Hunters affiliate with Junior A team

The Kahnawake Hunters Junior B Lacrosse team will be partnering with the Six Nations Arrows Junior A team for the coming lacrosse season.

“At the end of the day, the Arrows had an opportunity to affiliate with us and we were happy to accept,” said Greg Horn, general manager of the Hunters.

“The affiliation will help Kahnawake players get an opportunity to play at a higher level for one of the most successful Junior A teams in Ontario, which happens to be in another Haudenosaunee community.”

The affiliation will indeed allow players from the Hunters to go play Junior A on a part-time basis with Six Nations.

“We’ll bring players in the short-term, because of injuries or just to have a look at them,” said Davey Robertson, assistant general manager and governor of the Six Nations Junior A lacrosse program.

Robertson said that getting that taste of Junior A while staying in their community for the bulk of the season helps younger players adapt to the higher level of play.

“The local kids stay home; they stay familiar with their surroundings before they think of that commitment to move out. You’ll have some players that are 17 years old and some players that are 21 years old. There’s a huge gap in lifestyle, maturity, and so on. It’s a big benefit to allow them to get the experience of Junior A but still stay at home,” said Robertson.

The Hunters were affiliated with the Peterborough Junior Lakers last year but decided to pursue other avenues of affiliation for this year, according to Horn.

Robertson explained that these kinds of changes in affiliation can be common, due to the Ontario Lacrosse Association limiting affiliation terms to a single year, although they can be reupped year after year.

“We always reevaluate after the year, so some teams bounce around,” said Robertson. “Talking with the staff at the Hunters and just knowing the talented players that are coming from Kahnawake, we are hoping that this is a long-term relationship that we can continue to build on.”

The Arrows are no strangers to Kahnawake laxers competing in the program. Most recently, Louis Alfred Jr. played for the Arrows before being drafted in the fifth round by the National Lacrosse League’s Halifax Thunderbirds in the 2024 draft.

“Kahnawake has a long history of producing great Junior A players, like Louis Alfred Jr. and with other players in the league and playing high level juniors. We’re really excited about the development that’s happening in Kahnawake, which would help us down here,” said Robertson.

In affiliating with Kahnawake, Robertson also expressed his desire to have the Arrows roster continue to be comprised of a vast majority of Haudenosaunee players.

“We want a very high percentage of Haudenosaunee players. It’s great to affiliate with the program such as to bring other Haudenosaunee players in from different areas, not just Six Nations,” said Robertson.

Along with the Junior A affiliation, the Hunters will also have a Junior C team this year for the first time in its history, meaning that the organization will be able to bring up players from the C team to replace players and showcase them, much like the Arrows will be able to do with Kahnawake’s Junior B players.

The Junior B Hunters will begin their season on April 25, playing on the road against the Gloucester Griffins at Earl Armstrong Arena.

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