The second year professional with the Boston Cannons is coming into his own in John Tucker’s system. He was a second round pick after his career ended at UMass and he might just be in line to inherit the coveted job of offensive leader as Ryan Boyle’s days are fewer and fewer in Major League Lacrosse. The future looks bright for the Cannon’s with Manny in the lineup.
Will Manny is an undersized attackman, but that has not limited his potential in the slightest. His senior year was not what he expected after a stellar junior campaign. Manny was second on his team with thirty-four points. One wouldn’t necessarily disregard that point total as the 2005 Johns Hopkins Blue Jays, that went on to win the championship had similar scoring totals, but it is what he did his junior year that set the bar high for Manny.
During his junior season in Amherst, Manny scored seventy-seven points on 44 goals and 33 assists. A tremendous scoring output for the season and he was even a finalist for the Tewaaraton Trophy, given annually to the top player in collegiate lacrosse. With his point total dropping significantly his senior season, the spotlight wasn’t incredibly bright for Manny heading into the professional ranks. The Boston Cannons saw something because they selected him in the second round of the 2013 Collegiate Draft.
Moving into the professional lineup, Will Manny has only gotten better with time. During his rookie campaign, Manny played in ten games for Boston. He scored thirty points on 18 goals and 12 assists. An average of three points per game is significant contribution, especially given that he was a rookie.
As the summer of 2014 approached, Manny was called upon again by the Cannons to play an even bigger role for his squad. In the eight games that he has played this season, he is one point away from tying last years total in points, he is even with his assist total last season, and one goal away from tying last years’ mark in goals scored. Even with continued attention given to Manny, he is producing at a clip of over three points per outing.
Now as for why this is so important to the Cannons success. Paul Rabil is the featured player on the Cannons and he has been producing at an MVP caliber again in 2014, but he needs help. Boyle has played in all the games the Cannons have had to date, but his scoring touch has significantly dropped. He has fifteen points on the season as a whole. Boyle is also third on the team in assists, which is typically his role behind the cage at attack.
Manny meanwhile is second in assists with the Cannons, behind Rabil, and goals, behind only Kevin Buchanan. The duo of Buchanan and Manny could be the future of the Cannons. Even though Buchanan has some years on Manny, they provide a scoring punch at attack that balances the offense and takes pressure off Rabil.
Will Manny has one game of five goals and another with four, both wins for the Cannons. If anything can be for certain by reviewing his stats, Manny has been able to produce with the greats in the league and might very well be making his way into that category. His ability to score goals and play the field with his head up, in position to feed, has been a huge asset to the Cannons.
If the Cannons are going to make some noise this summer, they are going to have to find their groove soon. They cannot seem to get ahead of the pack, even though they have some players playing at an extremely high level. If the Cannons can right the ship and put back to back wins together going into the home stretch, the future will be bright for them heading into the playoffs. Will Manny will have a lot to say about how far this team goes in August.
– Brian Davies
@briandavies15
