Local Sports

New West leads the Mann Cup series with Peterborough 1-0 after a thrilling 12-10 overtime victory

A 25-4 record says a lot about a team, although it doesn’t say it all.

As New Westminster Salmonbellies’ head coach bills it, the matchup between his team and the Peterborough Lakers will be a case of speed vs. speed. It’s enough to make Usain Bolt reconsider his retirement.

When Yanni Angelopolous and Isaiah James take their positions on the field, there is a ripple effect that usually involves dynamic physics.

For the next two weeks or more, New Westminster will be Mann Cup Central.

The game plan, right from the start of training camp, was to run. New West senior Salmonbellies head coach Steve Goodwin repeatedly said fitness would be at the heart of their strategy when it came to outlasting the competition this season.

Sun tans, Mickey Mouse ears and a football win – last week’s tour of southern California saw the New Westminster Hyacks cover all the bases. Buoyed by a 22-9 victory over Linfield Christian last week in Temecula, Calif.

The New Westminster Salmonbellies proved built for endurance, putting a four-goal deficit in the rearview mirror en route to a 13-11 victory Sunday over the Victoria Shamrocks at Queen's Park Arena.

On the heels of a dramatic finish to Game 4 on Friday, the New Westminster Salmonbellies and Victoria Shamrocks' championship series has reached the point of The Final Countdown.

They may have been young but not so restless following a good showing at last month’s B.C. Athletics Junior Development championships in Surrey.