Rocks Road to Mann Cup Begins With Coquitlam
The Victoria Shamrocks go into the 2009 WLA playoffs with the number one overall seed following a win and a tie in the final weekend of the season.
Following a 12-10 victory over Coquitlam on Wednesday at Bear Mountain Arena, Victoria needed only a draw against Vancouver Island rival Nanaimo on Saturday night to claim the division. Although the team blew an opportunity to win the game in regulation by allowing the tying goal with under two minutes to go, Victoria stayed the course in overtime and did what they had to do with a 16-16 draw.
The Shamrocks concluded the 2009 regular season with a record of 14-3-1, one point ahead of second place New Westminster.
Following an outstanding start which saw the team win 12 of their first 13 games, including a nine game winning streak to begin the season, Victoria seemed to hit the wall in two straight losses to Langley and New Westminster. But just as many seemed to be losing hope in the team, Victoria finished the regular season going undefeated in their last three games.
The resurgence of this year's team has been lead by the one-two combination of Lewis Ratcliff and Rhys Duch, who finished first and second respectively in the WLA scoring race.
The team will now look to continue their success in the playoffs as the take on Coquitlam in the WLA semi-finals. Victoria won both games between the two teams in the regular season, but the team knows the playoffs are a whole new season.
Victoria's road to their first Mann Cup since 2005 begins on Tuesday night as they take on Coquitlam in game 1 at Bear Mountain Arena.
