Manitoba Ringette Newsletter
November - Game Time!              November 2014 
In This Issue
Goalie's Corner
RBC Sports Day
Manitoba Host CRCs
Ringette Star
R4U Interview
Quick Links
 
             
  

             
  
Goalie's Corner
             
Jessica Hossack plays Goalie for Selkirk at the U12 level.  This is her 5th year playing Ringette.  Her coaches say "Jessica always has a smile on her face, making her a very positive player no matter what the outcome is on the ice.  Jessica picks up on new skills very quickly and is very respectful towards her coaches and teammates".  Our interview with Jessica:

Q:  What is the best thing about being a Goalie?

A:  When your team congratulates you even after a loss.

 

Q:  Why do you play Ringette?

A:  I love being part of team sports and I'm really excited about being a permanent goalie.

 

Q:  What advice would you give to other girls wanting to try the Goalie position?

A:  If you let in a goal, don't get down on yourself

 

Q:  What other sports do you play?

A:  I enjoy school sports like basketball, badminton, volleyball and soccer.

 

Q:  Who is your favorite coach and why?

A:  I actually have two:

Coach Karen McKay (U10 Assiniboine West) because she's nice but strict, pushed the girls to do their best, really cares for her girls and she encouraged me to become a goalie.

Coach Roman Romaniw (current U12 Selkirk Stingers (Infinity)) because great at teaching me my goalie skills while keeping it really fun!    

 

 

If you are interested in seeing your favorite Goalie featured in an upcoming newsletter, please send your request to:  ringette.admin@sportmanitoba.ca  

RBC Sports Day - Saturday, November 29th

RBC sponsors a Nationwide Sports Day in November.  Be sure to check with your local associations on special events being run in your communities or this link for more information:  RBC Sports Day


 

Friday, November 28th is also Wear Your Jersey Day - be sure to encourage the Ringette player in your house to Wear Their Jersey on November 29th!

2018 Canadian Ringette Championships              
Manitoba Ringette is in the preliminary stages of considering a bid to host the 2018 CRCs (Canadian Ringette Championships) in Manitoba.  Bids must be submitted 30 months prior to the event.

Hosting CRCs would bring teams from across Canada to Manitoba to compete at the U16AA and U19AA divisions as well as the NRL (National Ringette League) Championship.

In order to determine if MRA would proceed with a bid, MRA is looking for volunteers interested in forming the Host Committee Chair and Co-Chair positions.  Local Associations are also very important contributors to an event of this magnitude.

If you are interested in stepping forward as Chair/Co-Chair to lead this exciting initiative, please submit your resume outlining your experience working on projects of this nature to Manitoba Ringette by Friday, December 4, 2014.

Please contact Laralie Higginson, MRA Executive Director, (edringette@sportmanitoba.ca) for more information. 
November Ringette Stars             

Lauren and Renae Bezditny play for the Steinbach Panthers.  Lauren (#87) plays Forward and has played for 5 years and her older sister, Renae (#24) plays Defence and has played for 6 years.  The girls also have an older sister, Alexa, who plays Defence for the Eastman Flames AA U16 team. 

 

Q:  What is the hardest part of playing your position?

Lauren:  Breaking through the defence triangle.

Renae:  Staying back so I don't get caught cheating.

 

Q:  Why do you like playing Ringette?

Lauren:  Because it's challenging, fast and fun and because my sisters play we can talk about the sport we love!

Renae:  Because it's exciting and fast paced.  I like working together with my team to be the best we can be. 

 

Q:  What other sports do you play?

Lauren:  Softball, swimming, and cross country
Renae:  Softball, swimming, cross country, volleyball, track and field. 
 
Q:  Who is your favorite coach and why?

Lauren:  Coach Debbie Peters because she made me work hard and made me better at skating. She helped me love ringette!

Renae:  Coach Debbie Peters because she pushed me to get better and showed me the proper way to play my position. She made me work hard and helped me to love ringette!

 

If you are interested in seeing your favorite Ringette player featured in an upcoming newsletter, please send your request to:  ringette.admin@sportmanitoba.ca

 

R4U Interview               
Many people may not fully understand the Ringette 4 U program unless your player is in this age category.  The following interview with the Youth Development Coordinator and the MRA Executive Director provides insight into the program.

Q:  How is the R4U different from what used to be the Bunnies age level?
A:  The program is different in multiple ways. 

  1. We have created an assessment process in which players are placed into the learning environment that is best suited for their skills and development.

  2. There are 3 learning stages in this program; Red, Purple and Green. Each stage has tailored lessons and game formats designed to create a learning atmosphere to encourage and promote success for each participant. We achieve this by creating attainable goals for each stage. Skating skills, Ring skills and even Goalie development are broken down so that players are taught skills in sequence to help them learn these skills properly and at a faster rate.

  3. It is an instructor led program. We train, certify and evaluate each instructor that is sent out to lead these lessons. These instructors have Ringette experience from being a player and/or a coach in the sport, know the game well, and are trained in breaking skills down to the basics to teach them to children of the R4U age.

Q:  In your opinion, what are some of the best/most useful parts of R4U?
A:  The fact this is an Instructor led program, that we provide the resources (lessons, training and manuals). Players are on the ice with others who are of like skill and at the same level of development. The focus for the players is skill development and participating in game format that best suits their stage of development (LTAD).

 

Q:  In your opinion, what are some aspects that R4U can improve on?

A:  This is a very new program. We have 2 separate groups of people who are constantly evaluating the program, bringing challenges forward and creating solutions. It's a living, breathing program that is always moving and getting better.


 Q:  How do you think focusing more on skills than game play in R4U affects players' experience with the sport? Do you think it could have any relation to increasing or decreasing registration numbers in certain areas?

A:  I believe that this program reaches a new audience. We have a number of associations that are getting younger players involved because we have created an environment in which both the children and the parents can feel comfortable in. Every association is going to be different, I find that associations that promote the program positively, share information with their parents and are involved in their program experience, greatly affect the numbers in their area.


 Q:  Some participants have said that with R4U, there is less of a team aspect to playing ringette than there was with Bunnies. Do you agree or disagree with this? Why?

A:  I disagree. In the old "system" if the player(s) had a new coach or a busy coach, there were some team aspects that the player missed out on because that coach didn't know what to do because in some cases they didn't have the experience. Players in the R4U program are part of a squad, they still play together with their teammates, learn together and have success together.

 

Q: Are R4U facilitators planning to change anything about the program? If not, is there room for changes to R4U in the future?  

A:  The MRA meets almost monthly with an R4U Representative from each of the local associations. We discuss challenges that they are having, ideas that their area has come up with, and logistics of the program. Representatives bring with them feedback from their area, wither it be board members, parents and even players for us to include in our discussion on possible program modifications. The MRA is constantly making improvements to the program, some big and some small, to make it a better experience for everyone involved.

Interested in seeing a particular topic covered in a future Newsletter?  Send your requests to ringette.admin@sportmanitoba.ca