Behind the scenes at Saskatchewan Rush home games there are a few young boys who are playing a major role for the National Lacrosse League (NLL) team.
By 11 p.m. CT at SaskTel Centre, the fans have gone home and the professional athletes have left but the ball boys are still at work.
“Basically, we fill up water bottles for them, clean up their dressing room, like towels and then we get to go on the field sometimes with them,” Rush ball boy Gabriel Cote said.
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The majority of the Rush staff don’t live in Saskatoon which means the local boys start helping out a day before game day.
“In the morning we usually get here seven o’clock, go until about 12 o’clock hauling all the stuff out and then we come back the morning of the game,” Rush ball boy Ethan Ksner said.
“They really make a huge different to the team. Our job is to remove distraction for the team so they can show up and play and those boys are a massive part of that,” Rush equipment manager Marc Bourret said.
Last year, Ksner was watching a Rush practice, just hoping to get an autograph. Then his dream came true.
“Me and my friend went to their first ever practice, and we were just giving them all knuckles and then the manager walked up to us and asked if we wanted to be the ball boy,” Ksner said.
“My heart stopped for a long, long time.”
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For every home game, the boys put in about 11 hours of work.
“It’s harder than it looks. Everybody thinks that we just do water bottles and go on the field and have fun. But we actually do lots of stuff for the Rush,” Ksner said.
The young lacrosse players don’t get paid but it’s all worth it to them.
“They teach us how to shoot and catch a lot, like if we’re doing something wrong they’ll point it out and they’ll help us with it and stuff like that,” Rush ball boy Reid Murphy said.
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The goal for the boy is to play professional lacrosse one day. But does Rush head coach and GM Derek Keenan know about the young hopefuls?
“I’ve talked to him a couple times, nothing much about me getting on the team yet, but I will, it’s coming,” Murphy said.
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