A small selection of curlers put their skills to the test on the Idaburn Dam, near Oturehua yesterday.

While they were not playing for the Brown Shield as initially hoped, a mini tournament was still able to go ahead with fewer teams and a shorter amount of time on the ice.

Curlers had initially hoped to compete for the much-anticipated Brown Shield, a tournament which was last played in 2010 and would usually see about 17 rinks in action from morning until late afternoon.

However, one of the group’s ice masters Ken Gillespie said the ice was not viable for such a large group of people, prompting organisers behind the popular tournament to cancel the event on Sunday night.

Not all hope was dashed though, as they allowed the much smaller event to take place instead with four ends played.

While those who took part had a great time, it was short lived as water started to seep onto the surface, Ken said.

But, that didn’t stop everyone from having a good time.

From left to right: Bill May, Matt McSkimming, Ken Gillespie, Murray Tonkin, Friend, Graeme Male, Rachel Duffy, Hugh Speight.

“We’re all still here, it’s quite social,” he said, following the tournament.

He said it was unfortunate the Brown Shield couldn’t go ahead, but cancelling it was the right call.

“It was just as well we did because the ice wasn’t good enough. That’s just the way it is.”

Late last week, conditions looked promising thanks to regular overnight low temperatures of -7 degrees Celsius.

However, Sunday only dropped to -5C and -2C on Saturday morning.

“The ice just wasn’t good enough.

“It’s better for the frosts to be in the double figures to make good ice.”

He said while the opportunity to host the Brown Shield on the Idaburn Dam was now potentially lost this season, those who managed to compete in the smaller tournament had a great time.