Manitoba Junior Players Share on Experience with Team Canada
Manitoba junior team members Tyler Cormier and Aaron Mitchell-Dueck traveled to Santiago, Chile April 15th-22nd, 2017 to compete in the Pan American Men's Youth Handball Championship for Team Canada. It was a long week for the men who were placed in group A against power house South American teams such as Argentina (who won gold), Uruguay, and Venezuela. The Canadians finished 4th in round-robin pitting them against Mexico where Dueck tied for a team high of 6 goals. Unfortunately, they were 4 goals short of a win and moved on to beat Paraguay 32-23 for 7th place in the tournament. See the full results here.
Curious about their experiences, I got in touch with Tyler to ask a few questions about their trip. See the full interview below:
What did you notice about the style of play between the different countries?
Tyler: they had a great knowledge of the game and they had very few turnovers which made us elevate our game to make every possession count.
What is your favourite memory from the trip?
Tyler: The bus rides with the team. We would all joke around and listen to music to get fired up but when it came to game time everyone was in the zone.
What has been the most challenging part of your Journey?
Tyler: Fighting through the pain of my sprained ankle and I couldn't thank Aaron enough for helping me and making sure I was 100% the whole time.
Tell me about your handball "journey"
Tyler: In grade 9, I tried out at Glenlawn and got cut, but I went to every practice then got added to the roster to play some games. Played grade 10, 11, and 12. Winning 3 provincial championships and a provincial second. Making the All-star game in grade 10,11 and 12. Also in that time, I played on 2 juvenile Manitoba teams, 1 junior Manitoba team, and the juvenile level of Team Canada.
How do you think Manitoba players stack up against players from other provinces/countries?
Tyler: We are a very competitive and strong program and we have a good knowledge of the game. We can adjust fast which helps us in all games.