Last week, the operative word from Curtis Rukavina was “finish.”
That is exactly what the varsity Mississauga Warriors (Varsity) did last week in Hamilton against the Ironmen. Only needing a win to secure the last playoff spot in the Adam Conference, the Warriors erased a 12 point first half deficit to win 35-34.
“I’m proud of the way our guys responded,” said Rukavina. Β “We’ve had a tough couple of weeks and needed this game badly.”
“The first half didn’t go the way we wanted, but they showed a lot of heart and finished the job.”
Now that the Warriors have a better understanding of how to finish, Rukavina is hoping that the team can put together a strong performance for an entire four quarters in this week’s match-up against the Niagara Spears.
With the last playoff spot secured by the Warriors and an opportunity to rest key guys in Week 9, Rukavina is opting instead to play his starters in order to keep his guys sharp before the start of the second season.
“Coming into this game I was thinking maybe we should rest some guys,”added the Warriors Head Coach. “But we didn’t finish strong in Week 7, we started off slow in Week 8 and we snuck into the playoffs.”
“So I think it would be better for our players to keep the foot on the gas considering we have yet to put together a complete game.”
The Warriors are hoping this is the right thought process, considering the team has struggled to gain momentum all season long. As well, the Spears could be a team the Warriors end up seeing in the playoffs, making it beneficial to test their mettle and possibly pick up a victory against the Spears.
With that in mind, Rukavina believes he has yet to see the best from the Warriors.
“Last week I wanted them to finish, now the message for these guys is to leave no doubts,” said Rukavina. “We have a difficult road to the championship, but we believe that we can take the field with anyone we come across if we put it all together.”
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