GAME ON!!!

Making the climb from one level of the game to another is extremely difficult for any team, but for the Stealth it’s jus another day.

You see, that is what happened the day the club’s owner Denise Watkins was looking for something to motivate her club. Call it team bonding or a rebuilding day.

She set her sights on changes and in order to do this, she was forced to bring  in various motivational speakers to address the players on the squad.

As an area of trust, one of the speakers had the players and staff descend from one level to another in the team’s arena, which was a short 40 feet.

That completed, let’s see what the team can do. Climbing down is one thing, but descending from the roof of the 8,000-seat building to the floor is another, which is a little more than 100 feet

The owner Denise Watkins (age with held) is one of the first to go, and as a Mother of three, some of the players are in shock, but they follow her lead.

Vancouver Stealth player Rhys Duch stated “She made it look easy, so we had to follow.” That was when the Stealth were still based out of Everett in 2012. She told the media “I was a nervous wreck.”

She is from San Jose and made the big move for the Stealth to the Langley Events Centre in the off-season, where they will play their home opener against the Minnesota Swarm.

Although successful on the floor in the four years of operation in Everett, the attendance had been slowly dwindling.

The working relationship with the Comcast Arena had come apart, where they were forced to play the 2013 final at the LEC.

She became season-ticket holders to the San Jose Stealth in 2004 and their son C.J. was taking up the sport at school at the same time. He played goal and had a Junior tryout with the Delta Islanders of the BC Junior A Lacrosse League.

The family loved the game and to no surprise to friends in 2007 purchased the club. There were struggles or issues in San Jose, thus the move to Everett.

Bill (Husband) loves the team and does come to some games, but they agreed that they need a singular voice, and opted for it to be Denise.

“When you introduce yourself and say that you own a pro lacrosse team, there’s generally a double take,” she said. “First off, it’s ‘You own a sports team?’ Then it’s, ‘There’s a professional lacrosse association?’

“I wear my championship ring all the time. It gets people going.”

She won’t get into talking about the finance issues regarding the club, but is hopefully that this market for lacrosse is a jumping off point for success.

C.J. is a young 17 and played this past summer with a variety of Burnaby-based teams, including with their Junior Adanacs while billeting with Stealth goalie Tyler Richards.

He is looking to go to a Canadian University because he wants to continue with the game at the highest level he can possibly play.

Stealth GM Doug Locker says “It’s to the point that if guys don’t perform to the level they think they should, they feel like they’ve let her down,” he said. “She’s the last person they want to see then.”

The last major lacrosse game played in Vancouver when they were known as the Ravens was April 4, 2004 when they dropped a 13-10 contest to the Arizona Sting.

Let’s hope the community get behind the Stealth and support them to the fullest.

Sportswave congratulates the Vancouver Stealth and wish them all the best. Now it’s GAME ON!!!