It took half a year, but Chilliwack Minor Lacrosse president Jamie Scott believes it was worth the wait.
CMLA adopted a shiny new logo last week, with 97 per cent approval from voting membership.
Sixty four people cast ballots and only two voted no.
“What our executive is trying to do is re-brand the association and we’re very excited about the change,” Scott said. “Our old logo was out-dated and it was time for a change.”
Scott is big on tradition and has a list of lacrosse associations he tries to emulate.
“Look at the Maple Ridge Burrards or the Coquitlam Adanacs, the Delta Islanders or the New Westminster Salmonbellies and their look hasn’t changed much,” Scott noted. “I think our new logo could be timeless and I don’t see it going out of style.”
The next step in CMLA’s re-brand is jerseys.
Scott expects to get new jerseys for all of CMLA’s teams within five to six weeks.
“One of the biggest issues is we had different jerseys for every team this year, and sometimes we had different logos on those jerseys,” he said.
CMLA is taking time with the design because they want it to stand the test of time.
“We don’t want them to be out of style in five years because they carry a big financial cost,” Scott explained. “We’re trying to go with basic, traditional jerseys that will still look good in 20 years.”
In Scott’s mind that means a clean design that retains the CMLA’s current color scheme (kelly green, gold, white and black).
“We’re going to keep the Mustangs name but we’re going to have a new look and a new attitude,” Scott said.
The prez is pleased with other developments including an executive that he believes is as strong as its been.
He is joined by Simon Traskey (vice president of operations), Brandon Mulligan (vp of development), Mike Ortutay (vp of marketing), Chris Veenstra (treasurer), Alex Blesch (secretary), Wonda Warren (registrar/scheduler), Ryan Mulligan (head referee), Nick Kojima (head coach), Mark Dunn (equipment manager) and Mike Rychtowski (director at large).
“I think we’re more united and everyone at the table is providing a lot more input,” Scott said. “Our collective vision is growth.”
On that count, numbers are up from last year (127 to 145), with a notable spike at the novice, tyke and peewee levels.
All but one CMLA coach has played at the senior level, giving youngsters a wealth of experience to draw upon.
Scott’s contacts have brought guys like Kevin Crowley to Chilliwack as guest coaches.
Crowley plays professionally for the New England Black Wolves of Major Series Lacrosse and the Charlotte Hounds of Major League Lacrosse.
“He came out and did a day camp during spring break, and he’s willing to come back,” Scott said. “People who know our executive are now willing to come out and develop our game out here.”
“If our coaches want someone to do a clinic or seminar, I have people I can phone, which is nice because we haven’t had that before.”
Scott believes word is filtering out to the rest of the Lower Mainland that Chilliwack is an up-and-coming player in the lacrosse landscape.
“We got tired of hearing people from elsewhere in the Lower Mainland talking about the ‘goon squad in Chilliwack that takes lots of penalties and is going to hurt our kids,’” Scott said. “We’ve noticed in the last year that those comments are easing up.”
“People used to complain about the drive time to Chilliwack and now they’re saying, ‘Well, Chilliwack’s not that far.’”
“More and more people are understanding that we’re part of the lacrosse community and we’re not going anywhere.”
League play starts in mid-April and registration remains open until then.
Get more info online at chilliwacklacrosse.com.