Poor turnout irks Swing

The 2003 edition of the Muskie football team had more the look of a winner—at least, the ones who bothered showing up.
Head coach Bob Swing was encouraged with how improved his squad appeared during the recent spring camp as compared to last year’s crew that went 0-7 during the regular season of the Winnipeg High School Football League before falling 35-8 to the Oak Park Raiders in the quarter-finals.
But with camp attendance estimated at 65 percent of the roster, Swing knows he and his coaching staff are facing an uphill battle to have his troops in fighting shape come the new WHSFL season in September.
“They have done a lot of hard work, and physically, they seem a lot better prepared—not where they need to be, but better than last year,” said Swing.
“But with 65 percent attendance, there’s no way we can compete at the level we need to be at,” he argued. “This was an attitude I had hoped we didn’t have anymore, but we still have it.
“The players have got to get it through their heads that we need that extra practice time,” he stressed.
Swing said having all hands on deck is even more essential considering the calibre of talent present throughout the WHSFL.
“Think of all the sports teams you [Joey Payeur] interview throughout the winter that go into Manitoba for a weekend tournament and how much they talk about the toughness of the teams out there,” said Swing.
“That’s what we have to face every week of our regular season. We have a provincial champion coming out of our conference every year,” he noted.
“Sixty-five percent [attendance] isn’t going to cut it. It leaves you in a position to make physical and mental mistakes. And this conference isn’t forgiving when it comes to mistakes.”
Those who did suit up for the spring camp impressed Swing in two different categories of experience.
“The players that are going to be seniors this coming year have stepped up for the most part,” he noted. “And the development of the Grade 9 players moving into Grade 10 has been great.
“They’re really maturing, and that’s only going to help us get better.”
Swing is tinkering with an offence that struggled to find its footing last year, introducing a tight end and a three-back formation to the mix.
“We have to change the way we’ve been playing,” he remarked. “For years, we’ve played a pro-style system. That puts a lot of stress on the offensive line.
“We realize we’re going to be consistently overmatched on the line and to keep the pro system isn’t fair to them.
“[But] because we’re adding the tight end and the three backs, that doesn’t mean we’re going to change what we do on offence. We’re still going to play wide open,” he stressed.
Swing is awaiting the arrival this week of the Muskies’ schedule for the upcoming campaign.
And, more importantly, he’s expecting a decision from the senior athletic council of Winnipeg School Division 1 on the eligibility requests for receiver Kevin Gemmell, the team’s player of the year last season, along with fullback Shane McDonald, defensive back Jason Kellar, and receiver/defensive back Rick Ricard.
(This would cover the transition year as Ontario high schools move to a four-year program, like in Manitoba, from a five-year one).
The return of this veteran quintet is critical to the Muskies having any chance of rebounding from its first winless season since 1987.
< *c>Alumni call
Swing also announced efforts are underway to track down any Muskie football alumni in the first of what could be a series of alumni list compilations for various sports that the school is represented in.
All those who suited up for the black-and-gold in the past are asked to go the team’s Web site at www.muskiefootball.com and register in the appropriate area of the home page.