NSSLL Annual Report for the LNS AGM

Nova Scotia Senior Lacrosse League
LNS AGM Report
Jon Goguen
 
 
The 2015 season held plenty of optimism in the Nova Scotia Senior Lacrosse League. On behalf of the league, we thank Lacrosse Nova Scotia for supporting our lacrosse community and lacrosse culture both now and in the future. As co-commissioner of the NSSLL I would like to recognize and thank some of the members of the lacrosse community that made the 2015 season a success. I thank the team management for each team as well as all of the players for their commitment to our league. Rod Humphries, Bill Morris, and Nick Mulligan have all made their respective teams better and have provided the foundation for the league to see continued success. Terry Clarke served as the referee-in-chief and had an outstanding year both on the floor as well as coordinating the officials for senior lacrosse. Donna Goguen provided website services which allowed the league to keep statistics, share news, and maintain scheduling. East Coast Junior Lacrosse League champion and playoff MVP Luke Smeltzer was a pillar in the timekeeping box and showed great commitment to helping the league that his father still plays in. We would like to thank the Sackville Arena and its staff for always being great and providing the league a place to play.
 
The 2015 season saw the Hali Hustle hoist the Harrison Cup in their breakout season. The Hustle's dominance in 2015 marked the year that each of the four teams have won the league at least once each in the past five years. This shows that the league is trending towards more balance and stability.
 
I would personally like to acknowledge and thank Sean Harrison for his hard work officiating and teaching the game to every level that he officiates. Sean was the inspiration for a new NSSLL tradition. The Harrison Cup is presented to the league champion. Sean has also committed to presenting the league MVP a traditional wooden lacrosse stick in honour of their achievement.
 
I would also like to thank Michelle Gray, Percy Fawson, and the Fawson family for presenting the league with the Craig Fawson Memorial Trophy. This honour is presented to the league's Most Valuable Player in remembrance of a great Nova Scotian lacrosse player and friend Craig Fawson. Craig passed away after a hard fought battle with cancer. His kind heart and his tenacious lacrosse ability will always be remembered and our league will continue to honour his memory. The Craig Fawson Memorial Trophy recipient in the 2015 season was a Czech Republic native Dominik Pesek. Dominik was part of the offensive outburst that lead the Hali Hustle to an exceptional season and he received a traditional lacrosse stick from Sean Harrison.
 
The league has undergone a few changes to make the game more competitive as well as be more cost effective for each team. The biggest change was adjusting our game time format to increase competitiveness for teams with shorter benches.
 
Our future plans are to apply for a sport Nova Scotia grant to help the league purchase our own game nets for the league to own. We hope to continue building up the interest among the community and culture for future NSSLL players. We also want to start new traditions and create new awards for top offensive player, top defensive player, and top goalie. We are always looking for more players and more volunteers to help grow our league. We need to find coaches, trainers, and managers for each team as we feel that bench personnel is essential to the league infrastructure and also helps mentor younger members of the league as well as the whole lacrosse community.