Jay was in his senior year at Centennial when they made their strongest run towards a provincial championship….they hadn’t won since back in the 60’s. It was the year of Reggie Bradshaw breaking all kinds of rushing records for the school and the province of British Columbia. They came up short….mostly due to some major injuries to some key players along the way…..It was after that year that Kevin Chin decided to put his coaching efforts to community ball to be more involved with his son’s love for the game. Many of the Centaur players knew Kevin…many played for him…He would have been proud. Congrats Centaurs. This is a print that is to be presented to the school.
"Centaurs"
It’s hard to turn Rick Inrig down when he has a project that needs some attention or a basketball tournment that he is putting together…One thing is for sure the basketball is always fun to watch and he brings some great teams together for such an event. His involvement with BC Baskeball, with the Enver Creek Cougars and even his love for his Oregon Ducks (yes those green and yellow uniforms…and you know which ones) was the beginning of a nice friendship. Rick invited me to photograph this tournament and in the end we decided to try something new…we would hand out awards at the end of the tournament to the all stars of the tournment and also make something for the honorable mention players…..might have been a bit much to commit to as it took me late into the morning hours after the games to finish, print, stretch and deliver the final awards….but it all worked out…have a look at the stars of the Cougar Invitational 2009
High School Football Championship “The Subway Bowl” takes place this weekend. Since leaving the indoors of BC Place I have been able to follow the past couple weeks of high school football. Lucky for me it’s been wet/rainy and cold…A little taste of BC Lions weather for next season as we’re moving outdoors.
Whenever I’m in town I like to check in on the New Westminister Hyacks. It brings back fond memories of Kevin Chin. I know he’s there in spirit watching Casey and Jordan. Tough game vs. Centennial who goes on to the final game. Kind of Ironic as Keven coached the Centaurs to the finals and here they are again.
Centennial’s QB is impressive. He’s got a receiver who will hit the hardwood as soon as football season is over. I’ve got a great shot of one of the touchdowns where his impressive height and hands were evident. A nice running game. An impressive defense.
WJ Mouat is the component. Not knowing much about them I inquired of a UBC coach who was scouting on the night they beat Vancouver College to advance. His report had a couple of linemen, a kicker that he said was the best in BC and when watching taking warmup it was impressive to watch him kick. And then he spoke of a running back that I should pay attention to. Some impressive players.
So here’s my tribute to the two players that I felt lead their team to the final championship game. On both offense and defense both of these two way players always seem to be around the ball. This is going to be a great final!
From Centennial # 1 Lemar Durant and from WJ Mouat #34 Allan Dicks
2009 Grey Cup…Montreal vs Saskatchewan…Calvillo vs Durant…here’s my tribute to two Quaterbacks that will be the keys to victory for their respective teams. The game stacks up pretty even on both sides of the ball…it comes down to these two to be the difference in the game….my prediction..Montreal by 8. By the way, Anthony and I share the same birthday so when they’re not playing the Lions I cheer for Montreal.
"13 vs 4"
I can’t say enough about the Michael Cuccione Foundation
www.makingadifference.org and their quest to help fight and find a cure for childhood cancer. There are alot of great causes and I am honored to be associated with this one. The story is heart touching and everytime I watch the Michael video it brings tears to realize what a great person Michael is today and what he and his family has done over the past 14 years. Rock For A Cure will become a great annual event.
It was the first of what will be a great tradition. Held at the Red Robinson Theatre in Coquitlam the two bands that performed at this inaugural show were nothing short of fantastic. “Cause for Drama” www.cause-4drama.com opened the show and did a fantastic job by highlighting material from their upcoming new release. Rock with some great grooves and two guitarists (Rocky Milino and Nate Cavalli) that put on a show.
”State of Shock” www.stateofshockband.com who were the headline act followed C4D and put on an amazing show. I was privleged to photograph these guys (and girl) last year and was excited to be part of this function to photograph them again. They signed a limited edition print that I created from their show last year to help raise more funds for the “Rock For A Cure” benefit. On a side note I’ve seen and photographed many bands and musicians over the years but never have I witnessed, heard, seen a bass player like Alison Toews. Not to take anything from the two guitarist Jesse (Happy Birthday) and Simon who are both non stop energic musicians , Alison on bass has to be the most rocking bass player I have ever seen. Cam on vocals, Johnny on drums…it was a night to remember.
"Geroy Simon"
Big game on Sunday…Our BC Lions are one win away from heading to the Gray Cup…Cold wet week of practice but spirits are high and confidence is there in the right proportions…Saw some new things at practice and I’m looking forward to watching and cheering them on…Two main ingredients to this playoff success in terms of on the practice field in the locker room and throughout the organization is QB Casey Printers and Wide Receiver Geroy Simon.
These two ”limited edition” (only 100 to be printed of each) PhotoArt creations will be used by the BC Lions and the charities they work with in raising funds and contributions to support many great causes. As a big fan it’s been a treat creating them and being privleged to be there on the sidelines with my gear.
Good Luck on Sunday!
"Casey Printers"
What a privilege…what an honor…to watch this team and specifically these two defensive players this season..I’ve been on the field close enough to hear the hurt that they both have put on the opposition…even though the all star team could have been and should have been populated with more from the Lion’s squad i’m happy for these two…here’s a shot at the awards that will be hanging on the wall of fame tomorrow morning
"CFL All Star Barron Miles"
"CFL All Star Korey Banks"
Seeing the Lions off at the airport on their way to Hamilton for the Eastern Semi Finals…I see Ian and wish him well….we talk about the artwork I’ve been working on for him as he is anxious to see it…so i make him the offer… “if you run a kick off or punt back more than 50 yds then i will only charge you half…if you score a touchdown then i’ll create the print for free…but if the Lion’s didn’t come back with a victory then he would have to pay me double”….Ian not only runs a kick off back 61 yds during regulation time but in overtime scores the winning touchdown on a pass from Casey..I was honored to lose this bet..his canvas PhotoArt is waiting for him in the locker room.
"The Smart Move"
"Battle in the Trenches"
It’s hard to watch your team lose. It’s hard to shake hands with the guys after the game and say “good game”…so you don’t…you pat them on the back and let them know that you still believe…you want one more Sunday and after that another Sunday…To some it’s just a game to others it’s much more…Bottom line they play to win…Even though it’s considered the entertainment business…it’s about winning..the game plan the preparation the battle…for now there’s no looking back…just look for a helping hand on Sunday and take advantage of the chance when it presents itself.
Jared Soll…watch out for this one…only a junior in high school (grade 11) …not touted as the feature back but he will surprise you…i witnessed his sure footing, moves and speed on a downpour night…almost reminded me of friday night lights down in San Antonio, Texas (unfortunately the crowd was a bit smaller and the rain didn’t look to inviting for the average spectator)…Good luck against Centennial on Friday night…(I’ll be photographing our B.C.Lions at BC Place in a big game against Edmonton).
"You Can't Stop the Rain"
