Eagles win two games, face two suspensions

The Kanehsatake Eagles won their last two box lacrosse games of the season at the Boisbriand Arena, but two players have been suspended from the first playoff game after their involvement in a scrum this past weekend.

The Eagles beat the Kahnawake Sturgeon Bellies 9-8 and followed it with a 12-3 win over the Boisbriand Bulls at the Quebec Senior C league season games on Saturday, June 27.

But that same day many of the Eagles players were involved or had children competing in the Kanehsatake Warriors lacrosse jamboree in Two Mountains. Most players had to rush with their families back and forth between the two lax events.

“It was very hectic, all my kids played over the weekend,” said Randy Rahskwe’Ióntha Etienne, an Eagles player with three children in the Warriors.

“My younger son had played at 12, so that ended at one,” said Etienne. “When the game ended, we had to race the whole family over to Boisbriand through the traffic.”

Despite the rush, the team competed well, said Teiawenhniseráhte Jeremy Tomlinson, an Eagles’ player and Kanesatake Health Center executive director.

“We played really well,” said Tomlinson. “Some of the fans and parents and some of our players came, so it was pretty cool. They then got to see us play and cheer us on, so it was a good time.”

Their first game against the Bellies was very physical with a lot of back and forth, said Etienne.

“Both teams really competed,” said Etienne. “It could have went either way - we just put the last bit of icing on the cake.”

The next game against the Bulls went well in favour of the Eagles.

“We handled that game,” said Etienne.

“We played really well,” said Tomlinson.

But unfortunately, there was a scrum after the last game that led to two Eagles players being suspended from the first playoff game this Sunday, July 5.

“I won’t speak for anybody else, but I think it was avoidable, being that we were in complete control of the game,” said Etienne. “It was unnecessary.”

The Eagles will face the Bellies without two of their top offensive players, Poe Albany and Vincent Cree, said Etienne.

“So, we’re going to have to work hard,” said Etienne.

The scrum led to a teaching moment for the Warriors who were in the stands watching the game and witnessed the brawl, said Tomlinson.

“It got a bit heated, which was a little bit disappointing for me, having the kids in there to witness certain of us lose our tempers,” said Tomlinson. “In the core values of our program, obviously discipline is at the top, and it’s not exactly what they witnessed when they watched the Eagles game.”

“We talked about it, and how even in the behaviours that they might see in certain adults doesn’t always reflect the best conduct or the best choices, and it doesn’t mean they have to emulate that.”

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Hadassah Alencar, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter