Question concerning middle school lacrosse

[buckeyefive]

Hi,

My daughter has been playing lacrosse for 4 years now and is starting her 8th grade season which is a competitive league that keeps stats. She has new coaches this year that have made some rules on her team that seem like very bad ideas and I wanted some opinions on.

First of they are not allowed to stick check at all and the coaches won't even teach them the proper way to check. It is legal to check at this level, just her coaches won't allow it. Her opponents have been checking.

Next, if they have a break away opportunity at the goal, they are not supposed to take it, instead they are to slow it down and pass it a few times before trying to score. One of the coaches made the comment to my daughter that "this is a team sport and just because you can score doesn't mean you should" and if she "doesn't pass she would run sprints in the next practice". Now, yes I agree that it is a team sport and I would agree that if you don't have an opening to make a good shot then pass it around and find an open cutter, but they just played last night and numerous times the other team just came right down the middle and scored and not one extra pass within the restraining line and her team would get the swivle head going as soon as they got into the zone.

I would like any comments. I may also post another one with other issues I have. Thanks in advance and good luck with your season.

[2ifbyc]

Buckeye,

It’s good that your daughter has found the sport at such a young age and that you are obviously taking an interest in her development within the sport. I’ll offer my $0.02 and that might be exactly what it is worth but none the less, here it is.

As a coach myself, I would welcome the opportunity to speak with any of the parents of my players about my coaching philosophy (in fact I always have a mandatory parent only meeting prior to season for just this reason). I would recommend that you approach the coach(es) and politely ask to better understand the reasons they have for the on field decisions they have made with regards to checking and passing before a move to goal. They should be able to articulate to you a reasonable answer. Be prepared to have a difference of opinion but understand that coaches most often have a reason for their approach particularly when it involves a more “conservative” style of play as you have described.

What you have described in my opinion will only make your daughter a better player. To me, checking is always a gift that I give my players when (and only when) they have demonstrated the mastery of playing defense with sound, fundamental body position. I hold fast to this philosophy regardless of the age group or level of the player or the league we play in. As for the passing rather than a break to goal...again, in the bigger picture it will make your daughter a better player. She can use all of the same fundamentals she uses in making a move to goal to get open to receive a pass and she will learn about creating, finding, and moving to open space. All of those things make a good lacrosse player better.

As for what the other team was doing...unless you want to move your daughter to that team, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that your daughter receives appropriate and directed coaching that will make her and her teammates better players. We all want what is best for our kids, and if the coach is missing that, then I would take issue but I am hesitant to throw a coach under the bus who seems to be fostering better fundamentals and a more complete understanding of team play (with what little you have described).

I hope your daughter plays well and continues to enjoy the sport!

[buckeyefive]

2ifbyc,

I understand your opinion and in many ways agree with them. I maybe should have explained my daughters situation better for a clearer picture of her. I was hesitant to put this into the first comment to not seem to "proud parent" but she is one of the teams top 2 if not best players. She played in an indoor league this winter and was put into the High School level play as an 8th grader because she has that level of skill as felt by the coaches of that league. Even in that level of play she consistantly was in the top of the stats for that league and was top on her team. She does have a complete understanding of the skills that her current coaches are not allowing her to use and this is frustrating her.

I am and have begun the process of setting up meetings with the new coaches with my concerns. I just want to make sure that I am not just acting like a over zealous parent. I am hoping to see if other players or coaches out there feel that I am correct in trying to pursuade the new coaches into allowing my daughter to play at her ability and not restrain her. As well as doing a disservice to the other 8th graders by not teaching them about checking since it will be a larger part of the game in high school.

Again, thank you for your input.

[celtlax]

If your daughter is as skilled as you say then you should move her to a more competitive league or a try a travel team.....if you want her to have any chance of making varsity as a freshman she will need to play at a higher level.....but make sure she does play on a skilled team that plays like a team......

[ques]

I like what the coaches are doing. You need be be able to play good D without checking. I coach HS and I don't allow my team to check for the first 3-4 weeks, we work on proper body position. More often than not you lose your position when you go for the check, so you are better off not trying. Body position is more important than checking ever will be. As for not scoring on a break-a-way I like that also. I see it in the youth leagues all the time fast breaks and not one team plays a settled attack. It teaches you how the game is played. To many youth teams have a couple of good players and they could score all day if you let them but that does not teach them how to play the game correctly. Your daughters coaches are doing her a favor by teaching them the game the right way. So I would say she has some good coaches and your daughter should learn to play like a team player and work with the coaches, she will be a better player for it.

[JRMINT]

Well I agree with 2fbyc and also ques on this subject, as the fundamentals are what is important. You of course do sound like every proud parent and there is no fault with that, I would question you if you had a negative comment about your daughter's play. The best thing about a team sport like lacrosse is there are always those that are learning and those that are excelling, it is great that your daughter is at a higher level. But as I teach my boys and the girls lacrosse team I coach that no matter how good you are or how many goals you score or how many tricks you can do, what matters on a TEAM is that you play exactly that, AS A TEAM.

The coaches having a passing rule is great because if there is no passing all a team has to do is center in on that one dominate player and it is GAME OVER. With this rule what your daughter can do is be a leader and bring everyone elses game to her level and I believe that, that is a true sign of a team player and leader, but one that takes it to the goal all the time is not a team player and is someone who is chasing stats. Trust me you ask any player in any competitve sport if they would rather have the stats or play in the championship game a team player will always pick to play in the championship game, take a look at Dan Marino has all the stats but no ring and trust me he would give anything to have a ring.

There are so many youth out there that whether it be a girl or boy will always want to take it to the goal time after time but it takes discipline to go to the goal and then dish it off for an assist. If your daughter is playing at the higher level as you say then that will be to her teams benefit as she can draw double teams and pass it off. In the end it should matter whether everyone works as ONE UNIT and in the end seeing it's competive, that as a team they also get the Win.

Now the second part about the other team that your daughter played against the other night and the other team coming right on down the field and scoring without passing, I don't see that comparing a well coached team and a team that just doesn't care about fundamentals of the game how they compare. To me it sounds like you wish your daughter was on that team so she can do the same, but the true issue is the lack of defense on your daughter's team if a girl can come down and score like that. So if it was as easy as you made it sound I understand the no checking by the coaches as it sounds like your daughter's team doesn't have the basic defensive fundamentals down so why run when you can't even crawl yet?

As a coach I do agree with the coaches and whether they are New or Vets they should concentrate on the basics and ensure that everyone has the fundamentals, once that is established then the program will come around and allow for the scoring opportunities all the way around for everyone. I tell my boys and girls teams that as a team "You are only as strong as your weakest link", so if your daughter is the top or the second best on the team what can she do as a team player is to bring everyone elses game up by he play and attitude, now to me that is what a being a top player or the best on the team is all about, not one that has the best skills and can score. One of the skills as a player that all players should fine tune and work on as much as their stick skills and shooting is the skill of being a Team player and bringing their "A" game to the rest of the team.

Erving "Magic" Johnson was and is a Hall of Fame player on the court but that is because he was a selfless player and passed more than he scored, he had the gift to score but chose to draw the double or triple and pass. Michael Jordan another dominate player and probably the best to ever play the game of basketball. When he wanted he could score and no one could stop him and he knew it and showed it from time to time but he also brought everyone on his teams to his level of play and that is why they won 6 rings as a TEAM. I live in VA and trust me when MJ came to the Wahington Wizards they all thought around here they were going to the "Big Game" and get a ring, even though it was in MJ's latter stage of his career he was still MJ and could score when he wanted, but what he lacked was a TEAM and players that could step it up to his level, and because of that they never went further than a playoff appearance.

I know I've used different sports figures besides lacrosse (and I don't even like basketball, but these to me are team players and leaders in their sport) but my point is no matter how good a player your daughter is she will be so much better if she can be a TEAM player and you can be a TEAM supporter.... Thanks and I wish you and your daughter the very best in the rest of the season... And that is my $00.02 that 2ifbyc left over and that's all it is, and what it may be worth.

[2ifbyc]

I scrounged in my couch and found anther $0.02 so here it is.

I had a feeling your daughter was one of the more talented players on her team without you having to explain it. She is to be congratulated for that. I have worked with enough talented players to understand their frustration when they feel they are being told to play “down” in respect to their ability. I’ll tell you the same thing I have told all the girls (and their parents) I have had in that situation...it’s about becoming good at the things we don’t like that makes a good player great.

I actually consider you very lucky to be in the situation you are. It is a wonderful opportunity for a “teachable moment” in your daughter’s life. In my experience, when we as parents and coaches can turn the frustration into understanding and action, there is no better reward. If your daughter is capable of playing great defense without the use of checking, then what a great example for her teammates. If she is able to consistently be open for the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th pass or make the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th pass to a teammate en route to goal, then she is demonstrating to her team the skills they should be striving for. I will almost universally require my “higher level” players to set the example for the team. I rely on these players to help bring their teammates up in ability and when given that charge, the true leaders respond. It sounds to me that your daughter is perfectly positioned to fill just such a role.

Speaking specifically to your meeting with the coaches to “persuade” them into allowing your daughter to play to her ability level, I would be willing to bet my starting goalie that the coaches will not be persuaded to change their philosophy regardless of your approach. Any coach worth their whistle will share with you their philosophy as I mentioned in my first post, but if a coach bent to every parent with a persuasive argument (no matter how well intended) then nothing would be accomplished and the starting lineup would be everyone on the roster. A coach that can be swayed by a parent (again, no matter how well intended) is not a coach that my kids would play for.

And to your point about not teaching checking being a disservice, I must respectfully disagree. Not teaching proper defensive positioning would be a disservice (and one that I see repeated all too often in the teams we face) worthy of a parental intervention with the coach. Every season, I take my team to watch a high level D1 college game and one of my points of emphasis is for them to count the number of checks during the game (I actually give everyone...including the parents... a handout with blanks for things like ground balls, checks, draw controls, etc.). Girls are always surprised at how few checks are thrown in a college game (they are also usually surprised that the winning team almost always has more ground balls and more draw controls too but I’ll need another $0.02 to get on that soapbox). A very close coaching friend explained it best when she said “which is more threatening to an attacker and likely to cause a turn over...an Apex on a Harrow shaft or a tenacious defender who can keep in front on the run and will not yield her ground on the 8m?”

I welcome differing opinions but I am happy with my philosophy and where it has taken my teams. If I exceeded $0.02 worth, I apologize and ask that it be added to my tab.

[marleydog]

pressure causes turnovers. checks are a part of it though and i'm sure the coach will get around to it when the footwork and mental comprehension is higher. and to be honest, it sounds like your daughter's team has bigger fish to fry on D than just checking. if other girls run the length of the field and score, then 11 girls on the field at that moment need to come to grips that they don't even know the most basic of d. all of them attack, mids, and d are responsible for that.



when the skill level is widely varied, it is difficult to work on all things, but it sounds like your daughter's coach has a focus that is pretty realistic, and without knowing anything else, i'd say you have someone that is developing for later, and not selling the kids short by going for the win now.

i've been through this in soccer. and a lot of parents just don't see the forest for the trees. fast break goals = boot ball soccer.... checking = slide tackles... maybe not an exact match but they are very very similar in context.

if your daughter is that much better than the others, encourage her to make the others better around her, and after the season quietly look for another club.

not that i think you would do this, but please don't get into the sideline antics and criticism if there is any. hopefully, your conversations will yield some things that you and the coach can agree on. if not, you still need to allow the coach to coach.

also, i don't know if you have coached any sports prior... but there is a percentage that will be unhappy with the team, no matter what. parents keep track of playing time to the minute, who plays where and when, why doesn't the team learn to pass more, check, run a zone, install an offense similar to the HS team, so and so is a ball hog, etc etc etc