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Barry Burman Shootout takes over O-ville arenas

June 29, 2018   ·   0 Comments

By Brian Lockhart

Local arenas were filled with non-stop action all weekend long as the annual Barry Burman Summer Shoot-out pitted teams from across Ontario in the 20th annual lacrosse tournament.

Lacrosse teams from as far away as Windsor and Ottawa made the trek to O-ville based on the growing reputation of the tournament as a well organized, competitive event.

The tournament’s anniversary coincides with the 40th anniversary of Northmen lacrosse in Orangeville.

“Lacrosse has grown across Ontario over the last several years so we’ve added more divisions,” explained Tournament Director, Brenda Burman. “A few years ago we added the Tyke division so some of our younger players can play. This year we added four teams which are the Paperweight, which is our youngest players in the province so they’re playing for the first time in celebration of the 20th anniversary.”

Each year the tournament is getting bigger as more teams enter.

“We’re getting teams from across Ontario. We have teams all the way from Windsor and all the way across to Ottawa, representing many minor associations. There are over 900 players and coaches participating in this tournament as well as all their families and fans,” Burman said.

In total, there were 44 teams taking part in this year’s tournament across six divisions.

Games started on Friday, June 22, and ran all weekend at Tony Rose arena and the Alder Street arena with the championship games being held on Sunday (June 24).

Almost lacrosse games are played over the course of the weekend.

The continued success of the tournament means a lot of returning teams and players.

“One of the things the Northmen are really proud of is there are a lot of Northmen alumni who would have played in the tournament over the 20 years who are now coaching in this tournament. We work with the local businesses that have different discounts for the players and families who come into town,” Burman explained.

In addition to a successful sporting event, the tournament is a real boost to the local economy as several thousand people pass through Orangeville and spend money on accommodations, food, and other things while they are in town.

The tournament is based on round-robin style of play with every team guaranteed three games.

The fourth game is a semi-final game depending on where they finish in their division with the final games wrapping up on Sunday.

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