For the first time in two decades, the 2024 Montana’s Brier is being held in Regina, an opportunity for twin brothers, Kevin and Daniel Marsh, to represent and play for Team Saskatchewan in front of a home crowd.  

Kevin and Daniel grew up in a family that prioritized physical activity and found a passion for curling through their mother, who would take them to the rink beginning at the age of three. Over the years, the rink became their second home. 

“My mom used to compete in curling at a competitive level and got us interested in curling basically when we could first walk,” said Team Saskatchewan lead, Daniel. 

The brothers’ success in curling was fueled by athleticism at a young age, which spanned past curling into various sports. 

“In [our] upbringing, my parents exposed us to all areas of sport not just curling or hockey, which made a huge impact on my outlook on life and my passions,” said Kevin, who plays second for Team Saskatchewan. “I give a lot of credit to my parents for making sure we were exposed to lots of different sports, which allowed us to figure out what we were good at and what we could be successful at.”  

Curling left the biggest impression on the brothers and they began to prioritize it over other sports. 

“We grew up at the curling rink and it let me see what it would be like to be a competitive curler and it stuck with me into adulthood,” said Kevin.  

The twins have rarely spent time apart from one another when it comes to curling, as for most of their careers they’ve played on the same team, including several junior seasons with their older brother. In fact, the only time they haven’t been teammates was in 2011 when the duo played for different teams. Both look back on the lone season they were competitors rather than teammates with a shared amusement. 

“[Daniel’s team] ended up being a little better than my team by the end of the year and we faced each other in provincials, with his team coming out on top,” laughed Kevin. “It was definitely a weird situation, as it was the only game we have ever played against each other, making it tough to focus.” 

Following the brief period apart, the brothers moved on together to begin a professional career that would lead them to participate in two, coming on three Briers. 

The Brier’s competition is what caught the attention of the young brothers when they were children, an experience that inspired them to continue curling and lead them to be the next generation’s role model. 

Pat Simmons — a Saskatchewan two-time Brier champion and an alternate for Team Saskatchewan at this year’s event — was an idol for Daniel pushing him as a child to develop his skills and strive to one day exhibit the same professionalism on the ice.  

Now, Daniel is the one who hopes to instill the same desire in the younger generation attending the 2024 Brier and Kevin shares the same aspirations. Both know that their presence and attitude on the ice can leave a major impact on upcoming curlers in attendance. 

“Watching the players and how they take shots and react, really had a big influence on where I wanted to take my curling career.  I really keep that in mind when I’m on the ice…hopefully the way we present ourselves inspires the next generation to pick up on the sport,” said Kevin. 

And while the brothers hope their on-ice efforts will encourage those in attendance to pursue curling, they are also looking forward to the motivation that can only come from playing in front of hometown fans. 

“The crowd will help us get through the long week that is ahead of us. We aim to perform well and give the home crowd lots to cheer for,” exclaimed Kevin.  

Joining Daniel and Kevin Marsh on Team Saskatchewan is Mike McEwen as skip, Colton Flasch as third with Simmons as an alternate and Brent Laing as coach. 

Three other players, originally from Saskatchewan, will be attending the Brier on other provincial teams. Catlin Schneider (skip) and Jamie Schneider (alternate) will join Team B.C. and Ben Hebert (second) will join Team Alberta 2.