I am the Madlax poste from earlier. Here is my second post. I have an older son who is a 2017. I truly believe that a watershed event for Crabs was my son's 8th grade year in the spring. That spring the U-15 West Coast Stars came east and beat Madlax soundly and played Crabs to the buzzer. That summer Crabs U-15s lost frequently and only won one summer tournament. Madlax Capital U-15s my son played on did not win a summer tournament. Come fall Ryan McClernan pushed very hard for grade based teams for all youth levels and he stuffed it through within the next year. Nobody around DC or Maryland got in his way and most of the other club owners including ours went along with it. Ryan's reasons were primarily that his age based teams were starting to lose. I think with the growth of lacrosse that happens over time anyways but around here nobody believes that. Ryan basically runs the NPYLL and controls the best summer tournaments including Young Gunz or Crabfeast. Get in his way or on his wrong side and your club is out of these leagues and tournaments. Very powerful person in Mid-Atlantic lacrosse. I doubt you will see a return to age based teams without a fight.
Totally agree with you about Ryan M. He is a total pos and is in it for himself and the money. He wants to walk his fat [lacrosse] around claiming he has the best 2020 team and that he is a superior lax coach, which he isn't. I have seen him at games and his behavior is pitiful. Seen him belittle his players, throw his hat on the ground and acts like he is some kind of superior being. I would like to see someone or some organization take him on and put an end to his bs. His present 2020 team is almost all holdbacks even to the point of a few double holdbacks which puts them close to 16 years old by next spring. Yet Crabs parents/fans keep denying this, yet the entire lacrosse world in Maryland know it is true. Go on the Crabs website and read his lacrosse coaching bio, it is a complete joke, he is in it for the money and to able to walk around like he is the king of youth lacrosse. If his 2020 team had to play with age appropriate players they would be a very weak team, they simply would be at best an A team and nowhere near a AA team. He needs to be taken out of youth lacrosse for the good of the game and for the safety of other players.
