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New Thornhill Thunderbirds coach Al Morris (left) signs here as club vice-president Fred Disera looks on. Approvingly. of course. Morris coached Tudor Glen Minor Midgets to the All Ontario title this season. (Photo by Pearlstein). My personal view is it’s a good move for the Thun- derbirds and everyone concerned. Incidentally, he runs a fitness hockey school which should be an indication of his views on same. All the best to Al. That‘s about it for now. Excuse me while I take a sip out of my second cup of coffee of the day. Ooops, ooooooh! Spilled it. Now I’m not insecure anymore. Al is a devotee of the European-style of hockey (with new twists of his own), is a stickler about conditioning and a strategist along the lines of people like Fred Shero of Philadelphia and Roger Neilson of the Maple Leafs. “The Marlie organization," he said, “speaks for itself. And the Waxers are a young team and I like working with young players. And I’ve been promised no interference. I’m looking forward to a very interesting season.” A1, of course, has had phenomenal success with the Tudor Glen Minor Midgets who won the All Ontario for the fourth consecutive time this season. Coach Morris is very well known and very popular in Thornhill and is definitely a man with his own ideas of the way hockey should be played. Another hockey happening of note was the an- nounced signing of Al Morris to coach the Thomhill Thunderbird Junior B’s next season. A1, of course, has had phenomenal success with the Which should also make for another interesting season of hockey rivalry between the Hill Rams and the Waxers. Hopefully so, anyway. THUNDERBIRDS Carl, as you may recall, coached the Rams for seven rather successful seasons (never missed the playoffs) before being dismissed. He then hooked on with the Aurora Tigers. That ended abruptly in a disagreement with then- owner John Sikura with Brimblecombe retiring for the rest of the season. It was indicated at the time that Brimblecome was unhappy because of too much management interference or some such stuff like that. Now he’s getting an opportunity tor the Waxer_s_an_c_l Carl is waxing enthusiasm. First of all, the word has it that Carl Brimblecombe, former coach of the Richmond Hill Provincial A Rams, has found a new home. Namely with the Marlie organization, the Provincial Junior A Markham Waxers. I must hurry on while my luck holds out. BRIMBLECOMBE Yes, I’m going to touch on hockey this week. Just a few notes here and there although I don’t even like to mention the word “ice” at this time of season. Unless, of course, its the kind that clinks devilishly at you when you tilt the glass. As a result, l didn’t get the telephone cord wound around the cup and have it spill over my desk, seep tantalizineg onto my trousers, shoes and, eventually, trickle onto the now coffee-colored rug. Everything is lovely. None of these every day occurrences happened to me this week. When I got to the office no one even called me before I gulpeci my first shaking cup of coffee. A disaster is anything untoward that happens to me between 7 am. and9 am. on a working day. There are no minor disasters between these hours. OOOH Such a seemingly innocent thing as getting tooth- paste on my shoes can send me into trauma, or discovering the last roll of toilet tissue is gone or having it just out of reach, accidentally slashing my nose with a razor, the bleeding that follows, all these conspire to undo me. Don’t misunderstand me when I talk about disasters. I don’t mean those big ones, the kind you associate world wars with or having your family dog run away from home. Nothing like that. I can handle those. I’ve been worried this week. Nothing disastrous has happened to me. It makes me feel very insecure. I figure somebody up there is planning all kinds of little horribles for me. Turn the corner and, wham, the sky will fall, the earth turn upside down. New coach Sky must fall 10454 YONGE ST. N., RICHMOND HILL ) POP’S RESTAURANT & TAVERN TRY OUR SPECIALTY STEAK 8 SEAFOOD DISHES LIQUOR LICENSE 8842752 fred simpson filly il’ihtral Wednesday, May 10, 1978 °'V_ v “v V Vuytu‘y “ .... v-5..v_y u... nu} . A’Avr uu vuuu POOR WEATHER feam awalifil: a feat which has and see some of the best high Jacqui Masil ran well in the escaped a south zone school for SChOOl athletes in ontal‘io Per‘ poor weather dominating the 1500 over five years. form- Toporowski’s effort was made more difficult by a sprained ankle which prevented her from performing at top ability but her 26.11 metre javelin toss, 9.32 metre shot put distance, and 34.85 metre discus throw were more than enough to record first place in all events. mond Hill High was a triple winner, naturally, despite competing with a sprained ankle. Jane Toporowski of Rich- mond Hill High was a trinlp This lack of competitors may have contributed to the fact that only two athletes recorded triple wins during the day long event, Jacqui Masil of Thornlea in the junior races, and Richmond Hill's Jane Toporowski in the senior throwing events. The top six in each event will advance to the York County competitions where only two athletes per event will be selected for the Georgian Bay cham~ pionships later next week. Over half of this year’s entries at the South Zone qualifying affair were competing as first year midgets, a fact which thinned the junior and senior divisions to minimum com- petitors in some events. A fine rain and cool wind were unexpected visitors to the competitions which saw more than 300 athletes competing for acceptance to this Thursday’s York County championships. By BOB THOMPSON Mittens, wool hats, and extra jackets were the order of the day at the South Zone High School track meet this week at Thornlea Secondary School. Hugh school It would be a gross un- derstatement to say the Thornhill Thunderbirds are planning next season around becoming full- fledged members of the Metro Junior B hockey league. Both teams played out of the northern Mid-Ontario league last season. Along with the Oak Ridges Dynes Jewellers. “I figured we would have had a good shot at winning the Wrigley tournament but it was their decision to break up as a unit. DISAPPOINTED “I was somewhat disappointed but we left it up to them. They The Tudor Glen boys, who just recently won an All Ontario championship for an un- precedented four years in a row, decided not to stay intact as a team and move up to midget ranks. “It was my intention to coach the boys one more year if they had moved up to midget," ad- mitted Morris at a special press conference called Monday noonhour to announce his signing. But it’s also true that majority of members of Tudor Glen Minor Midget Ontario champions played major role in his decision. Keep your fingers crossed He’s happy with the jbb, coh- sicjers it a “great challenge.” By FRED SIMPSON It wouldn’t be accurate to describe Al Morris as the “reluctant” new coach of the Thornhill Thunderbird Mid- Ontario Junior B hockey entry. Th un derbirds Sign coa ch “It hasn't been okayed by the Track season off, running Sports All- the the his Based on the entries for next Thursday's York County championships Thornlea Secondary School has placed a solid group of athletes who stand a good chance to capture the team award, a feat which has escaped a south zone school for over five years. Eric Lutzman of Thornlea was winner of the Midget Boy’s discus event. The senior events saw Thor- nlea‘s Bill French crossing the finish line first in the 1500 metres and 800 metres, Dennis Limoges easily capturing the discus and shot put events, Sue French running away with the 1500 metres and 3000 metres, Laurie Neufeld of Markham dominating the 400 metres and 800 metres, and Langstaff’s Mary Anne Ball the winner in the 80 metre hur- dles and 100 metres. JUNIORS In the junior division double wins were recorded by Langstaff's Heinz Losberg in the 100 metres and Triple Jump, Peter McLelland of Thornlea in the 800 metres and 1500 metres, teammate Kirk Dickson in the 200 and 400 metres. Double winners were more plentiful throughout all age divisions with midgets Dianne Alexson of Richmond Hill win- ning the high jump and long jump competitions, Cindy McConkey of Markham doubling in the 400 and 800 metres, David Terry had two wins in the boys 1500 metres and 800 metres. and Troy Cadaret of Markham winning the midget triple jump and long jump. metres in a 517.49 time, the 3000 metres in 11.24.21 and the 800 metres in 2.40.04. The proposal, as submitted to the OHA, would have the Thunderbirds and the Jewellers joining the Metro loop along with the Peterboro Petes. The Thunderbirds would be Ontario Hockey Association," said Thunderbird Vice-president Fred Disera, “but the Metro look is for it and they're in the process of applying. for approval. We have high hopes.” “First we’re going to con- centrate on keeping pucks out of our net and then we'll worry about scoring. It’s my feeling that there are really very few teams that know how to get the One of Morris' initial con- centrations will be his defensive corps. SYSTEM COACH “I‘m a systems coach,” he said. “I want my players to know how to react to every situation that might arise. I don’t want any confusion about that. I want them to react together.“ “I know what we have to do, I know what we want to do," he said. “ We definitely have enough good players in Thornhill to make our team very com- petitive in league play. I’m very optimistic." Morris will undoubtedly also be something new to junior hockey as far as coaching methods are concerned. took a vote and reported their decisions to me on an individual basis. The nays won it.” That over with, Al left little or no doubt about his intentions with the junior club he inherits from last year’s coach Ralph Beer. Greg Wheeler of Richmond Hill High was the winner in the 400 metre Midget com- petition. NEXT Next Thursday the winners face the best from the north zone schools in the York County Track and Field Championships and results trickling in from the northern competitions promise an interesting day of good competition. Single efforts which were worth noting were midget discus thrower Eric Lutzman of Thornlea with a 41.95 metre toss, and Greg Wheeler of Richmond Hill High School with a 58.53 timing in the 400 metres. VICTORY PARADE Athletes who participated throughout the winter as members of track clubs were most obvious in the victory parade. Markham's Judy Neufeld, Thornlea’s Jacqui Masil, Sue French, Peter McLelland, Dennis Limoges and Jack Proctor, Langstaff’s Heinz Losberg, and Richmond Hill’s Jane Toporowski all availed themselves of winter training in preparation for the 1978 outdoor season and all won their par- ticular events. Some of the highlights of the meet were Richmond Hill’s midget high jump competitor Diane Alexson clearing 1.53 metres, Robin Birnie of Bayview throwing the junior shot put 9.47 metres, and Toporowski‘s one- legged efforts in the senior throwing events. Dynes would be in the Western Division with Wexford, St. Mike's, North York, Bramalea, Toronto Red Wings, Toronto Nats and Etobicoke Selects. “It's a natural for our club," said Disera. “We’re sure the competition will be top-flight, entered in the Eastern Division along with Peterboro, Belleville, Kingston, Oshawa, Scarboro and Markham. Morris is confident that “quite a number of the Tudor Glen players should be able to make the jump to junior hockey. It's a challenge but we had some pretty big players last year. Besides, you learn more in higher calibre hockey." Morris is also counting on a “Hockey is hockey," he said. “At the junior B level it should be faster and rougher. You just have to compensate for this by raising your own sights." Moi‘ris hasn’t any fears about the difference between minor midrgetrhockey and Junior “However, I don’t plan any special drills during the summer. It’s up to the players to keep in shape themselves.” Then he smiled. “If they're not in shape when they report they will be in a week. It _xpigh_t prove to be painful.” Morris will also have one of the best, if not the best, conditioned teams in junior hockey. BE IN SHAPE “I’m a firm believer in a team being in top physical condition," he said. puck consistently out of their own defensive zone.” Section B Long jumper Zorry DeHan from Langstaff Secondary School digs in here as track season gets off in a splash of dirt. (Photo by Hogg). Diane Borgignon of Langstaff Secondary School strains to win here in the women’s 200 metre sprint as the high school track season kicked off at Thornlea Monday afternoon. (Photo by Hogg) fans will be able to see a variety of teams, and the travelling will be easier as most of the teams are right in our area.” Each team would play a 44- game schedule with 28 against clubs in their own division and 16 with ones in the other division. “We also feel the competition would be more equal," said Certified at Level 4 of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association Coaching “We won’t perform miracles in our first season,” said Morris, “b_u_t wg’ll‘do a]! right.’f Morris has plenfil of creden- tials to take with him to the Thunderbirds including: “He’ll, also hav-e a completely free hand at picking and handling his team," he said. Thunderbird Vice-President Fred Disera said it was “us who went after Morris and we're delighted he'll be with us. John is not only a local man but his coaching record speaks for itself. In all likelihood it’ll be Tudor Glen's John Morris (who is also the coach’s son) who’ll see lots of action between the pipes. [RON-MAN Iron-man John played every Tudor Glen game this season with the exception of one. He had to. He was Tudor’s only goalie. He didn’t come right out and say it but he figures his goaltending should be one of his lesser problems this season. nucleus of last year's team “to return and give us the experience we surely will need”. The winnah BUFFET SUNDAY, MAY 14 4 T0 a PM. HWY. 7 it LESLIE ST‘ MOTH ER'S DAV OLD FASHIONED PRICES '7.50 PER PERSON PARKWAY HOTEL Disera, “because the average age of players in the Metro league is lower. We'd be going against people our own age rather than 20-year-olds who tend to dominate the other junior B leagues." Disera made his comments during a press conference Monday announcing the signing of new coach Al Morris. Morris is a chiropractor by profession. He played minor hockey in the Toronto Hockey League, junior hockey with the Waterloo Junior A’s and B's; and a Chiropractic college team. Five years in the Western Ontario Athletic Association, twice WOAA finalists; three times WOAA division finalists; two years as head coach Wiarton Minor Hockey Association; one year as coach in Thornhill Community League. Development Program (presently awaiting Level 5 certification); instructor for OHA and CAHA in coaching development program; director of hockey and fitness camp for the Town of Markham; operator and head instructor of skating and conditioning program Thornhill Arena; and consulting coach for Thornhill Minor Hockey Association. Coaching background: Six years in the Thornhill Minor Hockey Association. three Ontario championships, one York-Simcoe league cham- pionship. 8812121