Brooklin Redmen announce Matthews, Jackson, Knight, Hossack, Matisz to play in 2016

Mark Matthews is diving in MSL action this coming summer. (Photo: Larry Palumbo, Coyote Magic)

The Brooklin Redmen held their annual awards banquet Sunday night. It is an evening to look back on the past year and honour the top performers in the organization. The big news from the event, though, was a look ahead to the coming 2016 season and the announcement that five key players on the team's list of players plan to be in uniform.

The biggest name is Mark Matthews. The Whitby Warriors grad was the second leading scorer in the National Lacrosse League last winter and helped Canada win a gold medal at the World Indoor Lacrosse Championships in September. Matthews has never actually played for the Redmen other than a pair of playoff games as a junior callup back in 2009. He won a pair of Minto Cups, one with Coquitlam and the other with the Warriors.

Matthews has not played much senior lacrosse; his only action was a partial season with Langley of the WLA in 2013. None the less, the lefty forward has established himself as one of the best players in the world over the past few years and should provide an immediate and massive impact to the Redmen's offence.


The Redmen's two leading scorers from 2014 will both be returning next summer. Shayne Jackson had 22 goals and 35 assists for 57 points in 15 games while Curtis Knight's line was 32/20/52 in 18 games. Knight missed all of 2015 with a knee injury suffered during the 2014 Baggataway Cup Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association championships.

Graeme Hossack was named Brooklin's top defender and most valuable player for 2015 and was the second player taken in the National Lacrosse League entry draft this fall by the Rochester Knighthawks.

2015 was Kiel Matisz's fifth season with the Redmen. He got into six games, scoring 9 goals and 8 assists. He set career highs in 2013 with 14 games played, 21 goals, 29 assists and 50 points. Matisz is a big righty who can play effectively at either end of the floor.

The announcement that these five players intend to play for Brooklin in 2016 suggest the Redmen should be in for a bounce back season after missing the playoffs last summer. Along with some developing young players and other key veterans who should be returning next summer, Brooklin will be expecting to be serious contenders for the MSL championship and the right to try to return the Mann Cup to the league after the Victoria Shamrocks won it out west this fall.