The 1972 Macdonald Brier, Canada's national men's curling championship was held March 6 to 10, 1972 at St. John's Arena in St. John's, Newfoundland.

Team Manitoba, who was skipped by Orest Meleschuk easily won the event, after posting a 9-1 round robin record, only losing to Quebec's Bill Kent rink, which finished second.The Brier, Bob Weeks, pg 120 Meleschuk and his rink of Dave Romano, John Hanesiak and Pat Hailley went on to win a gold medal at the 1972 Air Canada Silver Broom World Curling Championship, amidst controversy.

It was the first time St. John's had hosted the Brier. While the total attendance was underwhelming, about 2,500 spectators were on hand to witness the final two evening draws. The event also saw a dearth of quality games, with one scribe stating "[w]ell-played games were the exception rather than the rule," though ice conditions were not the blame. There were also incidents of rules infractions, with some curlers abusing the hogline rule (sliding past the hogline after releasing the rock), with Meleschuk even admitting "[s]ure, I broke it, ... but everybody else was so why stop?", and with some curlers burning stones, with an incident in the Saskatchewan vs. Manitoba game possibly causing the former to lose the game.

Indeed, it was the Manitoba–Saskatchewan game played in Draw 9 on Thursday night that many believed to be the turning point in the event, as both rinks had identical records heading in. The game was a "hard-fought, controversial battle", with the Manitobans winning 7–6. Following the game, Manitoba won their remaining two, while Saskatchewan dropped their final two.

Teams The teams are listed as follows: British ColumbiaManitobaFairview CC, Fairview Fourth: Mel Watchorn Skip: Jim Fox Second: Terry Watchorn Lead: Merv WatchornNorth Vancouver R.C.C.C., North Vancouver Skip: Bernie Sparkes Third: Brock Giles Second: Brent Giles Lead: Brad GilesFort Rouge CC, Winnipeg Skip: Orest Meleschuk Third: Dave Romano Second: John Hanesiak Lead: Pat HailleyNew BrunswickNewfoundlandNorthern OntarioFredericton CC, Fredericton Skip: Dave Sullivan Third: John Gorman Second:Wally Nason Lead: Wayne RhodenizerSt. John's CC, St. John's Skip: Fred Durant Third: Jack MacDuff Second: Bob Rowe Lead: Carl StrongTarentorus SC, Sault Ste. Marie Skip: Jack MacFarlane Third: Mike Boyd Second: Doug Clattenburg Lead: Dave MacFarlaneNova ScotiaOntarioPrince Edward IslandHalifax CC, Halifax Skip: Barry Shearer Third: Ken Langille Second: Eddie Morgan Lead: Robin WilberOttawa CC, Ottawa Skip: Eldon Coombe Third: Keith Forgues Second: Jim Patrick Lead: Barry ProvostCharlottetown CC, Charlottetown Skip: Kip Ready Third: Bill MacGregor Second: David Kassner Lead: Norm MacNeillQuebecSaskatchewanHeather CC, Hampstead Skip: Bill Kent Third: Art Lobel Second: Don Aitken Lead: Murray GreggaHub City CC, Saskatoon Skip: Doug Wyatt Third: Glen Farrell Second: Murray Trapp Lead: Dale Zoerb

Map of teams

Round Robin standings Final Round Robin standings KeyBrier champion ProvinceSkipWLPFPA Orest Meleschuk 9 1 102 63 Bill Kent 7 3 79 73 Mel Watchorn 6 4 81 69 Eldon Coombe 6 4 89 82 Doug Wyatt 6 4 82 75 Bernie Sparkes 5 5 90 89 Jack MacFarlane 5 5 91 83 Dave Sullivan 4 6 72 77 Kip Ready 3 7 72 100 Fred Durant 3 7 69 85 Barry Shearer 1 9 66 97

Round Robin results All draw times are listed in Newfoundland Standard Time (UTC-03:30).

Draw 1 Monday, March 6, 3:00 pm

Draw 2 Monday, March 6, 8:00 pm

Draw 3 Tuesday, March 7, 9:00 am

Draw 4 Tuesday, March 7, 2:30 pm

Draw 5 Wednesday, March 8, 2:30 pm

Draw 6 Wednesday, March 8, 8:00 pm

Draw 7 Thursday, March 9, 9:00 am

Draw 8 Thursday, March 9, 2:30 pm

Draw 9 Thursday, March 9, 8:00 pm

Draw 10 Friday, March 10, 9:00 am

Draw 11 Friday, March 10, 2:30 pm

Awards All-Star Team The media selected the following curlers as All-Stars.BRIER INDIVIDUAL AWARDS & ALL-STAR TEAMS

Position Name Team Skip Bill Kent Third Dave Romano Second Terry Watchorn Lead Murray Gregga

Ross G.L. Harstone Award The Ross Harstone Award was presented to the player chosen by their fellow peers as the curler who best represented Harstone's high ideals of good sportsmanship, observance of the rules, exemplary conduct and curling ability.

Name Team Position Dave Sullivan Skip

References

External links Soudog Curling Curling Canada Youtube video Coverage