First Nations Junior B Lacrosse League

The First Nations Junior B Lacrosse League (formerly Iroquois Nations Junior B Lacrosse League) is a box lacrosse league sanctioned by the First Nations Lacrosse Association. The league was formed in 2014 with the restructuring of the Canadian Lacrosse Association. Four teams competed in the inaugural season.

First Nations Junior B Lacrosse League
FNJBLL
SportBox lacrosse
Founded2014
No. of teams4
CountryUnited States
Canada
Most recent
champion(s)		Seneca WarChiefs (2019)
Most titlesSeneca WarChiefs (6)

The league winner earns a spot in the Founders' Cup, the national championship of Junior B lacrosse in North America.

History

The first game in INJBLL history was contested between Tonawanda and Seneca on May 24, 2014[1] at Cattaraugus Community Center. Seneca won the game 27-4. Brandon Brooks (7 goals, 6 assists) was named Player of the Game.

The WarChiefs finished a perfect 12-0 regular season and went on to win the playoff title over Onondaga 3-1[2][3] (best-of 5 series). Seneca finished as Silver medalist at the 2014 Founders Cup, falling 14-7[4] to the Ontario Junior B Lacrosse League champion Six Nations Rebels.

In 2015 the league joined forces with the Montreal Junior Lacrosse League to for a 7-team league, renamed First Nations Junior B Lacrosse League.[5] Teams play each other twice in the regular season for a 12-game schedule.

Fédération de crosse du Québec (FCQ) member teams Montreal Jr. Shamrocks and Vermont Jr. Voyageurs are not eligible to represent the FNLA at Founders Cup.

On May 16, 2015 the Montreal Jr. Shamrocks won the first-ever FNJBLL game, 6-5[6] over Kanehsatake Warriors. The game was played at Aréna Kevin-Lowe in Lachute, Québec.

After playing eight games in the 2015 season the Jr. Voyageurs withdrew from the league, citing player commitments.

Seneca repeated as league champion in 2015 winning the two-day playoff tournament on July 24-25 at Cattaraugus Community Center. The WarChiefs defeated Tonawanda Jr. Braves 29-3 in a semifinal before downing Onondaga Jr. Redhawks in the championship game.

Kanehsatake Jr. Warriors went on hiatus for the 2016 season leaving the league with four teams. Seneca WarChiefs dominated the competition finishing a perfect 10-0 regular season, outscoring opponents 210-59. The WarChiefs went on to sweep Onondaga in a two games (best-of 3 playoff) to win their third-consecutive league championship.

Teams
Team City/Area Arena Head Coach First FNJBLL season
Mohawk Medicine Men Massena, New York/Akwesasne St. Lawrence Centre Sports Complex Kariwate Mitchell 2017
Onondaga Jr. Redhawks Nedrow, New York Tsha’Hon’nonyen’dakhwa’ Mike Abrams 2014
Seneca WarChiefs Irving, New York Cattaraugus Community Center Darris Kilgour 2014
Tyendinaga Thunder Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory Deseronto Arena Duane Jacobs 2018

Former teams

Kanehsatake Jr. Warriors (2015)

Montreal Jr. Shamrocks (2015)

Rochester J-Hawks (2014-16)

Tonawanda Jr. Braves (2014-17)

Vermont Jr. Voyageurs (2015)

Champions
Season Winner Runner-up Finals result
2014 Seneca WarChiefs Onondaga Jr. Redhawks 3-1 (best-of 5)
2015 Seneca WarChiefs Onondaga Jr. Redhawks 21-15
2016 Seneca WarChiefs Onondaga Jr. Redhawks 2-0 (best-of 3)
2017 Seneca WarChiefs Mohawk Medicine Men 3-0 (best-of 5)
2018 Seneca WarChiefs Tyendinaga Thunder 2-1 (best-of 3)
2019 Seneca WarChiefs Onondaga Jr. Redhawks 3-2 (best-of 5)

Founders' Cup
Season Team Results
2014 Seneca WarChiefs Silver medal (lost to Six Nations Rebels)
2015 Seneca WarChiefs Silver medal (lost to Akwesasne Indians)
2016 Seneca WarChiefs Bronze medal (defeated Calgary Chill)
2017 Seneca WarChiefs Bronze medal (defeated Manitoba Blizzard)
2018 Mohawk Medicine Men (host)

Seneca WarChiefs

 7th Place

Silver medal (lost to Elora Mohawks)

2019 Seneca WarChiefs 5th Place (defeated Saskatchewan SWAT)

References
  1. "Home Opener". Seneca WarChiefs. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  2. "Seneca WarChiefs win ILA championship". Salamanca Press. 5 August 2014.
  3. "WarChiefs Win ILA Championship". Seneca WarChiefs. Retrieved 5 August 2014.
  4. "Six Nations Rebels win Founders Cup". Brantford Expositor. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
  5. "Exciting Season Expected in FNJBLL". Indian Time. 12 March 2015.
  6. "Inaugural First Nations Junior B Lacrosse League Season is Underway". Lacrosse All Stars. 19 May 2015.
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