C A N A D A聽聽 G A M E S
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| Coach Lesley Jordan gives pointers to her team. (Nick Pearce Photo) |
It鈥檚 a busy week for Lesley Jordan.
Not only does she have her regular duties as coach of the Dalhousie women鈥檚 varsity hockey team鈥攚hich finishes its regular season on Sunday before heading into the playoffs鈥攂ut she鈥檚 also running the bench of Team Nova Scotia during this week鈥檚 women鈥檚 hockey action at the Canada Games.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a bit of a challenge,鈥� she says, though she notes that, conveniently, there are no Dalhousie games during the week, so it鈥檚 only practices that she has to work around. 鈥淚 have amazing staffs on both sides, so I鈥檓 confident we鈥檙e going to make it work.鈥�
Team Nova Scotia won its first game against Prince Edward Island on Sunday 4-1,聽lost 1-5 against Quebec on Monday night and faces Manitoba on Tuesday night.听The team聽is pulling together quickly, considering that they only had a couple of tournaments and practices to gel as a unit prior to the Games.
Action packed
鈥淭his is a very short event and it鈥檚 a lot of action packed into one week,鈥� she says. 鈥淲ith the Tigers you have a whole season and you get to practice with them day after day and shape them. When you鈥檙e selecting a team like Team Nova Scotia you really have to pay attention to skill and character because in a short event if something goes wrong, there would be a lot of challenges to overcome. Whereas with the Tigers, if something isn鈥檛 quite right you have time to work it out.鈥�
This is Ms. Jordan鈥檚 second time coaching at the Canada Games but her first as head coach; at the 2007 Games in Whitehorse, she was an assistant coach, working with her twin sister Lisa (coach of Saint Mary鈥檚 women鈥檚 varsity hockey team). She also played at the 1991 Games鈥攖he first time that women鈥檚 hockey was included as a sport.
鈥淚 think this is going to be the highlight for a lot of their careers,鈥� she says of her team. 鈥淲omen鈥檚 hockey is still a developing sport, so of our team, maybe five to eight of them will go on to play university hockey. So for most, this their big event. Having gone through it as a player and a coach, you never forget it. There鈥檚 so much going on, so much excitement...it鈥檚 the experience of a lifetime.鈥�
Tigers trainer too
She鈥檚 joined on the Team Nova Scotia coaching staff by Joe Johnston, Dalhousie鈥檚 goalie coach. And Tigers student trainer Meredith Waisman is volunteering throughout the Games at the athlete polyclinic, located in the Athletes Village at the World Trade and Convention Centre.
鈥淚 really enjoy working with young athletes,鈥� says Ms. Waisman, a physiotherapy masters student. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a great clinical experience, because you really have to focus on explaining things clearly and on a level they can understand. It鈥檚 hands-on experience at a major event right here in Halifax.鈥�
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