Image
Image Caption
Summary
By Sam Laskaris
Windspeaker Contributor
HAGERSVILLE, Ont.
Head coach Stew Monture insists the Six Nations Snipers will be shooting for the top this season. That’s despite the fact that only 14 individuals showed up for the club’s first tryout session, which was held this past Monday.
“It was really short notice,” Monture said of the Monday tryout for his Arena Lacrosse League (ALL) squad, which is preparing for its second season.
Monture said some players only found out the Snipers would be opening their training camp three or four days before Monday’s workout.
Part of the reason there was not better communication prior to Monday’s tryout is the fact the Snipers will have a new general manager this season. Jake Henhawk, who was the GM of the Six Nations squad during its inaugural season, will focus on some other lacrosse opportunities and not be a part of the Snipers this year.
The Snipers’ new GM will be Jeff Powless, who is also the GM of the Six Nations Rivermen, the Senior B squad that competes in the Ontario Lacrosse Association during the spring and summer months.
Monture is familiar with Powless as he will be heading into his sixth season of coaching the Rivermen.
Monture said though Henhawk has announced he will not be a part of the Snipers this coming season, he has not completely parted ways yet.
“Once he gets Jeff caught up on the ins and outs, he will step away,” Monture said.
Monture said plenty of individuals contacted the Snipers this week after they heard about the club’s first tryout. And he anticipates perhaps as many as 30 players will attend the team’s next tryout, this coming Monday.
Monture anticipates the Snipers will also have a handful of other tryout sessions before announcing their roster for the season, which will begin later this month.
The Snipers, one of seven clubs that will participate in the ALL this season, play their home contests out of the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena in Hagersville, located on the outskirts of the Six Nations community of Ohsweken.
The ALL, which featured six entrants a year ago, has added the expansion Whitby Steelhawks. Other entrants are the defending league champion Oshawa Outlaws, Toronto Monarchs, Paris RiverWolves, Peterborough Timbermen and St. Catharines ShockWave.
The Snipers posted an 8-4 regular season record last season, good for a second-place finish in the league standings. But Six Nations saw its campaign come to an end when it was upset 14-11 by the Monarchs in its semi-final match.
Monture is confident the Snipers will be in the hunt for the league crown this season.
“Any team from Six Nations has a chance of competing for a championship,” he said. “Whether it’s a junior or a senior team, they are always competitive.”
Monture is not sure how many returnees the Snipers will have on their roster this year.
“That’s tough to say right now,” he said. “But maybe it will be about a dozen. Jobs change and family stuff comes up.”
Though the ALL is hoping to eventually become known as the primary feeder league for the professional National Lacrosse League (NLL), players in the second-year league are not paid.
But the ALL certainly appears to be heading in the right direction. Several players that were with the Snipers a year ago had recent NLL tryouts.
“There’s already been eight guys that went to NLL camps and they either made practice squads or they have been released,” Monture said.
Monture added he believes the ALL will continue to grow.
“The guys that are in charge of the league are really passionate about it,” he said.
The ALL president is Paul St. John, who had also founded the league’s predecessor the Canadian Lacrosse League. And Jonas Derks, a former NLL standout, is the ALL’s vice-president of player development.
“They have a real passion for the game,” Monture said. “Hopefully it works out.”
Monture also believes the ALL has even more credibility now as it heads into its second campaign.
“I would say so,” he said. “When we had the draft last week there were some really good names that were being tossed around there. I’m surprised some of them are not on NLL rosters.”
With the addition of the Steelhawks, ALL squads will now have a 14-game regular season schedule.
The Snipers will open their campaign with a home contest against St. Catharines on Dec. 29.
The ALL regular season will continue until March 24.