From that first introduction in training camp, I was a little surprised by the serious work ethic of everyone involved, especially the older U.S. team veterans. While John and Joel White and Matt Danowski may have surprised themselves a bit by finding themselves on the field at all in 2019, it is likely safe to say that they were even more surprised to find our Chrome team standing at 0-4 early. Two posts in OT and four losses by five goals total was not much consolation. Everyone needed to play better.
In our fifth game against Andy Towers’ Chaos team, we found ourselves down 7-1 at the end of the first quarter and in desperate need of a spark. Changing goalies, especially from a veteran, can be a tough enough decision for a coach.
I am glad that I was not aware at that very moment that John Galloway had never been removed from a game IN HIS LIFE.
We went to Brett Queener, he played very well, and we battled back only to come up short again in OT.
I called John early last week to inform him that we would start Brett in the Chaos rematch and that our 0-5 team really needed his leadership going forward. He apologized for not having played better, thought going to Brett was the right decision and emphasized that he was “all in.”
We had a good, spirited practice the night before our game and, with all his teammates eyes on him, John was every bit the positive influence we could have hoped for.
We started out well in this most recent game. Brett settled in, and we took a lead into the second quarter. It was early in the quarter, however, when a collision around the goal put Brett down and out of the game.
John jumped up, flew out onto the field and was ready to go. We went on to win our first game by the most decisive score in this brief PLL history.
There were certainly a number of factors that contributed to our winning this pivotal game, but John’s response to the unexpected adversity in his playing career was an important one. When I called earlier in the week to tell him he would not be starting, I also mentioned to him that over the course of his young head coaching career at Jacksonville, he would find that this experience made him more relatable to his players.
He found out firsthand what any number of them would go through during their careers. Those players would now look at him and think, “If he could handle this, I can handle it.”
When I found John in the locker room after our 19-11 victory at Audi Field in Washington, D.C, I stuck out my hand to say, “Congrats and thanks.” He smiled at my next sentiment. “Life can sure be a peculiar animal at times.”
Dom Starsia, a National Lacrosse Hall of Famer, is one of the winningest coaches in NCAA history and one of six head coaches for the inaugural season of the Premier Lacrosse League (@DomStarsiaPLL). He was a two-time All-American defenseman at Brown and played for the U.S. team in 1978.