1984 - NEW TEAM, SAME RESULT 


 Mark Vitarelli had plenty of experience when it came to winning.  From
 his playing days with the P.C.O.'s to his coaching the James Gang,
 Vitarelli was well acquainted with the Minto Cup.  As a coach, his
 record was the envy of his peers.  In '79 he defeated both the
 offensive powerhouses of Durham Region, only to fall one game shy of a
 Canadian championship.  The next year ended with an OLA Final loss to
 Whitby.  Then came three near perfect seasons.  The only drama during
 the James Gang dynasty was Vitarelli's threatening to quit in the
 middle of the '82 season.  He was not satisfied with the efforts of his
 players - too much playing well enough to win but no more.  Yet he
 stayed behind the bench.  His players peaked for the playoffs that year
 and went on a 16-1 run, including four wins on the west coast.  After
 Vitarelli's third consecutive win in '83 it was time for a new
 challenge.  Cy Coombes had stepped down as the Lakers coach. Enter Mark
 Vitarelli.  The journey towards another Canadian championship had
 begun.

 Arguably the Peterborough Lakers of 1984 were the greatest box lacrosse
 team of all time.  They were a veteran crew which had to hold off an
 emerging powerhouse in Brooklin, plus defeat the best the west had to
 offer from Victoria.  They also had to make their way through a Major
 League  enjoying its last competitive season for some time.  There was
 no free ride for the Lakers.  Still they brought the Mann Cup back to
 Peterborough for the last time.  They did it in style by posting a mark
 of 38-2.  The two losses was a Senior A record for the least ever in
 the box era.  Likewise, their .950 winning percentage was the best
 anyone had yet seen.  Not a bad effort for a club considered to be
 "long in the tooth".

 The Lakers were not the only ones making history during the summer of
 '84.  Phil Scarfone was in his final season.  He would also depart in
 style.  Scoring records in the OLA had been slow to fall.  Bill Isaacs
 had the first great season by scoring 101 goals and 165 points over a
 30 game schedule.  During the most offensive season ever, in 1946,
 Gordon Gair also hit triple figures, while his teammate Vince Reddy
 topped Isaacs mark with 102 goals.  That was also achieved over 30
 games.  Isaacs' points record would last until another explosive season
 - 1971.  That year Gaylord Powless scored 171 points, while John Davis
 set the record for good at 197.  The OLA played a 32 game schedule that
 year.  Davis had a perfect attendance record, however Powless missed
 seven games.

 Next came 1984 and a new figure was about to join the titans of the
 game.  It was an extraordinary year for Phil Scarfone.  Not only did he
 amaze lacrosse fans with a 93 goal, 183 point season, but he went on to
 smash university football records that fall.  As the start quarterback
 of the McMaster Maurauders, he led his club to a perfect regular season
 record, only to be upset in the playoffs by eventual winner Guelph
 Gryphons.  He also became the first Maurauder to be named the best
 player in the country.  Scarfone was also chosen the MVP in the OLA.
 His lacrosse team also faltered.  He had joined Brampton and the
 Excelsiors fell in a quarter final loss to Owen Sound.

 Such disappointments only make Scarfone's achievements that much more
 impressive.  Football wise, McMaster had always been one of the weak
 sisters in the OUAA.  For the two years under Scarfone they were
 contenders.  After his retirement the Maurauders slipped back to
 mediocrity.  Lacrosse wise, he did his scoring on a team with a losing
 record.  The numbers tell it all.  Scarfone scored more than a quarter
 of Brampton's goals and was involved in more than half of them.  His
 183 points was 14 shy of Davis' record, however Scarfone only played a
 24 game schedule.  Likewise, his 93 goals came in six games less than
 Isaacs, Gair or Reddy had played.  In light of those facts, one cannot
 be blamed for considering Phil Scarfone's effort to be the greatest in
 OLA history.

 Another group destined to make their own history was the Brooklin
 Redmen.  The momentum of their seven game loss to Peterborough the
 previous year carried over to '84.  Brooklin soared into undisputed #2
 spot in Ontario lacrosse.  They posted a 20-4 record, miles ahead of
 third place Owen Sound.  The post season began with them sweeping
 St.Catharines three straight.  Their semi final date with the North
 Stars was more of a challenge.

 Brooklin began the best of five affair with a convincing 19-8 victory.
 A ten goal second period settled this one.  Gil Nieuwendyk scored nine
 points, Ken Colley counted five goals and John Jordan added seven
 assists.  The Redmen won the next contest, also at home, 12-8.  Owen
 Sound only dressed fifteen players.  One was John Crowther, whose
 hattrick kept them in contention.  Jordan led all snipers with four
 goals.  The next two nights the series moved up north.  Owen Sound
 upset their guests twice.  They opened Game 3 with a 7-1 lead and
 carried it to a 14-10 triumph.  Todd Stark led with five goals, while
 Brian Hall scored six points.  On Saturday night, the North Stars
 squared the series with a 12-10 win.  Mike McMillan had a hattrick but
 Gil Nieuwendyk led all scorers with eight points.  The deciding contest
 was an easy 17-8 Brooklin romp.  Back at home Nieuwendyk scored three
 of the first seven goals. John Jordan contributed five assists on the
 night and Cam Devine - called up from Orillia - chipped in a couple of
 goals.  Dave Cruickshank scored five times in vain.

 Next came a meeting between the current dynasty and the dynasty to
 come.  The Lakers had not lost since May 14th, when Brooklin defeated
 them 12-7.  Thus they entered the Final on a 26 game winning streak.
 Game One was the Redmen's fifth contest in seven nights.  That would be
 the difference.  The visitors took a 7-6 lead to the third period only
 to see Peterborough comeback for a 12-9 win.  Paul Evans led with four
 goals.  The next night the Redmen again started well.  They won the
 first period 4-1 before fading in front of their hometown fans.  One
 goal in each of the next two periods wasn't enough as the Lakers
 prevailed 9-6.  Jim Wasson dominated with five points.

 Finally Brooklin was granted a night off.  They returned to
 Peterborough refreshed and determined to win.  A stunning start put
 them up 6-1.  Jim Wasson scored the Lakers' second goal with 25 seconds
 left in the opening period.  From that point on the veterans chipped
 away at the lead.  Twenty minutes later it had dwindled to 8-6.  Gil
 Nieuwendyk's hattrick kept the Redmen in front but it wouldn't last.
 Peterborough tied it in the third and Brian Evans scored the winner in
 overtime.  10-9 Lakers and a 3-0 lead.  The next game was Brooklin's
 ninth in fourteen nights.  They would get a long rest after
 Peterborough eliminated them.  The Redmen won the first period 4-3.  A
 six goal second by the Lakers ended it.  10-6 was the final result.

 Peterborough hosted Victoria in the Mann Cup.  They defeated the
 defending champions in five games, avenging the loss from the previous
 year.  Victoria's Kevin Alexander led the series with 19 goals.
 Alexander was in his prime, having just won the second of his three
 straight scoring titles.  Junior call up Gary Gait scored eight times
 in the final, as did Huntsville native Jim Meredith.  St.Catharines
 junior graduate Ted Sawicki tended goal for the Pay Less.  A great
 offensive goalie, Sawicki assisted on ten goals in the series.  Even
 with all that going for them, Victoria was able to win only once.

 There was a power shift down highway 115 in Junior A.  With Vitarelli's
 departure came a two year championship drought for Peterborough.  It
 would take the coaching duo of John Martin and Dan Dunn to win the
 Minto Cup for a record eighth time.  The Petes only fell to second
 best, nevertheless it was unfamiliar territory.

 Into the void stepped the Whitby Warriors.  This was the year the
 Whitby club settled on the nickname Warriors - a winning name for
 certain.  Whitby benefited greatly from the demise of the Oshawa Green
 Gaels.  Coming over to the Warriors were Barry and Steve Kent, Ross
 Tabor, Jason Richards, Ken Passfield, Dean Brown, Rob Phinney and Steve
 Skene.  Not a bad haul!  Barry Kent would finish second in league
 scoring in '85.  His brother Steve would captain the '85 winner and
 Tabor would be his assistant.  Jason Richards would play six years for
 Whitby and be the OLA's top playmaker in 1989.  Ken Passfield joined
 Dave Holding in goal and would eventually win the starting job for both
 Warrior Minto wins.  One last Gael, John Pipher, had to sit out two
 years (due to being Peterborough property) before he could play for
 Whitby.  If that wasn't enough of a green connection, longtime Whitby
 assistant Elmer Tran was an original Oshawa Gael.  His son Todd was a
 fixture on the Warrior power play.  To top it all, Peter Vipond
 returned to the coaching ranks.  The last Green Gael captain to hoist
 the Minto Cup would set the Whitby ship on course for BC.

 The Warriors went west after winning the OLA without too much
 difficulty.  Out west, they played in a three team Minto tournament
 with New Westminster and Victoria-Esquimalt.  They twice defeated
 Victoria to guarantee themselves a spot in the one game final.  Against
 the Salmonbellies, they lost twice.  The first contest was a 14-13
 thriller.  The rematch was a meaningless 14-10 defeat because Victoria
 had already been eliminated.  When it really counted Whitby bested New
 Westminster 16-8. Captain John Fusco scored five points in his final
 game.  Passfield was named game MVP.  Future NHLer Joe Nieuwendyk won
 the McConaghy with a tournament leading 13 goals and 22 points.