R.I.P Les

[fix]

I know most of you don't follow lacrosse but the sport lost one of it's greatest today.. the Scotty Bowman of lacrosse.

Les Bartley succumbs to colon cancer


Canadian Press

5/15/2005 8:12:13 PM

TORONTO (CP) - Les Bartley succumbed to colon cancer Sunday, less than 24 hours after the team he coached to four National Lacrosse League championships won a fifth.

The St. Catharines, Ont., resident was 51. The family planned a private Monday service.

''It's a deep loss,'' said Toronto Rock GM-coach Terry Sanderson. ''He was so well-respected by the Rock players he coached.

''It's an awful thing. It's such a brutal disease. This is a big loss.''

The team presented a three-minute video tribute to Bartley before defeating the Arizona Sting 19-13 in front of a record NLL crowd of 19,432 at Air Canada Centre on Saturday. During the game, fans held up signs wishing Bartley well.

Bartley was a team vice-president this season but was too ill to attend games. Captain Jim Veltman spoke candidly from the heart about his former coach after the victory.

''He's not here right now and that breaks my heart,'' said Veltman. ''It's hard for me to talk about.

'He's a very special man. When I saw that tribute, it was hard for me to keep it together. I have a lot of respect for that man.''

Bartley coached Buffalo to three pro titles before taking over the new franchise. After his seventh pro title in 2003, he looked forward to going for another. But he was diagnosed with colon cancer later in the year and underwent surgeries. He was forced to relinquish his job behind the bench. He also was the team's general manager.

''He continued to have a deep interest in the team,'' said Sanderson. ''We had a very good rapport.''

The league named the trophy it awards its coach of the year the Les Bartley Trophy.

Bartley was a United Auto Workers contract negotiator in St. Catharines, and he helped the NLL and the players' association get together on a new collective bargaining agreement last autumn. On May 9, the NLL named Bartley executive of the year.

Five of the NLL's 10 head coaches this season played for Bartley: Bob Hamley (Arizona), Paul Day (Rochester), Darris Kilgour (Buffalo), Jamie Batley (Colorado) and Derek Keenan (Anaheim).

''A lot of coaches in the league today were influenced by Les,'' Day said after the announcement of the award. ''You're not going to find anybody who had a more positive influence than he had on his teams and the guys who played for him.''

Bartley also coached Canada to international titles including the Heritage Cup and the inaugural world indoor championship in 2003.

''He did a great job competing at the highest level,'' Gary Gait, the all-time NLL scoring leader, said of Bartley last week. ''Les embodies the spirit of competition and sportsmanship in a coach. He's a model coach.''

The Les' Fund Initiative was launched in conjunction with Lisa's Beads to raise money to fight cancer. Fans in most NLL cities participate, selling beads in NLL team colours and donating proceeds to local cancer societys hospitals or research centres.

Talk about a bitter sweet championship win for the Rock.

[Cross Traffic]

Caught the last part of the championship game, sad news indeed. Too bad that our team in Anaheim sucks so badly.