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Visit insidehalton.com for more coverage Putting house league lacrosse on right track KEVIN NAGEL knagel@burlingtonpost.com Rob MacDougall has been given the task of reju­ venating the house league program of the Oakville Minor Lacrosse Associa­ tion. A nationally-known il­ lustrator who specializes in sport images in his day job, MacDougall has also coached in the OMLA for 26 years in addition to other sports. Now 60, he takes on the task with an eye on con­ vincing parents that la­ crosse should be a consid­ eration for their kids. "The one thing you can't escape from is the fact that lacrosse is a contact sport," MacDougall says. "We want to teach them everything there is to know about la­ crosse, their stick, the size of the stick, their gloves, arm pads, kidney pads. We're going to look at things that need to be ad­ dressed." In addition to making sure students are properly protected, MacDougall and his staff will instruct play­ ers on the proper ways of giving and taking a "hit," which he describes as posi­ tion pushing, controlling how hits are administered and correcting the tech­ nique of players who cross the line. House leagues in the OMLA are eight weeks of practice and games in the spring at the two pads at Glen Abbey Recreation Centre. MacDougall plans on re­ cruiting and mentoring a group of bantam and midg­ et players to help him run house league practices, at first dividing the 90-minute sessions into an hour of practice followed by a half- hour of game play. Then, as the season progresses, he'll expand the games to 45 minutes with an introduc­ tion to the 30-second clock. His assistants will be able to use the time toward the mandatory 40 volunteer hours students need to graduate high school. "There might be a lot of whistles to start off," ad­ mits MacDougall, who says refs will reinforce tech­ nique and call illegal plays during practices and games. "We need to set the bar here," he adds, raising his hand above his head, "for the kids to meet." MacDougall has enjoyed success in coaching since 1992. With this assignment from OMLA president Richard Ashmore, his goal is to build the club through a strong base starting at house league, which for MacDougall means teach­ ing kids anywhere from seven-16 years of age. MacDougall's skills were in evidence last sea­ son when he was given the task of coaching the Oak­ ville novice A reps, a team ranked 56th at the start of league play. By the time provincials rolled around, his kids had climbed to 22nd. Since only the top 16 teams play for the provin­ cial A championship, Oak­ ville competed at the B pro­ vincial tournament. It went on to win the title, effective­ ly finishing the season ranked 17th in the province. For more information on OMLA house leagues, or to register a child from the age of three-16, visit bit.ly/2DiPWyR. Metroland file photo The Oakville Minor Lacrosse Association offers house league programs from ages 3-16 (including paperweight, in photo). Longtime coach Rob MacDougall will help run the program this year. WINTER/SPRING 2018 30-minute classes! Session 3 timeslots (FEB - APR): Join Session 2 for prorated prices! Limited spots still available. 11 weeks Feb 1 7 - A p r 28 SATURDAYS: 9am, 9:30am, 10am, 10:45am, 11:15am, 11:45am SUNDAYS: 9am, 9:30am, 10am, 10:30am MONDAYS: 1pm, 1:30pm WEDNESDAYS: 6pm, 6:30pm 11 weeks Feb 18 - A p r 29 9 weeks Feb 12 - A p r 30 10 weeks Feb 21 - A p r 25 $247.50 +tax $247.50 +tax $180.00 +tax $250.00 +tax THE ONLY FULL ICE 30113 IN TOWN! YOUTH 3on3 HOCKEY - SUMMER 2018 OUR 15THSEASON! W E E K N IG H T GAMES SEASON RUNS APRIL 9 THROUGH LATE JUNE 12 games including Playoffs. - DON'T SETTLE FOR LESSI W EEKEND GAMES SEASON RUNS MAY 11 THROUGH AUGUST 19 12 games including Playoffs. REGISTRATION & SPECIAL REQUEST DEADLINE MARCH 12 Teams aged Atom and older have 9 skaters & 1 goalie. Tyke/Novice play 4on4, and have 12 skaters & 1 goalie. EITHER LEAGUE (+tax): $261.06 /player, $132.74 /goalie OR $2402.65 /team WITH High Performance is a highly technical power skating program that emphasizes: * First-step quickness * Explosiveness * Reaction skills -k Puck control * An excellent student-to- * Power & acceleration instructor ratio * Puckwork implemented throughout the program AGE & LEVELS DAYS TIMES PRICE Head Instructor: Jarret Reid Memorial Cup Champion and Professionally- ★ 8-12 HL Fri ★ 8-12 Rep Fri ★ 10-12 H L & Rep Sat ★ 13-15 Rep Sat 5:30pm $ 2 8 8 +tax 6:30pm $ 2 8 8 +tax 9:00am $ 2 8 8 +tax 10:00am $ 2 8 8 +tax ★ 10-13 Rep Sun 9:30am $ 2 8 8 +tax Certified instructor FDR BOYS REGISTER NOW FOR SESSION 3 & GIRLS (January - March) 905-336-3434 x10 O n line reg is tration and o th er exciting program s a t WAVEHOCKEY.CA * B 0 18 | O akville B eaver | T hursday, F ebruary 1,2018 insidehalton.com mailto:knagel@burlingtonpost.com Visit insidehalton.com for more coverage