Coronach to host Jr. Mens Southerns

If Coronach residents are looking for something to do to finish up their Christmas holidays, they won't have to look far.
The Coronach Curling Club will have lots of action to fill the last few days of the Christmas break. From January 2 - 4, the Town of Coronach and the Coronach Curling Club will be the site of the Saskatchewan Curling Association's Junior Men's Southern Playdowns.
Twelve teams of young men, aged 20 years and younger, from all over Saskatchewan will be in town playing for a chance to advance to the Provincial playdowns January 9-12, 2009 in Burstall.
These teams will be vying for a spot in the 2009 M&M Meat Shops Canadian Junior Championships in Salmon Arm, British Columbia.
Teams can qualify for the southern playdowns in a number of ways, with four teams already on the draw, having won qualifying spiels earlier in the year.
Two Qualifying Spiels have already been held in November, each spiel sends two teams to the Southern playdowns. Teams already qualifying are Regina teams Trent Knapp and Garrett Vey, Kody Hartung from Langenburg and Kronau's Catlin Schneider.
Jeremy Tipper, chairman of the organizing commitee promises some great curling action over the January weekend, "This competition should provide for some excellent curling entertainment as the field that is shaping up is extremely strong with great provincial experience." Amber Holland from the Saskatchewan Curling Association said, "I think the majority of all the players on these teams have had Southern Junior experience in the past. The Hartung and Vey team both played in the Provincial Juniors last year. The Hartung Team were the 2008 SCA Juvenile Provincial Champions (17 &
under)."
According to Holland, the other 8 teams qualify through SCA Regional Playdowns being held this past weekend or next weekend. The Southern half of the province is geographically divided into 7 regions. Each Region gets 1 representative to the Southerns and the Region with largest number of entries will get another representative. Therefore, all 12 teams will be determined by December 1, 2008.
The 12 team southern draw is a triple knockout, with the four qualifying spiel winners receiving byes in the first round. Four teams will qualify to the Provincial: one from the A event, one from the B event and two from the C Event.
Tipper said, " I urge the citizens of Coronach and surrounding area to come and enjoy the curling. I also know that the Town of Coronach will receive these young men and their families with open arms and look forward to showing them why we are proud to live in Coronach."
The committee is looking for volunteers to help with the event. If you are available to help, call Jeremy at 267-4450.