Actually, the confusion is on your end. Private sports club league rules have nothing to do with education choices that parents make, and grade-based leagues have nothing to do with age. If you would like to talk about rec leagues, a wider age gap exists in each group, so your argument doesn't work there either. There was never an exact birth year league for lacrosse. To fixate on a kid that repeats 8th grade, or whatever grade, when you paid to be in the grade-based league is ignorant. You can protest by not joining grade-based leagues. Aside from kids that repeat in MS, I assume you think pre-first private school kids are doing something wrong too? Really, at 6 years old, I don't think there is some nefarious plot by parents, looking way ahead, before some even play a particular sport, to game a private club league some years down the road.
Actually, you are trying too hard to justify the farce that "grade based" teams have become in the last three years. You are correct that 'there was never an exact birth year league for lacrosse." However, there were (and still are in rec leagues) "age bands" (i.e. U-9, U-11, U-13 etc.). The age bands were not perfect and were not well enforced, but age mattered (at least around the edges). With the advent of grade based teams, the age of the players has become irrelevant. The only criterion is what grade the player is in regardless of his age. The only limit on how old a player can be and still play on a particular grade based team is how many times the player's parents are willing to "hold back" their son. This has proven to be no limit at all and from my perspective an age band should apply to grade based teams. In other words have grade based teams, but also have an age restriction. Grade based teams have led to wild disparities in the size of the players on the field that would comical except for the danger it presents to smaller players (the smaller players being in many, if not most cases at the appropriate age for the grade).
You are correct that "[y]ou can protest by not joining grade based teams," but that is a straw argument (and I am sure you know that). All of the clubs in the DMV have gone to grade based teams which means if your son wants to play competitive lacrosse he is going to be on a grade based team with players (and players on opposing teams) who may be 2 years older (or in some cases more than two years older). Implicit in this is that players that are "on age" and "on grade" have no basis for complaining. Put another way, the conversation seems to always be that it is the "on age" and "on grade" players (and their parents) who have a problem if they complain about "hold backs" rather than the "over age" and "off grade" player (and their parents) who in many cases are in fact gaming the system and creating the problem.
I would also point out that lacrosse is the only youth sport that I am aware of that has no age bands and does not require proof of age by a birth certificate. Lacrosse is not a special case.
But, it is not grade based with age restriction. So, shut up about gaming the system and cheating and taking advantage. If you fall into the danger argument category, time to pick another sport. Fault the league all you want, stop criticizing parents and kids for signing up correctly within their grade, especially prefirst kids that have absolutely no freaking idea what you are talking about!
Pre-firsts are not the real issue and you know it. The issue is the culture of "hold backs" (or the new euphemism "re-grading") in the 7th and 8th grade. I also never said "cheating," you did. It cannot be cheating if the teams are grade based. However, that does not mean that there is not "gaming" going on and it absolutely is "taking advantage". Heck if size (height and weight) were not an advantage there would no point to holding players back. You also flip the argument so that it is up to the "on age" and "on grade" players to man up and deal with the hold backs , or otherwise "pick another sport". As the clubs and leagues are now configured that is the reality, but it does not make it right. The argument is curious. Older kids play down and if the on age kids do not like then, as you say "it is time to pick another sport." Enlightened thinking.
At some point Lacrosse will hopefully do what other youth sports do and impose some age restrictions enforced with birth certificates. Until then the "gaming" will continue.
By the way your last sentence is curious. How could pre-firsts have no "freaking idea" what I am talking about? I suspect that they are not reading this blog.[/quote]
Kids that did prefirst that are now in MS, since you and people like you consider them to be hold backs. Yeah, they don't get your BS.
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Spin it any way you want. But any child going to kindergarten and then prefirst instead of 1st grade, that child is heldback from 1st grade. Maybe you dont like that word?? What is your word for not moving on to 1st grade?? Prefirst?? That is a grade?
There are many reasons the child doesn't move on to first grade. And that is the right of parent to do what is right for their child. But make up your own word for holding them back in kindergarten. Maybe it will catch on. Still doesnt have anything to do with youth sports? Well all youth sports except the convoluted world of no age limit grade based youth lacrosse.
You youth grade base lacrosse apologists always try to make this some type of education issue?? This is a no age limit sports lacrosse issue which has nothing to do with holding your child back.
