Try running around a field with stretched hip flexors and see how it feels.
Even if you’ve never done it, it’s not hard to imagine that it doesn’t feel very good and that’s what Nick Trillo dealt with during try-outs for the Provincial Under 19 Field Lacrosse Team.
“It says a lot about how strong and tough he is to play with that kind of pain,” said general manager Owen Missen.
Just over a hundred players were invited to the Player Selection Camp from the Ontario Junior Men’s Field Lacrosse League resulting in “very, very strong competition,” said Missen. Twenty-five were selected for the final roster.
“There were a lot of pretty skilled players,” said Trillo. The players included several Team Canada players but even with that level of competition, the 18-year-old St. Peter’s student secured a spot as a defenseman on the team.
“I’m pretty excited,” said Trillo, who was notified in person by Missen. The Ontario team will be competing in New York in June, Pennsylvania in October, and in the Brogden Cup Series (North American Championship) in December in Florida.
“It’ll be pretty busy, but I’ll be able to do it,” said Trillo.
He’s also trying out for the Innisfil Wolfpack Junior C team and Missen expects Trillo to be one of their top five players.
At five feet, seven inches, Trillo is small for a lacrosse player but says he makes up for it by being quick. “I like to run,” he said.
It isn’t just speed that he’s got going for him.
“He’s a strong defensive player and very intelligent,” said Missen, adding that Trillo practices a lot at home and that’s what has made the difference over the past few years.
Using his intelligence also makes him a solid technical player.
“He’s extremely coachable,” said Missen, “He listens to everything you say and then applies it.”
Trillo is in his fourth year playing box lacrosse with the Wolfpack and his third with the Under 19 field lacrosse team out of Newmarket.
He also trains in the off season at Mind to Muscle, where he works at developing explosive power.
“He understands how to achieve goals instead of just thinking about them,” said Missen.
Field lacrosse is the more accepted form of lacrosse around the world, with box lacrosse being unique to North America. Most players in Canada play both and can switch easily between the two.
“The games are different,” said Missen, “The positions are different (in field) since it’s a full size soccer field, but the skills are very much the same.” And while cross-checking is permitted in box, in field it’s not.
Out on the field, defenders are permitted a six-foot long stick while in box all players use three and a half foot sticks. “The different rules lead to the longer sticks,” said Missen.
When asked how he expects the Ontario team to fare at the Brogden Championship, Missen doesn’t pull punches. “We expect to win.”
It may sound premature but lacrosse has been around since the beginning of the 1900’s and Ontario has been a powerhouse ever since. Three out of the last four years, Ontario has won the Championship with B.C. the only other Canadian contender.
Missen speculates that Ontario’s strength is due to players playing both box and field, which contributes to its own style.
“We play a style that the U.S. is relatively unfamiliar with,” he said. “Though that is changing.”
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A few clouds and 26°C
A few clouds and 26°C
