Article from First Ever National Schools Championships Found

An article from the first ever National Schools Championships in 1944 has been found in the archives at St George’s School, Hertfordshire, who also hosted the tournament that year.

The document outlines the St George’s 1st XII results from the tournament and offers a critique of each player in a particularly no-nonsense fashion.

For instance, A. Saunders, who played Defence Wing, is said to have “not very accurate” passing while J. Burgin (Attack Wing) “needs more practice and concentration”.

It’s not all bad though with B. Whiteley (Defence Wing) being hailed as “very useful. Her stickwork is good on the whole” while M. Retinger (Centre) had “a good understanding of the game”.

The winners of the inaugural National Schools Championships, according to the article, were Bedford Physical Training College who defeated St Mary’s, Calne, in the final.

St Mary’s still play lacrosse and took part in last year’s National Schools Championships while Bedford Physical Training College merged with Bedford College of Physical Education in 1976, and became a part of De Montfort University in 1994, before finally being merged with the University of Luton in 2006 to create the University of Bedfordshire.

This newly found document is an informative, if a little humorous, piece of lacrosse history that gives us a sense of just how long lacrosse has been a part of inter-school competition in England.

The National Schools Championships, now in its 76th year, takes place every year in its now permanent home at Aldershot Garrison Sports Centre.

Current holders of the trophy, and winners of the 2019 competition, Berkhamsted School will look to retain the title when the 2020 Championships take place between 29 February and 3 March.

See the full document below:

You can grab yourself a ticket to this year’s National Schools Championships by clicking below!

England Lacrosse statement on personal equipment

England Lacrosse would like to remind players and officials of rules regarding the wearing of personal equipment.

At a recent Officiating Advisory Group meeting, it was raised that the group had been made aware of instances of safety rules for the sport not being adhered to.

England Lacrosse takes player safety as a priority and safety rules must be followed to ensure that all players and officials can undertake a safe game.

The Officiating Advisory Group require the following to be highlighted to all players, officials, coaches and administrators.

All players, whether playing men’s, women’s, mixed, or indoor lacrosse, are required to wear mouth guards to participate. 

·      As per World Lacrosse rules and local regulation in England, players must wear a World Lacrosse approved mouth guard at all times during a game. Failure to do so will result in the appropriate sanction by officials, which will include refusing to let a player participate. Details of the World Lacrosse mouth guard specifications can be found in the WL rule books

All players, whether playing men’s, women’s, mixed, or indoor lacrosse, are required to remove all jewellery.  

·      As per the World Lacrosse Rules and local regulation in England, players must remove all jewellery. Failure to do so will result in the appropriate sanction by officials, which will include refusing to let a player participate.

There are certain exceptions regarding religious and medical alert jewellery, the precise wording of which can be found in the rulebooks linked below.

England Lacrosse’s main priority is to keep participants safe. We believe that following all equipment and safety regulations is an integral part in doing so.

If any player is unsure of any regulations or requires clarification, links to both sets of rules can be found in the links below, or on the World Lacrosse website.

Details of Funeral of Former Lacrosse Official, Rodney Burns

England Lacrosse can announce that the funeral of experienced former official, Rodney Burns, will take place at 3pm this Friday (17th January) at Manchester Crematorium Old Chapel.

Rodney, who played for South Manchester and Wythenshawe before turning his hand to officiating, passed away on 8 January.

He dedicated his whole life to lacrosse and became a highly successful national and international referee, officiating some of the biggest games both home and abroad.

On the day of his death, fellow veteran official, Phil Pearson, released this statement:

“The game of lacrosse has today lost one of its shining lights and someone who I will always be grateful for his help.  

“It is with great shock and sadness that we have today been advised that Rodney Burns has died In Manchester, England. 

“Rodney, as most of you know, was a former player of tenacious and gifted ability for South Manchester and Wythenshawe in Manchester.

“After a very successful playing career, Rodney became a highly successful national and international referee, refereeing the biggest games both home and abroad.

“To me and countless others he was a fantastic mentor, coach, assessor and, not the least, a great friend.

“He would always support others in helping them achieve new heights in lacrosse.

“He was chosen as Referee-in-Chief (RIC) for the 2012 Men’s U19 World Championship. and the RIC and deputy RIC for many European and World championships.

“His humour, honesty and fairness can never be understated.

“The greater lacrosse family offers our deepest and sincere condolences to his wife Frances and all his children and grand-children”.

Anybody who would like to pay their respects is welcome to attend Didsbury Cricket Club/Manchester Old Waconians Lacrosse Club after the service.

The family have requested no flowers but are accepting donations for Marie Curie, the British Heart Foundation and the Teenage Cancer Trust.

England Lacrosse would also like to offer our condolences to Rodney’s family and thank him for the years of service he gave to the game we all love.

2020 England Senior Men's Training Squad announced

England Lacrosse is pleased to announce the selection of a 40-man training squad for the England Senior Men’s National Team ahead of the 2020 European Championship.

Following the culmination of the 2019 trial process at the Men’s Winter Classic this past weekend, Team England Head Coach, Doug Shanahan, is delighted to announce the UK-based Senior Men’s Training Squad in the build-up to the Championship.

The Training squad will practice from January onwards to prepare for the upcoming Home Internationals in April and international series against Japan in May building towards our quest to retain gold this summer in Wroclaw, Poland.

The final 23-man roster for the 2020 European Championship will be made up of players from the Training squad and US-based English players currently playing NCAA lacrosse.

The final squad will also travel to Spain in June to participate in scrimmages against other European nations as well as an NCAA Division I lacrosse powerhouse.

In addition to the named squad, current England U19 team members Josh Poke, Josh Simpson-Pink and Danny Hilditch will be invited to join the Senior Men’s Training Squad after the culmination of the Under 19 World Championship cycle.

Head Coach Doug Shanahan said: “I am really looking forward to the process of building the most competitive team possible. The process of moulding young players and adding chemistry with our veteran talent is perhaps the best part of being a coach.

Creating a competitive and winning environment every time we are together should help us to great team success.”

Assistant Coach Sam Patterson commented:, “I’m really excited to move forward with this group of young players and build a team capable of defending our European title in what will be the toughest competition that has ever been held”.

When asked about the team and the journey to the European Championships, Offensive Coordinator, Mike Bartlett stated: “This is an exciting group of players with the correct blend of veteran experience and fantastic young potential, which will serve us well in our quest for gold this summer.

We understand and appreciate the size of the task ahead of us and are looking forward to putting the hard work in to achieve our goals on the road to Wroclaw, starting with the Home Internationals in April and the exciting scrimmage against Japan in May”.

Congratulations to all the players selected for the 2020 Training Squad – everyone at England Lacrosse is behind you in your quest for gold! You can keep up to date with the boys’ journey on the road to Wroclaw by following the team on Instagram at @teamenglandlax and on Facebook at Team England Men’s Lacrosse.

England Lacrosse Training Squad

GK
Will Baxter
Hal Dwobeng
Matthew Goddard
Elliott Hurry

Defence
Will Allsop
Andrew Baxter
Benjamin Berven
Joe Chorlton
George Dunn
Tom Hallam
Taylor Harrison
Tommy Kirkland
Tom Roche
Daniel Smith
Matthew Tatton
Paul Wainwright
George Walker

Midfield
Freddie Atkins
Joseph Baythorpe
Tom Bracegirdle
Matthew Collier
Ryan Forshaw
Elliot Leonard
Cam Major
Daniel Matthews
Luke Mills
Ben Page-Laycock
Michael Pomfret
James Ready
Christian Scarpello
Ryan Sweetman
Ming Trinh

Attack
Daniel Condron
Nathan Edwards
Phillip Johnson
Jake Parker
Will Prescott
Tom Roper
Ben Stringer
Daniel Watson

England Lacrosse Appoints New Club Co-ordinator

England Lacrosse are delighted to announce that former Academy Operations at Arsenal FC, Kasey Allen, has been appointed as our Club Co-ordinator.

Kasey will work with the lacrosse community around the country to lead on club development initiatives and coordinate, organise, and promote delivery, with the ultimate aim of increasing lacrosse participation.

Previously, Kasey has worked in rugby with various international men’s & women’s teams as well as for Badminton England, the Women’s Cricket World Cup, the ICC Champions Trophy, and, most recently, Arsenal FC’s Academy.

A keen volunteer at her local and county rugby clubs, Kasey believes '“lots of sports have one thing in common: the passion of the people behind them”.

About her new role at England Lacrosse, she went on to say:

“I am really excited to meet lacrosse clubs around the country and the people behind them to see how I can aid the development of the sport and the programmes we [England Lacrosse] run, such as the University Liaison Officer Programme”.

England Lacrosse welcomes Kasey and looks forward to the exciting work she will be doing with the lacrosse community throughout the country!

If you have any queries for Kasey, you can contact her at k.allen@englandlacrosse.co.uk.

England Lacrosse to host a series of men's university talent clinics

England Lacrosse are excited to be hosting a series of men’s university talent clinics designed to introduce the most talented university players to high-level coaching and performance methods.

The ultimate goal of the clinics is to develop players capable of playing for the England U23 team and/or Premier League Lacrosse in the future.

The U23 England Squad was introduced in 2018 and is an additional opportunity for player development between the U19 and Senior levels of the England set-up.

University Lacrosse is the biggest growing participation sector and the clinics aim to give players the opportunity to access coaches in the England Lacrosse Talent Pathway and showcase their abilities. 

Through the programme, we will also be creating links between players and domestic clubs to ensure pathways are created for players to continue playing at a competitive level after graduating. 

The clinics will cost £20 per person.

If you have any questions regarding the clinics, please contact Kerrie Lawler at k.lawler@englandlacrosse.co.uk

Confirmed Dates and Venues:

Sunday 2nd February - Sheffield Hallam University

Sunday 16th February - University of Nottingham

Sunday 29th March - Royal Holloway University

We’re still looking for venues to host more men’s university talent clinics! If you’re interested in hosting, please contact Kerrie on the above email address.

*Please note, if you don’t already have an account on the England Lacrosse Membership Platform, you will be required to create one in order to book onto a clinic.

Learn with Team England Coaching Team: 6 January 2020

The England Women’s Senior squad coaching team will be hosting their annual ‘Learn with Team England’ coaching day aimed at sharing learnings with coaches of the game.

The Team England Coaching Staff day will be centred around the below topics that focus on developing modern coaching methods and techniques particularly in relation to the changing rules of the women’s game.

The day will include classroom sessions and observed practical sessions all run by members of the England coaching staff.

Learning Topics:

• Getting ready for free movement: perspectives from the USA collegiate experience

• Breaking a zone defence: what the Under 19s learned playing Canada

• Modern defensive skills: how to adapt your defences with the moving through the crease rule

• Developing team attack in the six-a-side game

• Developing the lacrosse athlete: S&C and fitness perspectives from our Head of Performance

Date: Monday 6 January 2020
Time: 10.30-3.30pm
Location: Caterham School, Surrey
Price: £60 (Two for £100) Lunch included

All proceeds from the day go to the England women’s national squad minus a booking system admin fee.

Bookings can made below through the England Lacrosse Membership platform. Select the ‘January Learn with Team England Inset’, login or create an account and follow the booking process.