DANKOCHIK’S DRAFTINGS: Dunstone’s victory shows power of mental discipline in sport

For 10 ends, for 80 rocks, Matt Dunstone’s rink was locked in at the Brier final. From the early blanks, to calling out “it’s time to dance,” before a memorable three-ender, to a precise angle-double to clinch two points in the ninth, Dunstone appeared completely in control of the outcome all night for the final.

All that changed after the final rock, which would clinch his victory left his hands. Needing only to remove a corner frozen Kevin Koe stone on the centre-line, the call was easy. Throw an up-weight shot right down the middle of the ice.

After coming up short in final after final, watching Dunstone navigate the 2026 Brier championship in such a calm way was incredible. That calmness was all gone when the camera cut back to the Team Manitoba skip following his winning shot.

With Koe’s stone still spinning into the side boards, Dunstone fell to his knees and put his hands to his head. It looked like he hadn’t had even considered the possibility of winning a final until he saw with his own two eyes Koe’s stones leave the house.

In sports, any coach will tell you to focus on winning one battle at a time, to be in the present. It’s a challenging thing to do even if you’re playing beer league hockey, let alone when you compete at the highest level.

Dunstone’s victory came down to that mentality. No matter how close the Tankard was to his lips, he took it one end, one shot at a time and battled to Manitoba’s first Brier victory in over a decade.