2006 Season Archive

Stickmen Photographer Lands National Publication

Dan Brodie came on board with the Stickmen last season to help out the team by supplying high quality lacrosse action photos, contributing to the Stickmen web site becoming one of the best in lacrosse today. Other areas his work was used included the Stickmen posters, email newsletters and custom packages for sale to the public.

Recently Dan received a call from Sohen Gill of the WLA and was asked to contribute his service in supplying the WLA with some quality photos of the 2007 Mann Cup action. These photos have also landed him publication on the ESPN affiliated InsideLacrosse online magazine. His work can be seen on the Mann Cup features currently displayed online.

InsideLacrosse: Game One | Game Two | Game Three | Game Four | Game Five | Game Six
More Photos: Dan Brodie's Web Site

Former Stickmen Head To Playoffs With Dreams Of Minto Cup

Ontario: For Dane Eitel and Ross Halliday being traded to the Akwasane Indians of the Ontario Junior A league has given them an opportunity at some post regular season action. With Akwasane finishing 9-8-1 they played a best of seven playoff series with Orangeville but in the end lost in a series sweep by Orangeville.

Akwesasne vs Orangeville (Orangeville wins series 4-0)
Game 1 - July 15 - Akwesasne 3 @ Orangeville 10
Game 2 - July 16 - Akwesasne 3 @ Orangeville 10
Game 3 - July 20 - Orangeville 7 @ Akwesasne 4
Game 4 - July 21 - Orangeville 6 @ Akwesasne 0

Alberta: Closer by in Alberta Codey Lewis has helped the Calgary Raiders turn things around where the Raiders have finished their regular season winning five of their last six games and now head to the playoffs.

Calgary Raiders vs Edmonton Miners (Edmonton wins series 3-1)

Game 1 - July 21 Calgary Raiders 5 vs Edmonton Miners 1
Game 2 - July 22 Calgary Raiders 4 vs Edmonton Miners 7
Game 3 - July 27 Edmonton Miners 6 vs Calgary Raiders 4
Game 4 - July 28 Edmonton Miners 10 vs Calgary Raiders 8

BC: Here is BC James Cruickshank and his Burnaby Laker team mates had a bye after finishing the league in first place and now take on Victoria in the Semi-Finals. Meanwhile Kyle Starchuck who was traded just before the deadline is getting his post season action with the Salmonbellies who defeated Nanaimo in first round action and take on Coquitlam in the Semi-Finals

Quarter Finals:
New Westminster vs Nanaimo (New West wins series 3-0)
Game 1 - July 14 - Nanaimo 4 @ New West 9
Game 2 - July 15 - New West 12 @ Nanaimo 4
Game 3 - July 21 - Nanaimo 3 @ New West 11

Semi Finals:
New Westminster vs Coquitlam: Coquitlam wins series 3-2
Game 1 - July 25 - New West 3 @ Coquitlam 8
Game 2 - July 31 - Coquitlam 6 @ New West 8
Game 3 - Aug 1 - New West 4 @ Coquitlam 12
Game 4 - Aug 7 - Coquitlam 3 @ New West 8
Game 5 - Aug 8 - New West 4 @ Coquitlam 7

Victoria vs Burnaby: Burnaby wins series 3-0
Game 1 - July 29 - Victoria 10 @ Burnaby 13
Game 2 - Aug 4 - Burnaby 6 @ Victoria 3
Game 3 - Aug 5 - Victoria 5 @ Burnaby 8

Finals:
Burnaby vs Coquitlam: Coquitlam
Game 1 - Aug 12 - Coquitlam @ Burnaby 7:00pm
Game 2 - Aug 14 - Burnaby @ Coquitlam 8:00pm
Game 3 - Aug 16 - Coquitlam @ Burnaby 8:00pm
Game 4 - Aug 18 - Burnaby @ Coquitlam 8:00pm
Game 5 - Aug 20 - Coquitlam @ Coquitlam 8:00pm

South Fraser Stickmen Masters Defeated But Still Collect Hardware

The Stickmen Masters team traveled to Prince George this past weekend for the 20th Annual Canadian Masters Lacrosse Championships featuring a gathering of Masters and Grand Masters teams from all over Western Canada. The Stickmen came out strong with a 11-7 win over the Okanagan Lake Grand Masters team thanks to some solid goal tending by veteran Joe Willmott as well as some sharp shooting by new addition Shawn Flintoff.

The next day the Stickmen easily defeated the Prince George Grand Masters team 9-2 with rookie goal tender Paul Sparrow holding on to a shut out until nine minutes left in the game. Warren Goss and Vince Creptyk lead the team in scoring to help South Fraser move to 2-0 in the tournament.

The third and final regular game was the anticipated battle against the North Shore Cowboys. The Stickmen walked away with bragging rights in April by defeating the Cowboys in their own Ice Breaker tournament but North Shore reclaimed those rights when the stomped on the Stickmen the next month in Port Moody. From the opening chant of "Save a horse, kill a cowboy" the Stickmen took charge and crushed the Cowboy egos. With a 5-0 lead after one the Stickmen poured it on thanks to a five goal effort by Darren Hougen. Joe Willmott remained hot in net and held shut out the Cowboys until late in the second when after the Stickmen climbed to a 10-0 lead they scored their first goal of the game.

After some roughing around and one Stickmen removed from the game South Fraser finished off North Shore with a demoralizing and unexpected 14-3 victory. On this day there were several horses saved.

Going undefeated set up the Stickmen for the gold medal game against the Prince George - Kitimat Masters. In a close back and forth game it was Prince George who took the lead 8-7 with minutes left in the game. After the Stickmen pulled their goalie Prince George scored two more open nets to win the gold with a score of 10-7.

Not to leave empty handed the South Fraser Stickmen won the Skip Chapman goal tending award for allowing the least goals against in the round robin portion of the tournament.

Defensive Players Need Not Apply For Inaugural Black Vs White Game

Thursday, June 21, 2007, Surrey - It was the inaugural Black vs White Stickmen game where the Stickmen management of Joe Willmott and Paul Sparrow hit the floor and manned the nets while Stickmen players, coaches and former coaches let loose the cannons.

The pace was fast and furious with mostly a run and gun game plan by both teams on the night. Team black took the lead first and never looked back as Kelly Scott scored while on his knees floundering in front of the net.

Both goalies struggled at times with the fast pace and breakaways but managed at times to turn away the opponent. The first period ended with a 6-4 lead by team Black but in the second they pulled out all the stops and lit up Sparrow to take a commanding lead at the end of two. The third period was come back time for Team White as they charged back with back to back goals. Just past the midway point Team White pulled their goalie continually scored on many occasions with the man advantage.

In the end Team White ran out of time and when the final buzzer sounded it was Team Black victorious on the the night with a sizzling 22-20 win. Talk about a defensive game!

Several Intermediates came up to join in the action and fill in any needed gaps in the lineups. As well goalies Winters, Chandler and Smith got to run the floor for something a little different. Smith displayed some outstanding stick skills and managed to baffle Joe Willmott at times including sending two laser beam shots right by him.

The Stickmen regroup now for some serious ball where they play at home next Thursday night when they host the Delta Islanders in their final match up of the year. The series is split at one with both teams winning by the same score of 10-8.

Vancouver Ravens Land Conditional Approval For Return

Tuesday, June 19, 2007, New York - The National Lacrosse League announced today that it has granted conditional approval for a franchise in Vancouver, British Columbia to join the league for the 2008 season.

The Vancouver club would begin play in January provided that the franchise meets conditions and expansion criteria set forth by the league, including the sale of 2,500 season tickets and securing a suitable arena lease. The franchise conditions are to be satisfied by July 19th in order for the club to begin play for the 2008 season.

The ownership group of the franchise is led by Bob Whitsitt of Seattle. Whitsitt previously served as President of the National Football League's Seattle Seahawks from 1997-2005, after spending nearly two decades serving in both President and General Managing roles for the Portland Trailblazers and the Seattle Supersonics of the National Basketball Association.

The return of pro lacrosse to Vancouver would increase the league's membership to 15 clubs for the 2008 season. The league previously had a franchise in Vancouver (Ravens) for three seasons (2002-2004). Vancouver would become the fourth Canadian club in the league, joining Toronto, Calgary and Edmonton.

Visit the official Vancouver Ravens web site for more information

Trade Deadline Nears And Stickmen Deal With Burnaby

June 15, 2007

The Stickmen Junior 'A' team will be missing a true leader and icon next week as James Cruikshank was traded to Burnaby in return for a 3rd and 6th round draft pick in the 2008 Junior Midget draft.

After many offers had come in for Stickmen players management discussed giving Cruickshank the opportunity to finish his Junior career with a team destined for the Minto cup. After some time he agreed to go do it, a decision that must have been a hard one for this dedicated Surrey player.

On Thursday June 14, the Stickmen went head to head with New Westminster in their final match up of the season. It was here, after three years of Junior ball and two years of Intermediate that James Cruickshank got his first ever goal, a nice one at that.

Cruickshank was a leader on the team, continually pushing and motivating the players both on and off the floor. In his final year James excelled at playing defense and was by far the highest on the team in recovering loose balls.

Along with Cruickshank, the Surrey Stickmen have also traded two other third year players in Dane Eitel and Ross Halliday. Both players were requested by the Akwesasne Indians of the Ontario Junior A league in their hopes of chasing the Six Nations for a chance at going to the Minto Cup.

Added to the mix of traded players was Codey Lewis who packed up and left for Calgary where he wanted to play some Junior 'A' ball for the Calgary Raiders.

The Stickmen wish all three players the best of luck and hope they are all successfull in their future endevours both Junior A and beyond.

May 24, 2007
Geoff Shannon of Inside Lacrosse Magazine

Maybe Delaware’s run to championship weekend is just good karma making its way back to Blue Hens’ midfielder Jordan Hall. He deserves it, at the least, because for every step forward he’s made to improve his game and help his team, there always seemed to be a gigantic hurdle thrown into his path ready to set him back.

A 6-0, 190-pound recruit out of Surrey, British Columbia, Hall headed to Delaware as a heralded prep athlete who, besides lacrosse, competed in rugby, track and field and ice hockey. But prior to his freshman year in 2003, he suffered a knee injury and didn’t see a minute of action. Hall earned playing time as a red-shirt freshman on the 2004 team, then made his mark in 2005 with a 47-point season, earning USILA Honorable Mention All-America and CAA Player of the Year honors.

Instead of building on those accolades, he suffered another series of health setbacks, including a torn ACL, a skin infection and a virus where he couldn’t eat for two weeks. Despite all that he still posted 17 goals and 19 assists and earned second team All-CAA honors.

Finally, in 2007, despite a few bumps and bruises, Hall has had his health in tact. And a healthy Hall is a productive Hall. The senior has helped Delaware post a 13-5 overall record, notch a NCAA first round upset win over Virginia and book a championship weekend semifinal match up with Johns Hopkins.

“It’s been up and down, but I’m healthy now,” said Hall. “I finally feel 100 percent; I have my classes squared away, and everything’s been focused on this [weekend].”

Hall has been an instrumental part of Delaware’s turnaround this season, especially since the team’s April 14th win over Villanova, earning it a spot in the CAA semifinals. Since that time he’s posted 11 goals and five assists, with big three-goal performances against Towson in the CAA championship game, which earned the team a spot in the NCAA tournament, and against UMBC to make it to Saturday's national semifinal. In that time, he’s also asserted himself as a leader within the offense, helping the unit find its rhythm.

“If anybody is a leader on the team it’s Jordan,” said junior midfielder J.J. Moran, who joined Hall on the first line midfield this season. “He interacts with everybody; the freshmen, sophomore, juniors. He can take them aside and talk to them on the field. Off the field, it’s the same thing.”

Hall picked up many of those leadership traits this past summer as the youngest player on Team Canada during their upset run over the Team USA, helping Gary Gait and company earn the country’s first ILF World title since 1978. Hall had 16 points during the games, including two against the U.S. in the title game.

“I learned a lot playing with a lot of the older guys,” said Hall. “Playing with Gary Gait, who was one of the other leaders of the team. Gary was especially good at settling the team, getting them prepared. I feel like our team is similar because we have a lot of talent, but sometimes we need to settle and play smart. But being around Gary and those other guys was awesome, and now I’m trying to lead my team the same way they led that team.”

To help with that anxiousness, Hall has given a big push to the “One” concept on offense, a slogan the Blue Hen shooters use going to and from their huddle. It’s a belief that the rest of the unit has bought into, and has helped guide them into this weekend.

“Our offense is predicated on the idea that there’s not just one guy going to the goal on offense,” said Moran. “We like to draw the slide, get the defense moving, get the ball moving around the net. The idea of ‘One’ is there’s not just one guy, but one offense. We’re setting up somebody else to do better.”

“We got guys like Danny [Deckelbaum] that can go to the rock, J.J.’s been playing awesome, and even some of the freshmen are stepping up,” said Hall. “But sometimes we get too caught up in the game, we go to the net too fast, and mentally we have to slow it down, make it to the re-dodge, which is your money dodge on the second slide. Once we get that going we’re golden.”

Making it through injury, managing the pressure of championship weekend, Hall’s learned to handle it all. Though, in the excitement, a few things may slip by.

“I’m out of my mind right now,” Hall admitted. “Our graduation’s next week. I just got a text yesterday, talking about the final four and I said ‘Yeah, blah, blah, blah.’ And they said back, ‘Aren’t you going to graduation?’ And I was like, 'Man, I forgot about graduation. I can’t wait until this weekend.'”

Stickmen Sign Second Mill Graduate

Surrey, BC, May 3, 2007: With the signing of Mill Lacrosse graduate Mitch Dibblee to the Surrey Stickmen roster, Dibblee becomes the first Mill student to be carded at the elite level of Junior ‘A’ lacrosse. Dibblee has more then proven himself on and off the floor to management of the Stickmen, to the point where he is now holding a starting position on the power play unit. In continuing the successful rebuilding program the Stickmen further expanded their recruiting of Mill athletes to include that of Mike King, another former Burnaby Intermediate ‘A’ top point getter.

Tonight recently signed King will not only be a part of the Stickmen official roster but he will hit the floor against the visiting Poco Saints. If Dibblee’s success is any indication of the quality of Mill athletes the Stickmen will no doubt have yet another top young lacrosse player on their roster. The fans in Surrey had better start wearing shades because the future is looking bright for the Surrey Stickmen.

STICKMEN MINOR CAMP

SURREY, BC, APRIL 28, 2007: The Surrey Stickmen Junior A team held their annual minor lacrosse camps this weekend. In the first of the two sessions the forty Novice and Peewee aged players hit the floor and got a Stickmen workout headed by Coach Curtis Gulliford.

Throughout the day the players were put through some basic to advanced drills. Players from the Junior 'A' team as well as coaching staff helped and instructed the players in the two hour camp.

Players from all around attended the camp this year with players from Surrey Minor, Langley Minor and North Delta Minor attending the session.

Later in May the Bantams aged players will be hitting the floor for a more advanced camp. Registrations are still taking place and can be done online here.

Pictures from the Camp can be purchased by going to our photo page and following the links to Dan Brodie's web site.

FAST START FOR STICKMEN IN OPENING EXHIBITION
GAME AGAINST VICTORIA

SURREY, BC, APRIL 9, 2007: The Surrey Stickmen Junior A Lacrosse Club coaching staff had their first look at the 2007 hopefuls in real game action April 9th against the Victoria Shamrocks at Juan de Fuca Arena, Victoria. The Stickmen got off to a three to one lead in the first period and lead three to two after the first frame. The Shamrocks scored five unanswered goals in the second period and both teams exchanged one goal each in the third period for an eight to four Shamrock win.

The Stickmen did not have five of their regulars in the line up and the big name, off season acquisition, Kyle Starchuk only played the first period. Head Coach Curtis Gulliford said "I am happy with the intensity and work ethic of our club. Obviously we have some things to work on. I was impressed with the play of some of our rookies. The Shamrocks will have a good team this year." The Shamrocks are expected to be a contender for a Minto Cup berth, the National Championship, to be held in New Westminster in August.

Veteran, John Ballantine, had an outstanding game scoring one goal and assisting on two others. Other Stickmen goal scorers were Devon Murphy, Matt Hannah, and Graham Weidenhammer. Scott Bobrownik and Dave Johnson each had an assist. Both veteran goaltenders Cody Lewis and Brandon Smith play a period each and were outstanding. Rookie goaltender Jared Beaulieu struggled early in the second period, but found his game and made several big saves.

The Stickmen have three more exhibition games before their home opener on April 28th at North Surrey Rec Centre.

Also Read The Surrey Leader article: 'Stickmen Expect To Be A Surprise'

STICKMEN CAMP STARTS WITH BIG TURN OUT

The Stickmen Junior and Intermediate 'A' players hit the floor out at the Langley Sportsplex for the opening of the 2007 camp. Coach Curtis Gulliford and his staff ran the players through conditioning and various drills in an effort to evaluate all the talent. There was a lot of excitement in the air as the veteran leaders worked along side many new faces. As well newly acquired Kyle Starchuck was able to showcase his talents to his Stickmen team mates and coaching staff.

Devon Winters, the Stickmen's first over all pick in the inaugural Midget draft got a good work out and displayed his talents to the Intermediate coaching staff.

Dane Eitel returned from work and holidays to lead the camp and guide the new players around.

POLSON STEPS BEHIND THE BENCH AS HEAD COACH OF STICKMEN INTERMEDIATE A

SURREY, BC, FEBRUARY 23, 2007: General Manager, Paul Sparrow announced today that Ken Polson, Manager of the Surrey Stickmen Intermediate A team will assume the duties of Head Coach in addition to his role as the Intermediate program manager.

In making the announcement Sparrow said "we were dissatisfied with the availability of qualified coaches for our Intermediate program and asked Ken to take on the job. Our Intermediate A operation is a key development program for players in our system. The right choice for our Intermediate head coach is a critical element to our overall success."

Ken has a proven track record as a Box Lacrosse coach. He has had Pee Wee and Midget A teams win medals in the Provincial Championships. He coached Bantam and Midget A teams to league championships and his Intermediate B team was a Silver Medal winner in the 2006 Provincials.

Ken has received numerous coaching awards. In 2000 he was name Provincial Tournament Coach of the Year. In 2005 he was named Semiahmoo Minor Lacrosse Coach of the Year and in 2006 he was named Intermediate B Coach of the Year.

Chris Voisey, a long time Lacrosse volunteer has joined the Stickmen to assist Ken with team management.

For further information:
Contact Paul Sparrow
Telephone: (604) 619-0480
Email: gm@stickmenlacrosse.com