A men’s lacrosse game may attract larger crowds but listen up, boys– there is a lot that can be learned from girls’ lacrosse and by no means should the female version of the game be ignored or downplayed. There are some key differences between boys and girls lacrosse – from the physicality allowed to the sticks used to the rules enforced –that have changed the way girls are playing the game...and in a good way.
To begin with, girls’ lacrosse is a purer form of the game, with a lineage closer to the sport’s early history. In the female version of the game, players abide by rules that are closer to the original regulations, with being “out of bounds” only recently resulting in a stoppage of play. (More info: http://apps.uslacrosse.org/news/2005/hardboundaries.phtml)
The sticks used in girls’ lacrosse have a shallower pocket than the sticks boys use in their games. This lack of pocket depth forces girls to be more aware of where the ball is, since the ball is more likely to fall out of a shallow pocket. For this same reason, girls also must be aware of their body positioning, grip placement, and stick location at all times since any false movement could mean loss of the ball. From this, boys can see how increased awareness makes girls more attentive to the physical aspect of the competition and can learn to increase focus on the mechanics of the game.
Girls are also experts at defensive positioning. Much like in basketball, girls’ lacrosse players are not permitted to openly check each other so girls don’t have the option of knocking another player out of position. Instead, girls are always aware of their location and must be precise about their positioning. If boys can add this additional consciousness to their game, they would be able to improve their method of body-checking while remaining in proper position to defend their goal as necessary.
Teamwork is also hyper-important in girls’ lacrosse. In the girls’ game, each player needs to always be aware of their position on the field and communication plays a huge role in that. When the whistle is blown to stop the game, girls are not permitted to move. Therefore, they must think ahead when they see a ball going out-of-bounds. It can be easier to beat someone one-on-one without the physicality allowed in boy’s lacrosse, so girls rely on their teammates to let them know when their competitors are in their area so they can make the moves necessary to retain ball possession. Enhancing team communication for boys’ lacrosse can make a team stronger and more primed on both the offensive and defensive zones of the field.
To learn more, Lacrosse IQ's blog is available at http://bblax.com/lacrosse_IQ/.
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There are several arguments made in this post that I disagree with completely. First off, men’s sticks and women’s sticks throw and catch almost identically. When women’s heads started using new technologies to enable deeper pockets and increased ball control, while still being legal, they rendered the argument that women’s sticks are more difficult to manage obsolete. Regardless of that a good lacrosse player can quickly adjust and perform the same with a girl’s stick. Regarding the argument that women’s lacrosse is closer to the original game, though there are certainly some aspects that are (i.e. no pads and no boundaries until recently) similar women’s lacrosse is entirely different than the original game. Set aside the obvious difference that is the brutality of the Native American game, women’s lacrosse was actually created in Scotland and was based off of field hockey. Another argument that I take particular offense to, being a close defenseman/LSM, is that women’s lacrosse requires better defensive skill. Certainly there are aspects of the defensive game in women’s lacrosse that limit the defenders ability to prevent the offense from scoring, however these are greatly overcome by the rules that incentivize/enable poor defense. I will begin with one of my least favorite rules, the charge call. This occurs when a offensive player knocks over her defender while dodging. If you get knocked over, run into, or in some instances take a flop (to draw a foul) on a dodge and the person you are guarding beats you then you are a bad defenseman. In men’s lacrosse if this happens you get scored on, in women’s you get rewarded with possession. Another rule that helps the defense is the shooting space rule. Although it is a defensive penalty it prevents the offensive player from shooting the ball because the sliding defensive player is too close. Lastly, there is my absolute least favorite rule, the dangerous shot rule. If you are running with the ball and there is a defender in between you and the goal you must make every effort to go around them before shooting and you hit them with the shot you get a penalty. In men’s lacrosse if you have a shot and the defenseman is in the way you still shoot and if it hits them, it hits them. It gets more ridiculous when shooting from a stationary position, in this instance you must have at least one body length between you and the defender and have a clear lane before shooting. Again this makes defense much easier because all you need to do is get too close to the offensive player and they can’t shoot. The last instance for this rule is, if you decide to shoot the ball into a crowd and it hits another player, you will receive a two-minute minor penalty. Even if you hit an opposing player, including the goalie, with the ball while trying to pass, you will receive a penalty. This brings me to my next point there are equal, if not more, lessons women’s lacrosse players can learn from men’s lacrosse. In particular shooting/passing mechanics, defensive positioning, and dodging. For example, the women’s lacrosse team at my college is taught to throw and shoot from the shoulder using a pushing motion, this decreases both power and accuracy. To properly throw and shoot you should be using your entire upper body and legs, pushing off from your back leg forwards to your front leg, corking you torso and following through with your arm coming over the top ending with your stick on the opposite side of your body (if you are throwing with your right hand the stick should be next to your left leg). As far as defensive positioning goes do not rely on the charge rule when defending up top, instead, approach from and angle, match hips with them and drive them down the alley. When dodging from up top if they come at you with square shoulders pull out to the top of the box sprint straight at them throw a head fake to one side and then split off the defenders opposite hip. I taught all of these to my girlfriend and she scored nine goals with three assists in one game in high school before going on to become one of the top players on her college team. Are there lessons for men’s lacrosse players to be learned from the women’s game, yes. Are there lessons for women’s players that can be learned from the men’s game, again yes. However, these can be learned more effectively through through good coaches teaching skills that are relevant to both sports, because after all the fundamentals that make a good men’s lacrosse player make a good women’s lacrosse player and vice versa.
There are several arguments made in this post that I disagree with completely. First off, men’s sticks and women’s sticks throw and catch almost identically. When women’s heads started using new technologies to enable deeper pockets and increased ball control, while still being legal, they rendered the argument that women’s sticks are more difficult to manage obsolete. Regardless of that a good lacrosse player can quickly adjust and perform the same with a girl’s stick. Regarding the argument that women’s lacrosse is closer to the original game, though there are certainly some aspects that are (i.e. no pads and no boundaries until recently) similar women’s lacrosse is entirely different than the original game. Set aside the obvious difference that is the brutality of the Native American game, women’s lacrosse was actually created in Scotland and was based off of field hockey. Another argument that I take particular offense to, being a close defenseman/LSM, is that women’s lacrosse requires better defensive skill. Certainly there are aspects of the defensive game in women’s lacrosse that limit the defenders ability to prevent the offense from scoring, however these are greatly overcome by the rules that incentivize/enable poor defense. I will begin with one of my least favorite rules, the charge call. This occurs when a offensive player knocks over her defender while dodging. If you get knocked over, run into, or in some instances take a flop (to draw a foul) on a dodge and the person you are guarding beats you then you are a bad defenseman. In men’s lacrosse if this happens you get scored on, in women’s you get rewarded with possession. Another rule that helps the defense is the shooting space rule. Although it is a defensive penalty it prevents the offensive player from shooting the ball because the sliding defensive player is too close. Lastly, there is my absolute least favorite rule, the dangerous shot rule. If you are running with the ball and there is a defender in between you and the goal you must make every effort to go around them before shooting and you hit them with the shot you get a penalty. In men’s lacrosse if you have a shot and the defenseman is in the way you still shoot and if it hits them, it hits them. It gets more ridiculous when shooting from a stationary position, in this instance you must have at least one body length between you and the defender and have a clear lane before shooting. Again this makes defense much easier because all you need to do is get too close to the offensive player and they can’t shoot. The last instance for this rule is, if you decide to shoot the ball into a crowd and it hits another player, you will receive a two-minute minor penalty. Even if you hit an opposing player, including the goalie, with the ball while trying to pass, you will receive a penalty. This brings me to my next point there are equal, if not more, lessons women’s lacrosse players can learn from men’s lacrosse. In particular shooting/passing mechanics, defensive positioning, and dodging. For example, the women’s lacrosse team at my college is taught to throw and shoot from the shoulder using a pushing motion, this decreases both power and accuracy. To properly throw and shoot you should be using your entire upper body and legs, pushing off from your back leg forwards to your front leg, corking you torso and following through with your arm coming over the top ending with your stick on the opposite side of your body (if you are throwing with your right hand the stick should be next to your left leg). As far as defensive positioning goes do not rely on the charge rule when defending up top, instead, approach from and angle, match hips with them and drive them down the alley. When dodging from up top if they come at you with square shoulders pull out to the top of the box sprint straight at them throw a head fake to one side and then split off the defenders opposite hip. I taught all of these to my girlfriend and she scored nine goals with three assists in one game in high school before going on to become one of the top players on her college team. Are there lessons for men’s lacrosse players to be learned from the women’s game, yes. Are there lessons for women’s players that can be learned from the men’s game, again yes. However, these can be learned more effectively through through good coaches teaching skills that are relevant to both sports, because after all the fundamentals that make a good men’s lacrosse player make a good women’s lacrosse player and vice versa.
Girls lacrosse is nothing more then organized freeze tag, girls and boys lacrosse shouldn’t even be compared.
this is what girls lacrosse sounds like to me…. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=feTytlRd2KY&feature=related
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This lack of pocket depth forces girls to be more aware of where the ball is" That’s because girls don’t have to worry about a 250 pound kid charging at them. The boys lax I played was brutal and is almost a completely different sport then girls lax.
GUESS THAT MAKES ME SEXIST HUH
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This lack of pocket depth forces girls to be more aware of where the ball is" That’s because girls don’t have to worry about a 250 pound kid charging at them. The boys lax I played was brutal and is almost a completely different sport then girls lax.
GUESS THAT MAKES ME SEXIST HUH