick. “The hours these guys put in when I was six years old and every coach and every influence I’ve had through the years, the men’s club letting me join as an 11-year-old even though the rules said I wasn’t allowed, they still let me play with dad. Everyone that beat me as a kid, I hated it but I learned how to lose at a young age and managed to win a few as I got older.”
“I remember playing here at 12-years-old with Ken Healy,” said Chadwick. “After I threw third for him and we walked off the ice he said ‘one day Scott, I’m going to be watching you at the Brier.’ Here we are 16 years later.”
Chadwick says he is still processing the fact his team went a perfect 11-0 at the Tankard, with each opponent conceding before the 10th end.
“Glenn Howard’s on there 17 times,” Chadwick said of the trophy, which lists each winner dating back to 1927. “Everyone I grew up idolizing is on that trophy. It’s a pretty incredible feeling being a member of that club now.”
The Tankard trophy will stay at the NDCC for a few days this week before being passed off to another member of the team.
Chadwick and the rest of the McDonald rink will now gear up for the Brier, which will take place March 2-10 in Brandon Manitoba.
Prior to heading west, the team will host a rally at Kingston’s CGCC on Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. Chadwick invited anyone from Napanee to attend to help get them fired up before they go to compete against the top curlers from across Canada.