Gary Groob
Lax Philly – A Division of Edge of Philly Sports Network
The Georgia Swarm (4-6) visited the Nest at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia to face the HalifaxThunderbirds (6-1). Finally able to play in front of thier home fans for the first time in months, the Thunderbirds were hoping they would be able to give them what they wanted…a home “W”. Georgia’s offense have been one of the most dangerous in the league, but a defense that has a propensity to give up a lot of shots was hurting the Swarm’s chances so far this year. They were hoping to tighten things up, making this a game for the ages.
The goalie matchup had Mike Poulin in net for Georgia vs. Warren Hill for the Thunderbirds.
Georgia got out to a good start, but Halifax was just too much for them. The Thunderbirds came away with a convincing 15-10 victory.
To the game…
The first quarter got rolling when Stephen Keogh (3g,1a) beat Mike Poulin from point blank range at 1:49, followed by Austin Shanks (6g,1a) catching the top corner just 0:17 seconds later giving Halifax a quick 2-0 lead.
Georgia cut the lead in half when Brendan Bomberry (2g,3a) fired through a screen, beating Warren Hill at 3:41 off a Jordan MacIntosh pass, then tying the game up with a Lyle Thompson (2g,3a) goal, who blasted it high to low at 5:40. The Swarm took the lead on the power play with a behind the back pass from Ethan Walker to Jordan MacIntosh (1g,5a), who also shot behind the back beating Hill at 7:23.
Halifax tied the game up when Cody Jamieson found Kyle Jackson (2g,1a) in front of the net who made no mistake at 9:46, then took the lead in transition when David Brock (1g,0a) scored off a Colton Armstrong pass at 10:50.
Lyle Thompson tied the game once again converting a Jordan MacIntosh feed with a great individual effort at 11:49, but Cody Jamieson (1g,5a) got it back converting a Clarke Petterson pass on the power play at 12:36. Austin Shanks scored his second of the night beating Mike Poulin to the shortside at 14:45 finishing this frantic quarter.
After one quarter, Halifax 6 Georgia 4.
Second Quarter:
Georgia kept the pace from the previous quarter and were rewarded with a goal when Jordan Hall (2g,1a) converted a Brendan Bomberry pass at 1:44. Austin Shanks scored his third of the night when his shot trickled behind Poulin off a gorgeous feed from Cody Jamieson at 5:14 restoring the two goal Halifax lead.
Kyle Jackson scored his second of the night when he quick sticked an Austin Shanks pass at 7:28.
Georgia made a goalie change at this point replacing Mike Poulin with Craig Wende, who was tested early and often. Craig was equal to the task, making a number of exceptional saves shutting the Thunderbirds down.
Halifax finally solved Wende while on a two man advantage. Austin Shanks scored his fourth of the night off a Cody Jamieson pass at 11:15.
Georgia scored in transition when Wende fed a long lead pass to Jordan MacIntosh, who then fed Shayne Jackson (2g,3a) burying it at 13:14, but was answered back when Clarke Petterson (1g,6a) scored at 13:45.
At the half, Halifax 10 Georgia 6.
Third Quarter:
Halifax opened the third quarter with two goals inside the first minute. Chris Boushy (1g,2a) converted a Clarke Petterson pass at 0:25 seconds, followed by Stephen Keogh scoring his second of the night off a Chris Boushy pass at 0:49 seconds. Keogh then scored his third of the night on the power play converting a Cody Jamieson pass at 3:38. Jordan Hall scored for Georgia off a Lyle Thompson pass at 8:54.
Things got chippy near the end of the quarter with Ethan Riggs, Chris Boushy, and Colton Armstrong taking roughing penalties.
Fourth Quarter:
Austin Shanks scored his fifth of the night for the Thunderbirds off a Kyle Jackson pass at 1:06, but Brendan Bomberry answered back for the Swarm with a laser of a shot at 3:25.
Austin Shanks got his sock-trick, scoring his sixth of the night off a Graeme Hossack pass at 4:39, increasing the Thunderbirds lead to 15-8.
The Swarm kept fighting with Bryan Cole (1g,0a) scoring off a Brendan Bomberry pass at 10:39, followed by Shayne Jackson scoring on a great individual effort at 13:59.
Final score, Halifax 15 Georgia 10.
Three Stars:
- 1. Austin Shanks
- 2. Warren Hill
- 3. Clarke Petterson
Of Note:
- Shots on goal favored Halifax 50-45.
- Jake Withers was a monster on faceoffs for Halifax going 22-6.
- Georgia went 4 for 6 on the power play.
- Halifax went 3 for 6 on the power play.
Top Scorers
Georgia:
Brendan Bomberry 2g, 3a
Shayne Jackson 2g, 3a
Lyle Thompson 2g, 2a
Halifax:
Austin Shanks 6g, 1a
Clarke Petterson 1g, 6a
Cody Jamieson 1g, 5a
Georgia’s next game is at home vs. the Rochester Knighthawks, Friday March 4th at 7:30pm (ET).
Halifax’s next game is in Philadelphia against the Wings, Saturday February 26th, game time is 7:30pm (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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