MLL PREVIEW
Nationals during their time in Toronto and then Hamilton. After the franchise moved to south Florida and was rechristened the Launch, it dealt Merrill to Boston along with midfielder Martin Cahill for defenseman PT Ricci and midfielder Lee Coppersmith. Suddenly, Boston’s defense received a substantial upgrade, and Merrill and Sweeney will be reunited in the field game for the first time since college, besides a few all-star games. (They’ve played together for the Philadelphia Wings of the indoor National Lacrosse League the last two years.) The Cannons allowed an MLL-worst 202 goals in 2013 despite a rotation of defensemen that included Sweeney, a two-time U.S. team standout, 2014 U.S. team hopeful Mitch Belisle, Brian Farrell and Scott Ratliff. Boston traded Farrell to the Ohio Machine in September for defenseman Diogo Godoi and a third-round draft pick — which it used on Virginia midfielder Rob Emery — and used its first-round draft pick on Virginia defenseman Scott McWilliams.
But the Cannons made the biggest splash with Merrill. “We weren’t in dire need, I would say, but he’s replacing a couple guys and he certainly adds some value,” Sweeney said. “That sounds brash, and I know people don’t like to hear that. Everybody wants to be a nice guy, but the reality is he’s better than the guy who was playing his position. It’s just the truth.” Merrill also joins a veteran team with stars who were major
parts of Boston’s 2011 title run and have been with the franchise for several years. Sweeney came to Boston in 2009, as did Mitch Belisle and Ryan Boyle. The Cannons picked Paul Rabil first overall in 2008, and attackman Matt Poskay has been with the franchise since his college career ended in 2006. That’s a decidedly different element for Merrill, who was
effectively a hometown star the Nationals built their defense around over the last several years. “For me, it’s going to be a bit of an odd situation,” Merrill said. “It’s a really established group. It’s going to be kind of refreshing to be around other strong leaders like Kyle and Ryan Boyle and Paul Rabil and Mitch Belisle, among some others. When you have a group that’s all in it for that reason, a veteran group that kind of senses this is the window, you want to take advantage.”
And make no mistake, adding Merrill was a move designed to immediately bolster Boston’s chances of chasing down a championship or two with this core group in place. Sweeney, entering his 12th season in the league, questioned how many championship opportunities remain in his lacrosse life. “Definitely the back nine of my career has started, and I know that my days are numbered,” said Sweeney, who turned 33 in April. “I don’t necessarily believe it’s from ability. It’s just my mental capacity to continue to play the game. I heard Tom Brady say that it is not ability, but the second the butterflies and nervousness are gone, that’s when it’s time to go. I’m not there yet, but you can sense it coming. I know Brodie’s in a similar situation. I definitely know every game could be the last game, and I’m never going to not try to win a championship. This season’s no different.”
Reunited with his old college teammate, Merrill plans to do
his part to make Boston’s big move pay off. “We’re both at the latter stages of our careers,” Merrill said, “and you start to appreciate the process and start to appreciate how hard it is to win and how meaningful it can be.” LM
64 LACROSSE MAGAZINE May 2014>> A Publication of US Lacrosse
©GEORGETOWN; ©MICHAEL SAHADI; ©JOHN STROHSACKER
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