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Play of the Game
Boys Field Lacrosse is a fast-moving sport which features the goal-scoring and checking of hockey, the offensive strategies of basketball, the throwing and catching of baseball, and the running of soccer.
Lacrosse was invented by Native Americans, who were playing long before Europeans settled North America. They played with goals placed from a half mile to several miles apart, and they often had more than 100 players per team. It was considered more than just a
game, and they played to settle disputes, for spiritual development, to help in the healing process, and to prepare for war.
Lacrosse has been played by college teams in America since 1877, and there are currently over 200 men’s and 200 women’s college varsity programs in the U.S., with about half offering scholarships.
The NCAA lacrosse championship is the second-most attended NCAA championship event.
Players
Each team fields 10 players at a time: A goalie, three defensemen (usually with long sticks), three midfielders, and three attackmen. A team must always have three players in its offensive end of the field and four (including the goalie) in its defensive end; a team failing to do so is “offsides,”
Equipment
All players must have helmets, shoulder pads, arm pads, gloves, and mouthpieces. Failure to wear any required piece of equipment results in a one-minute nonreleaseable penalty. In particular, mouthpieces just cover all upper teeth and be in the mouth; biting on the corners is not sufficient.
The Field
A regulation lacrosse field is 110 yards long by 60 yards wide. The goals are 6 feet by 6 feet, and they are surrounded by a 9-foot diameter circle called the “crease.” There is a scorer’s table area (which also serves as a penalty box and substitution area), and there are lines marking attack, defensive, and wing areas.
Face-offs
Though there are exceptions (which involve penalties or technical fouls), there is normally a face-off at the beginning of each period and after each goal. During the face-off, all attackmen and defensemen must be in their respective defensive areas, and there must be one midfielder from each team behind each wing line. The two face-off men come down facing each other, with their sticks parallel to the center line and their bodies to the left of the head of their sticks. Both hands must be on the stick and touching the ground. The official calls “set” and then blows the whistle. At this point, both players try to clamp the ball or direct it to one of their midfielders (who are free to run in from the wing area at the whistle). The defensemen and attackmen cannot cross the defensive area line until someone gains possession of the ball or until the ball crosses either defensive area line. If a team commits a violation (such as delay of game, having an
illegal face-off position, moving before the whistle, or crossing a line before permitted), the ball is awarded to the other team.
The Crease
The crease area offers protection to the goalie. No offensive player may step on or in the crease area, nor may they interfere with the goalie while the goalie is in the crease. However, offensive players may reach into the crease with their sticks provided they do not interfere with the goalie.
Cradling
When a player has the ball, he will “cradle” by rocking his stick back and forth to try to hold the ball in his stick. The force generated by cradling helps keep the ball from falling out or being checked out of the stick, and in keeps the ball in the proper position in the pocket for passing and shooting.
Stick Checking
Players may attempt to dislodge the ball from an opponent’s stick by “stick checking”: hitting the stick (or the golved hand on the stick) with their own stick. They may not swing their sticks recklessly.
Passing
Though players may run with the ball, they can move the ball more quickly by passing it. Most passes are thrown overhand and in the air, although you will see bounce passes and behind-the-back passes.
Shooting
Players will usually shoot overhand or sidearm, although some players will attempt underhand and behind-the-back shots. Sometimes a player will beat his defender to get open and get a shot, but often a pass from a teammate will result in a shot. In this situation, the attack player may try to “quick stick” the ball into the goal by redirecting the pass without cradling first.
Field Lacrosse Equipment List:(Boys)
THE ATTACK
The Position:
The position of attack requires the most stick skill of all positions, with the exception of the goalie. Attackmen should demonstrate good stick work with either hand and have quick feet to maneuver around the goal in heavy traffic. Effective attackmen have good peripheral vision, precision passes, and can effectively dodge, screen and shoot. The attack are always on the field as a scoring threat and, given an even match up, should score often. Typically the attack work behind the net, called the "X" area, and on the flanks of the crease, called the "wings". This gives the attackmen the most room to dodge and cut. Attackmen generally restrict their play to half of the field. They must work with the midfield to run an effective offense. An attackman should be quick, alert, confident in one-on-one situations and be able to withstand physical punishment by the opposing defensemen.
Some Rules:
The attack use dodging, picks (just like in basketball), and passing to generate a good shot. Similar to basketball, the object is to move the ball around until the defense breaks and someone is left with an open shot. One way to do this is by letting an attackman go one-on-one with a defender. The attackman tries to beat his defender by dodging, causing another defenseman to slide, creating an unbalanced situation in which he can either shoot or pass to someone else who is wide open. The attackman can move in any direction with any amount of force, as there are no charging rules. The attackman, however, like all players cannot clamp the ball in his stick with his thumb, chest, or helmet. He is also not allowed to push or hit the defenseman's stick with his arms or hands. This is called warding.
THE MIDFIELDER
The Position:
The midfielder is considered by many to be the backbone of the lacrosse team. Good midfielders need speed, stamina, hustle and determination. They are required to play both defense and offense. However, the middies are largely responsible for a key aspect of the game - transition. Transition is by far the most important part of the game and helped create the nickname, 'The Fastest Game on Two Feet'. It involves retrieving loose balls, or clearing saved shots and running and passing the ball up the length of the field. If a team can get the ball and have an extra man advantage on the offensive end of the field, even for a split second, they have a good opportunity to score. When this advantage occurs in transition it is called a fast break. A midfielder should be able to shift quickly from offense to defense. Midfielders do not have to be proficient scorers, but should be able to "read" what is about to happen next.
Some Rules:
Along the center of the field is the midfield line. It is this reference point that determines whether a team is offsides or not. The rules for offsides are simple: you must have 4 players on your defensive end at all times, and 3 players on your offensive end at all times. Since it doesn't matter which players stay on what side, it is up to the midfield to keep their team onsides, by staying on one side or the other. Since the position requires so much running, the midfielders often changes lines on the fly, as in hockey.
THE DEFENSEMAN
The Position:
The defenseman’s responsibility is to defend the goal. Although size aids the defenseman, more importantly defensemen should be quick, agile and aggressive. Speed is always a valuable commodity, but the ability to act and react, to judiciously apply pressure and to recover are the key ingredients to an effective defenseman. They must keep the attack at bay. Their job is to keep the ball away from the net so the opposing attack doesn't get a good look at the goal. The job is difficult: A defenseman doesn't know where the attack are going or what they are going to do. In his arsenal the defenseman has a long stick (14U and above). This stick allows a defender to keep the attackmen at a distance, thus allowing him to throw checks without being beaten on foot. Good footwork is an extremely important part of playing good defense ……to be able to apply pressure and be aggressive, without lunging a foot and body forward is key, otherwise the offensive player can then easily go around the overly aggressive defenseman. A defenseman must be able to think and react quickly, and most importantly communicate with his fellow defensemen.
Some Rules:
Defensemen are allowed to check the attackmen they are covering. What this means is a defenseman is allowed to use his stick to hit the attackman's stick and arms. A defenseman cannot strike the attackman on the head, and cannot strike the attackman's body with the stick with any significant force. This penalty is called a slash. Most slash penalties occur when a defenseman employs the use of a 'slap' check, which is when the stick is swung perpendicular to the attackman's shaft in a slapping motion. The other common check is the 'poke' check, in which the defenseman simply jabs straight on at an attackman's stick in a motion like that of a pool cue. When the attackman is close enough, a defenseman can use his body for defense. Body checking, or hitting, in lacrosse is very similar to that in hockey. A legal body check is any hit that is head to head (no hitting from behind). People who are legal targets are anyone standing within five yards of a loose ball, or anyone with possession of the ball. Hitting someone without the ball, while another player has possession is called interference.
THE GOALIE
The Position:
The position of goalie in lacrosse is probably one of the most intense positions of all sports. Essentially, you must play catch with people at a very high speed. Unfortunately for the goalie, most people don't throw at his stick. The goalie wears additional protective equipment: throat guard and chest protector. A goalie stick is typically of normal length, 40-50 inches, with an extra wide head. Unlike goalies in hockey, lacrosse goalies must be very mobile. They often come out of the circular crease that surrounds the 6’x6’ goal. Explosive speed and very quick hands are key ingredients in making a goalie, as well as a tolerance for pain. When a goalie comes out of the crease to fetch ground balls or to clear a saved shot, he becomes a target, much like the quarterback in football.
A good goalie leads the defense by reading the situation and directing the defensemen to react. A goalie also directs the clearing patterns and provides intangible cohesion that binds a team together. A good goalie should have excellent hand/eye coordination and a strong voice. Quickness, agility, confidence, a "thick skin" by not getting too down when scored on and the ability to concentrate are also essential.
Some Rules:
The goalie defends a square goal six feet wide by six feet high. Around the goal is a circular crease. The crease area is limited to entry by the goalie and defensive players only. Once the goalie makes a save he has 4 seconds to either pass the ball or run the ball out of the crease. In these four seconds no one may touch him. Once the goalie steps outside the crease he is no longer allowed back into the crease unless he yields possession of the ball.
Ball Down – to be yelled by all the players when the ball hits the ground
Release – to be yelled by all the players when the ball is scooped by a teammate
Here’s your help – to be yelled by a player who is open to receive a pass
Box it – tells the player that the ball must either enter the offensive “box” before the ten second count expires
Man Down – a team that has been charged with a penalty and is playing short handed
Man Up – the opposite of Man Down. The team has a man advantage
Clear – yelled by the goalie when a save is made, tells his players to begin the transition to offense
Horn – yelled by a coach, telling the box official that he would like a substitution to be made. Can only be called when the ball goes out of bounds on the sideline
Mark Up – yelled by a coach, telling the defensive players to pick a man to defend or immediately find the guy they are guarding
Slide – when another defender “slides” over to help a teammate who has been beaten by a dodge or cut
Middie Back – let the midfielders know that one of them needs to stay on the defensive side of the field so a defenseman can clear the ball
Pick – offensive move, one player attempts to block the path of a defender guarding a teammate
Riding – includes all attack and midfielders, riding is an attempt to get the ball back from the other team when they are in their defensive
Penalties
These fouls are “technical fouls”. If you commit one of these when the other team has the ball, we are MAN DOWN. If you commit one when we have the ball, we only lose possession of the ball.
These fouls are “personal fouls”. They always result in a MAN DOWN. They can range from 1-3 min. penalties (based on severity). Four personal fouls and you are suspended from the rest of the game.