Gary Groob
All Lacrosse All The Time – A Division of Edge of Philly Sports Network
2021-2022 Record:
The Georgia Swarm went 9-9 last season. They were tied for fourth with Albany & Philadelphia, but due to tie break scenarios didn’t make the playoffs.
Key Losses:
Chad Tutton, Ethan Walker, Mike Poulin, Joel White, and Jordan Hall. The latter three players all due to retirements.
Key Additions:
Mike Manley, Andrew Kew, Brett Dobson, Brady Kearnan, Teioshantateh McComber, & Ryan Lanchbury
With Lyle Thompson in the lineup you can never count the Swarm out. Last season the Swarm never seemed to get on a steady roll keeping momentum up. The result was not making the playoffs. This year Georgia is looking for more consistency, as well as other outlets rather than just relying on Lyle Thompson for its offense.
Offense:
Georgia made a splash trading Ethan Walker and a first round draft pick to Albany for Andrew Kew, and goaltender Ethan Woods. Kew is expected to be as important to the Swarm offense as Lyle Thompson is.
Although Jordan Hall has retired, there is still plenty of offensive prowess on Georgia. Shayne Jackson, Miles Thompson, Brendan Bomberry, Stephan Leblanc, Jordan MacIntosh, Ryan Lanchbury, as well as Lyle Thompson, and Andrew Kew can put a lot of goals on the scoreboard.
Defense:
Joel White retiring, and Chad Tutton signing with the Philadelphia Wings are big blows to the Swarm. With the addition of Mike Manley, as well as Kason Tarbell, Adam Wiedemann, Robert Hudson, TJ Comizio, and Bryan Cole, this is still a tough and skilled unit.
The transition game will be a big part of the Swarm game plan. Bryan Cole, Will Cecile, Ryan MacSpadyen, Robert Hudson, Kason Tarbell, and Jordan MacIntosh can all move the ball up the floor quickly and efficiently.
Goaltending:
With Mike Poulin calling it a career, Craig Wende has his chance to be the number one goalie with Brett Dobson, and Dustin Hill battling for the backup job.
In Summation:
Although this looks like the beginning of a rebuild, there are enough good pieces to make this a very dangerous, and quite entertaining team to watch this season. While I don’t think they are top three in the East, this team can and will battle diligently for a playoff spot.
Don’t forget to check us out every Sunday night at 9pm (ET)
Gary Groob has been involved with Lacrosse for the majority of his life, whether playing, coaching, or covering the sport for the media.
An avid fan, with a real drive about helping to “grow the game”, Gary became part of podcasts about the game in 2010. Through the podcasts, Mr. Groob was given an opportunity to write about lacrosse, and the rest as they say, is history.
Through many miles (flying and driving) Gary has made inroads with the National Lacrosse League, Major Series Lacrosse League, the Ontario Lacrosse Association, as well as the Arena Lacrosse League, covering the leagues, their teams, and players, working for, and in concert with all of them.
In the year 2020, Mr. Groob was made the media person for the Arena Lacrosse League, voted onto the board of directors of the Brampton Excelsiors Lacrosse Club, as well as being made administrator of the Lacrosse page “Global Lacrosse” with a membership of 9000 members in over 90 Countries. Gary was also made an administrator of Lacrosse History Past Present and Future in 2022.
Mr. Groob co-hosts a weekly Lacrosse show on Spanglish Sports World, and ZingoTV channel 250, as well as writes a weekly lacrosse column for La Portada Canada News (both in print, and online).
Gary also hosts a Lacrosse talk show and podcast for The Edge of Philly Sports Network, seen live Sunday nights at 9pm (ET), and archived on the Edge of Philly YouTube page, as well as Spotify.
Mr. Groob’s other sports interests include Hockey, Football, Boxing, Wrestling, and Baseball, competing competitively in Boxing and Wrestling for many years.
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