Newfoundland Lacrosse

A while ago, in one of my infrequent blog updates, I mentioned that myself and a few others were trying to get a little lacrosse league going. I believe when I first wrote, the league was just starting. I actually don't know if we had even played up to that point. Well, since then much has happened, so I figure I'll let you in on what's been going on:

First of all, we started off playing in the school gym of Larkhall Academy which was a little small, but perfect for the half dozen bodies we had come out. Then, we finally landed our first goalie, Darren. People seem a little more interested in playing when they're shooting at someone, not to mention the fact that Darren had quite a bit of lacrosse experience and was able to teach a lot. Eventually, more and more bodies started showing up and we moved to Brother O'Herir Arena, which was much better for playing with more people, other than the fact that many of us couldn't run the length of the rink. It was really turning out to be something else. James (the other person who was significantly involved with the league) and I were quite proud of what we had accomplished, but it wasn't done yet. A short time later, we got another goalie, some legititmate lacrosse nets and we started getting anywhere from 14 to 18 bodies out a night. Everyone was improving and it was a great time.

So, in my opinion, it would have been a success story if it stayed like that. But, it didn't. More people were interested, and though attendance didn't grow a whole lot with people moving in and out of the province, there was certainly a small buzz about the sport growing. We even had a girl join us for a while, which turned out even better after we found out she was always up for a few post-game beers like myself and a few of the other guys.

Guess what, the growth didn't stop there. Unfortunately for me, I've been out of the province, so I've missed most of it, though I've been keeping up to date. James has been in contact with the CLA (Canadian Lacrosse Association) and they've been great to us. They sent down a coach to teach us how to coach at absolutely no cost. So, now we've got over a dozen certified coaches in the province with plans on getting kids started with lacrosse. The CLA has also offered to ship us a few dozen sticks so we can have the equipment needed to introduce the sport.

And that's basically where we stand today... other than the former NLL player that decided he wouldn't mind coming out for a rec game once a week. Maybe when I get back, I'll get a shot at catching him running through the kill zone with his head down... or maybe it'll be the other way around. Either way, it's great fun!

So, stay tuned for some more updates (trust me, we've got some more tricks up our sleeves) or you can check out the new website at nllacrosse.com... it's still under construction, but if anything comes up, it'll be posted there!