Photo credit: Jason Tasse
It only took 5 minutes of being at his son’s first lacrosse practice for Matt Firth to know he wanted to be involved as a coach. Firth has since helped turn Nepean Minor Lacrosse into a winning program and has led the Nepean Knights Jr. B team to the best season in their 30-year history.
“I like working with young kids, developing their fundamentals and then as they get older you can start to implement the more sophisticated aspects of the game. Then watching them have success is very gratifying,” said Firth.
Perhaps the most gratifying moment possible was experienced by the Firth family last weekend in Buffalo, as they celebrated a National Lacrosse League Championship with their son Sam, a player for the 2022 champion Colorado Mammoth. Firth had a goal and an assist in the decisive Game 3, while fellow Nepean Minor Lacrosse graduate Kyle Buchanan scored 3 goals and added an assist for the Buffalo Bandits.
Matt Firth grew up in Hamilton and played Jr. A and Sr. A Lacrosse until his late twenties. He moved to Ottawa and started a family, raising two sons.
“I did not have a burning desire for them to play, but I wanted them to try it. I did not have a burning desire to coach either, but it only took 5 minutes of being at Sam’s first practice for me to know I wanted to be involved. It is a way different game than when I played in the 80’s. Strategy is way different which I like because it challenges you to update your knowledge and adapt as the game changes.”
Firth is now the Co-Owner, General Manager, and Head Coach of the Nepean Knights Jr. B team. Coming off an appearance in the 2019 Eastern Conference Finals, the Knights finished the 2022 regular season with the best record in Ontario, 18-2.
“You must attribute their success with the work that they did during the pandemic. We maintained whatever programs we could run, which included outdoor workouts, non-contact scrimmages and non-contact practices. We wanted to keep the kids engaged knowing that one day we would return to regular lacrosse, and wanted them to be ready, but they had to put the work in.”
Unlike Jr. Hockey with drafts and recruiting, lacrosse teams can only have players from within their territorial boundary. Outside of the two players from Kingston, the entire roster is Nepean Minor Lacrosse graduates. In Ontario Jr. Lacrosse the oldest players on the team are 21 years old, meaning some of the Knights have been playing together for 15 years.
“Our players work extremely hard; they are very dedicated and committed to doing all the right things to get better and they take care of their bodies. When you have success, you can point to all those things and see how it translates into results. The culture around the team is why we are doing as well as we are.”
The top seeded Knights (18-2) are matched up with the 8 seeded Orillia Kings (7-12-1) in the first round of the playoffs. A total of 23 teams compete at the Jr. B level in Ontario, with the top 16 advancing to the playoffs. Winning the provincial title requires winning four rounds of best-of-5 series. The provincial champion advances to the Founders Cup National Championship, which will be played in Brampton from August 15-21.
“The five or six guys we have left over from the 2019 conference finals team will attest to the Jr. B playoffs being a physical and mental grind. You can end up playing more games in the playoffs than you did in the regular season and the intensity ramps up as you go, so it is really going to be a war of attrition,” said Firth.
“We have depth, we have guys that are great in different situations, and players with a team first mentality. There are guys waiting for an opportunity and in the playoffs you sometimes have to lean on them as you go further. Everyone is on board and ready to go when we need them.”
Game 1 of the best-of-5 Eastern Conference Quarter-Finals against Orilla is scheduled for 7pm tonight at the Howard Darwin Centennial Arena on Merivale Road. Game 2 will also be played at the Howard Darwin on Sunday afternoon at 1pm.
Remaining Schedule
Game 3 – Saturday July 2, 7pm @Rotary Place
Game 4 – Sunday July 3, 2pm @Rotary Place
Game 5 – Monday July 4, 8pm @Rotary Place
Akwesasne (13-7) vs. Gloucester (11-8-1)
Game 1 – Saturday June 25, 7pm @Akwesasne
Game 2 – Thursday June 30, 8pm @ Akwesasne
Game 3 – Saturday July 2, 7pm @ Earl Armstrong
Game 4 – Sunday July 3, 7pm @ Earl Armstrong
Game 5 – Monday July 4, 8pm @ Akwesasne
You can see scores and stats from across the province on the league website – http://ontariojrblacrosse.pointstreaksites.com/view/ontariojrblacrosse.
Nepean Knights – https://www.nepeanknights.com/
Gloucester Griffins – https://gloucestergriffins.com/
