Hunters prep for season in Six Nations

The Kahnawake Junior B Hunters were in preseason action over the weekend, participating in a small tournament taking place at the Iroquois Lacrosse Arena in Six Nations.

The Hunters played against the Guelph Regals, the Hamilton Bengals, and the host Rebels.

According to Hunters’ player Darris Jones, the three-game tournament served as a tryout and a preview of what their opening day roster will look like, especially for the players who will be making their Junior debut.

Particularly, getting players into game situations, as opposed to just seeing them in practice, was important.

“They were trying to see how they would react and work in a game-like environment. That’s what these are for,” said Jones.

While the results don’t matter for the standings, it was important for him to get the year started off right.

“We played phenomenally. It was just a preseason tournament, it was not necessarily for fun, but it doesn’t really mean too much for our record, but it means a lot for our name,” said Jones.

“With almost making it to Founders Cup last year, and having this big aura around our team, we knew that coming in, we couldn’t lose in upsets in these games because that just wouldn’t look good.”

Kahnawake did, indeed, look good, winning two of the three games, including against the host Rebels.

“We came in pretty strong. The team came together and we all just really worked,” said Jones.

For his part, Jones felt that he left a very good impression, doing what was asked of him on both ends.

“My position is kind of all-around, so I do whatever is needed. It’s just something that the coach assigned me for that game,” said Jones, who added that most of his time during the tournament was spent playing a more defensive game.

“I was playing some solid team defense, cleaning the ball out of my zone, which is kind of my specialty, clearing ground balls and just getting my team as much possession time as possible.”

Jones was drafted 10th overall by the Ontario Junior A Lacrosse League’s Whitby Warriors, and he has gotten the sense that he will be starting the year in Whitby when their regular season gets underway, five games into the Hunters’ season.

While he will only spend a part of the season with the Hunters if all goes well in Whitby, he’s still excited to be with the Hunters to open the year and help them get a good start to the season.

“Everyone’s friends with each other, we joke and have fun together,” said Jones.

The Junior B Hunters will open their season on April 29 in Gloucester against the Griffins at Earl Armstrong Arena, the first game of a four-game road trip that will see them play in Nepean, Newmarket, and West Durham.

They’ll be back home at the Sports Complex on May 10 at 7 p.m. to face off against the Orillia Kings.

[email protected]