Where were you born and where did you grow up the majority of your childhood?
I was born in Cobourg, Ontario, moved to Belleville Ontario at age 18 and I have lived here ever since
When did you get into ball hockey?
I started playing in the Belleville men's league after I moved to Belleville. It was a sport that was not available when I lived in Cobourg.
Where did you gain the passion for the sport?
Probably when I coached my first Provincial game for Belleville for my son's Tyke team about 15 years ago.
Who were some of your biggest influences in your life that helped you growing up with the sport?
Rick Carr, President of Belleville Minor Ball Hockey was a team mate back in the days when I started playing. He started up the minor system in Belleville and when I had kids it was natural for them to start playing at a young age.
What turned you on to competitive ball hockey? How old were you when you played/participated in your first tournament?
My kids played rep ice hockey all winter and wanted to play rep soccer in the summer. No way I was going to chase them around the province all summer too. I found not only the shorter season and less travel attractive with ball hockey but the different rules and fact that so many different strategies and systems could be used in ball hockey appealed to me more as a coach. My kids were Novice and Tyke ages at the time.
How did you get involved with the Junior Team Canada program?
After coaching rep at the provincial level every year and at the National level three times my wife and I watched our 2 boys play for Team Canada in Europe. It was after this that I decided that applying for a coaching position was something I would like to do. I believed I had the ability and the experience to be successful at that level.
There is a lot of work to get done, what do you think your team will have to do to get this done?
Everyone must start by communicating and getting to know each other, then study and practice systems and plays, then work together and settle into a role on the team while the whole time developing an attitude that we are the greatest. Then to remain the greatest everyone must communicate more, study and practice more, work together more and want to accept more responsibility in order to be even greater then great.
What's your goal for the Junior program next summer and for future years?
My goals is to win a Gold Medal at the World Championships in Budapest in 2014 with the U-20 Canadian team. As long as I stay involved with ball hockey, my health stays good and I feel I give value to the team as a coach then I would love to continue coaching at a high level. I appreciate the opportunity that I has been trusted in me so far.
Do you think Canada has the talent to win the gold medal?
Of course I do, we feel we have the most skilled team we could put together and don’t lack talent, but we still need to have determination and work ethics. We will find a way to get it done!