By Adriana Skaljin
For Claudia Continenza, assistant captain of the women’s soccer team, soccer has shaped her life both on and off of the field.
The fourth-year English and History student started playing soccer at the age of three, picking up skating and basketball as well. She eventually took to soccer and realized that it is the sport about which she is most passionate.
Continenza started playing for Glanbrook and then Mississauga, eventually moving back to Hamilton and playing for Bishop Ryan Catholic Secondary School. This ongoing passion for the sport lead to Continenza becoming a walk-on for the McMaster team in her first year, where she has played every year since.
“I noticed two differences between playing high school and university-level soccer,” said Continenza. “Firstly, is the commitment level, regarding both determination and fitness. Secondly, playing at a university level allows you to have new respect for everyone around you, as the team becomes a second family.”
Both on and off the field, the women’s soccer team has become a support system for every player. Whether it is cheering each other on and remaining supportive no matter the outcome during the game, or spending time together outside of the game, the team has created a family-like environment.
“We’re a very goofy team,” explained Continenza. “The majority of the team, fifteen players to be exact, are fourth-years and we have played together throughout our undergraduate career. We are always joking around and choose to spend our time together off the field as well. Some of the girls even live together.”
Continenza speaks on behalf of every player when she says that this family dynamic has bettered their playing skills, as the ongoing support encourages players to take risks on the field.
“You’re never afraid of messing up, because you know that the team will always support you and will recognize the risk that you were taking,” said Continenza.
It is this support that manages the team dynamic. Anyone who has been on a team will agree that the closeness and positivity between teammates will be reflected in their playing.
[spacer height="20px"]Moments such as a scoreless tie against the University of Western Ontario Mustangs back on Aug. 31, and then playing them again on Sept. 21, made the team realize the strength in positivity.
The Marauders ended up losing 2-1 in their game against the Mustangs, but there are still positives to be taken away from that loss.
“We played well during our last game against Western, but I think that we played better this time,” said head coach Joe Valvasori.
Despite the loss that came from the second Western game, it is evident that the team dynamic pushed for a win in its progression as a team.
“Sometimes, our results don’t accurately reflect how we’ve been doing,” explained Continenza. “This is some of the best soccer that we have played and we are doing everything right. It is just the results that escape us. This is something that we have realized and use as motivation for the second half of the season.”
[spacer height="20px"]This concept of a family-oriented team dynamic has been echoed by teammates such as Emma Czernuszka, who has recently been named McMaster Female Athlete of the Week.
“On and off the field we are first and foremost a family,” Czernuszka said. “We win together, lose together, push through every grueling fitness practice and midterm season together, and most importantly we always have each other’s backs. Our trust in each other is put into action every practice and game.”
Czernuszka went on to explain the ways that coach Valvasori would motivate the team before games. He reiterates the fact that they need to fight for one another and believe in each other because that is what families do.
Valvasori said himself that the team is a “tight-knit bunch that has created a family like atmosphere.” The support that comes from the coaches has contributed to this positive dynamic.
“There is nothing that I wouldn’t do for anyone on my team, and I think that mentality is what allows us to be such a cohesive unit,” said Czernuszka.
It is through their love for the sport and each other that the McMaster women’s soccer team works to achieve their goal of being a unified and successful team both on and off the pitch.
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The McMaster men’s baseball team season has been off to a fairly good start. Sitting in fourth place in the Ontario University Athletics standings, the Marauders have a 7-3 record without even playing at home yet.
The Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks delivered the Marauders’ first loss of the campaign, while the team’s other losses came in back-to-back games against the Brock University Badgers. Yet, the next weekend, they bounced back to kick off a 4-0 winning streak. This is not easy to do as home field advantage can often weigh in on the outcome of a match; despite this, the Marauders talent has shone through.
“With this being our first game at home, it's kind of an anomaly, because usually we play an 18-game season and our home and away games are split between. But this year, it just so happened that we played all our away games in the beginning,” said former player Kenny Noguchi, who now works as the team’s social media manager.
[spacer height="20px"]With only home games remaining for the rest of the team’s season, this puts the Marauders in a good position to get the support they need to finish off strong. Also, a new stadium closer to school helps too.
“We used to play at Bernie Arbour Stadium which was up the mountain,” said Noguchi. “But now it's at Volunteer Park in Dundas, so it's a lot more accessible for students which is awesome.”
Although the team is not a U Sports team, Noguchi believes it is still just as important for McMaster students to support them like they do others.
“All sports here on campus are equally important from everything to squash to baseball to badminton,” said Noguchi. “All athletes are working very hard to represent our school in the best way we can, so to get some more support from the fans would be awesome.”
This weekend’s matches against the University of Guelph Gryphons and the University of Western Ontario Mustangs are the first games at home for the Marauders.
Catch them this Saturday and Sunday at Volunteer Park.
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Following a successful 2017 campaign that saw the McMaster men’s rugby team bring home a provincial bronze medal, the Marauders will be looking to build upon that success. While the core program remains similar, there have been quite a few notable changes to the team in different areas.
“Every season there's a bit of turnover right,” men’s rugby head coach Pletch said. “We lost a few experienced guys, especially in some of our forwards up front. But we're quite happy with our first-year class this year. This is probably the strongest group that we've had sort of overall as a group in terms of our recruit class.”
Coach Pletch noted that the rugby team this year features a strong balance of players spread out in every position, which gives the team good overall depth. In addition to that positional depth, the team features a solid mix of upper-, middle- and lower-year players that make up this year’s roster.
“It's kind of where you want to be as a program, to sort of have these veterans and young guys,” said coach Pletch. “You know you have good performances during the season but you're also developing for the future. I would say this is the best-balanced group that we've had.”
As with any group, leadership is imperative to the team’s success. Being a large program of 60 players, that leadership is taken over by a group of six captains who are selected by the players.
“We do a postseason survey and we ask them questions,” coach Pletch said. “Things like who's the hardest worker on the team, who is the biggest rugby nerd, who kind of watches the most rugby. There's other stuff like who is the best academic student on the team. We have a kind of committee of captains and then I actually let the captains decide each week for the varsity game-day captain, like the one who does the coin toss and goes to speak to the referee but they kind of share the leadership as a team.”
Leading this particularly strong rookie class is wing EJ Rerri, who scored his two first career tries in Mac’s win over the Trent Excalibur on Sept. 9.
“He started the first two games for us this season,” said coach Pletch. “He is very athletic, he's got good game sense. He is a really great finisher, so if he gets the ball with a little of space there's not too many people that can track him down.”
In addition to solidifying the roster, coach Pletch continues to adjust how the program operates, tweaking how training camp is run and putting more of an emphasis on recovery, video and review in his fifth season at the helm. The team is also doing yoga regularly as part of their training.
A high school teacher when he is not coaching varsity rugby, coach Pletch has also been trying to implement an academic-inspired approach to coaching. He’s brought problem-based learning methods that are used by health science programs into their method for teaching the playbook to players. He was able to do so successfully this offseason and is seeing results already.
“We're really trying to get away from sort of the traditional, explicit style of coaching where the coach is basically just telling the athletes what to do,” coach Pletch said. “We're trying to do that with our coaching where the coaches sort of create different drills and games and looking at videos where we kind of set up the situation that we want the athletes to learn from and then we try to get them to problem solve and find answers for themselves.”
“I think it's a more effective style of learning and also players just seem to really enjoy it, I think they get sort of a sense of ownership from it,” coach Pletch added. “They enjoy being involved in the actual creation of what we're trying to do out there. The kids are having more fun I think than we've had in years past.”
In addition to changes on the field, the Marauders added a new member to their coaching staff in April. The Marauders welcomed back one of their own, Aaron Carpenter, who was recently named to the McMaster hall of fame and is Canada’s all-time leader in appearances on the senior men’s team. Pletch actually played with Carpenter during their collegiate days, and in this reunion, the new assistant has already made an impact in his short time with the team.
“It's great to have him back,” said coach Pletch. “He just recently retired from playing professional rugby in England and playing with the national team. So having a guy like that and just his technical and tactical knowledge has been a big bonus this year. He’s a Marauder through and through.”
As the team notched another win under its belt, winning 38-20 over the Brock Badgers over Homecoming weekend, there is still a lot of season yet to be played. As they move on, it is clear the team’s culture and makeup has prepared them to dominate Ontario University Athletics.
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McMaster University Homecoming is always an exciting game for both the players and the fans. Big crowds, big games and big wins are always guaranteed. This year the 1-2 Marauders will face the 0-2 University of Toronto Varsity Blues. But before we get to the action, here are some of the most exciting moments from the past five Homecoming wins to get you pumped up for the upcoming game!
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The return of Canadian university football started off on a high note for the McMaster Marauders who won their home opener 16-15 against the University of Guelph Gryphons. The young team led by second-year quarterback Jackson White looked slow right out of the gate, as they trailed 0-10 in the first quarter.
The Marauders cut the Gryphons’ lead in half at the beginning of the second half thanks to Mac’s dependable kicker Adam Preocanin, the Mac men knew if they wanted to win this game, they could not just scrape by — they needed to score touchdowns.
“We recognized we were making some mistakes and we only want to make mistakes once they get it cleaned up,” said head coach Greg Knox following the game. “The message has been and will continue to be grit and perseverance, and we’re going to try and get better every day and every play.”
In the third quarter, Mac continued to slowly chip away at the difference, adding another field goal, bringing the score to 9-12. The Gryphons’ kicker Gabe Ferrero struck back and was able to extend his team’s lead, ending the third 15-9 in Guelph’s favour.
All hope was not lost as a fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Michael Bazzo from White gave the Marauders just the edge they needed to win the game.
“You expect to make mistakes but you want to fix them, and I thought we did that too,” said Knox. “First game of the season you never really know what you're going to get so you're defending everything.”
As for White, the win was an ugly one but the Marauders showed up and drove the field when it mattered. The team having as many first- and second-year players that they do, this result was not all that surprising.
Though the team is a lot more inexperienced, White believes that the Marauders are overall more skilled on offence and that Mac can depend on a good core group of players who can get the job done.
“Obviously last year with guys like [Mark] Mackie, Cody Stellar, and Mitch O’Connor we had a lot of good leadership guys, and it's definitely different this year without the amount of fifth-years that we have lost this year,” said White. “But I think a lot of guys are stepping up this year such as Jordan Lyons, Lucas Bill and even myself.”
Only being in second-year himself, White describes this new role that can be quite of a challenge at times. But as the team’s starting quarterback, it comes with the role.
Unfortunately for White, this was not the only challenge he faced in Mac’s burgeoning season. The Marauders’ second game of the season was a gritty 18-11 loss to the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees. With heavy rain in the first half, White found it hard once again to score those much-needed touchdowns. Mac relied heavily on the running game of Jordan Lyons who had a total of 174 yards on 24 carries, including an explosive 38-yard rush.
By the half, the Marauders were up 5-3 thanks to a safety and a field goal. Though not taking a chance to see if White could pull off another second-half miracle, Mac’s second-string quarterback Andreas Dueck stepped in.
With the rain gone, his impact was immediate, connecting with several receivers right off the bat which led to a field goal that helped the Marauders tie the game at 11 in the fourth quarter. But a late 10-yard pass from Ottawa quarterback Sawyer Buettner to Dylan St. Pierre in the end zone gave the Gee-Gees the win.
Starting off slow seems to be a bit of a trend for the Marauders.
“It's been kind of a thing in the last few years, it's not the best thing but sometimes we get off to a little bit of a slow start,” said fourth-year safety and captain Bill following the first game.
The low score of both games proves that when it comes to defence, the Marauders know how to contain their opponents which is great, as it is often said that defence wins games. But defence alone is not enough.
This was a similar tale for the Marauders last season during the Ontario University Athletics semi-final game against the Laurier Golden Hawks.
“As a team offensively in the final game against Laurier we put up six points and that's not good enough to win a championship,” said White.
Though Dueck’s performance in the second-half against the Gee-Gees showed that he too is capable of the starting job, it is still too early to be certain that he has what it takes to lead the team to fulfill the Marauders’ goal — to win the Vanier Cup.
“Obviously if the goal is not to win the Vanier Cup I don't know why you're playing,” said White.
“The goal is to win the Vanier Cup every year and we're going to have to get hot at the right time and stay injury-free like every championship team.”
But first, they will face the defending OUA champions who also happen to be the U SPORTS Vanier Cup holders the University of Western Ontario Mustangs. This will be the toughest test yet for the young team, but if they continue to channel their grit and resilience, with the combination of scoring much-needed touchdowns, Mac will be able to hold their own.
While students all over campus were trying to find their new classrooms, the McMaster athletic year was already well under way. Showcasing key Marauders every seven days, the Pita Pit Athlete of the Week highlighted centre Britni French of the Marauders’ women’s rugby team, along with the football team’s defensive back Noah Hallett.
The women’s rugby team opened up their 2017 campaign with a dominating win over the York Lions, emphatically handing the Lions their first loss of the season. The Marauders, led by French, looked back to championship form under the lights at Ron Joyce Stadium on Sept. 3 and never gave the visiting team a chance to overtake them.
“We went into the game and our focus was to just go for it,” French said. “We are all about words, and our word for that game was punish. We wanted to punish them. We wanted them to go home and not want to play us again. I think we accomplished that throughout.”
"We are all about words, and our word for that game was 'punish'. We wanted to punish them.
Britini French
Centre
McMaster Rugby
French was responsible for kicking off a 50-0 run for the Marauders with an early try, and contributed greatly on both sides of the ball. Entering her fourth season on the team, French is part of a leadership core of senior players determined to run through every team in their path while showing the newest team members how the women’s rugby program operates.
“We have a leadership group going on right now, myself and a few other athletes on the team,” she said. “We are working together to create a positive environment and show some leadership on the field, not just in a spoken way but also by the way we play. The role I like to take is not so much the talking responsibility, I would rather show through the way I play.”
It will be important for senior players like French to lead by example on the field this season if they hope to regain their former glory. Following a tough season that ended in a loss to the Guelph Gryphons in the Ontario University Athletics Championship and an early exit in the U Sports Championship Tournament, the team has a new group of fresh faces to integrate into the team.
“We have a very young team, and our biggest challenge right now is not being caught up in that, realizing that those first-year players are just as great as our fourth-year players,” said French. “I think over our training camp, we really saw that. As the week went on, those people who were coming in as first-year athletes were then stepping into more dominant rules throughout the training session. That was awesome to see and something to keep working towards.”
Already, this young Marauder team appears to be on the right path to return to the OUA Finals and also have a good showing in the national tournament. There are still three more games to play in the rugby regular season and it is by no means an easy road, yet the Marauders have their sights set high.
“I would really like to see us in an OUA Final again, hopefully coming out on the winning side this year,” French said. “That is a goal of mine. As well as just helping this first-year athletes to continue to grow into the program.”
One key rookie on the team is Tia Svoboda whose sisters both play for the Marauders as well, and is already making a name for herself on the team, noted a pair of tries against the Lions and leading the group of incoming players who look to make an impact on a successful program.
The next team in their way is the Western Mustangs, who they will face on Sept 15 at 5 p.m. While the Marauders enjoyed a bye week during which they were able to focus more on core aspects of their game, they will maintain the same mantra while in London.
“We’ve been thinking of that one word and how we got to punch up the line and make them feel punished for playing us.”
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In the men’s rugby team’s season opener, the Marauders took down the Western Mustangs in a hotly contested rematch of the 2016 Ontario University Athletics bronze medal game. In that match, McMaster came out on top and returned home with some hardware. Looking to build off of a successful 2016 campaign, the Marauders are continually building on a new attack system to compete with their opponents.
“The game plan going in was just to keep it really simple,” said coach Dan Pletch. “It was the first game of our season, we had a few brand new players in there...we’re sort of slowly building pieces of the puzzle to our attack system as we go through the season. We wanted to start just doing a few simple things really well and focusing mostly on our defence.”
The Marauders have a long-standing rugby rivalry with the Mustangs. Their win last year was the first time they beat the Western team in a playoff match since the 2010 OUA championship game. Given the history, the team knew to expect an expansive game that would require a strong defensive stand.
Emerging with a 19-12 win, the game was marked by defensive strength and confidence, while also serving as an interesting test to a rugby team that has undergone several significant changes from last year.
With only half of the starting 15 being regular starters in the past, many teams would face a challenge in integrating fresh faces. But coach Pletch found it to be a surprisingly easy transition this season.
“Definitely there was a big turnover but if anything, it was probably a little easier this year,” he explained. “We introduced a totally new attack system last year, so guys were learning it for the first time. But this year, most of the squad would have been exposed to it already, and we are sort of tweaking and fine-tuning some wrinkles. So training camp and preparation was a little easier this year.”
Helping ease the transition and reaffirm the new attack system are veteran players who have already been regular contributors to the team in the past. Prop Mike Smith contributed a try to the Marauders’ win and has helped spearhead their offensive efforts.
“The tight five forwards played really well in general,” coach Pletch said. “Our tight five prop, Mike [Smith], in particular was really solid in the scrum for us. We were able to win a few penalties from the scrum and that allowed us to run into our attack system really smoothly.
Other players like Ryan Gray had to adjust to a brand new position, transitioning from flanker to wing for this season. Gray’s contributions on defence and quick adjustment to his new position impressed coach Pletch.
Heading into their second game of the season, the Marauders looked to really lean into their offensive game and overpower Trent Excalibur on the road and build off of their season opener.
“We were pretty happy with our defence last week to only give up two tries against Western, so we’ve put a lot more of our focus into our attack. Now that we have the basic structure, fine-tuning things and trying to create different options, improve our decision making and running those options when appropriate in the game. We want to continue being sharp on defence and create a few more opportunities and score some more points on attack.”
Mac lived up to that game plan and left Peterborough with a strong 48-19 win on Sept. 9. Now the Marauders will return home for a Sept. 17 matchup against the Guelph Gryphons. The last time the Marauders and Gryphons faced off was in last year’s semi-finals, which Guelph won before moving on to win the 2016 OUA Championship.
Guelph will certainly pose a tough test for the rugby team but will need to be defeated if the Mac men want to contend in the OUA playoffs once again. The Marauders are off to a strong start and owe a lot of their success so far to a game plan that goes beyond Xs and Os.
“We have a young squad that’s working very hard, they’re improving every game,” said coach Pletch. “We’ve been working for the last two or three years really on improving the team culture and making sure that both on the field, as especially off the field, that everybody feels included in all the events and the activities, whether that’s a starting varsity player or our last junior varsity player on the bench, everyone feels equal. I definitely think we are going in the right direction that way.”
This mentality has influenced Marauders’ balanced gameplay on the field and is giving them a leg up on the competition early in the OUA season.
By: Eamon Hillis
At the height of homecoming festivities on Oct. 1, the McMaster men’s rugby squad defeated the Waterloo Warriors 38-13.
Filling the bleachers at 10 Acre Field to capacity, the McMaster supporters showed themselves boisterous. There was a celebatory atmosphere in the air, and before a sea of maroon and grey fans, the Marauder men did not disappoint.
In the week preceding their game against Waterloo, Mac lost a competitive away game to the Queen’s Gaels 27-11. It was the team’s first defeat of the season, and although difficult to swallow, they were proud of it nonetheless. According to members of the team, the score did not reflect the game.
“A lot of things went right [against Queen’s],” head coach Dan Pletch said. “In looking at the game statistics, it was by far the best we’ve played all season. In terms of our ball retention, tackling percentage, and scrum stats, it was great.”
“We really played well and gave ourselves a good chance to win. But what often happens when you play against a good team is that your mistakes get turned into tries against you.”
Rookie flyhalf William Kelly, who scored six points on two penalty goals in their game against Queen’s, is hopeful that his team will be able to redeem themselves.
“In our match against Queen’s we were probably the better team,” said Kelly. “We just got unlucky against an experienced opponent. But, I think we’ll be able get them back further on down the road.”
Looking to bounce back against an opponent lower in the standings, Mac came into Saturday’s game against the 0-4 Warriors with confidence. Coach Pletch used this opportunity to take rest where it was needed.
“We have a few guys who are carrying a few nagging injuries,” Pletch said before the game. “It will be a mix of a lot of experienced guys out there, but also some new guys thrown in as well. Having said that, we expect every week that we will improve and get better. It doesn’t matter who is in, or who the opposition is.”
Throughout the game, Waterloo played a tough style and showed themselves to be fine opposition, not allowing Mac to run the score up. This led to a hard-hitting, fan-friendly game, with both sides playing physical defense.
Fourth-year wing Matthew Nicol had an exciting game, displaying his remarkable speed and contributing two tries in the second half. Kelly chipped in 13 points on two conversions and three penalty kicks.
William Kelly has been a consistent source of scoring for the Marauders. Through five games, Kelly leads the Ontario University Athletics conference in points with 50, and is responsible for over 40 percent of the team’s total points this season.
When asked upon which players have made a significant impact to this season’s success, Pletch noted that many of his players have contributed, but was quick to give praise to third-year prop Mike Smith.
“[Smith] is relatively new at prop but he’s worked very hard and has done a great job solidifying our scrum—which is something that has been a weakness the last couple years. We have a lot of good players on the wing, but without a good scrum it’s difficult to get going.”
Smith and his team are 4-1 in regular season play and are fourth in the OUA rankings.
They will face the Laurier Golden Hawks on Oct. 7 at home, where they will try to continue their success moving closer to the post-season.
The torch has been passed to familiar hands.
Following Stefan Ptaszek’s departure to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, McMaster’s football program was in need of a head coach. And after a brief search, Greg Knox has been named interim head coach. Knox is a former McMaster defensive coordinator and the job is a realization of work that started two decades ago during his Canadian Football League playing days.
“Back when I was playing, I was heavily involved as a player out in Calgary. I ran a number of different camps at a time when there really weren’t high school camps available for kids,” said Knox.
Knox, known for his intensity, has put together some of the best defences in Marauder history.
Who is Greg Knox?
The new bench boss of the Maroon and Grey carries a stellar resume. The Peterborough, Ont. native was a linebacker for the Laurier Golden Hawks and won the 1991 Vanier Cup. In the CFL, Knox won a Grey Cup in the first and last year of his career, as well as earning nominations for Outstanding Canadian Player and the Tom Pate Memorial Award, recognizing players who show incredible commitment to both club and community.
In 2006, Knox joined the Marauder staff as a defensive coordinator and held the position until 2013. After a one-year stint with the University in Toronto, Knox returned to the McMaster sideline to coordinate the defence that powered Mac to its third Vanier Cup game in four years. Overall, Knox won three Yates Cups and one Vanier as defensive coordinator.
Now, with his children through high school and heading to McMaster, Knox has the time to be a CIS football head coach. By the sounds of it, he could not be happier.
“I believe CIS football, from a coaching perspective, is a sweet spot. Dealing with this type of student-athlete, I enjoy it a great deal. Being able to run a program is an obvious destination for me,” Knox explained.
The head coaching role will be different from his previous gig, though. When asked about what the defence will look like, Knox made it clear that he is not going to come in and overhaul the systems that current defensive coordinator Joe Sardo has in place.
““We’ll collaborate, as every head coach and defensive coordinator will do. We are going to build on what Joe put in last year,” said Knox.
That philosophy applies to “all three phases of the ball” – offence, defence, and special teams – as Knox believes strongly in the abilities of his staff, which includes Jon Behie as assistant head coach and offensive coordinator and Rob Underhill as special teams coordinator.
“I’m lucky enough to be surrounded by good people that I know can do a good job. My role will be to support them, to make sure we are all on the same page and we are playing our definition of Marauder football,” said Knox.
The future of the program
OUA and CIS football has changed since the time the former Calgary Stampeder standout started coaching in Hamilton. The Marauders are among the CIS football elite, but the competition has moved beyond the field of play. Now, programs are being built in boardrooms and through the bank accounts of wealthy donors. Programs like Laval, Montreal, Carleton and the University of British Columbia are leaning on private funding and creating a hierarchy. While they are still well-funded, McMaster lags behind the others. Knox knows how to make up the difference.
“It’s going to take a lot of elbow grease,” Knox said, with a laugh. “We’re going to have to work as hard and as smart as we can, be efficient with the resources we have.”
Realistically, Mac boasts an elite coaching staff with top-tier academics. The football program has experienced the most success during this financial arms race era, and money cannot solve every issue. Money is not be an issue until it is one, and all signs point to “confidence” about the programs future.
What’s up for next year?
Training camp will open on Aug. 14, but in the mean time, there are broader questions around the program. A new coach means a different direction, even if its only slight changes.
One major question question with coaches at the CIS level, across all sports, is “how do you measure success?” Teams are dynamic, and competition – especially in OUA football – can be lacking. While the casual observer usually judges success by wins and losses, Knox plans to look beyond the standings.
“Success, to me, is being a champion on and off the field. That does not necessarily mean winning your last game. It’s playing to the best of your ability and reaching as close to your potential,” said Knox.
“They don’t say ‘any given Sunday’ for no reason. Any team can win a football game. [Success] is a sustainably successful program, that brings kids who are a good fit academically and athletically for our program, that get plugged in and come out the other end better for it.”
McMaster is already in the position Knox describes. Their on-field success is well documented and the squad just had a record tying six players drafted to the CFL in May. And the wins should keep coming next year.
When asked about what excites the former linebacker, he pointed to the potential for an explosive offence. Asher Hastings returns at QB following a record-breaking campaign, along with a stud receiving group, headlined by Danny Vandevoort. Last year, McMaster finished second in total points scored in the OUA.
The defence improved as the year went along. Knox said they have a “strong group up front” and he’s looking forward to watching the secondary’s continued growth. It was a young group that gave up big passing totals early in the season, but hit their stride towards the end of the year.
McMaster football is coming off the best decade in its history. The price of that success is losing Ptaszek, but with Greg Knox taking over and the rest of the assistant coaches returning, there is every reason to believe that success will continue when the 2016 football season kicks off later this summer.
At Ron Joyce Stadium, the grass should look a little greener.
May saw the end of a year-long process to replace the turf. It’s the third installment of turf for the playing surface that hosts Marauder football, rugby and soccer games, as well as other community events.
“[The project] has been talked about since I arrived here. The turf was installed four or five years ago and it was starting to fail. It became a health and safety issue for our student-athletes and other participants,” said Glen Grunwald, director of Athletics and Recreation at McMaster University.
Replacing this kind of turf is standard procedure. But the athletic department believes the turf should not have to be replaced so soon.
“We had discussions with the previous installer to try and get them to honour the warranty for the product, and that was to no avail. Ultimately, we had to file a claim to get them to honour the warranty,” said Grunwald.
“In the mean time, we couldn’t allow our student-athletes to participate on the field for safety reasons and so we had to go forward with replacing the turf.”
The University approved the turf replacement project in December 2015. To find a company to replace the turf, the athletic department used a request for proposal method. Overall, the turf replacement cost approximately $1 million – the average cost for a replacement of this field size, according to Grunwald.
The turf itself is the “latest and greatest in terms of safety” says Grunwald. It is a step above the playing surface installed at Tim Hortons Field, which was completed in 2014.
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats christened the turf, using Ron Joyce Stadium as the site for training camp. Feedback from the Canadian Football League team has been positive.
Come September, the student experience should be the same. There are no restrictions and intramurals will continue to use the field. There are some “minor details” that were changed, but students can look forward to hitting the turf in the fall.
