Obscure Sports Pseudo-Weekly

From the great country that brought you Nokia, Apocalyptica and Teemu Selanne, comes a sport that gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "my wife is on my back". In the small Finnish town of Sonkajärvi, roughly 400 kilometres north of Helsinki, you'll find men actually carrying their wives on their backs.

They may be headed to the playoffs, but it was not quite the home-stand swan song the Badgers wanted on Senior , but. Prior to their Feb. 12 match-up with the Guelph Gryphons, Brock honoured five graduating team members in a pre-game ceremony. Players Ally Fast (St.

Five minutes for fighting

After a 161-day lockout, the NBA announced a shortened 66-game season that began Dec. 25. The National Basketball Association is back and ratings are up, thanks largely to a group of superstars that harkens back to the early ‘90s. There's also always games on, as cramming a season into four months means back-to-back-to-back games, as well as plenty of five game weeks.

The Brock University Men's Basketball team ran into some fierce competition Feb. 10-11 in the form of the Lakehead Thunderwolves. Despite the home crowd at the Bob Davis Gymnasium, the Badgers would lose both games, falling to 9-11 on the season, creating some urgency with only two games remaining in the regular season.

Grindin' my Gears

I don't know about you, but when I think about Football, I absolutely do not think about Madonna. Frankly, the Super Bowl is everything wrong with the commercialism of sports, in that the game itself seemingly takes a back seat to the surrounding festivities.

It's Miller Time

With the NHL trade deadline quickly  approaching, teams are gearing up for another run at the Stanley Cup. Unlike last year however, there is a shadow hanging over this offseason. That shadow is the expiration of the collective bargaining agreement which officially ends Sept.

Women's Wrestling Congratulations to the Women's Wrestling team on capturing the 2012 OUA Championship, their fifth consecutive provincial title. The No. 1-ranked Brock medaled in all eight weight classes, with four gold, two silver and two bronze. Grabbing gold were Jade Parsons (Orillia, ON), Natasha Chang (Cayuga, ON), Michelle Fazzari (Caledonia, ON) and Rebecca Levitt (Toronto, ON).

The Brock University Women's Basketball team bolstered their team record to 14-7 in the OUA with a pair of wins over the Lakehead Thunderwolves Feb. 10-11 in the friendly confines of the Bob Davis Gymnasium. The first game of the double header took overtime to settle, but the Badgers came out on top 77-70 after outscoring the T-Wolves 9-2 in the extra frame.

Family Ties

It's not uncommon for family members to pursue similar careers. It makes perfect sense. Family connections provide expertise, experience and network connections through which to get your foot in the door. There are so many people whose first employment opportunity comes from a parent or adult relative.

Obscure Sports Pseudo-Weekly

Chess and Boxing seemingly exist at opposite ends of the athletic spectrum. Correction – Chess and Boxing definitely exist at opposite ends of the athletic spectrum. The game of kings and the sweet science share more in common than one would think, though.

The Niagara Ice Dogs and the Brampton Battalion have developed quite the rivalry lately. The two have been in a back and forth struggle for top spot in the Central Division. Most recently, Niagara has edged ahead, making the Feb. 4 game against the Battalion a great opportunity to put some space between the two teams in the standings.

With the New England Patriots looking to exact some revenge on the Giants for ruining a perfect season in 2008, Eli Manning and his New York teammates mounted a fourth quarter comeback to snatch another Lombardi Trophy from the hands of Tom Brady and Bill Belicheck.

The Brock University Men's Hockey team (13-12-1) were streaking towards the playoffs, having won six of their last eight games since the New Year. That momentum may have cooled off abruptly, however, with two tough losses on Feb. 3-4. The Badgers took on the Lakehead Thunderwolves (17-9-0) on Feb.

With more starters in the stands than on the floor, the Brock Badgers (9-7 OUA) were in for a long night against the No. 6-ranked Wilfred Laurier University Golden Hawks (14-2 OUA) on Jan. 25 at the Bob Davis Gymnasium. Of the 16 players on Brock's reported roster, only 10 were active for the mid-week game.

It was a slow start but a dramatic finish on Jan. 25 as the Brock University Women's Basketball (11-6 OUA) team lost 69-68 to the Wilfred Laurier University Golden Hawks (11-5 OUA) at the Bob Davis Gymnasium. Overall the game was won and lost from the charity stripe, both literally on the game's final shots as well as emblematically throughout the match.

Five minutes for fighting

Imagine waking up to the news that your daughter has died in a tragic accident. Now imagine that horrific news was accompanied with an invoice for $200,000. That was the nightmarish reality for Sarah Burke's family after the Canadian freestyle skier sustained critical injuries during a training run in Utah.

The Badgers are getting hot at just the right time. For a team that once struggled to find any sort of consistency during the first half of the season, the Men's Hockey team is now surging up the standings after winning five of the last six games, and seven of their last nine.

It's Miller time

The All-Star format in professional sports can leave a lot to be desired for each league's respective fans. The concept of a game with the best-on-best format is a tease in that the quality of play will be at that of a higher level. The reality, however, is that they are a caricature of the games they represent.

From the front office

In a rematch of one of the greatest upsets in Super Bowl history, Super Bowl XLVI will see the New England Patriots take on the New York Giants. Four years ago, the Giants upset the 18-0 Patriots to win their third Super Bowl in franchise history, halting New England's pursuit of a perfect season.

From the front office

With the speculation now all but confirmed, the 2013 NHL Winter Classic and Detroit Red Wings will host the Toronto Maple Leafs at the University of Michigan next year. This would be the sixth year of the Winter Classic, with Detroit now participating for the second time.

The Brock University Men's Hockey team was not going to be accused of getting ahead of themselves, even if a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity awaited. The Brock Badgers won a wild back-and-forth contest over the York Lions by a score of 5-4 on Jan. 20.

Thought I'd take a quick look at the Niagara Region's top Male and Female Basketball prospects. Special thanks to Brock University Coaches Brad Rootes, Si Khounviseth and Joel Whitty; and Ridley College Assistant Coach Josh Doan for their input as to player strengths and development areas needed to better compete at the University level.

Five minutes for fighting

Defence still matters. It might seem strange in the modern National Football League (NFL) where both quarterbacks and wide receivers are protected like precious Fabergé eggs, and box scores resemble video game stats, but it's true. The fact that defence still matters is comforting after seemingly every quarterback in the league threatened passing records in 2011-12.

On Jan. 21, the Niagara Ice Dogs made quite a case towards lobbying for a larger arena, playing the Sudbury Wolves in front of a sold out crowd of 3,145 at the Gatorade Garden City complex. Unfortunately the Dogs' six game home winning streak would be snapped in a close 4-3 loss to the Sudbury Wolves.

Brock University's Women's Basketball team rang in the New Year with a split against the Guelph Gryphons and Wilfred Laurier Golden Hawks. The sixth-ranked Badgers had their perfect record broken as they looked for their 10th victory on the road against the Hawks, and now sit with a 9-1 OUA record — still good for first place in their division.