Fri, October 1, 2004
NLL season in trouble
LACROSSE LEAGUE SAYS NO NEW CBA BY TONIGHT AND IT'S ALL OVER
By MIKE KOREEN, TORONTO SUN
THE IMPROBABLE success story of the Toronto Rock is on the verge of coming to a nasty end. The National Lacrosse League announced yesterday it will cancel its 2004-05 season if a new collective bargaining agreement with its players is not signed by tonight at midnight.
PESSIMISTIC
Realistically, NLL commissioner Jim Jennings said, a cancelled season would be a "death blow," for the 11-team professional indoor box lacrosse league.
"I'm not optimistic at all," Jennings said last night. "I don't think we are going to have a season."
Professional Lacrosse Players' Association president Peter Schmitz met with player reps last night and was leaning toward sending two proposals to the league today. One would be a one-year deal, under primarily league terms, while the other would be a multi-year deal, under PLPA terms. The league's final proposal is a six-year deal.
"Am I concerned? The same way one might be if a terrorist put a gun to your head," Schmitz said. I think (the deadline) is a mistake, but we will continue to negotiate. Our intention is to get a deal done quickly, but we're not going to be held to an Oct. 1 deadline if it's a deal we can't recommend to our membership."
NLL season in trouble
LACROSSE LEAGUE SAYS NO NEW CBA BY TONIGHT AND IT'S ALL OVER
By MIKE KOREEN, TORONTO SUN
THE IMPROBABLE success story of the Toronto Rock is on the verge of coming to a nasty end. The National Lacrosse League announced yesterday it will cancel its 2004-05 season if a new collective bargaining agreement with its players is not signed by tonight at midnight.
PESSIMISTIC
Realistically, NLL commissioner Jim Jennings said, a cancelled season would be a "death blow," for the 11-team professional indoor box lacrosse league.
"I'm not optimistic at all," Jennings said last night. "I don't think we are going to have a season."
Professional Lacrosse Players' Association president Peter Schmitz met with player reps last night and was leaning toward sending two proposals to the league today. One would be a one-year deal, under primarily league terms, while the other would be a multi-year deal, under PLPA terms. The league's final proposal is a six-year deal.
"Am I concerned? The same way one might be if a terrorist put a gun to your head," Schmitz said. I think (the deadline) is a mistake, but we will continue to negotiate. Our intention is to get a deal done quickly, but we're not going to be held to an Oct. 1 deadline if it's a deal we can't recommend to our membership."
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