Natives prepare for game in Brandon
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- Published on Thursday, October 9, 2014
Photo by Eoin Devereux
By Eoin Devereux
The Neepawa Banner
You can’t blame Neepawa Natives coach Dwayne Kirkup for perhaps believing he may have been the bench boss for two different teams during the Old Dutch/MJHL Showcase in Winnipeg last weekend.
Their first game against the Waywayseecappo Wolverines saw Neepawa play a smart disciplined game, with a strong defensive structure and an aggressive offensive scheme. Those efforts lead to a 3-2 shootout victory for the Natives. Saturday’s game against Selkirk however saw Neepawa struggle with many of the same principles they had excelled in the previous day, on the way to an 11-4 defeat to the Steelers.
Looking back at the weekend, Kirkup said it was a perfect example of what the Natives can do when focused.
“Reflecting back on game one of the Showcase on Friday. The game against the Waywayseecappo was a real character win for us. We found a way to keep with the game plan and come from behind, being down 2-0 to win it 3-2 in the shootout. We didn’t panic. We played a smart game,” said Kirkup. “Then on Saturday night [against Selkirk], it certainly wasn’t the real Neepawa Natives. Our team struggled in a lot of areas. There were a lot of distractions and it feels as though we got off task. The score certainly got lopsided and hopefully the players have learned from that experience.”
Kirkup said he and assistant coach Dustin Howden have spent the past few days refocusing the team in practice. Kirkup said the Selkirk game was a momentary lapse that the players need to put behind them, as they prepare to play the Virden Oil Capitals on Friday in Brandon at Westman Communications Group Place.
“I think we learned a lesson against Selkirk. We also got the message across to them in practice. I’m confident that we will be a lot more prepared and focused on Friday against the Oil Capitals,” noted Kirkup. “We need to simplify the game and trust each other. Every player out on the ice has a role to play. We can’t run all over the ice against the top teams in the league and expect to compete. We have to stay on task.”
With the Virden Oil Capitals starting to recover from a slow start to their regular season, Kirkup added controlling the tempo early in Friday night’s game with be a huge contributing factor in the end result.
“We need to press the action,” said Kirkup. “Have some energy in the first ten minutes of the game. We have a really skilled roster and I just want the real Neepawa Natives to show up.”
