Rogues players hosted basketball camps and enjoyed what NL has to offer when it’s not covered by snow
By Nicholas Mercer
Published Aug 07, 2025
Before this summer, Newfoundland Rogues players had only seen St. John’s in the winter and had only experienced the city as it lay under siege by snow and ice.
That changed last week, as two players, Kevin Bridgewaters and Anthony Lefeau, were able to visit St. John’s and the province-at-large to see a different side of their winter home.
For a veteran like Bridgewaters, the ability to see St. John’s through a different lens was something he didn’t get to do on some of his other basketball stops.
“It was cold, so I wanted to see it,” he said. “Here, everybody talks about how beautiful it is during the summers. They talk about all this stuff that’s going on. You hear people talking about that, and it’s the stuff that you want to see.”
A part of those new things to see was the 207th running of the Royal St. John’s Regatta, which the pair enjoyed from the shores of Quidi Vidi and spent time interacting with the people who came to their games.
“It was kind of cool because we were walking and to see how fast those people were rowing,” said Bridgewaters. “I didn’t know they were going that fast.”
GOING CAMPING
Part of the provincial exploration for the two Rogues teammates was taking their basketball experience to places like Bay Roberts, Dunville and Old Perlican, among other stops.
Driving those trips around the bay were the basketball camps led by the Rogues in school gymnasiums in each of those communities.
Not only was it a way to keep the conversation around the team going in the months between seasons, but the camps are also a way to support their community.
“They were fun. Long days, but very fun,” said Bridgewaters.
“It was really cool to see kids from day one, yeah, and then see how much they improve to day five with just consistency, repetition of doing, you know, certain drills they never did before.”
GIVING BACK TO THE TEAM
It can be a lot to ask the players, many of whom are American, to give up a couple of weeks of their offseason to come back to St. John’s.
A lot of times, players like Bridgewaters and Lefeau use the summer months to not only work on their games but also look for their next assignment.
However, the pair enjoyed their time in St. John’s so much this season that it was an easy decision to come back.
They way they see it, it’s also a way to give back to an organization that has looked after them.
“We’ve just been taken care of from the organization,” said Lefeau. “They really love what they do and why not give back to them? We love to come back.”
With any luck, they’ll be back in St. John’s again with the Rogues this fall as they prepare to start their fifth season.
If that reunion happens, Lefeau has one thing on his mind.
“We’re hoping to and trying to win a championship,” he said. “We hope to bring one here.”