THE OAKVILLE BEAVER "oSPORTS ‘THERE‘S NO ROOM Oakville youths face a winter without hockey as registration reaches the breaking point SEAN STARS Oakville‘s Sean Holmes is making himself at home at Niagara University. "A junior forward on the school‘s soccer team, he was recently named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference‘s player of the week. The Loyola high school gradâ€" uate scored two gameâ€"winning goalsâ€"â€"one against Canisius, the other against St. Peter‘sâ€"â€"added an assists and was instrumental in setting up two penalty kicks, both of which were converted by teammate Casey Larmer. He became the first Niagara player to win the MAAC honor in soccer. Holmes, a product of the Oakville Soccer Club rep system, played for three seasons with Oakville Sporting of the Toronto and District Soccer League. He is now a member of the U.S. Olympic Development Program and a member of the Eastern Region team. Burlington Hornets rep basketball tryouts (10â€"12, 12â€" 13, 14â€"15 age groups). 335â€" 5679... Oakville Y coâ€"ed volleyball. Tuesday night winter league. 845â€"3417... Oakville Athletiques Track and Field Club allâ€"comers meets and winter indoor trainâ€" ing. 827â€"1934... , WEDNESDAY: High school volleyball season opener: Oakville Trafalgar at Loyola. 3:30 p.m. FRIDAY: Oakville Blades vs. â€" Milton_â€" Merchants. Provincial Jr. A Hockey League (formerly Central Jr. A League). 8 p.m. Oakville Arena. High school football: T.A. Blakelock vs. White Oaks. 6:30 p.m. Bronte Athletic Field. By JIM WILSON Beaver sports editor ean Drouin is angry and confused. But most all MA he is frustrated that his two young sons will not be able to play minor hockey this season. And he is not alone. Some 300 Oakville youths have been turned away this season because of a lack of available ice at town‘s six arenas. Combined with an unexpected influx of new young playâ€" ers, it has resulted in a near crisis for the Minor Oaks Hockey Association. The MOHA wants the town to build a new arena with money it says it . doesn‘t have. The town is urging the MOHA to be innovative with the ice allotment it has been granted. And youngsters such as Drouin‘s 11 and 12â€"yearâ€"old boys, who have played house league hockey the past two years, are caught in the middle. "I can understand that minor hockey is mad at the town (because there‘s not enough ice), but why take it out on the kids?" he asks. New MOHA presndent Dave Hussey is sympathetic. So is Town of Oakville facilities supervisor Bud Brown. But both say there is little that can be done. z "It‘s just gotten to the point where there‘s no room," said Hussey, who took over as president of the MOHA in the springâ€"â€"just in time to witness the unexpected arrival of hundreds of new players, nearly all in the minor novice and paperweight divisions. "There are only so many hours in a day," concurs Brown. We are not mean ogres fiercely guarding ice time....There‘s just no way we can begin to satisfy the wants of everybody." The MOHA‘s registration has doubled in the past five yearsâ€"â€"to more than 2,500â€"â€"and "I can see it going up even more," said Hussey. Just look out there and see all the houses that are going up." Registration took place two weeks ago for three days and, as always, it was on a firstâ€"come first serve basis. Some parents have complained they were not aware of the registration, although that is irrelevant when there is not even enough room for the ones that did. The MOHA did not turn away any players last season but indicatâ€" ed to the town in an Aug. 23 letter that a big jump was likely. Hussey said the organization is anticipating a membership of 3,000 by 1996â€"â€" about a year before the town is expected to build another arena. "Next year, they‘ll be lined up the night before (the first registraâ€" tion day)," Hussey sighed. In the meantime, Brown says, it‘s a matter of "everybody taking a step back and reâ€"assessing the situation" and coming up with ideas "as a team." Here are some of the solutions that have been considered. 1) INCREASE THE NUMBER OF PLAYERS PER TEAM: In fact, the MOHA had to reduce the number of players on each by one or two because of numerous complaints it received from parents. Having more than 16 players on each team significantly reduces the ice time of each, said Hussey and "Parents don‘t like it when little Johnny only gets on the ice four times a game." Parents such as Drouin agree this is an inferior solution. 2) REDUCE THE SCHEDULE: Drouin says he personally would not mind lopping one game off each of his son‘s team‘s schedule. But this would be a logistical nightmare for MOHA scheduleâ€"makers and would only free up less than 10 hours per week, not nearly enough to accommodate the 300â€"odd leftovers. It would also not likely go over well with parents who have shelled out $245 to have Get a 2nd 9 c Eqq McMuffin for SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 1993 TO BUY OR SELL A VEHICLE Oakville Blades Jr. A hockey team is just one of several hockey teams exhausting available ice time at town arenas. CARFIND MAKES IT EASY PAGE 20 COMPUTER WEEKLY PUBLICATION 635â€"0222 their child play this season. 1 3) CANCEL REP HOCKEY: No way, says Hussey. The players that represent the townâ€"â€"usually two teams per age + groupâ€"â€"are crucial to the continâ€" i ued growth of both local hockey : and the town itself. ~ "There has to be room for the elite athletes" he said. As well, "1 rep teams have already taken a cut in ice time this season 4) TAKE BACK PRIVATE ICE: 4 Private ice is ice time independently purchased by house league or rep > coaches for their teams, a practice that has been going on for years. Hussey doesn‘t think it‘s fair. "Some house league coaches are on the ice more than reps," he says. He has asked the town to reâ€"distribute it. Brown says the town is investiâ€" gating and following up the usage and necessity of ice it has distributed. 5) DIVIDE THE ICE SURFACE: Time was when 5 and 6â€"yearâ€"olds played their games or practices on 1 only one half of the rink. They now use the full sheet but Brown, one of the original founders of 4 the MOHA, suggested a return to the old method might be necessary. The problem, he said, is constructâ€" ing then dismantling the boards, especially with limited manpower. 5) BUILD A NEW ARENA: This is the easy solution. And Brown hinted that the town may need to speed up plans for construction of a new facility, slated for the northeast section of town in 1997, although he was quick to point that decision is up to Town council. In the meantime, it comes down to "prioritizing"â€"â€"meaning should a new arena take precedence over a new bridge or sidewalks? "It‘s like buying a house," he said. "You can only afford to owe so much." But, stresses Hussey, "We‘re not asking for a handâ€"out." All minor hockey wants, he said, is a shell and an ice surfaceâ€"â€""nothing fancy"â€"â€"to be used as a practice facility. However, even "nothing fancy" still requires change rooms, plumbâ€" ing and heating. Brown compares an arena to a backyard swimming pool: "Once it‘s in the ground, you still have to keep the pump running 24 hours a day." And then there‘s staffing: The town has already been forced to close its recreation centres for almost three days this year under the province‘s social contract with civic employees. Those dates will be Dec. 22, 23 and the morning of Dec. 24. Hussey and other parents have talked privately about funding the conâ€" struction of its own facility, much like the Oakville Soccer Club is doing with an indoor soccer complex at Shell Park. They speak of banding together with other municipalities to build a facility that could be shared. (There is currently only one private rink in Oakville, J.S. Gairdner Arena at Appleby College. The MOHA already receives ice time there through a grant from the town.) Observers agree that the crisis within minor hockey is the same as what has affected virtually every recreational activity, notably minor baseball and adult sloâ€"pitch leagues. Toss figure skating, public skating and the Oakville Oldtimers Hockey League (which has a waiting list of 40 players) into the stew and you‘re close to the boiling point. Meanwhile, the town insists that it can, as Brown says, "only do the best with the tools we are given." "I don‘t think it‘s all the town‘s fault," said Drouin. "Instead of minor hockey taking the attitude of simply saying "Your sons can‘t play,‘ they should say, ‘What can we do about this.‘" (Photo by Riziero Vertolli) when you buy any Eaqq McMuffin‘ at reqular price .