Team Newfoundland and Labrador gain experience, make history at Brier

Team Newfoundland and Labrador might not be taking home any hardware from the Brier, but they're bringing back a lot of experience, some unforgettable memories and a history-making moment.

At just 15 years old, Nicholas Codner of Torbay made Brier history by becoming the youngest player to ever compete at the men's national curling championship.

"It's been pretty awesome, everyone has been pretty supportive," said Codner, who spoke with CBC News from Lethbridge, Alta.

"I don't think people really knew the first couple days until I got into play."

Newfoundland and Labrador, the youngest team in the tournament by years, finished the Brier with a record of one win and seven losses. They recorded a 7-5 victory over Yukon in their round robin opener.

The team is made up ofteam skip Nathan Young, Sam Follett, Nathan Locke, Ben Stringer and Codner.

Young's side qualified for the Brier in February after winning the provincial men's curling championship over Greg Smith.

Olympian Brad Gushue was not in the provincial field due to the Olympic Winter Games schedule, but Gushue is still competing in the tournament as a wild card team.

Young said their goals for the tournament weretacklingdistractions they haven't encountered before, like big crowds and television cameras,and learning what it takes to compete against the best teams in Canada.

"Going to the Brier has been a lifelong dream for us," said Young. "Coming to our first Brier at such a young age and playing against the best teams in the world, it's a lot about learning for us."

Young said interacting with the other players on and off the ice took some getting used to.

"These are our curling idols. It's really cool to be there with them."

Theteam will now head to Stratford, Ont., to compete in the national under-21 curling championships at the end of the month. It's not lost on Youngthat the other teams don't have Brier experience, but he said they have their work cut out for them.

"There are a lot of great teams heading to Stratford and we are going to have to bring our 'A' game to come out on top," he said.

• Dunstone stays perfect while young Newfoundland and Labrador team soak up 1st Brier

Team Gushue, who are fresh off winning a bronze medal at the Olympics in Beijing, were the only rink to get through round robin play with a perfect record.

However, the team announced Friday night that Mark Nichols had tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss the playoffs.

• Nichols out of Wild Card One lineup at Brier after positive COVID-19 test

The team does not have an alternate, so the team will play as a three-man unit instead of four.

"We've done everything we can in the last few months to avoid this," Gushue said.

"It's a gut-punch on top of a kick in the groin."

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