Jr. A Timbermen well represented at NLL Draft

Six players from the Nanaimo Timbermen Senior and Junior lacrosse programs were drafted into the National Lacrosse League this past weekend.

Two players from the Senior Tmen were picked in the top 13 on Saturday, Sept. 6, with Noah Manning going to the Calgary Roughnecks ninth overall and Levi Verch being selected 13th by the Saskatchewan Rush.

Timbermen president Chris Bowman said Manning should be able to add to the Calgary offense quickly after a strong rookie season in the WLA with the Timbermen this past summer.

“Noah is an offensive, cerebral player that will make everyone around him better. He should be a point producer for a long time. He can play inside or outside and he’s a great passer who can set up his teammates.”

Verch was a longtime Junior A and Senior A Timbermen who spent 2025 playing field lacrosse in the PLL.

“Levi is an animal,” Bowman added. “He’s a big strong, physical beast on loose balls. He’s a great shutdown defender that I think most offensive guys are going to hate playing against every night.”

In the second round a pair of players with Junior Timbermen connections were chosen.

Transition specialist Jordan Vincent was taken 29th overall by Vancouver and offensive right hander Liam Aston, who played briefly with Nanaimo in 2024, was picked up 33rd by Ottawa.

Vincent is a player the Timbermen expect will move up from the Junior team to the Senior squad in 2026 and Bowman is excited to see how he develops during the NLL season.

“Jordan’s got elite speed. He can pick up a loose ball and outrun just about everybody on the floor. Going from Junior A to the NLL is a big jump. 

It will take some time and development but at that level there’s more coaching and more video so that learning curve can increase quickly so he gets up to speed. Ultimately it benefit us next summer when Jordan comes back to Nanaimo.”

Two more Senior A Timbermen were picked in the draft with offensive righty Lukas Olsson going to Calgary in the fourth round and defender Max Skene heading to Ottawa in the sixth round.

The Mann Cup lacrosse championship is currently underway in New Westminster with the Salmonbellies hosting the Six Nations Chiefs in a best of seven series for the national title.

Timbermen 2025 leading scorer Ryan Sheridan was picked up by the Bellies for the tournament and scored two goals in his Mann Cup debut, also on Saturday.