petes 53

If some promoter could present a spectacle similar to that witnessed at Garden City Arena last night once or twice a week and guarantee that it would not deviate too much from the script, they would be building bigger and better lacrosse stadia throughout the country. As some fan yelled to a pal when leaving the arena last night…”Wotta game”…That, ladies and gents, is the understatement of the year.

Certainly it was a unhappy ending, and one which even a mediocre Hollywood story teller could change with the scratch of a pen. However for downright sustained action, brilliant goal-scoring and even better goal-tending, the Peterboro-St. Catharines game last night topped just about anything seen in the last three or four seasons.

Peterboro Trailermen, once again playing a solid brand of lacrosse, defeated the St. Catharines Athletics 10 – 8 but in the process were given a battle which they won’t forget in too great a hurry. But for one thing there might have been a different finish and that factor was something known throughout the sports world as experience. To re-write a well-known cigarette ad…”Nothing, no nothing, beats experience.”

Especially in the first three quarters, Athletics had the desire to win, matched Petes check for check and slash for slash and at one time even held a single goal lead. However in the final analysis the champs had it when and where it counted most, in that last 15-minute span.

Despite the relatively low scoring, the game was anything but slow, with the possible exception of the final ten minutes when Petes “ragged” the ball to protect their lead.

Neither club hit the score sheet for more than 12 minutes of the opening quarter but it wasn’t due to lack of chances. The big stumbling block was the rival goalies. Favell of St. Catharines best Don Ashbee, then Nit O’Hearn on clear breakaways and at the other end of the crease large Moon Wotton saved similarly on Al Frick and Ted Howe.

Gerry Fitzgerald finally put Petes on the sheet at 12:25, beating his way out of the corner while Harry Wipper and Bill Nelson were sitting out roughing penalties. Less than a minute later Jack Mason used Russ Slater as a feint after taking a pass from Ross Powless, drifting in for the second Peterboro goal.

Athletics cut the lead back to 2 – 1 early in the second when Al Frick moved in alone on Doug Smith’s pass. Bob Thorpe took a perfect set-up from Ike Hildebrand over his shoulder for the third Trailerman counter while his club was one man shy due to O’Hearn’s slashing penalty.

A’s were missing passes and tossing too many right at Wootton’s big pad in a desparate effort to solve the Peterboro defence but they finally caught fire with less than three minutes remaining to the half. Ted Howe scored immediately after Thorpe’s goal then Doug Smith put the Saints back on even terms on a well executed play with Al Frick and Ted Howe.

With seconds remaining, Derry Davies dodged under Wipper’s arm, went in alone but Wootton kited the ball out of the crease on one of the most outstanding stops of the series.

Peterboro were controlling practically all the play as Jack Mason gained possession of nine in ten draws. This work paid off when Nit O”Hearn picked a top corner after Ike Hilderband sent him in on Mason’s scoop from the centre draw.

Athletics had their biggest moment around the ten-minute mark. Norm Corcoran smashed a hard drive off Wootton’s mask and Jim Bradshaw picked up the rebound and tucked it in a corner for the 4 – 4 stalemate.

Seconds later the Garden City Arena roof threatened to blow sky high when Doug Smith bounced one in from Bill Bradshaw and Bill Nelson, giving Athletics their first lead of either the game or series.

The joy was short lived. Petes who seem to be able to score goals whenever they need them badly enough, promptly potted three in a row from Don Ashbee, Lou Nichol and Roger Smith, and once again Athletics trailed.

From the draw (which Petes got again) it was evident that the champs were going to sit back and protect that two-goal edge.

Athletics didn’t have the ball for the first four minutes and Petes were finally called for stalling. From the next face-off, Trailermen grabbed the ball again, Bob Thorpe sent Harry Wipper in and they had increased the lead to 8 – 5.

Ted Howe, one of the hardest workers in the Athletics cause, shot a low bullet shot that Wootton missed altogether but the reprieve was short. Russ Slater bounced one into the top corner. Harry Wipper fired a straight shot into the right side and these two were the only pair that Favell might have saved of the ten shot past him.

Athletics still refused to lay down and play dead. Ted Howe cut the lead to 10 – 7, then Max Woolley, who wasn’t too

impressive in his return to the line-up, scored the final of the night with 2:36 remaining.

The rest of the way it was the same old story. Petes got the draw at centre, wasted time and on the only two occasions in the last couple of minutes that Athletics had possession, they were over-anxious and lost the ball when trying to beat two or three men at a time.

Harry Wipper was the only two-goal man for the Petes while Ted Howe had three, Doug Smith two for the Athletics.

To sum it up, Petes proved to be the better club on the game. However despite the result, there were few disgruntled fans among the close to 3,000 who witnessed the type of game that could put lacrosse back on its feet…and in a hurry.

Peterboro Trailermen: Goal, Wootton; defence, Fitzgerald, Powless; centre, Mason; forwards, Slater, R. Smith; alternates, Ashbee, Thorpe. O’Hearn, Wipper, Nichol, Vitarelli, Robinson, Hildeband.

St. Catharines Athletics: Goal, Favell; defence, Howe, D. Smith; centre, Nelson; forwards, A. Frick, B. Bradshaw; alternates, Martin, Woolley, Dewar, J. Bradshaw, Davies, Moore, Corcoran, McMahon

	Goal	Assist	Assist	Time
Pete.	Fitzgerald	-	-	12:25
Pete.	Mason	Powless	-	13:17

	Goal	Assist	Assist	Time
St. C.	A. Frick	D. Smith	-	0:58
Pete.	Thorpe	Hildebrand	-	12:15
St. C.	Howe	Smith	-	12:28
St. C.	Smith	A. Frick	Howe	13:02

	Goal	Assist	Assist	Time
Pete.	O'Hearn	Hildebrand	-	5:03
St. C.	J. Bradshaw	-	-	10:14
St. C.	D. Smith	J. Bradshaw	Nelson	11:19
Pete.	Ashbee	Wipper	O'Hearn	11:51
Pete.	Nichol	-	-	12:51
Pete.	R. Smith	Fitzgerald	-	14:10

Penalties: Nelson and Nichol (slashing) 6:01, Ashbee and Howe (roughing) 7:16.

	Goal	Assist	Assist	Time
Pete.	Wipper	Thorpe	-	5:13
St. C.	Howe	-	-	5:42
Pete.	Slater	-	-	6:21
Pete.	Wipper	Thorpe	-	7:35
St. C.	Howe	Corcoran	-	9:01
St. C.	Woolley	-	-	12:24

As a unit the Athletics aren’t playing as sharp a game right now as they were against Fergus. However it should be pointed out that the Petes definitely aren’t in the same bracket as the Thistles and can take advantage of every possible lapse. Make a mistake against any other club in the circuit and you can make up for it later in the game. Commit an error against the Trailermen and you may be regretting it for the remainder of that particular game and perhaps the season.

The more you see of this final series, the more you realize that, strictly speaking, Athletics and Peterboro were the only two genuinely senior class clubs in the six-team circuit this season. For a time Orillia Terriers appeared as if they might make it interesting for all concerned but they faded badly after Jim McNulty was sidelined in mid-season.