Assad opens with win at Northerns

Al Hackner’s bid to return to the Brier got off to a good start Sunday afternoon.

The former two-time national champion, playing third for Mike Assad’s foursome, won his 2011 Northern Ontario men’s provincial curling championship debut, defeating Thunder Bay’s Mike Pozihun 7-4 at their home Fort William Curling Club rink.

Assad scored deuces in the first, third and eighth ends in a match that ended after nine frames.

Brian Burgess and his team weren’t so fortunate, falling 8-5 to John Salo’s team from Geraldton. Burgess held an early 2-1 lead through three and tied at the midway point, but Salo scored a pair in the sixth to go up one and stole two more in the seventh to take a 7-3 lead, enough to salt away the victory.

Copper Cliff’s Mike Jakubo scored two in the fifth to take his first lead of his match against Thunder Bay’s Jeff Currie, then stole one in the sixth en route to a 6-4 opening draw win.

In the afternoon draw’s only other match, Sudbury’s Robbie Gordon scored an easy 8-2 win over North Bay’s Jeff Brown.

Action continues in Draw 2 at 7:30 p.m.