National Post (National Edition)
One-off lineup excites Jones
Team Jennifer Jones will have familiar players on its front end when the rink makes its World Cup debut at the Grand Final this May.
Longtime Jones second Jill Officer will return to the lineup and Shannon Birchard, who helped Jones win a national title last year, is also on board for the oneoff assignment. They will join Jones and third Kaitlyn Lawes as the Canadian replacements for Team Rachel Homan in Beijing.
Officer, who stepped back from competitive curling this season, has served as an alternate on occasion while Birchard regularly plays second on Team Kerri Einarson.
“We know each other quite well and we enjoy playing together,” Jones said. “I think it’s going to be a ton of fun and I don’t think there will be any adjustments at all.”
Homan’s Ottawa-based team won the season-opening World Cup in Suzhou, China last September. But, the rink is unable to play the circuit’s fourth and final leg because Homan and second Joanne Courtney are pregnant. Homan is due in mid-June, about a month before Courtney.
Jones was tabbed to play the World Cup’s third leg in late January in Sweden, but instead opted to play at a skins game in Banff, Alta. The Winnipeg skip did play in Beijing last October, finishing third at the China Open.
Team Jones second Jocelyn Peterman and lead Dawn Mcewen could not commit to the Grand Final due to schedule conflicts.
In a World Cup news release, Officer was tabbed to play lead with Birchard at second. But Jones said the team will likely finalize position plans after they arrive in China and get some practice time together.