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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1994-7-6, Page 14Page 14 Times -Advocate, July 6; 1994 • This Week in Sports... Express win two - page 1.1 Beach volleyball comes to Grand Bend - Page 16 Sidelines By Fred Groves Team sports are based on chemistry When you are in the "close only counts in horseshoes" cat- egory like the Toronto Maple Leafs have been for the last couple of years, you have to make changes. You've got all the right tools to get there hut there is just one thing that's missing. Usually, it's not a simple case of getting rid of one player. If that were true, that player would be sitting up in the press box while one of several others takes his place in the dressing room. Teamt ports is based on chem- istry, everything has to jell to- gether. Last week the Leafs made a huge trade as they sent their cap- tain Wendel Clark , a minor lea- guer, and defenseman Sylvain Lefebvre to the Quebec Nor- diques for Mats Sundin, Todd Warriner and Garth Butcher. Sundin is a goal scorer, he fits into the speedy mould of Mike Gartner who the Leafs acquired late in the season. If there is such a thing as hav- ing too much leadership, then the Leafs were in tha( situation last year when they hit the post - season. With Doug Gilmour, Clark and Gartner along with Todd Gill and Bob Rouse, there's five guys who may want to dominate in the dressing room. However, I feel that's a job only one can do at a time. The Leafs will miss Wendel because he is a hard-hitting, high -scoring forward and there aren't many snipers around who like to dish out the heavy stuff. Changing the chemistry in the case of the Leafs, means losing a dimension and in this instance, it's the grinding grit of Clark as he patrols the front lines that they have opted to trade for a lit- tle more style. While the sun is hot and most NHL'ers are out on the golf courses, it's pretty hard to say if this deal is a good one or not. Clark could go to the Nor- diques with a bit of animosity or Sundin could decide he's a Quc= becer through-and-through. Sending your captain off to another team is not uncommon, especially in the 1990's where players get shuffled around pret- ty easily. Mark Messier jumped from the Edmonton Oilers to the New York Rangers and he went from carrying one team on his hack to another which depended on him. Clark could do the same thing - that is if his back holds out. From the si¢elines:...Still on hockey and the NHL picture, congratulations go out to Mike Watt of Egmondvillc. The 18 year-old was chosen 32nd over- all in the recent NHL draft. In- stead of heading to the team that drafted him, the Oilers, he's go- ing to Michigan State to get an education first.Watt has played Stratford Junior 'B' Culli ons f(31. the last couple of sea sons but before that he was with the Seaforth Cenienaires of the OHA Junior Development League. On Tuesday a mock disaster sill be held at the Exctcr Pool. There will be a free swim from 2-3:30 p.m. • Thunder entered into UnicoCup Under -18 team and many others are enjoying the summer sport Watching the action (above) at the Exeter Minor Soccer Association summer camp which began Monday. At left, Lori Hogan, left; OSA's Kir- sten Fenton, Melissa Gentt- ner and Amanda Wuerth. EXETER - Although it is a young team, the Exeter Thunder arc hoping to do well in this year's On- tario Unico Cup. For boys I8 -and -under soccer teams, the Unico Cup will see the Thunder take on visiting Niagara Falls Shiners on Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Canncr's Field in'fceter. "We're sending flyers out, hope- fully we'll get a lot of people elft," said Exeter Minor Soccer Associa- tion president Bart DcVrics. Exeter hopes to reach the final of the 13 -team Cup which will con- tinue throughout the summer and conclude with the championship game on September 17 at Centenni- al Stadium in Kitchener. Semi-final games arc Sunday, August Q8 in Etobicokc. ti "You put your name in and so many- teams -gct selected. If you think you're good enough, you en- ter," said DeVries. If the Thunder beat the Shiners on Sunday, that would put them against the winner between Scar- borough Blues and St. Bernard Raiders of North York on July 24. Well attended clinic: The Exctcr Minor Soccer Association is host- ing their second annual summer camp this week and it's more pop- ular than last year as 24 players, be- tween the ages of 6 and 13 arc par- ticipating. "We're doing dribbling, passing and shooting drills," said Kirsten Fenton of the Ontario Soccer As- sociation. "We put the skills into games so it's fun to learn." She was one of the coaches from the OSA which is putting on nu- merous camps across the province this. summer. DeVries said the Exeter oganiza- tion was very pleased with the way the OSA ran the camp last year and said, "it was done very well. A lot of than (players) are repeats from last year." The Exeter Mino 'Soccer As- sociation (Centennials) have 19 teams this year, seven of those are female only, with the other 12 ei- ther mixed or male. North America is currently in the midst of the largest soccer tourna- ment in thc world, the World Cup. Although Canada is not competing, there is still a lot of interest. "I think it's making kids more in- terested. More and more people arc watching soccer'," said Fenton. Soccer at the older and higher caliber level seems to be getting more aggressive. &veter Thunder under 18 soccer. #1 #2 #3- -1T4 #5 #7 #8 #9 • # 10 #11 # 12 # 13 # 14 # 15 # 16 # 18 # 19 # 20 Coach Jason Murray Sean Beattie Adam Jean Bryan McAllister Rob Lynn Viengxay Inthavong Eric Hundey Mike Smale Souban Inlakhana Luke Sims Matt Sims Bill Kline Rob Waters Chad Gilfillan Dave Farquhar Jeremy Truemner Trevor Boersma Colin Bowers John Rasenberg Goal Full Back Stopper Mid -Fielder Sweeper Striker Full Back Mid -Fielder Mid -Fielder Mid -Fielder Full Back Mid -Fielder Striker Mid -Fielder Striker Mid -Fielder Sweeper Striker Mohawks looking to survive Senior 'A' hockey club will make decision tonight at annual meeting By Fred Groves T -A staff EXETER - 1t could all come to an end tonight. The Exctcr Mohawks Senior 'A' Hockey Club will meet at the South Huron Recreation Centre at 8 p.m. to de- termine their future. With Dave Revingt.m, who has been the coach and gen- eral -manager for the past five seasons, and long timc ad- ministrator John Prydc joining the Exctcr Junior 'D' Hawks, that puts the senior club in jeopardy. "1 think it came down tothefact that.the last.two.ycars we had a team capable of winning but I couldn't get them to the rink. I couldn't get the commitment," Revington re- cently told the Times -Advocate. While it takes more than two plc to keep a hockey club going, Rcvington and Pry , along with long-time player Barry Baynham have been major components of the team. Baynham has decided he will also head to the juniors as an assistant to Rcvington. The last couple of years, the Mohawks have signcd up to 30 players but some nights, especially road games, they would only have a dozen show up. Like any hockey organization, the Mohawks. have de- pended on the same unselfish individuals to keep the club going. Some of those have left and tonight, the public has the opportunity to keep it alive. "It's all up in the air right now," said Mohawks' president Stew Taylor. * He says there has been some members of last year's ex- ecutive who arc willing to make the commitment but others are needed to help keep the club going. "There arc some that want to kccp it going." If the Mohawks decide on Wednesday to take it year off, Taylor says it will he a year to get the team hack on it's feet. "That's what I'd like hut I don't have all the say. We need new blood, that's the big thing." If tho Mohawks do have a team, they will be hard-pressed to find a coach as the busiest time for any team is thc sum- mer as they have to go out and recruit players. "We haven't really looked in to that," said Taylor. If we don't.havc.an executive, there is no,point.in having a coach.. ,- and a manager." Running a Senior 'A' hockey club is a fairly expensive venture, Taylor says it costs about 550,000 to ice a team in N. the Southwestern Ontario Senior 'A' Hockey League. And how do people become part of tht Mohawks ex- ecutive?, "' ' ust a matter of coming out•and requesting they're eager to ' said Taylor. A look back: On April 5, 1988 the Mohawks beat the La- nark Flyers 4-3 to win the Ontario Hardy Cup and gain a trip to New Brunswick to play in the Eastern Canadian Championships. *It was honestly, right from the ground up, a team effort," said Exeter coach Jim Guenther. "My guys arekired, they're sore. They played right from the bottom of their hearts and they weren't going to be denied." Three days later when they were in New Brunswick, the battered Mohawks were without captain Randy Kraul (broken jaw), Jeff Warren (cracked ribs), goalie Rick Pikul had bruised arms but continued to play, and Mark Soehner had bone -chips in his foot and a severe shoulder injury. Exctcr was beaten in four straight by Campbcllton Tigers and as soon as they returned from thc championshe im- mediately had to take on Crecmore for the Senior 43' title which they lost. The banners at the South Huron Recreation Centr hang proudly as they display three Southern Counties champion- ships, 1990, 1991 and 1992; two OHA Senior 'AA' titles, 1988, 1990: one Senior 'A' title, 1992 and two Senior B' crowns, 1989 and 1991. Way, way back: 'Exeter has had scnior calibre hockey since. the early 1920's. and in..1921 with a combined Exeter - Zurich team and sporting their green and gold uniforms, lost in the Northern Hockey League (Senior group) final to Stratford. That series featured future National Hockey Leaguer's Howie Morcnz, who played for Stratford and Babe Siebert from Zurich. Other members of the 1921 Exctcr scam in- cluded Dick Harness in goal, Clayton Hoffman on defence and Clarence Hoffman at centre. In 1956 the team became known as the Mohawks and won the Intermediate WOAA 'A' title. Red Loadcn was the coach and Bruce Biggart was thc manager. In 1959 the Mohawks, who had switched briefly over to the Senior 'B' league but came back to WOAA, won the In- termediate `B'title with a 30.5 record. They were in the South Huron league for many years and won the league title in 1983. It wasn't until 1987 when they switched back into the OHA which they have stayed in ever since.