End of Summer Lax
I can’t believe the summer is over! Sure sign….the Mann Cup has found a new home until we start again next spring.
Seems like it was just a few days ago that I was knee deep in paperwork for my Senior “B” team. First game, a whole bunch of rookies, a new assistant coach. And a lot of the same old guys- our wonderful training & equipment staff, a few players that have been there forever, an owner who is as generous as they come, a coach who wants to win. And new ball boy who, to paraphrase, had the “best summer ever just hanging out with the guys”.
Our trip to the national championship at our level last year, to challenge for the President’s Cup, was the finale for a lot of guys. And so we started to rebuild this year. We made a good start on what promises to be a really good team soon. But we have a lot to learn as a team and we will. Enough said that the season was a bit too short for my liking.
However, a pretty good representative went west from our league and I need to congratulate the Owen Sound Woodsmen on their victory. And, most especially, my two favourite players on that team. And yes I have favourites on the “bad guys”. That just seems to happen when you hang around the game long enough.
To Brandon Sanderson- congrats on ring number six!!!! That is just plain amazing. And to Chet Koneczny- big hugs for you my pal. Well deserved to two great team guys who work hard, not just to play the game but also to grow this sport we love so much.
So….as the summer ends and I find time to say a few things that I just haven’t had time for the past few months. I will start with a bunch of random thoughts but stay tuned. Now that I have time on my hands, at least until the NLL camps start, I will say it all.
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Before anything else, I need to ask anyone reading this that is truly a fan of the game to say a little prayer for a pretty good player who is fighting for his health, first and foremost.
John Grant Junior is arguably one of the best to ever pick up a stick. He has never been a personal favourite, except when he is playing for Team Canada. And that has nothing to do with his skill & ability. It has everything to do with the fact that he always seems to be on the other team. In the summer he is a member of the current arch rival of my Excelsiors. In the winter he is one of those teal & purple wearing Knighthawks. He is forever trying to score on my favourite team. So really? What’s to like?
Well, truth be told, he is pure magic to watch at times. One of those guys who thinks nothing of dragging three or four players with him as he scores one of those goals that makes you shake your head in amazement. And that is when his team is short handed.
Recently he was forced to watch his Lakers loose in the Ontario finals, to a team they have defeated in that same series the past four summers. No chance to repeat as Mann Cup champions.
But that, right now, is the least of his concerns. He is fighting an infection that has already sidelined him for the next year, according to his medical advice. And even then he has a long road back to health, let alone to playing the game he loves so much.
And so I ask anyone fan of the game to say a little prayer to whomever you say such things for John and his family. He and they will need all of our support in the coming months.
His NLL team, the Rochester Knighthawks, have set up a way for fans to send him their best wishes. And I am certain every single one will help.
Or…by mail… John Grant, c/o The Rochester Knighthawks, The Blue Cross Arena, 100 Exchange Street, Rochester, NY 14614
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My shortened lacrosse summer was not for nothing though. It gave me time to get to a lot of other games. It meant I only had to miss one playoff game of the major series team I have been following since I was introduced to lacrosse over ten years ago. What a treat! Lots to talk about there, in days to come. I will share one story that proves to me just how important fans are to the players.
When all was said & done and the players finally came out of the dressing room after winning the trophy they prize the most, I had a chance to congratulate Brodie Merrill. In my ear he whispered how much it meant to look up into the crowd in game six, down 3 to 2 to the defending national champs, in their packed arena. And there was I and a whole lot of other Excelsiors fans. We made the trip to the often unfriendly confines of Memorial Arena in Peterborough.
I have heard, many times from many players, how much the “seventh man” does for them. Brodie wasn’t the only one who told me the other night. And they all meant it. These guys really do appreciate the support because they know it is how they get to play the game.
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My extra spare time also meant I could hang out at the Ontario Lacrosse Festival and watch a bunch of short guys play the game. More treats for me as I got to see the future. And if these kids are anything to base it on, the sport will grow.
Like the Walker brothers from Brampton. Not the biggest players on the floor but the biggest hearts. And fans as well. They have been to see their major team every time the games didn’t conflict with their commitment to their own team. These are the guys who may not grow up to be the best lacrosse players ever. But they will play and then coach. They will give back to the game just like they have been taught by their Dad & Mom.
Or the guys who played on my Tyke “A” Provincial Champs a couple of summers ago. Still, for the most part, together. What fun it was for me to watch them win again. Almost as much fun as when we did it together.
Or kids with last names like Clark, Hasen, Teat, Veltman, Williams. Coached by their fathers. Or by Uncle Pat the Goalie. Might not be stars. May decide at some point that would rather do something other than play lacrosse. But they are having fun now and they are learning one of life’s most important lessons. They are learning that you pay it forward. You give back by giving to the ones who come after you. That is how you thank the people who were there for you.
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All in all, it was a great summer! And I have a whole bunch of pictures to prove it. Just have to organize them and my thoughts and I will have a lot more to say about it. Maybe even an opinion or two or three…about the state of lacrosse in general; about how hard it is to be a referee; about the responsibilities of being a “good” fan; about all the babies in my lacrosse world. Just gotta’ catch up to myself first.