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History of the A's |
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A's Good Start Silences Critics |
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THROUGH
THE SPORTS GATE By
JACK GATECLIFF The
St. Catharines Standard Tuesday
June 5, 1951 Joe
Cheevers, starting his second year as coach of senior Athletics, didn’t
have too much to enthuse over when he called the first workout of the
season some five weeks ago. Veteran stalwarts from last year like Captain
Pat Smith, Cars Myers, Frank Madsen and the dean of them all, Bill
Whittaker, announced that they had hung up their sticks for the last time. Younger
players who had been counted on to form the backbone of the 1951 squad had
been contacted by opposing teams and offered the kind of contracts which
it was impossible for this city to match. Harry Wipper, Don “Nit”
O’Hearn, Jim McNulty and Leo Teatro scooted to out of town points to
join other St. Catharines travellers like Syd Wright, Bob Thorpe, Doug
Favell, Barney Welch, Jerry Fitzgerald, etc. It
was the general consensus of lacrosse observers throughout Ontario that
St. Catharines couldn’t consistently lose players of that calibre and
continue indefinitely as a top-flight contender in the senior series.
Those pessimists, and there were plenty right in this city, were given a
tremendous jolt with the publication of the first 1951 OLA standing. Look
twice if you don’t believe it but A’s are perched right up there at
the head of the list with four wins in five starts. The
twin victories over the weekend were especially noteworthy. Playing their
third and fourth games in six days, A’s looked far from leg weary
against Mimico, in fact had a decided edge in the “legs” department
throughout the 60 minutes. Sunday it was the same old story. Riverdale
stayed with the pace fairly well for the opening quarter but faded as
Athletics took advantage of the large outside bowl to run and pass the
Queen City club silly. Pre-season
press releases to the contrary, it appears as if Peterboro Lumberjacks are
human after all. Rated as a super team and the best collection of all-star
material since the gala importing days of Orillia Terriers, Petes stubbed
their toe in the small Brampton Bowl and dropped a surprising (to them no
doubt) 10 – 7 decision. Now that it is proven Petes can be beaten,
Athletics should forget any trepidation they feel about their game in the
Lift Lock City to-morrow night. Unfortunately,
Athletics won’t be at full strength for their initial Peterboro
invasion. Max Woolley and Steve Oneschuk are busily “boning up” for
their forthcoming examinations at Collegiate Institute, Joe McNulty is
still suffering from an injured knee that kept him out of the Toronto game
and Bill Nelson will also be unavailable. Derry Davies who made a good
impression against Riverdales, will likely make the trip, as will Don
Moore, another 1950 junior grad. Many
words were expressed prior to the season’s opener that the principal
weak spot of the blue-shirts’ roster would be in goal. In our opinion,
goal-tending is of even more importance to a lacrosse team than the same
position in hockey. An average boxla guardian is called on to save almost
twice as many shots in the summer sport as his contemporary on the ice and
for that reason, a lacrosse team without a top flight goalie
is just wasting its time. |