How many is too many?

[cololax]

To those of you who have coached on a team where every player gets equal playing-time, what do you think the maximum should be for the number of players on one team?

[XxlacrossexX]

20 is a good number IMO

[UVAlaxer432]

equal playing time is for softies...play the best bench the worst.

no but seriously 16-20 is good.

[spenny]

i rarely give 100% equal playing time (i coach 7th/8th grade) its dependent on effort, practice attendance, attitude, etc.

that said, i'm a fan of 18-20.

16 can be too few when you have a conflicting school trip or something else like that, my last 2 teams have had 24 and its a struggle to get everybody on the field

of course if you are going to one of those tournaments where you are going to play 2 or more games a day for 2 or 3 days, 24 is a great number, maybe even 26.

[picknroll]

The middle school program that I coach in has equal playing time rules. We target team size at 17 to 19. I prefer 17 myself. While we do have "equal" playing time rules for normal play, we consider man-up or man-down squads as "extra" playing time that does not apply for the equal playing time rules. That way we can reward kids that show up to practice and do well with a spot on the EMO or MDD. It's a compromise to purely "equal" playing time. That usually works out well, unless some ref is calling the came overly tight and someone's always in the penalty box.

[THE_1protector]

i agree with spenny, you should have to earn playing time in lax just as you earn money at a job. life is not fair. if i didnt show up to a practice before a game or practiced sloppy, i would expect to get benched for a good part of the game if not all. and a stern talking. idk i feel that i should stick, ''it builds character'', somewhere in here, i dont know where though. someone will figure it out. none the less, equal playing time is a concept that should be discarded. it just gives lazy, less-motivated players the oppurtunity to take away from the active, more-motivated players time who want to play more and work hard to become more proficient.

[cololax]

One thing I should have mentioned is that the team is 4th graders. League rules mandate that all players play. I do penalize players who don't show up to practice and don't have a reasonable explanation from their parents. Our competitive teams begin in the 8th grade.

We're in the situation where the team has been together for 2 years, playing field in the spring, Chumash in the summer and indoor/box in the winter.

This year we've got at least 15 returning and 9 new (new to the game) players sign up. The league admin. didn't have any threshold for cutting things off or starting a waiting list for a second team.

On one hand I'm thrilled that there's so much interest. On the other I'm concerned about our past players who have worked so hard to build team chemistry.

It's going to be difficult to arrange lines and maintain any type of flow to the game.

There are obvious drawbacks to running only skilled and less-skilled lines. On the other hand I fear by balancing lines our more skilled players may revert back to the one-on-one game.

The team's chemistry has come a long way and their passing game has recently really come along.

Anyway, it's a interesting situation and I guess we'll do the best we can.

If you have any recommendations I love to hear them.

[Chas]

Are we talking indoor or outdoor?


Edit: Just read it. It depends on the game. For indoor, we dont have more then 11

[THE_1protector]

On one hand I'm thrilled that there's so much interest. On the other I'm concerned about our past players who have worked so hard to build team chemistry.

There are obvious drawbacks to running only skilled and less-skilled lines. On the other hand I fear by balancing lines our more skilled players may revert back to the one-on-one game.

this may sound obvious but, you need to build the confidence of the more skilled seasoned players in the ability of the less skilled players. this is a problem my high school has. more often the skilled players will hold the ball longer or try to force a pass to somone they have confidence in. this usually results in a turnover.
they players must be able to trust each other. but this goes for the less skilled players too, they need to have confidence in themselves so they are not getting overwhelmed or scared and then dump the ball off when it is not good to do so.

[spenny]

at the 4th grade level id do 100% PT for everyone. those kids are too little to have the other pressures put on them. (thats why i said the age group i coached)

another thing. on my team, everybody plays in every game regardless. how much is up to you

[cololax]

Do you think it's a bad idea to lessen playing time for this age group if they miss practice numerous times assuming the parent does not have a legitimate reason? I allow the parent to dictate whether the excuse is legit or not (sick, homework, etc.)

I've always felt it was important to teach younger players that they have a responsibility to the team as well as a right to have fun while being on the team.

For what it's worth, in my 2 years of coaching, none of our players have lost any PT.

[indianlaxer24]

The best number for a team is 23that way you can root out all the bad players and only keep the good ones and they all get ammple playing time.

[spenny]

its hard to say, as i dont yet have much experience with that age group.
right now i'd say dont hold it against them, imo they are too young to really grasp the idea of responsibility. they arent that far removed from reaching the age of reason.

[Marcus]

I coach JV boys. Lacrosse is just growing in our area and I get a lot of novices and first timers. I do not give EQUAL play time but nevertheless everyone gets substantial play. Because I am working with developing fundamentals, I reward work ethic, teamwork, sportsmanship, and commitment. Towards the last half of the season, I start to combine that with player ability as reflected in more action through EMOs and Man-Down defense. But if my focus is to get these players to have a firm foundation and nurture the qualities that support continued growth and the characteristics of great players to come, then I need to remember that current skill is not an accurate way to decide play time for these players.