YORKTON - When Lacrosse Canada recently announced the roster for the upcoming Men’s World Box Lacrosse Championship a familiar name to Saskatchewan Rush fans was among those selected.
Robert Church, who was a member of the gold medal winning team in 2019, returns for another shot at an international crown.
Church told Yorkton This Week the selection was gratifying, if a bit unexpected.
“I was on the team five years ago,” he said, then noted now at age 32 he wasn’t sure how he might fit into Team Canada plans this time around.
“It’s the top level of the sport,” he noted.
That said, Church, who was 12th in NLL scoring last season with 45 goals and 100 points for the Rush, said he felt he had showed coaches what he could bring to the team.
“We had a training camp in Ontario,” he said. “I thought that went pretty well.”
At the camp the team played two inter squad games, showcasing some of the best lacrosse talent available, as both teams were filled with all-star level National Lacrosse League talent.
When Canada brings its top 40 box lacrosse players together coaches could pick anyone and still have a super team.
“But, I was hopeful,” said Church. “It was really nice to get the selection.”
This year’s team has a numbers of returning players from the 2019 team that took the gold beating the Haudenosaunee by a score of 19-12. Returnees include, Dhane Smith, Dillon Ward, Challen Rogers, Graeme Hossack, Shayne Jackson, and of course Church to name a few. Added to this year’s roster are the likes of Jeff Teat, Josh Byrne, Ian Mackay, and Latrell Harris.
Church said from his experience in 2019 he knew coaches were not looking for just the best players, but rather players who would fill roles to build a complete team. He said in his case he knew the role he had to fill would be “setting picks and getting guys open.”
So how does this team measure up to 2019?
“It’s hard to tell. That team in 2019 was really good,” offered Church.
It will now be a case of melding the returning vets with the newcomers in a way that brings success. That will be the job of a rather notable coaching staff in Utica. Glenn Clark will serve as head coach, and will be joined by Curt Malawsky, and Mike MacKay as assistant coaches. Eddie Comeau is the general manager, and Sean Ferris is in the role of team coordinator.
Church said ultimately “everybody is so skilful” but added it’s important to also be selfless “to care about getting the job done and representing your country.” He added while he has had many highlights, NLL championships included, playing for Team Canada is right up there too.
“Obviously it’s a great honor to wear the red and white,” he said.
At the last event a record 20 countries competed in the 2019 World Indoor Lacrosse Championships. New entrants included Hong Kong, Costa Rica, Mexico and the Netherlands.
In pool play Canada was 4-0, outscoring their opponents 70-28.
In the playoffs Canada easily topped England 21-4, then edged the Iroquois 19-12 in the final.
As it stands Canada is again heavily favoured although Church said the Americans and Haudenosaunee will both be good too.
The 2024 Box Championships, set for September 20-29 in Utica, New York, will this time include 28 teams with Canada looking to continue its dominance in the box lacrosse game, having captured five golds in five attempts.
