Jeff Cornwall has had some special moments throughout his NLL career, including playing alongside his brother Travis with the Saskatchewan Rush, and winning three NLL Cups with Edmonton and Saskatchewan. Now, he’s adding another milestone to his list: playing for his hometown team.
“It’s one of the cooler things I’ll get to do in my career,” Cornwall said.
As the Warriors home opener approaches, Cornwall is excited about experiencing the support of the home crowd.
“Every time I’ve played in Vancouver I’ve always been getting cheered against – or booed sometimes – so it will be really cool to have the fans on the same side as me when playing in Rogers Arena and really looking forward to getting the opportunity to go out there in front of all the people in our lovely lacrosse community and just give it my all,” Cornwall said.
In addition to the fans, it’s a novelty to have his family able to watch half of his games this season. In previous years, Cornwall’s cheering section for away games in Vancouver would include nearly 30 people, led by his mom and dad.
“My parents are unbelievable supporters,” Cornwall shared, noting they would also make it out to at least one road game each season while.
To no one’s surprise, his parents have RSVP’d “yes” to every Warriors’ home game this year.
His wife used to hit the road with him for one or two games in years prior and is hoping to see all of his games this season, though it depends on their youngest family member.
Cornwall and his wife have a seven-month-old daughter and are working through sleep training, so they’re hoping she’s a quick study like her dad and will have her routine down soon.
This season, he will play in front of family and friends almost as many times as he’s played in Vancouver in away games throughout his career. He says he’s been getting even more engagement from his friends and family to attend games.
“Getting to play in my home city, that support has expanded tremendously now that we have more than one game in Vancouver,” he shared. “It’s pretty cool to have my family and friends all really wanting to support me, especially at a later point in my career.”
While he enjoyed the travelling aspect of playing in the NLL, he sees a major advantage in staying local. With one full-time job, a part-time job and a young family, reducing travel means more time for what matters most.
“Being at home now and getting to watch and support my little one growing up is a pretty unbelievable experience,” Cornwall said.
The benefits extend to his professional life as well. Many of his teammates live locally which makes it easier to get together to workout and spend time together.
“We have a lot of guys who live in Vancouver, so it just makes it that much easier to stay in constant conversation with them. Whether we’re going out for field sessions or doing training throughout the week as a group, I think it’s a really unique thing to experience rather than being apart all week and seeing each other once a week or once every two weeks. We get that continuation to build the connections that you need to be able to take a team far.”
With a big reach in the lacrosse community, Cornwall has been helping grow the game of lacrosse at the grassroots level for over 15 years. He knows the impact that professional lacrosse coaches can have on a player at a young age and has coached Warriors’ defenceman Brayden Laity on the Port Coquitlam Saints Junior A team that went to the Minto Cup last season.
He loves having fans at games who are there to share that same passion for the sport that he does. He hopes to inspire young lacrosse players through his play – being a reliable teammate, handling pressure, and being part of a tight-knit group.
“I hope the kids in the stands can see how much I truly love being out there, playing the sport that has brought me so much, and competing with my teammates,” Cornwall said. “Those are the best things in life.”
