(Pee Wee A Team)
By Cheryl Dobbie (ISN)
July 23,2014(ISN) – To say that the 2014 box lacrosse season was a huge success for Teddy
Jenner’s, Juan de Fuca (JDF) Pee Wee A1 team is an understatement. Teddy
who is in his second year of coaching along with assistant coaches Gord Hawes,
Dennis Law and an extra hand from Mike Evers coached the “Stormtrooper’s”
to a gold medal victory at the Pee Wee B.C. Provincial Championships this past
weekend in Richmond with a 7-2 victory over Coquitlam.
I asked Coach Teddy aka Darth Vader some questions about this past season
and the team’s successes.
(Brodie Wade with Coach Jenner)
Why Coach?
I, along with many other former and current players who are coaching minor
lacrosse, feel that it is part of my duty as a lacrosse player to coach. I never would
have gotten to where I did without great mentors and coaches growing up. If I can
help inspire a handful of these boys to continue moving forward in the game of
lacrosse and reach the potential they manifest for themselves, it is the ultimate
reward for a coach. But it’s not just molding lacrosse players it’s about grooming
young men. One thing I stressed all year was sportsmanship, professionalism and
character with this group. Lacrosse is just one part of life but it and sports teach us
so many life lessons that it’s important to still those thoughts and qualities in this
group so they can understand there’s bigger things out there outside of lacrosse.
We played for the memories of some great lacrosse people that we’ve lost over the
years and we played for young Tucker Williams, the son of a former NLL team-mate
of mine who’s battling Burket’s Lymphoma. The boys understood that they were in
a very enviable position and it was their responsibility to play with class and respect
for the game that we are so humbly honoured to play.
You obviously love to coach. What do you love most about it? Do you plan
on moving up with this group?
Coaching was always something I knew I wanted to do as I’ve helped run numerous
lacrosse camps over the past 15+ years. I never knew how much I’d enjoy it but
once I got with this group last year and saw the pure youthful enjoyment of playing
lacrosse, took me right back to when I was a 12 year old playing Pee Wee with my
best friends in Saanich. Those were some of my favourite memories as a kid and
I’m glad I can help provide these young men with ever lasting memories and the
lacrosse skills to go wherever they want in life. — As for moving on with them, I’m
not too sure. The parents of the 2nd year players moving to Bantam want me to
move up, the 1st year parents want me to stick around as do some of the upcoming
Novice parents. But I don’t know my plans as of yet… I have an urge to help grow the
game and while helping young kids here has been so incredibly rewarding, going
abroad to help teach the game elsewhere is really intriguing to me. Uganda is an up
and coming lacrosse nation that has just started a program and I think that may be
my next challenge.
There were a lot of Star Wars references in your team Facebook posts and
Tweets. Are you a huge Star Wars fan?
HAHA yeah, Im a bit of a Star Wars nerd and I’m proud of it. I think it’s a great way
to bring a team together if they can have their own identity- so I played the role
of Darth Vader while I called the team the Stormtroopers- collectively they were
“Vader’s Fist”- in the star wars movies, that’s what Darth Vader’s army was called. It
just seemed to fit us.
(All The Captians !)
What was your cheer?
From day one, out cheer has been 1,2,3 Vader’s Fist— as they year progressed and
we went through some difficult times, we’d throw in a 1,2,3 Family cheer before and
after games in the locker-room. Every time we left the dressing room to start a game
I made sure the boys knew that “the Force” was with them… lol
What Tournaments did the team attend and how did you you finish?
We attended three tournaments not including the provincials.
We went to the Alan Price Memorial Tournament in Kamloops at the start of May
and went undefeated beating Burnaby in the Gold Final. For many of the boys it was
their first ever gold medal so it was a great sight to see the pure joy on their faces
when they got their medals. The Captain Cook Tournament is a yearly tournament
that JDF puts on and it was an honour for us to be there. In the first game of the
tournament we got our first taste of Coquitlam (who were undefeated at the time
as well) and beat them 8-3 in a fantastic team effort. However, we lost to them in
the gold final 5-4 in what was a very tough loss for my team, especially since it was
our first of the year. We then went to the Trevor Wingrove Memorial Tournament
in Coquitlam. This was a tournament I wanted our team in for a few reasons- 1, I
have a close relationship with the Wingrove family so it was only natural I take us
there but also because it was Coquitlam’s tournament and knew the top talent in the
province would be the. Unfortunately we lost to Coquitlam again in the gold final 4-3
this time in a true heart breaker. Each time we lost to the Adanacs hurt the boys that
much more because we knew we could beat them. I kept reminding them that losses
build character and that beating them in the Gold at Provincials would be so much
sweeter when it happens.
(Matthew Atkinson Raises the Cup)
What was the highlight of your regular season?
I think going undefeated during the regular season was an incredible
accomplishment for this group with all the adversity we went through. The boys
never gave up and battled all year long knowing that the end goal was to make it
to provincials. But dominating the island the way we did, was so unexpected and
awesome.
You have been a Shamrock and won Mann Cups. How did the provincial
win compare??
I was a Shamrock from 2001-2008 where I went to 5 straight Mann Cups, winning
twice. So many great memories with those teams as it was the ultimate goal and
something I’ve wanted my entire life. But winning this provincial gold medal, with
this group of kids, my coaching staff, managers and parent group is easily the
most rewarding accomplishment of my lacrosse career. To see the pure unbridled
emotion from the players, parents, grandparents and siblings after we won was
addicting! I never got to experience that feeling in minor lacrosse so it was very
fulfilling. I’m still in shock at how well my boys played in the final game… it was
incredible!
The boys understood that they were in a very enviable position and it was their
responsibility to play with class and respect for the game that we are so humbly
honoured to play.
I couldn’t have asked for a better end to the season. It was a culmination of three
and a half months of blood sweat and many tears but after all is said and done,
those tears of frustration and sadness were replaced with tears of happiness and
exhilaration!
Coach Teddy was adored and highly respected by both players and parents. I
asked several of the players to use one word to describe their coach and what I
heard were the words like, amazing, awesome, knowledgeable and inspirational.
I asked Will Perrier who wore #39 this year what he learned from his coach this
year and he said ” I’ve learned many things this year but the main thing is to
never give up no matter what”. “Leave it on the floor and always be excellent.”
Matthew Atkinson’s highlight of the season was “the gold medal game. I was
nervous going into it but once we got the lead I was confident we were going to
win”. ” After we won, the feeling was so amazing!”
Davis McCulley who unfortunately spent most of the last part of the season with
a broken leg learned a little more about patience and that a great team is made
up like family and everyone does their part and no one goes it alone.
Riley Hawes (who was one of the boys who described Coach Teddy as
“amazing”) when asked what the highlight of his season was said “my highlight of
the season was winning gold in the B.C. Provincials, beating Coquitlam whom we
lost Gold to twice this season.
It is obvious that the players learned the lessons that Coach Teddy Jenner set
out to teach and had a blast while learning them. Not only was Teddy rewarded
for his efforts by winning the gold medal but the British Columbia Lacrosse
Association (BCLA) awarded him the Provincial Fair Play Coach of the Year
Award.
Congratulations to the coaches, players and parents of JDF Pee Wee A1 on a
successful season on and off the floor.
JDF Pee Wee A1 Roster
Adam Bland (2nd year Team B.C.) goalie
Brett Bridges (1st year )
Brock Campbell (2nd Year)
Brodie Wade (2nd Year )
Chase Klassen (2nd year)
Colby Condon (2nd Year)
Davis McCulley (2nd Year)
Evan Law (2nd Year)
Jacob Obee (2nd Year ) Team B.C.
Jacob Wilkinson (2nd Year )
Logan Wright (2nd Year )
Matt Atkinson (2nd Year )
Noah Manning (1st Year )
Owen Evers (2nd Year )
Payton Mount (2nd Year )
Riley Hawes (2nd Year )
Will Perrier (2nd Year )
There she is in all her GLory !! Well Done Boy’s .
 Pee Wee A1 team is an understatement. Teddy who is in his second year of coaching along with assistant coaches Gord Hawes, Dennis Law and an extra){kind=link}