FORT WORTH, TX (August 14, 2023) – The Panther City Lacrosse Club has signed Vice President of Lacrosse Operations & General Manager Bob Hamley to a multi-year extension, the team announced today.
Hamley originally joined Panther City in September of 2020 and has been instrumental in the success the team has had since their inception, including their first ever playoff appearance in 2022-23, in only the club’s second year of existence.
“Bob has done an exemplary job in building our lacrosse operations from the ground up,” Panther City Lacrosse Club President & CEO Greg Bibb stated. “Under his leadership, Panther City has become a playoff-caliber team on the field and an impactful partner in the community. We are thrilled to have Bob leading our team for the foreseeable future and I’m excited to work with him as we pursue a National Lacrosse League championship.”
Hamley is responsible for the hiring of Head Coach Tracey Kelusky, the 2022 Les Bartley NLL Coach of the Year winner and through his roster construction helped Panther City qualify to their first double-digit win campaign, tallying a 10-8 record and qualifying for the playoffs for the first time in franchise history by finishing as the third seed in the Western Conference. In their inaugural season, Panther City had more wins than the previous two NLL expansion clubs’ first seasons combined, as Panther City won seven games in their inaugural season, including a five-game winning streak. For his efforts in 2021-22, Hamley was named a finalist for the 2022 NLL General Manger of the Year Award.
Hamley’s ability to scout and develop talent, while also acquiring and signing impact players has been at the forefront of Panther City’s success and allowed the team to be competitive from their very first day. He drafted Jonathan Donville first overall with the team’s first ever NLL Entry Draft selection in 2021. Donville took home the NLL Rookie of the Year award in 2022-23 after leading all rookies in points (90), which were the fourth-most ever by a rookie in NLL history, and assists (67), which were the second-most ever by a rookie in NLL history. He finished second amongst rookies with 23 goals. For his efforts, Donville was named NLL Rookie of the Week five times this past season, more than any other rookie in the league. Donville finished 9th in the NLL with 67 assists and his 29 power play assists were the most in the league and he finished tied for second in the NLL with 31 power play points. Under the direction of Hamley, Panther City, in its short history has had four different players win the NLL Rookie of the Week honors for a total of 10 times (Donville 5x, Patrick Dodds: 3x, Dean Fairall & Mathieu Gautiuer). In 2021-22, Hamley acquired four rookies who finished in the top-20 in rookie points, including All-Rookie Team member, Patrick Dodds, who finished second amongst rookies in scoring in 2021-22.
Hamley has also had success outside of the draft, acquiring or signing players that have had made an instant impact on the team and asserted themselves as some of the best at their position in the NLL. Will Malcom was acquired prior to the 2021-22 season and in 2022-23, Malcom led the team with 96 points (35G/61A), which was the first 90+ point season in franchise history and his goals and assists totals were both top 15 in the league. Goalie Nick Damude was also a key acquisition for Hamley as the goalie has improved each year since arriving in Panther City. Last season, Damude finished third in the NLL in Goals Against Average (GAA) with a GAA of 10.31. Damude allowed the fewest goals in a single game in the ’22-23 season when he only allowed three goals against Las Vegas on 12/16, which made him only the fifth goalie in NLL history to allow three or fewer goals in a full regular-season game. Also defensively, Hamley acquired defenseman Matt Hossack in the 2021 NLL Expansion Draft. Hossack finished seventh in the NLL in caused turnovers (28) in 2022-23, while also recording 111 loose balls. Transition Player Josh Medeiros was signed as a free agent prior to the start of Panther City’s inaugural season and in 2022-23 led all transition players with 21 goals, nearly tripling his rookie season goal output (8 goals in ’21-22), en route to numerous career highs such as goals, loose balls (91) and caused turnovers (12).
“I want to thank Greg Bibb and the entire Panther City ownership group for their ongoing commitment and dedication to building a championship team, Panther City Lacrosse Club General Manager Bob Hamley said. “I am very proud of our clubs’ accomplishments and yet understand there is much more work to be done. I am ecstatic to continue on with this great group we have in our front office and the men that make up Panther City Lacrosse on the floor. My mentality has not changed since I was hired in September of 2020 and I am even more motivated now to build towards bringing a championship home to North Texas and our great fans and community partners.”
