The junior B Timbermen have a lot of growing to do, but that also means they have a lot of possibilities.
Nanaimo’s Pacific North West Junior Lacrosse League team played its home opener Wednesday night at the Nanaimo Ice Centre, losing 9-4 to the Peninsula Warriors.
The T-men actually led the game 4-2 after a period, but allowed the Warriors to get a few quick ones early in the second.
“We just had a bit of a breakdown in the second period,” said Myles Tierney, co-coach. “Just a lack of focus, and some dumb penalties were taken.”
He said the T-men are showing improvement every time they head out on the floor.
Sunday’s season opener was a blowout loss at Saanich, and Travis House, Nanaimo’s other co-coach, said there was “100 per cent” improvement a few nights later.
“It was pretty good,” he said. “They were playing hard but the bounces weren’t really going our way.”
The new coaching staff has been presented the challenge of working with a roster with a lot of turnover from 2012.
“They just need to mesh and that just takes time,” Tierney said. “A lot of guys on this team are new and haven’t played with each other so they don’t know how each other thinks and how each other ticks. “
Jake Giles, team captain, pointed out that the players don’t even all know each other’s names yet.
But he sees talent out there, he said – it’s just a matter of figuring out where guys fit in.
“You’ve got to play your part and know your role and do it to the best of your ability,” Giles said.
The players are coachable, said Tierney, and willing to listen to their coaches who have been through the battles in the competitive Island junior B league.
“We just need to continue to build off that,” Tierney said. “Build some good relationships with these guys and get them to build some trust in us.”
LACROSSE TALK … Colton Reelie, Jake Wall, Dustin Kothlow and Jake Mickelson scored goals Wednesday. The T-men visit Westshore on Sunday (May 12) and host Saanich Wednesday at 8 p.m. at the NIC.
sports@nanaimobulletin.com