If you have been at a lacrosse rink in Prince Albert over the past two decades, it’s pretty much a certainty you’ve run into Brad and Tyson Fetch.
The two brothers are being inducted into the Prince Albert Sports Hall of Fame into the builder category for the years of dedication and work behind the scenes they’ve done for the sports of lacrosse in the Prince Albert community.
Tyson says he was blown away when he first heard the news that he would be inducted alongside his brother.
“When I first got the phone call to tell me I was inducted, I actually was quite shocked. I’m actually still surprised and honored at the same time. I wasn’t sure she (Hall of Fame president Ellen Grewcock) had the right number when she called me.”
Brad has been involved with lacrosse in Prince Albert since the Prince Albert Box Lacrosse Association formed back in 2002. He served as board president from 2005-2007 and has been the referee in chief since 2008. Brad was the Sask Lacrosse referee in chief from 2014-2017 and was named the official of the year in 2013 and 2015.
“When it first started, I played lacrosse back when I was younger, and when we moved to Saskatchewan here, there was no lacrosse.” Brad explained. “When it was introduced, I jumped on the opportunity to get involved and so then I started coaching. The referee in chief job, that one’s stuck for the longest. In between that time, doing some coaching as well as referee in chief so (I wore) many different hats. It’s grown and the board is solid now and I think they’re doing a good job.”
On the coaching front, Brad would lead Zone 8 to a bronze medal at the Saskatchewan Summer Games in 2008. He also coached Team Saskatchewan at nationals on three separate occasions in 2006, 2007 and 2009.
Brad says the most rewarding aspect of coaching for him was seeing the athletes enjoy the sport.
“To be honest with you, no matter what level I’m coaching or even what sport, I would have to say just the kids coming back. I think it’s often overlooked, it’s all about winning usually and that’s how everybody gets recognized. But for me, we were a fairly new sport, if I can get these kids to come back and continue playing, that’s a win. I’d always take it to heart if a kid didn’t come back. That would be the reward for me if you enjoyed it, come back and play again. I can still say there are kids that I coached still playing today, which is pretty neat.”
Tyson, the youngest of the two brothers, followed in Brad’s footsteps getting involved in the sport of lacrosse. He joined the board as the aboriginal liaison in 2007 and would be named as the president of the board the next year, a role he would hold until 2017.
“I’ve been coaching other sports like soccer and hockey since I was 17, for me to step into a board role was not really anything new,” Tyson says. “What inspired me was my older brother Brad, was the president at the time and his kids already played. I’d watched them play a few games in a few years and then it was my son’s turn to start playing. I didn’t necessarily ask to be the president. I won it by default. I didn’t want to see what all the hard work that everyone else had put in my brother included. I didn’t want to see it just to die, so I took over.”
Tyson also made a name for himself in the coaching ranks as well. His coaching resume includes being an assistant coach for the Pee Wee team who represented Saskatchewan at nationals, the head coach for the U19 Women in the 2017 North American Indigenous games.
Tyson started out as an assistant coach with the Prairie Gold Lacrosse League (PGLL)’s Prince Albert Predators during the 2011 season and took over the head coaching role in 2017. In just his second season behind the bench, the Predators would capture their first ever championship.
“I coached for many years, I started out as a door slinger and just learning the game.” Tyson explains. “I just tried to absorb as many things as I could. The things that I loved about it were working with players, seeing them develop and start to understand the game as the years moved on. I think it became a lot easier to coach in the later years. The young men were a little more studious. They understood the game a little bit more. I credit that to all the years and hours of minor league coaches that had the Predators before for teaching the ways of the game.”
Lucas Wells is the current head coach of the Prince Albert Predators, who won the PGLL title last season. Growing up playing lacrosse, Wells was a goaltender and was coached by Brad. Wells played for Tyson on the Predators and served as an assistant coach under him before taking over the role as head coach.
Wells says he was thrilled to hear the news that the brothers will be inducted into the PA Sports Hall of Fame because of all they have done for the sport of lacrosse.
“I couldn’t be happier for them. They deserve it all. It’s a thankless job and a lot of people don’t realize the amount of work that goes on behind the scenes, running an organization and being one of the first groups of people to try and grow an association. There were presidents before them, but they took it to that next level and they’ve grown into the game to what it is today. We’re just trying to continue on with their legacy right now.”
The 32nd annual induction banquet for the Prince Albert Sports Hall of Fame will take place on Saturday evening at the Ches Leach Lounge. The event begins at 6 p.m.
sports@paherald.sk.ca
