Although lacrosse is Canada’s national summer sport, it frequently sees lower participation in Manitoba than more popular sports like baseball and soccer. For example, Niverville doesn’t have its own lacrosse team. There is, however, a regional team.

The Manitoba Lacrosse Association implements lacrosse programs across the province, including a senior league, a recreation league, and the Red River Lacrosse Association, which involves five regional teams in a competitive youth program.

Niverville participants play for the Sidewinders, covering a region that includes parts of southern Winnipeg and stretches east to Richer, south to the U.S. border, and west to Morden. The Sidewinders play a regular spring league that starts at the beginning of April. The league plays box lacrosse, which is played in hockey rinks after the ice is gone—and in Manitoba box lacrosse is more popular than field lacrosse.

Dylan Knip is only 11 years old, but the 2018 season was his fifth year playing lacrosse. The Niverville student also plays hockey. While he enjoys both, he identifies lacrosse as his favourite sport.

This year, Knip took his play to the next level, trying out for and making the provincial Peewee team. In mid-June, the provincial team began practicing intensely, with three two-hour practices per week. Knip had the opportunity not just to play at a highly competitive level but also to meet players from across the province.

Helping to ease the transition from regional to provincial team was the fact that one of the Sidewinder coaches, Richard De La Ronde, was also the head coach for Team Manitoba.

In August, Knip and his teammates and coaches travelled to Whitby, Ontario for the national championships.

“It was really great for him to get this opportunity,” says his mother Heather Knip. “They learn to play at an advanced level, but they also learn a lot about teamwork and organization. The players have to wear matching outfits and they board the plane together. It’s really cool.”

Seven teams play at the Peewee age, and the tournament began with a round robin. Afterward, the teams were divided into an A-side and B-side. Unfortunately, Manitoba was no match for the heavyweight teams from Ontario and British Columbia, whose pool of potential players is significantly larger due to overall population and the greater popularity of the sport in those provinces.

However, Manitoba defeated Nova Scotia 7–5 in their final game to bring home the gold medal on the B-side.

Players like Dylan Knip, who love lacrosse and its fast-paced, full-contact action, hope that more people will be interested in joining a team, and that more opportunities to play will emerge in the near future, particularly in the off-season. In this regard, Knip may be in luck—the Manitoba Lacrosse Association has just announced a new high-performance program that will run from November through March for athletes interested in augmenting their skills.