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2 BNEWS € Continued from page 1 wursday, August 5, 2021 great, safe game,” said Blaine © McCauley, HHMLA president. F astick to help attract new players to the game. Lacrosse is tthe eam that at has two versions of the (indoor) and field (outdoor). The girls field lacrosse program was able to host a couple of tourna- ments since st: in June. But for now, box vacrosse will have to wait. “We're more building for next year, when we can run the pro- grams we have in the past,” McCauley said. The Burlington Centaurs rug- by club took a similar approach prior to COVID-19. Realizing that most players are not exposed to the sport until high school, the club was striving to grow the sport at younger age levels. It started an elementary school touch rugby program for students in Grades 4-6, and it was i iate hit. “It was so popular, we had todo alottery the next year," said Cen- taurs' president Nick Manz. But with school sports side- lined for a second year due to co. VID-19, he fears they may hat Jost that momentum. “We've had to go back and start from scratch," said Manz, whose club held camps for kids ages 6-12 throughout July. for returning players, game — at least the contact ver- sion — in almost two years. Gymnastics was another sport delayed by restrictions on indoor activities. Milton Springers gen- er Linda Massel said the club tried to get a jump on its startup by offering summer camps with outdoor activities and games on mats. The move the The pandemic has severely hindered the Centaurs' efforts to grow the game of rugby at the younger levels. participants are under the age of v. "Physical distancing does cre- with their gymnasts off for such an extended period, the ear- ly focus is on conditioning and skills. "Spotting will be minimal in the first few weeks," she said. "It is a sport where that safety com- ponent is needed so we'll follow the guidelines, with our coaches being masked and using hand sanitizer." Massel said though current re- strictions will not allow them to offer all the programs they have in the past, they are working to as many as possi- Springers to move back indoors, with limited capacity to allow for physical distancing. tion” re trying ogo with a au roach that feels com- g fortabie Tor (everyone)," Massel 2 said, noting the majority of their ble. The Oakville Soccer Club opened registration for its sum- mer programs in late March. Following a year in which there were no leagues or games, only skill clinics, “Minor sports were necessary for the summer to feel normal.” ~ Jason Lopez there was a strong appetite for the game. But then the province went back into lockdown. “Registration didn't slow down, it stopped," said the club's executive director Katryna In- dewey said. "It's been a wild ride over the last year. Eve! changes so much; it's on, it's off, reduced capacity, cancelled. With club this size, you do as much planning as you can, but there's only so much you previous seasons, ‘permits for elds would bei inplacea year tration would lin nJanuary. This sea- son, when the club finally got the go-ahead to return to play, all the administrative work that would normally done over four months — carding players, setting travel schedules — had to be completed ina little more than two weeks. Indeway said while there are always a lot of new players in the youngest age groups, there was an influx of new players in the un- der-9 and older groups. The club continued to receive calls about registration even after the season started. Georgetown resident Jason Lopez said he had no reserva- tions about signing up his seven- year-old son Desmond for soccer and baseball. “Minor sports were necessary for the summer to feel normal,’ Lopez said. "You can see it on their faces. They are running aroundand loving it. Youcan'tre- create this online, being with kids their own age, interacting with their peers. This is what -SPORTS GROUPS ADAPTING TO VARIOUS RESTRICTIONS i BN Graham Paine/ Metroland they missed out on." McCauley said he's not sur- prised to see parents and players raring to return. "We've had a great response to field and we're thriving with the outdoor game which has been en- couraging. “For box, after a year-and-a- half, we're anxious to get it go- ing ey said. "Socially, and physically, cots een keep kids healthy.” STORY BEHIND THE STO- RY: Minor sports are back, but it certainly hasn't been easy. We wanted to examine the many challenges facing local sports organizations as they return to the field. 40] ‘SCAN THIS CODE FOR MORE LOCAL NEWS