That's the message Barrie Lakeshores Junior A Lacrosse Club head coach Dave Ree is preaching to his players, as he prepares the team for the start of the 2009 Ontario Lacrosse Association regular season this weekend.

"We still have some players yet to come back from American and Canadian universities, but we've had a good turnout, and I like what I've seen so far," said Ree, speaking with The Advance.

The Lakeshores will open play Sunday evening with a road contest in Peterborough.

"We know Peterborough will be tough, so we'll have to be ready for them," said Ree.

Barrie lacrosse fans will get their first look at the transplanted Lakeshores franchise May 15 at 8 p.m., when they host the Burlington Chiefs at the Holly Recreation Centre.

During the summer, the Junior A club was up-rooted from their previous home at the Rama MASK, located outside Orillia and moved south to Barrie.

At the same time, the Junior B Lakeshores were moved north to Rama and re-branded as the Orillia Rama Kings.

"Moving the Junior A team down to Barrie was a necessity. A lot of the players were in an area ranging from Highway 9 north to Huntsville, so it is good to have a lot of the players from the surrounding area now in Barrie," said Ree.

Playing out of Rama last season, the Junior A club posted a 6-15-1 record and finished in eighth place in the OLA standings; missing the playoffs.

Kaleb Wiles is one of the returnees from the 2008 squad, and one of the players Ree is counting on to provide a strong offensive punch.

"Kaleb is looking good and looks like he has kept himself in good shape during the off-season," said Ree.

In 20 games last season, Wiles collected 20 goals and 42 total points to finish second in team scoring.

Two other veterans Ree will be counting on this season will be Michael Gillan and Colin Boucher; the duo combined for 29 points in 2008.

In goal, the Lakeshores will rely on the tandem of Brandon Noble and Andrew Ball to keep games competitive - which will be a little tougher this season thanks to larger nets. The association is introducing goals that are four feet wide and six feet high.

"It's going to be interesting to see how the shooters and the goaltenders adjust to the new nets," said Ree. "I think it is going to bring new excitement to the games."

Ree feels Ball turned in a solid season at the Junior B level last season, thereby earning a promotion to the Junior A level.

If improvement is to come this season, Ree said it will require a total team effort.

"What I like about our team right now are the grinders. Traditionally the teams in the north have struggled and the veteran players know that everyone will have to fight tooth-and-nail for every goal and win this season. There has to be total unselfishness on the floor during every minute of every game," said Ree.